There’s almost a month left in the season, and now is the time to make a move. I’ve seen the odd drop in a lot of my leagues, and it’s amazing to watch how every layup pitches differently. You may not know this about me, but I play in over 30 leagues. All of those teams are different sizes, so it helps me a lot to gauge who to take in certain types of leagues. That said, there are many options on the waiver wire, so let’s start by discussing anglers.
The stats and rankings below were updated on 4/17. All rostership percentages are at Yahoo.
Feel free to comment here or contact me on Twitter @Bartilottajoel if you have any questions!
THE CATCHERS
10/12 Team additions
Dillon Dingler (DET, 42% Rostership) – I can’t be the only person who sees this name and thinks of Dirk Diggler from Boogie Nights. That’s one of my favorite movies, and this catcher has been swinging his bat like Diggler for the first few weeks. He was Detroit’s cleanup hitter last week, compiling a .367 OBP and .933 OPS so far this season. We’re talking about a guy who had a .369 OBP and .884 OPS between 2023 and 2024 in the minors, so this explosion isn’t surprising. We also love that you have a week of seven games, and we’ll talk about that later!
Recommended FAAB %: 3%
QUICK HITS: Carter Jensen (KC, 36% Rostership), Francisco Alvarez (NYM, 43% Rostership), Samuel Basallo (BAL, 26% Rostership)
Deep League is Coming
Gary Sanchez (MIL, 4% Rostership) – I can’t believe it’s 2025 and we’re recommending Gary Sanchez as a waiver wire pickup, but here we are! This former stud prospect for the Yankees hasn’t had a dream year, but something has changed this year with the Brewers. Sanchez has been hitting cleanup on this short list, posting his best ratings since 2019. Sanchez has a .395 OBP, .733 SLG and 1.128 OPS so far this season. That’s nonsense from the catcher position, and they can’t really keep him on the injured list.
Recommended FAAB %: 1-3%
QUICK HITS: Ryan Jeffers (MIN, 18% Rostership), JT Realmuto (PHI, 21% Rostership)
THE INFIELDERS
10/12 Team additions
Xander Bogaerts (SS, SD, 38% Rostership) – Young people may not realize it, but Bogaerts was a legend not long ago. The abusive contract makes people forget that, but Bogaerts has a .297 AVG, .367 OBP and .830 OPS between 2015 and 2023. He did that while flirting with 20-15 seasons, so the resurgence is far from shocking. Bogaerts has a hit in eight of his last nine while producing a .284 AVG and .790 OPS this season. That looks even better when you check this week’s schedule because Bogaerts has a series in Coors and has the highest OPS against the Rockies among all active players (1.091 OPS).
Recommended FAAB %: 3-5%
QUICK HITS: Jose Caballero (2B/SS/3B, NYY, 58% Rostership), Josh Bell (1B, MIN, 37% Rostership), Colt Keith (1B/2B/3B, DET, 30% Rostership)
Deep League is Coming
Ildemaro Vargas (1B/2B, ARI, 6% Rostership) – This guy’s Statcast page is absolutely ridiculous. His .399 xwOBA, .372 xBA and .524 xSLG are some of the best in the game. The expected numbers aren’t even worse when you examine the actual stats, Vargas is amassing a .383 AVG and 1.068 OPS so far this season. Those kinds of stats are hard to argue with, and it’s practically inevitable that Arizona sticks him in the leadoff spot this week. Three games against the swinging White Sox should get him in the right direction, especially since he has a 12-game hitting streak this year.
Recommended FAAB %: 1%
QUICK HITS: Sam Antonacci (CWS, 2B/3B, 11% Rostership), Eduardo Julien (COL, 1B, 2B, 4% Rostership), Dominic Smith (ATL, 1B, 8% Rostership)
OUTFIELDERS
10/12 Team additions
Kerry Carpenter (DET, 51% Rostership) – Carpenter was drafted almost all over the league, but he’s sitting on the waiver wire after a slow start. The good thing is that this is the week for Mbazi to wake up again. The Motor City Kitties have seven games this week, six of which are against right fielders. That’s Carp’s calling card, including a .269 AVG and .866 OPS against righties over the past three years. He’s always hit the heart of their lineup in those situations, too, which is encouraging given he’s homered in three of his last nine games.
Recommended FAAB %: 5%
QUICK HITS: Daulton Varsho (TOR, 44% Rostership), Adolis Garcia (PHI, 41% Rostership), Trent Grisham (NYY, 44% Rostership)
Deep League is Coming
Gavin Sheets (SD, 4% Rostership) – The Padres have a series at Coors Field this week, so the run should be up by the end of it. Sheets actually tore the Rockies apart last week, hitting twice while posting a 1.154 OPS in that series. That power hitting has continued for weeks, though, including a .300 AVG, .625 SLG and .958 OPS over his last 11 games. The best part about this is that every opposing pitcher is right-handed, and Sheets struck out five in those situations while posting an .824 OPS against them.
Recommended FAAB %: 1%
QUICK HITS: Luke Raley (SEA, 19% Rostership), Jake Bauers (MIL, 17% Rostership), Jesus Sanchez (TOR, 4% Rostership)
STARTING BEAMS
10/12 Team additions
Reid Detmers (LAA, 30% Rostership) – Guys, this sounds like it’s going to come back to bite us, but Detmers is something to add to every waiver wire for now. The southpaw has been showing some bad things, but some hits have kept him from becoming a legend. That all changed in the opening month, with Detmers posting a 3.57 ERA, 1.06 WHIP and a 10.3 K/9 average. We’ve seen four starts like that in the past, but his new arsenal has been boosted for the rest of the season. The road matchup in KC doesn’t bother us either because the Royals are ranked 27th in wOBA and 29th in runs scored.
Recommended FAAB %: 3%
Spencer Arrighetti (HOU, 27% Rostership) – I had Arrighetti in my streamers article last week, and he should add to the call for quits after an impressive debut. Arrighetti struck out 10 batters in six one-run innings in his first start of the year. That’s consistent with what we saw in the minors, where Arrighetti averaged a 1.26 ERA, 0.77 WHIP and 12.6 K/9. Those are small sample sizes, but this guy was a beast the last time we saw him healthy. Arrighetti accumulated a 3.08 ERA, 1.18 WHIP and a 10.8 K/9 rate over the final three months of 2024. He also has another good matchup, against a Cleveland team that ranked 29th in wOBA last year.
Recommended FAAB %: 5%
QUICK HITS: Noah Schultz (CWS, 39% Rostership), Kodai Senga (NYM, 52% Rostership), Clay Holmes (NYM, 53% Rostership)
Deep League is Coming
Mick Abel (MIN, 20% Rostership) – It’s hard to believe that Abel is only in the 20th percentile on Yahoo, but he’s one of the best performers on the waiver wire. The former shortstop has shown that ability recently, throwing 13 scoreless innings over his last two innings. He also struck out 16 batters in those 13 innings, despite facing the Tigers and Red Sox. That’s the guy we saw in Triple-A last season, putting up a 2.20 ERA and 1.11 WHIP while striking out 114 batters in 98.1 innings. This is a rare opportunity to pick up a potential student-athlete a month from now, especially since he has two starts this week.
Recommended FAAB %: 5-10%
Didier Fuentes (ATL, 17% Rostership) – Fuentes has been coming off the waiver wire in most of my leagues this week. The fantasy managers need to do that before his inevitable promotion because he has been incredible all season. He threw nine no-hit innings during spring training and backed that up with a 2.16 ERA, 0.84 WHIP and 10.8 K/9 average in three starts at Triple-A. Fuentes’ goal was to get his pitch count up, and we saw him surpass 80 pitches in his most recent start. It would be hard to imagine Atlanta continuing to churn out Jose Suarez and Martin Perez with a young stud like this ready to roll.
Recommended FAAB %: 5%
QUICK HITS: Nick Martinez (TB, 11% Rostership), Jorge Lopez (ATH, 5% Rostership), Brandon Sproat (MIL, 6% Rostership)
THE LIBERATORS
10/12 Team additions
Abner Uribe (MIL, 59% Rostership) – Trevor Megill has looked like a reliever for the Rockies lately, and it may force him out of the nearby building. Megill has two losses and one save while posting a 14.40 ERA and 2.20 WHIP over his last six appearances. That’s a disaster for a guy like Uribe who plays a setup role, registering a 1.67 ERA and 1.04 WHIP last year. Milwaukee went to Uribe again for the save in their last chance, and he shut the door with a perfect inning. It’s not a guarantee that this is Uribe’s gig, but he’s out of the waiver wire because of Megill’s problems.
Recommended FAAB %: 10%
QUICK HITS: Steven Matz (TB, 41% Rostership), Seranthony Dominguez (CWS, 44% Rostership), Jakob Junis (TEX, 33% Rostership)
Deep League is Coming
Bryan Baker (TB, 18% Rostership) – I had Baker at this stage last week, and it may be the last time he will be available on your waiver wire. The Rays have been looking for a replacement for Pete Fairbanks, and Baker has been the guy in the opening month. Baker has a 3.68 ERA and 0.95 WHIP in eight appearances this season. Most importantly, he has four saves over his last five outings. He also entered with a four-run lead before this save, and it would be hard to imagine anyone else in the pen getting chances without Baker failing.
Recommended FAAB %: 5-8%
QUICK HITS: Foster Griffin (WAS, 12% Rostership), Enyel De Los Santos (HOU, 3% Rostership)
