Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire: Josh Bell’s New Start With The D-Backs Earns Him Priority

The MLB trade deadline has resulted in a lot of players becoming hot prospects on the waiver wire. And we still have the usual mix of red-hot players and guys headed for favorable upcoming schedules. Here are the top twelve guys from a large group of players that you can consider adding to your fantasy baseball leagues for the weekend.

By being traded to Arizona, Bell has immediate value. He goes from the worst offense in the National League to the best, and he’ll replace the injured Christian Walker as Arizona’s first baseman while also hitting in the heart of the lineup. Bell has also been a hot bat of late, with five home runs in his last seven games.

Suddenly, Birdsong is a hot commodity in fantasy leagues. The youngster struck out 20 batters in his last two starts (though both games came against Colorado), prompting the Giants to clear space in their rotation by trading Alex Cobb to Cleveland. Of all the starters on the waiver wire, no one has seen his value rise more than Birdsong over the past week.

Eugenio Suárez (3B, Arizona Diamondbacks, 50%)

Suárez is an erratic hitter who strikes out too often, but his July performance cannot be ignored. The slugger hit 10 home runs last month, drove in 27 runs, scored 21 times and had a .333 batting average. Suárez was a complete fantasy failure until July began, and had not collected more than two home runs in any previous month, a strong indication that his usefulness will soon end. But until that happens, he must be classified in category leagues (his strikeout rate is prohibitive in point formats).

While Loperfido’s minor league success hasn’t translated to the majors yet, it’s far too early to give up on someone with 111 plate appearances. After all, we’re talking about a player who produced 25 homers, 27 steals and an .880 OPS in the minors last year before posting a .933 OPS in 39 games this season. The Astros haven’t signed the 25-year-old as a full-time player, something the Blue Jays are likely to do in the latter stages of the season.

Managers looking to save a player for next week should target Bader. The Mets play seven games next week, including three at batter-friendly Coors Field against the worst pitching staff in baseball. Bader has been a solid five-category contributor this season, posting a .265 batting average with eight homers and 14 steals.

Managers have been slow to add Hays, who is much more valuable now that he’s a member of the Phillies. The outfield logjam in Baltimore had sapped the veteran’s value, and the pitcher-friendly nature of Camden Yards didn’t help him either. The career .261 hitter should play regularly and contribute homers, RBI and runs going forward.

Roto managers in need of steals in 12-team leagues could add Young, who ranks sixth in baseball with 26 swipes. The speedster’s playing time is locked in after the Nats traded outfielders Lane Thomas and Jesse Winker at the deadline, and Young could get some chances to hit higher in the lineup.

Tyler Phillips (SP, Philadelphia Phillies, 47%)

Phillips was in this article last week, and that was before he threw a complete-game shutout against the Guardians. He’ll now face a low-scoring, strikeout-prone Mariners lineup tonight. The rookie also sports an impressive 19:2 K:BB ratio and pitches for the winningest team in the National League. There’s a lot to like here.

Those in need of a weekend streamer should look to Woods Richardson, who plays Sunday at home against a White Sox team that features by far the lowest scoring lineup in baseball. The youngster is coming off his worst start to the season (3.1 IP, 6 ER), but he should be tasked with shutting down such a weak offense.

The list of two-start streamers is bleak next week, making Sears a surprising player to add now. The left-hander is one of the few available players with favorable matchups, as he’ll open the week against the White Sox before closing it out against a manageable Blue Jays lineup. Sears is far from an elite starter, but he deserves credit for allowing two or fewer runs in four of his last five starts.

Chad Green (RP, Toronto Blue Jays, 46%)

As expected, the Blue Jays resisted offers to trade Green, and he will remain the club’s closer for the remainder of the season. The veteran is having a nice year (1.67 ERA, 0.87 WHIP, 28:9 K:BB ratio) and should be a top-20 reliever for the remainder of the season.

Ferguson has saved in two of his last three appearances, and with Lucas Erceg traded to the Royals, he’s the top candidate for ninth-inning work while Mason Miller remains on the IL. Miller is nursing a broken pinkie finger on his non-throwing hand and has no timetable to return. Those in head-to-head leagues could do better with their reliever spots, but Ferguson will fill a need for roto managers.