AL FAAB Factor: Waiver Pickups of the Week

This is our weekly look at American League free agents. We have two goals for this article:

1. Identify likely free agents and discuss their strengths and weaknesses.

2. Estimate how much of your $100 starting free-agent budget you should bid on them.

We've incorporated grids into the FAAB articles, so users can easily see at a glance how certain players stack up against others and how much they should command in a variety of formats.

The grids, which are sortable by column (click on the header), include a very basic "player grade" column. This serves as a reflection of a player's skills and talent on an A-E scale. Wander Franco would have been an "A" grade player last year – that mark will be reserved for similarly high-impact prospects that could thrive in an everyday role.

As always, if there is a player that was not discussed in the article that you would like to know about, feel free to ask about the player in the comments.

Starting Pitcher

Kris Bubic, Royals: The Royals, and especially pitching coach Cal Eldred, have taken a lot of flak for their inability to turn recent high draft picks into quality big-league arms, but those investments may finally be paying off. Brady Singer is showing signs of emerging as a genuine ace, while Bubic has also turned his season around after a brutal first month or so. He's delivered three straight quality starts, and since the beginning of June he's posted a semi-respectable 3.84 ERA, 1.46 WHIP and 51:28 K:BB through 61 innings. Those numbers still only put the southpaw on the streaming radar in many formats, but he could be an under-the-radar one given that his numbers on the season (5.45 ERA, 1.60 WHIP) still carry the stink of his April. 12-team Mixed: $1; 15-team Mixed: $2; 12-team AL: Rostered

Luis Castillo, Mariners: Boom, as they say, goes the dynamite. The first big trade at the deadline saw the Reds ship Castillo to the M's for a big haul of prospects. Kudos to Seattle here, who not only got a significant upgrade, they kept one of the deadline's top prizes out of the hands of the competition and set the market, which could cause other AL teams to balk at the cost of landing, say, Frankie Montas. Barring a Juan Soto megadeal, Castillo is likely to be the biggest name to come over to the AL, so if you've been keeping your powder dry until now and need pitching, there's no sense holding back. The 29-year-old righty is in his prime and has excellent numbers, including a 90:28 K:BB through 85 innings, while spending half his time in Great American Ball Park and being "supported" by an offense and defense that both rank in the bottom five in MLB (per wRC+ and Defensive Runs Saves, anyway), which actually isn't bad compared to a Reds bullpen that has been the worst in the league. Castillo wrapped up his Cincy tenure with five straight quality starts in which he posted a 1.59 ERA, 0.97 WHIP and 41:10 K:BB through 34 innings, so he brings plenty of momentum with him too. 12-team Mixed: Rostered; 15-team Mixed: Rostered; 12-team AL: $75

Janson Junk, Angels: The Angels figure to be sellers, and Noah Syndergaard is at the top of the list of guys who might get shipped out, especially if that Castillo trade inflates the market for other starting pitchers. Junk, a 26-year-old righty who was a 22nd-round pick of the Yankees back in 2017 before turning himself into a real prospect during the 2020 minor-league shutdown, is already pushing toward a regular rotation spot even without a trade to create an opening. Junk more or less lives up to his name relative to modern expectations, leaning on a low 90s four-seamer with a high spin rate to set up a slider that has flashed plus, while mixing in a curve and occasional changeup. His first start of the season was a good one – five shutout winning with eight Ks against the Royals on Wednesday -- and while he doesn't have ace upside, he could be a solid mid-rotation guy in time. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: No; 12-team AL: $3

Yusei Kikuchi, Blue Jays: The southpaw returned from the IL on Thursday with a solid outing and a win over the Tigers, but overall the free-agent swap that saw him switch uniforms with Robbie Ray this offseason has not worked out for Toronto. Kikuchi is too erratic to trust as a regular member of your lineup, but depending on your bench depth he's still worth stashing for when he has a favorable matchup and you're feeling lucky, or in case he gets hot for a few weeks again. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: $1; 12-team AL: Rostered

Matt Manning, Tigers: This is the third straight week I've listed Manning with exactly the same bid recommendations, but it looks like he will actually come off the IL next week and would be positioned for a two-step, so I'll finally be able to move on. The 24-year-old righty got shut down in mid-April but looked good in his most recent rehab start, and I haven't yet given up on him eventually finding the upside he teased in the minors prior to the pandemic. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: $1; 12-team AL: $4

Eduardo Rodriguez, Tigers: Detroit's rotation has been a shambles most of the year, but it might patch itself together for the stretch run. Rodriguez has been out since mid-May while dealing with some off-field issues, but he reported to the Tigers' spring training facility this weekend and the team is hoping he'll only need a few weeks to get ramped back up. The 29-year-old lefty will be a complete wild card once he returns – his early-season numbers for Detroit were about the same as his numbers the last couple years in Boston, but depending on where his head is at he could either come back with a vengeance or have trouble focusing and finding the plate. If you need to gamble to make up ground in pitching categories, stashing him on the cheap now is a better option than paying full market price in August once he's closer to returning. 12-team Mixed: $1; 15-team Mixed: $2; 12-team AL: $5

Other two-start options, Mon-Sun (12-team Mixed: $1; 15-team Mixed: $1; 12-team AL: $1)

Chris Archer, Twins (vs. DET, vs. TOR)
Rich Hill, Red Sox (at HOU, at KC)
Spencer Howard, Rangers (vs. BAL, vs. CHW)
Brad Keller, Royals (at CHW, vs. BOS)
Devin Smeltzer, Twins (vs. DET, vs. TOR)
Spenser Watkins, Orioles (at TEX, vs. PIT)

Relief Pitcher

Pete Fairbanks, Rays: The 28-year-old fireballer missed the entire first half due to a torn lat suffered in spring training, but since rejoining the bullpen right before the All-Star break he's looked good, pumping gas at a career-high 98.7 mph, not walking a batter in five straight appearances and recording saves in his last two. As with any Tampa "closer", you can't really expect him to see consistent usage in the ninth inning, but Fairbanks' elite strikeout potential gives him a better floor for value when he's not collecting saves, unlike, say, Colin Poche. 12-team Mixed: $2; 15-team Mixed: $5; 12-team AL: $11

Jonathan Hernandez / Matt Moore, Rangers: Brett Martin's stint as Texas closer appears to be ending already, so time to look for the next man up. Moore has a save and a hold in his last two appearances and strong numbers on the season, but the 33-year-old lefty profiles better as a flexible high-leverage reliever than a true closer. Hernandez, on the other hand, was being held back for the ninth inning Saturday before Martin and Dennis Santana made a mess of things, and his high-90s sinker/plus slider combo does look a lot more like a traditional closer's arsenal. If you're going to stash one of these guys ahead of Martin being officially removed from the closer role, it should probably be Hernandez. Hernandez – 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: $2; 12-team AL: $5 / Moore – 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: No; 12-team AL: $2

James Karinchak, Guardians: Karinchak was viewed as Cleveland's likely closer headed into 2021 despite only having one career save to his name at that point, and while he somewhat delivered on that promise in the first half last year, he fell apart completely beginning in late May and eventually got demoted. A shoulder injury this spring landed him on the IL and he didn't return to the Guardians' bullpen until July, but he's posted superficially solid numbers since. I say superficially because his strikeout numbers remain dazzling – 41.5 percent strikeout rate in 9.2 big-league innings this season – and they tend to overshadow his control issues. Between Triple-A and the majors, Karinchak has walked 17 batters in 20.2 innings, which simply isn't acceptable in high-leverage spots. Emmanuel Clase isn't going anywhere, and Cleveland has more setup options in the likes of Eli Morgan, so if you're thinking about adding Karinchak, know that you're really only adding his Ks and maybe hoping for an occasional win. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: No; 12-team AL: $1

Clarke Schmidt, Yankees: I spent way too much time trying to find this information, but struck out on Google. Apparently nobody was curious enough after Schmidt's second three-inning save in a row to dig up the last pitcher to record multiple three-inning saves in the same season, much less in back-to-back appearances. The 29-year-old righty might be starting for another team, but with the Yankees he's becoming their long-relief ace, soaking up innings in a bullpen that just lost Michael King and which hasn't seen Aroldis Chapman return to form. There's no way to predict if Schmidt will get any more three-inning saves, but working multiple frames would certainly improve his odds of falling into some wins and supplying bulk Ks with solid ratios. That's a profile with some value. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: $1; 12-team AL: $4

Erik Swanson, Mariners: With Diego Castillo out of the picture for now, Swanson has moved up in the M's bullpen pecking order and recorded a win, save or hold in four straight appearances. He's earned the promotion, posting a 1.13 ERA, 1.00 WHIP and 16:4 K:BB through 16 innings since coming off the IL in early June, but his utility will mostly be restricted to holds formats and deeper AL-only leagues. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: No; 12-team AL: $1

Catcher

Rene Pinto, Rays: With Mike Zunino gone for the year and Francisco Mejia on the shelf, Christian Bethancourt appears to be the Rays' top option behind the plate at the moment. He's mostly rostered though. Pinto got called back up Tuesday to be the No. 2 and has started two of the last three games, so there's some playing time potential in the short term. His big-league numbers this season are rough, including a 1:29 BB:K in 64 plate appearances, but he's posted a .287/.332/.518 slash line at Triple-A over the last two years with 19 homers in 96 games, so maybe he can pull a Cal Raleigh with more consistent work in Tampa. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: No; 12-team AL: $1

First Base

Jonah Bride, Athletics: Bride has started three of four games since coming off the IL, going 2-for-11 with a steal and four Ks while seeing time at first, second and third base. The 26-year-old was having a breakout minor-league campaign when he got called up, including a ridiculous small-sample .393/.526/.590 line at Triple-A, and the A's really need to find out whether players like this have any kind of future, even if it's just in a utility role, so he should see consistent work down the stretch. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: No; 12-team AL: $2

Second Base

Christian Arroyo, Red Sox: Trevor Story's wrist fracture is just the latest sign that this isn't Boston's year. Story isn't set to being swinging a bat again for at least a couple weeks, which could put his return in late August or even September if the Red Sox have no reason to rush him back, so second base will likely belong to Arroyo for a while. The 27-year-old utility player has a decent stick, hitting .262 with six homers in 180 plate appearances last season, and he can supply some value with regular playing time. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: No; 12-team AL: $3

David Fletcher, Angels: Fletcher returned from his hip injury Thursday and started three straight games, going 4-for-10 with two doubles. He figures to see a starting role with the Angels, but now that he's shown he's healthy he's also a candidate to get traded to a contender to fill a utility role, as the 28-year-old isn't exactly a key part of the club's future. At his best, Fletcher is mainly a three-category guy in fantasy terms, offering no power but a solid BA with some runs and steals. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: $1; 12-team AL: $4

Third Base

Jeimer Candelario, Tigers: Candelario responded as Detroit hoped to the threat to his starting job at third base. Over his last 10 games, the 28-year-old has an OPS of 1.200 with four doubles and four homers among his 13 hits. His track record says he won't keep it up and will be incredibly frustrating if you roster him for any length of time, but as a short-term add you might be able to catch the tail end of this hot streak. 12-team Mixed: $1; 15-team Mixed: $2; 12-team AL: Rostered

Aledmys Diaz, Astros: The 31-year-old utility player has forced his way into consistent playing time in July by slashing .333/.395/.696 through his last 18 games with six homers, 11 RBI and 15 runs. Much of that playing time has come in left field with Michael Brantley on the shelf, which means Diaz might be the player whose value is most vulnerable to a deadline acquisition, but Dusty Baker will find room for him as long as he's raking. 12-team Mixed: $2; 15-team Mixed: $3; 12-team AL: Rostered

Shortstop

Tim Beckham, Twins: Why the heck am I still writing about Beckham in 2022? The 32-year-old never lived up to his billing as the first overall pick in the 2008 draft, and he hasn't been seen in the majors since 2019, but here he is on Minnesota's roster. Really, he's a total long shot to supply any fantasy value at all, but he's got a couple things working in his favor. First, the Twins only have two healthy guys – Luis Arraez and Jose Miranda – to cover three spots at 1B/3B/DH while Gio Urshela is on paternity leave, and honestly, Urshela's hardly irreplaceable even when he does come back. Second, Beckham was slashing an absurd .413/.483/.579 in 143 plate appearances for Triple-A St. Paul when he got called up, including a .455/.500/.600 line since July 3. If you're the Twins, you simply have to find out if he can keep that going in the majors, right? Maybe Beckham's the ultimate late bloomer. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: No; 12-team AL: $1

Maikel Garcia, Royals: The complete opposite of Beckham is Garcia, a 22-year-old who wasn't on many prospect radars coming into 2022 but parlayed a strong campaign at Double-A into his big-league debut. Garcia's started three straight games since his latest promotion, mostly while Bobby Witt was banged up, and gone a solid 5-for-12 although all five hits have been singles. Nicky Lopez is looking like a one-year wonder and there's always the chance Whit Merrifield gets dealt, so Garcia could find himself as part of Kansas City's new-look infield in August alongside Witt, Nick Pratto and Michael Massey. Garcia's fantasy profile is a lot like Lopez's right now – all batting average and steals, and no guarantee he'll provide either – but he does have the potential to develop maybe average power down the road. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: No; 12-team AL: $1

Luis Rengifo, Angels: For some reason, the 25-year-old is still flying under the radar, even though he's been locked in for more than a month now. Over his last 30 games, Rengifo is slashing .351/.388/.518 with three homers and four steals, and while his overall counting stats are limited by the tepid offense around him, those are still numbers that can help almost any fantasy roster. The Angels seem comfortable with the idea of Rengifo being their second baseman of the future, so even once he cools down, he should keep a starting job. 12-team Mixed: $2; 15-team Mixed: $5; 12-team AL: Rostered

Outfield

David Peralta, Rays: Given all the injuries in the Tampa Bay outfield, it's not a surprise the team added someone before the trade deadline, and what could be more Rays-ey than the team trading for a platoon bat? Peralta has slashed .267/.325/.498 against RHP this season, in line with his career numbers, and he should see the majority of the action in left field. Somewhat inexplicably, the team sent Josh Lowe down to make room for him despite the youngster seemingly beginning to put things together in the majors, but as they're both lefty hitters Peralta will directly take over Lowe's at-bats and then some. The real question is who the veteran's platoon partner will be until Harold Ramirez gets healthy. 12-team Mixed: Rostered; 15-team Mixed: Rostered; 12-team AL: $15