We have made it. The end of the first half of the MLB season is here. We have the MLB Home Run Derby on Monday and the MLB All-Star game on Tuesday, which means we have nearly a week to tweak our fantasy baseball rosters as we head into the second half of the year. There are some hot prospects that were called up this week and you can read all about them in this week's fantasy baseball waiver wire article.

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

Brayan Bello, SP, Boston Red Sox

ESPN: 19% / Yahoo: 41%

FAAB: 8-10%

We’re at the point where Brayan Bello has entered into must-own territory with how well he’s pitched. He’s coming off his first complete game and has undergone a transformation on the mound in 2025.

Through 15 outings (14 starts) this year, Bello has a career-high 3.27 ERA and although the strikeouts are down, everything else is trending in the right direction. His 53% ground ball rate is up from last year, the hard contact is down, and lefty power-hitters are not owning him as they have in years past.

Over his last seven starts, Bello has six quality starts and has won three games to boot. Three times over that span he’s struck out at least six batters, but also has two games in which he’s had three and one punch outs, which gives you a look at the inconsistencies in that department. That being said, Bello has become a complete pitcher and should be rostered in all fantasy formats moving forward.

 

Cam Schlittler, SP, New York Yankees

ESPN: 6% / Yahoo: 20%

FAAB: 8-10%

It was an impressive debut from Cam Schlittler as he was called up for the New York Yankees after it was announced that Clarke Schmidt would miss the rest of the year due to Tommy John surgery.

Although Schlittler has a 5.06 ERA, his xERA is 2.81 along with a 3.53 xFIP and 3.23 SIERA. His fastball velocity was interesting because at Triple-A this year it sat at 96.6 and after his first start at the major league level it’s 97.9 MPH. That obviously makes you think that adrenaline or maybe his stuff will possibly play up with the big league team.

Schlittler was the 10th rated prospect for the Yankees prior to his call up, but he has a real chance at sticking long-term. He has a 60-grade curveball too, so it’s not all about the velo, he could be a complete pitcher.
 

Dean Kremer, SP, Baltimore Orioles

ESPN: 10% / Yahoo: 25%

FAAB: 3-5%

Look what we have here? Dean Kremer has really started to figure it out the more the season has gone on. He fired seven scoreless innings against the Miami Marlins on Friday night and it was an impressive outing. He generated 13 swings-and-misses and the strikeouts have already been trending upwards recently.

Kremer has struck out at least six batters in three of his last four games and five of his last eight overall. He’s allowed one earned run or fewer in four of his last five starts which has helped him lower his ERA to 4.24 on the year while his FIP has dipped below four.

Kremer was nearly at a strikeout per inning in each of the last two seasons, so we’re starting to see the positive regression in that department lately. His swinging strike rate is on par with where it was last year too. Kremer shouldn’t cost you too much on the waiver wire either.
 

Adrian Houser, SP, RP, Chicago White Sox

ESPN: 22% / Yahoo: 34%

FAAB: 3-5%

So I guess we really have to take this Adrian Houser thing a bit more seriously, huh? He’s made nine starts this year and eight of them have ended in a quality start. He threw seven innings of one run baseball his last time out and has fired at least seven innings in three straight games and has allowed just ONE earned run over that span.

Houser is not a great strikeout pitcher and in fact, he barely gets any, but where he excels is at getting groundballs. He’s getting ground balls at a 48% clip this season and it’s not as if this has been the easiest stretch of games either. He faced Toronto twice, had to pitch in Coors Field and faced the Mets and Mariners too.

I think this is a great add for anyone looking for ratio help and those that play in quality start leagues. As the season has gone on, his sinker and slider usage is up while his four-seem fastball usage is way down. That’s a big plus because his sinker rates out as an elite pitch this year, which  makes sense as to why he gets so many ground balls.

 

 

 

Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Infielders

Brice Matthews, 3B, SS, Houston Astros

ESPN: 2% / Yahoo: 6%

FAAB: 2-4%

The Houston Astros have called up top prospect, Brice Matthews, and although he’s playing 2B for them currently, he has 3B and SS eligibility. The 23-year old had a really good campaign at Triple-A before being called up, hitting 10 home runs, driving in 39 runs and swiping 25 bags. He’s a dual threat option that could stick for a while depending on how long the Astros will be without Jeremy Pena and Jake Meyers. 
 

Colt Keith, 1B, 2B, 3B, Detroit Tigers

ESPN: 10% / Yahoo: 27%

FAAB: 4-6%

There is a LOT to like about the 2025 version of Colt Keith. Like..a lot. If you don’t believe me, look at what Baseball Savant has to say:

Not only is Keith in a sea of red, he’s on fire recently and has multiple position eligibility. Keith has moved into the leadoff role for the Tigers as he’s hit atop the order in 16 straight games he’s played in. As a leadoff hitter this year, Keith’s hitting .313 with a .944 OPS, .266 ISO, and .400 wOBA. There’s no reason to think that changes anytime soon either.

 

Ha-Seong Kim, SS, Tampa Bay Rays

ESPN: 3% / Yahoo: 7%

FAAB: 3-5%

The Rays paid Ha-Seong Kim more money than they normally do and he’s finally returned to the field after missing nearly the entire first half of the year. Kim’s off to a good start as he’s already homered and stole a base through four games.

Kim hasn’t fully lived up to his power-hitting potential posting no more than 17 home runs in any of his four seasons in the majors, but he’s shown serious stolen base upside. In 2023, Kim stole 38 bases and last year, in just 121 games, he swiped 22 bags. He should settle into a more every day role and be a solid add in roto formats hitting in the heart of the Rays lineup.
 

 

 

Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Outfielders

Alec Burleson, 1B, OF, St. Louis Cardinals

ESPN: 40% / Yahoo: 48%

FAAB: 9-11%

I try to stay away from suggesting players that are rostered in over 50% of Yahoo! Fantasy baseball leagues as well as ESPN fantasy baseball leagues, but for some reason Alec Burleson now checks in under 50% on both.

Why?

Burleson has been incredible as a waiver wire pickup this year and if he’s sitting there still, he should be scooped up with no real thought behind it.

Over Burleson’s last 48 games dating back to May 10th, which is over a two-month span, Burleson has hit .318 with a .905 OPS, .227 ISO, and .385 wOBA. He’s belted nine home runs over that span, which is when his fantasy value started to soar.

All of his expected numbers remain in line with his seasonal stuff, if not there’s some positive regression coming too. Burleson is a must own and it doesn’t hurt he has eligibility at both 1B and in the OF as well.
 

Jac Caglianone, 1B, OF, Kansas City Royals

ESPN: 17% / Yahoo: 29%

FAAB: 5-7%

It obviously hasn’t been the best start to his career, but Jac Caglianone is super talented and sometimes players take a bit to adjust to the major league game. He’s hit two home runs this week and now is up to four on the year, which has been his game since college.

With how many people have dropped Cags, it’s time to pounce and add him while people are down on him because the Royals clearly haven’t lost confidence in him. There’s actually some things to like about things under the hood.

He’s hitting just .151, but his xBA is 100 points higher. His slugging percentage of .286 is an expected mark of .457. Good things are on the horizon.
 

Masataka Yoshida, OF, Boston Red Sox

ESPN: 3% / Yahoo: 7%

FAAB: 1-3%

Things get easier for Masataka Yoshida if and when Boston makes a trade because they have too many players to get into the lineup every day, but he’s a very good offensive player when he’s in there. He should play more heading into the second half as he slots in at DH and possibly, eventually, at 1B. Let’s not overlook the fact that Yoshida is a career .287 hitter and his career 113 OPS+ is quite good.

He doesn’t profile great for weekly roster locks because he’s not going to play every day, and for at least a little bit longer, he’ll seemingly only be playing every other day. Yoshida should help your ratios quite well when he’s facing a righty.
 

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