Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire: Top 10 Pickups for MLB Opening Week
The new baseball season brings with it the inaugural batch of waiver-wire adds for 2015, served up just the way you like 'em: hot and fresh out of the oven.
From now until the end of the fantasy season, you'll find a rundown of the top player pickups right here every Monday as you face another week of lineup decisions and roster additions.
Here are the top 10 waiver-wire pickups for Major League Baseball's opening week.
All ownership percentages courtesy of ESPN Fantasy Baseball. Players owned in more than 50 percent of leagues were not considered.
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Danny Duffy, SP, Kansas City Royals (29.4 Percent Owned)
Luis Valbuena, 2B/3B, Houston Astros (2.2 Percent Owned)
Rajai Davis, OF, Detroit Tigers (27.8 Percent Owned)
Alex Rodriguez, 3B, New York Yankees (38.0 Percent Owned)
Jesse Hahn, SP, Oakland Athletics (8.2 Percent Owned)
Kendall Graveman, SP/RP, Oakland Athletics (9.9 Percent Owned)
Edward Mujica, RP, Boston Red Sox (22.3 Percent Owned)
Jason Grilli, RP, Atlanta Braves ( Percent Owned)
Jung Ho Kang, SS, Pittsburgh Pirates (4.8 Percent Owned)
Odubel Herrera, SS/OF, Philadelphia Phillies (1.5 Percent Owned)
Eric Young Jr., OF, Atlanta Braves (8.0 Percent Owned)
Alex Guerrero, 2B, Los Angeles Dodgers (1.2 Percent Owned)
Michael Taylor, OF, Washington Nationals (1.5 Percent Owned)
Jace Peterson, 2B/SS, Atlanta Braves (4.0 Percent Owned)
Everth Cabrera, SS, Baltimore Orioles (1.9 Percent Owned)
Billy Burns, OF, Oakland Athletics (1.0 Percent Owned)
No. 10: Devon Travis, 2B, Toronto Blue Jays (1.8 Percent Owned)
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Devon Travis has become a rather divisive prospect, with those who aren't fans seeing him as an undersized (5'9") and fringy big leaguer without any above-average tools, while others squint and see a capable starting second baseman if it all works out.
One thing that can't be debated, however, is that the 24-year-old always has hit. Acquired from the Detroit Tigers in exchange for outfielder Anthony Gose, Travis owns a .323/.388/.487 career triple-slash line in three years in the minors. He backed that up by going 23-for-64 (.359) this spring to earn the everyday job at the keystone for the Toronto Blue Jays at the outset of 2015.
There's a risk that Travis, who has yet to play above Double-A, could be sent back to the minors if he doesn't fare well out of the gate, but if he can hang, he'll benefit from being in one of the more dangerous lineups in baseball.
Even if everything clicks, it's hard to see Travis as a starter at second in fantasy, but he could be a useful middle infield option in 12-team or AL-only leagues.
No. 9: Dalton Pompey, OF, Toronto Blue Jays (34.9 Percent Owned)
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Our second straight Blue Jays rookie, Dalton Pompey offers a bit more in the fantasy department than Devon Travis and quite a lot more in terms of prospect status, as Pompey is widely considered to be in the top 50.
At 22, the switch-hitter has rocketed from A-ball at this time last year to the majors by the end of the 2014 season and now to Toronto's Opening Day center fielder.
Although Pompey doesn't bring much in the way of power, he has displayed a strong approach at the plate (.367 OBP, 11.7 percent walk rate in minors) and a propensity for smacking extra-base hits, thanks in part to his speed. It's that last trait that should keep Pompey relevant in fantasy circles given that he has it in him to surpass 20 stolen bases.
Pompey is unlikely to be much better than average in the other four roto categories—at least in his first full MLB campaign—but he should provide some use for owners in 10-team mixed leagues as a backup/fill-in outfielder with upside.
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No. 8: Archie Bradley, SP, Arizona Diamondbacks (4.1 Percent Owned)
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What a difference a year makes. Last spring, Archie Bradley was on the verge of making the Arizona Diamondbacks out of camp, but he ultimately came up short and then suffered through arm troubles and an overall disappointing season.
Entering this spring, the 22-year old seemed to be even further out of a 25-man roster spot, which he used as motivation for a very strong showing in which he gave up just four earned runs on 20 hits in 22.1 frames with a solid 14-to-6 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
"Coming in, I felt like I was kind of on the outside looking in, which I was OK with," Bradley said via Zach Buchanan of AZCentral.com. "I struggled last year, didn't have a very good year. I came in with almost a chip on my shoulder."
Bradley's bounce back made the Diamondbacks realize he was ready enough to warrant a shot, leading them to trade fellow right-hander Trevor Cahill to the Atlanta Braves late last week.
While Bradley has been healthy and showing improved stuff so far, it's reasonable for owners to be cautious and make him prove he's not going to hurt your bottom line when you start him. That said, it's worth adding him now for the possibility that Bradley—who sports a 9.5 career strikeouts-per-nine rate since being drafted seventh overall in 2011—shoves it and makes good on his 2015 potential as a fourth fantasy starter.
No. 7: Jake Lamb, 3B, Arizona Diamondbacks (0.4 Percent Owned)
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Keeping with the trend of highlighting young players on the same team in this initial week of waiver-wire adds, Jake Lamb follows Diamondbacks teammate Archie Bradley.
Lamb, 24, struggled in his first taste of the majors in the second half of 2014 (.230/.263/.373), but he was good enough this spring to make Arizona turn $68.5 million man Yasmany Tomas into a minor leaguer for now. In fact, Lamb wound up going 24-for-66 (.364) with 12 runs and 10 extra-base knocks in his 25 games in camp, thus winning the gig at the hot corner over Tomas, who heads to Triple-A to shift to outfield.
And this is a 2012 sixth-rounder who hit .327 with 39 doubles, 15 homers and 53 walks in 460 plate appearances between Double- and Triple-A in his breakout 2014. So there's both pedigree and performance here.
Lamb is a solid pickup without much risk, but he does come with the possibility of rewarding mixed-league owners with a very quality plug-in at both third base and corner infield.
No. 6: C.J. Cron, 1B, Los Angeles Angels (3.6 Percent Owned)
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A former first-round pick in real life, C.J. Cron looks primed to crush it in 2015.
The 25-year-old displayed his power as a rookie last year, popping 11 home runs in limited playing time (just 253 plate appearances), and he followed that up with an absolutely killer spring in which he went—drum roll, please—31-for-75 (.413) with three homers among his whopping 16 extra-base hits.
Armed with a starting spot as the everyday designated hitter, Cron will have plenty of opportunities to do damage amid a Los Angeles Angels lineup that led all of baseball in runs scored in 2014.
If your fantasy roster could use a little more oomph—and let's face it, whose couldn't—then go grab Cron and give him a spin in your utility spot.
No. 5: Drew Pomeranz, SP/RP, Oakland Athletics (4.1 Percent Owned)
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In case there was any doubt that Drew Pomeranz would make the Oakland Athletics rotation, the lefty locked down a spot with a whiff-tastic effort in spring.
The 26-year-old racked up 28 strikeouts in 22.2 innings this exhibition season—or three more than his hits (19) and earned runs (six) allowed combined. Heck, only three pitchers had more strikeouts than Pomeranz, who was under-the-radar great in limited action in 2014 with a 2.35 ERA, 1.12 WHIP and 8.3 K/9 in 69 total frames.
If Pomeranz, who was drafted fifth overall back in 2010, can stay healthy and stick in the five-man, he could be at least a strong streaming starter to use whenever he pitches at Oakland's pitcher-friendly O.co Coliseum, starting this Friday against the Seattle Mariners.
No. 4: Carlos Martinez, SP/RP, St. Louis Cardinals (15.9 Percent Owned)
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Carlos Martinez pitched in relief for the St. Louis Cardinals on Opening Night, but don't worry: The live-armed 23-year-old was just getting some work in and is in the club's plans as a starter.
A highly touted prospect at this time last year, Martinez finally will be getting (what should be) an extended chance at starting at the big league level. Although the right-hander's numbers in the majors haven't been all that impressive, including a 4.28 ERA and 1.41 WHIP, he has struck out 8.3 batters per nine, thanks to a big, upper-90s fastball and wicked breaking ball that can give hitters fits.
If his improving changeup takes, Martinez will fare better against lefty swingers, who have an .829 career OPS against him, compared to a .622 mark for righties.
Martinez's first outing of 2015 will come Saturday at the Cincinnati Reds, who should provide a good test with left-handed hitters Joey Votto and Jay Bruce in the heart of the order.
No. 3: Daniel Norris, SP/RP, Toronto Blue Jays (6.5 Percent Owned)
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We mentioned earlier that only three pitchers compiled more whiffs than Pomeranz this spring, but here's where we specify that one of those was none other than Daniel Norris, the third Toronto Blue Jay on this week's list.
The soon-to-be 22-year-old lefty struck out 30 in 27.2 frames, and that came on the heels of a breakthrough 2014 in which he led all of the minors with an 11.8 strikeouts-per-nine rate. Oh, and Norris also pitched at four levels last year, including a September cameo with the Jays, who officially named him a part of their rotation last week.
All of the above makes Norris, a 2011 second-rounder, a very enticing last-minute grab to see if he can make good on his strikeout stuff against big leaguers who have yet to get much of a book on him. With the season now underway, Norris just might be the favorite in the AL Rookie of the Year race right now.
No. 2: Mike Zunino, C, Seattle Mariners (36.1 Percent Owned)
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If his big spring is any indication, Mike Zunino is going to hit a lot higher than last year's .199 average.
The 24-year-old, who was the No. 3 overall draft selection in 2012, went 19-for-54 in March and April, good for a .352 mark. That's a good sign, and so is Zunino's seven spring homers, which you might not have noticed was the second-highest total in the sport to the much-more-talked-about Kris Bryant's nine.
"He worked hard in the offseason to improve on pitch recognition, hitting the ball to right field and being better with two strikes," Ryan Divish of The Seattle Times writes of Zunino, who also struck out 158 times, most on the Seattle Mariners.
In other words, the young catcher—this is, after all, just his second full season in the majors—has identified and worked to address specific areas of weakness. If Zunino's improvements stick and he can hit even, say, .240 or .250, he may well be a top-10 fantasy catcher considering only two catchers hit more home runs than his 22 in 2014.
No. 1: Micah Johnson, 2B, Chicago White Sox (9.4 Percent Owned)
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If Daniel Norris isn't the current AL ROY pick at the moment, then Micah Johnson is a pretty good bet.
The 24-year-old somewhat surprisingly earned the starting second base job for the Chicago White Sox with a 20-for-59 (.359) average, 12 runs and three stolen bases in 22 exhibition games.
For now, manager Robin Ventura said Johnson will bat ninth, according to Colleen Kane of the Chicago Tribune. While that won't help his runs or, especially, his RBI, it could give the speedster plenty of opportunity to run in order to get in scoring position for a 1-2-3 of Adam Eaton, Melky Cabrera and Jose Abreu.
And run is what Johnson does best. Although he swiped just 22 bases because of hamstring problems in 2014, he totaled (count 'em) 84 in 2013 to lead the minors during the season—besting even Billy Hamilton, who had 75.
Johnson will need to show good discipline so he can get on base, and he'll also need to prevent defensive miscues so he stays in the starting lineup. But provided he does both, there's the potential here for upward of 30 stolen bases from a somewhat shallow second base position. That makes Johnson the top waiver-wire add entering the first week of the 2015 regular season, particularly in formats that use roto-style scoring instead of points.
Statistics are accurate through Sunday, April 5, and courtesy of MLB.com, Baseball-Reference.com and FanGraphs unless otherwise noted.
Need more fantasy baseball help? Come pepper me with your questions on Twitter today at 11 a.m. ET @JayCat11
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