The All-Star festivities were fun and all that, but it’s time for the second half of the MLB season to kick off. With the start of the second half set to begin, a week off could freeze your mind when you return to your fantasy leagues, so I’m here to help you make the best fantasy baseball waiver wire additions possible. This article should be in partnership with MLB's injured list with how many players are currently on it, but that’s a good way to get ahead of your league mates, as some studs such as Luke Keaschall, Zebby Matthews, Luis Gil, and Shane Bieber are all close to returning.

There are a lot of great fantasy baseball waiver wire additions, and we’re attacking them all in this week’s column. If you have any questions about your waiver wire, hit us up in the Fantasy Alarm Discord or hit me up on Twitter!

 

 

 

Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Pitchers

Zebby Matthews, SP, Minnesota Twins

ESPN: 3% / Yahoo: 20%

FAAB: 9-11%

It shouldn’t be long before we see Zebby Matthews back in the majors as he’s returned to the mound in a rehab assignment. During his first rehab outing, Matthews struck out nine batters in just 56 pitches. He averaged 97.4 MPH on the fastball, which is higher than his average fastball velocity at the major league level this year. It was 96.6 in his four starts.

Matthews has a massively high ceiling, especially in the strikeout department, as he’s averaged 11.8 K/9 and a 30% K-rate. Matthews had some awfully bad batted ball luck as his 5.21 ERA isn’t exactly a match with his 3.65 xERA, 3.20 xFIP, and 3.39 SIERA. The shoulder injury is seemingly behind him and shouldn’t be a concern moving forward. He’s one of the top fantasy baseball waiver wire additions of the week and could be a game changer for the rest of the season. 

Luis Gil, SP, New York Yankees

ESPN: 26% / Yahoo: 41%

FAAB: 8-10%

Are we calling this article the fantasy baseball rehab breakdown? That’s what it feels like. We have some big names returning from injuries, including last year's AL Rookie of the Year, Luis Gil. Gil made his first rehab outing and threw 50 pitches, the first 50 pitches he’s thrown in an official game this season.

Gil had a big rookie campaign, obviously, any time you win ROY, it is, winning 15 games while pitching to a 3.5 ERA and notched a 26.8% K-rate. He shouldn’t need much more on the rehab, and when he’s back, he’s a fantastic source of strikeouts and wins.

Shane Bieber, SP, RP, Cleveland Guardians

ESPN: 16% / Yahoo: 35%

FAAB: 7-9%

Everything looks back on track, right? Shane Bieber had a rehab start earlier in May that was shut down early because of elbow soreness, which is NEVER anything you want to hear for someone coming off Tommy John. It was viewed as a minor issue, and Bieber took the mound again during the All-Star break and threw two innings, striking out five batters.

It’s still going to take a bit of time for Bieber to make it back to the mound, and the Guardians are being very cautious with him, but he should slot into the rotation in August and finish out the campaign. The former American League Cy Young award winner could be a big help to someone’s fantasy baseball rotation down the stretch.

 

 


 

Slade Cecconi, SP, RP, Cleveland Guardians

ESPN: 7% / Yahoo: 16%

FAAB: 5-7%

Now let’s get to some pitchers that are currently pitching. Slade Cecconi opens up the second half of the year for the Cleveland Guardians at home against the Athletics. Cecconi has three quality starts over his last four outings and is now over a strikeout per inning for the year.

The 26-year-old Cecconi has upped his strikeouts from 18% to 24% this season and is getting more ground balls and fewer flyballs than he did a year ago. He’s changed his pitch mix this season and is throwing fewer fastballs, more sinkers (for the first time in his career), and more curveballs. More curves are good since it’s rated out as one of his two best pitchers, between that and the slider.

Cecconi is a solid source of strikeouts right now and is a solid fantasy addition moving forward. He should be added and owned in most formats moving forward, especially with Cleveland showing so much confidence starting him in their first game back from the break.

Janson Junk, SP, RP, Miami Marlins

ESPN: 10% / Yahoo: 21%

FAAB: 5-7%

It’s been incredibly impressive how fast Janson Junk has established himself as a quality starting pitcher in the major leagues, but that’s exactly what he’s done. It’s not perfect, but it's solid. He’s fired off three straight quality starts and has allowed two earned runs or fewer in five of six outings.

The flaws I mentioned start with the inconsistencies in the strikeout department. He’s only had five strikeouts in his last two games combined and has only struck out more than three batters once over his last four. After pitching to a 2.78 ERA as a reliever, he has pitched to a 2.6 ERA as a starter, and you don’t see numbers getting better the more they pitch very often.

Junk’s bread and butter is a slider that he throws over 40% of the time, and it’s seriously great. Per Fangraphs, the 8.3 rating his slider has is 13th best in ALL of baseball amongst pitchers with at least 20 IP. Only six of them are starters and are in the same stratosphere as Carlos Rodon, Garrett Grochet, and Jacob deGrom.

 

 

 

Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Infielders

Luke Keaschall, 1B, 2B, OF, Minnesota Twins

ESPN: 2% / Yahoo: 11%

FAAB: 10-12%

There isn’t much time left before Luke Keaschall is back in the heart of the Twins' lineup. He’s heading to Triple-A as he’s starting his rehab assignment. In his first seven games before breaking his forearm, Keaschall hit .368 with four runs, two more batted in, and five stolen bases.

Before the injury, Keaschall spent the majority of his time hitting third, and there hasn’t been anything in Minnesota’s offense that would suggest he can’t get that back when he returns. Keaschall was a top-60 prospect across the industry before the season after absolutely raking for two consecutive seasons. In 2024, he hit 15 bombs while also stealing 23 bases across 103 games in the minors. He’s someone you should pick up immediately.

Noelvi Marte, 3B, Cincinnati Reds

ESPN: 18% / Yahoo: 29%

FAAB: 6-9%

Noelvi Marte returned from the injured list and has played nine games in July, and has hit a few home runs and extra-base hits. In those nine games, he has three homers and a double. Marte has a high ceiling because he has power and speed, something he has yet to be able to show for an extended period of time. Whether it’s been due to health or suspensions, Marte has yet to be able to stay on the field.

Well, he’s been on the field for 28 games this year and he’s hitting .284 with a .547 SLG%, .375 wOBA, with six bombs, and five steals. Marte plays in an elite offensive ballpark, and that’s not going anywhere. The only thing holding him down is that the Reds continue to hit him ninth, but if he continues to rake, he’ll move up the order permanently.

It’s not lost on me that Marte was a top-100 prospect from 2022-’24, and now that he’s on the field, he has a chance to finally show off his true potential, and you should be the one to take a shot on him on your fantasy baseball waiver wire.

 

 


 

Otto Lopez, 2B, SS, Miami Marlins

ESPN: 34% / Yahoo: 39%

FAAB: 10-12%

What we’re getting from Otto Lopez lately, we should expect more of moving forward. He’s been quite unlucky this year when you look at some of his expected stuff. He’s hitting .250 with an expected average of .291, has a .313 wOBA and a .361 xwOBA while notching a .392 SLG% but an expected slug nearly 100 points higher at .481.

Lopez is showing all the goods this year as his move to shortstop has been fruitful. It’s given him multi-position eligibility, and now he’s been able to show off all of his skills. He already had a 20-steal season last year, and now he has 11 bombs at the All-Star break, which is already a career-high.

Lopez doesn’t strike out, has moved into the middle of the Marlins' improved lineup, and is a run-scoring and producing threat. He’s a fantastic add, and it’s almost too late because this is likely the last time he’ll be in this column, because his rostership is going to skyrocket.

 

 

 

Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Outfielders

Chandler Simpson, OF, Tampa Bay Rays

ESPN: 17% / Yahoo: 36%

FAAB: 9-11%

The league’s fastest man has been, well, fast at the major league level too, and nobody can keep him at first base or second base for that matter. After stealing 104 bases at the minor league level last year, Simpson has already swiped 26 bags in 53 games this season. His speed hasn’t been the only thing on display this year as he enters the second year, hitting .308.

If Simpson can actually keep this pace from an average standpoint, he’ll easily steal 50 bases this year, and I might be underselling him. 

Ramon Laureano, OF, Baltimore Orioles

ESPN: 4% / Yahoo: 12%

FAAB: 7-9%

2025 is the first time since Ramon Laureano was suspended is starting to look like the guy that first burst onto the scene in 2019 and put together 24 homers, 67 RBI, and 13 steals in just 123 games.

Throughout 68 games this year, he’s already belted 11 home runs with 35 RBI and 35 R and has a robust .867 OPS.

All of the expected stuff is in line with what he’s done so far this season, too.
 

 

There’s no reason to think this won’t continue and that he won’t continue to play every day. Especially when you factor in how good he’s been over the last month. It spans 22 games, but Laureano has slashed .309/.380/.531 with three home runs, nine doubles, 16 RBI, and 18 more runs scored. 

 

 

 

Angel Martinez, 2B, OF, Cleveland Guardians

ESPN: 2% / Yahoo: 5%

FAAB: 2-4%

It’s been a pretty pedestrian season, but July has been a good stretch of games for Angel Martinez, and if you’re looking for outfield help in deeper formats, he could be helpful. In July specifically, which is a span of 13 games, he’s hitting just .244, but he has a .556 SLG%, three homers, five doubles, and an .821 OPS.

Martinez definitely has flaws as he’s a free swinger and doesn’t really work any walks, and his K-rate has gone up over 21% for the season, which obviously aren’t great, but if the power sticks, then it’s really not a big deal. He’s also a threat on the basepaths as he’s already up to six steals. He had multiple double-digit stolen base seasons at the minor league level, so it’s not out of the question that he can replicate that at the major league level.


 

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