MLB FAAB Factor: Top Fantasy Baseball Waiver Targets

This FAAB article is in addition to the AL and NL FAAB articles that run Sunday. Bids are based on a $100 FAAB budget. Throughout the season, this column will have two goals:

1. Identify FAAB targets for fantasy managers in leagues with Thursday FAAB.

2. Offer a preview of FAAB targets ahead of Sunday's columns.

I think Coors Field might soon have some company in the "most hitter-friendly ballpark" discussion. The Athletics and Brewers just wrapped up playing a series in Las Vegas that offered nonstop fireworks for three games from both sides, which is fairly significant when you consider that Milwaukee has hit the third-fewest home runs out of all the teams in Major League Baseball. Even more absurd was that Jonah Heim hit a 398-foot home run with a ball that had a 94.6-mph exit velocity and a 48-degree launch angle. I didn't do well in high school physics, so I'm not sure how the math works out here, but something tells me a ball hit like that would be a routine fly out in any other ballpark. Of course, the A's won't be playing in their Triple-A affiliate's stadium once they complete their move to Las Vegas, but they will still be dealing with the same elevation and dry desert air that was affecting the ball's flight this week. That will definitely be something for fantasy managers to consider in a couple of years, but right now, the main thing for us to consider is which players sitting on the waiver wire can help out your team, so let's take a look.

The number in parentheses represents the player's rostership rate in Yahoo leagues.

Starting Pitcher

 Noah Cameron, Kansas City Royals (45%)

After enduring a six-start stretch of allowing three or more earned runs, Cameron has allowed just three earned runs total across his last four outings (three of which were quality starts), posting a 1.13 ERA and 0.63 WHIP to go with a 27:3 K:BB over 24 frames. His biggest limiter is a low potential for wins, as he's been forced to rely on a Royals offense that's scored the third-fewest runs in baseball up to this point. He's had little trouble handling the things he can directly control, however, as evidenced by his 3.14 FIP and improved strikeout/walk rates. The young lefty will also have a good chance of maintaining his recent performance during his next start against the Astros, who have been trending downward to the tune of a .672 OPS over their last 10 games. FAAB: $5

 Christian Scott, New York Mets (31%)

The Mets sent David Peterson to the bullpen late last month and demoted Jonah Tong to Triple-A Syracuse last week, clearing the way for Scott to grab hold of a permanent spot in New York's rotation. The team's gamble on the young righty has paid off nicely so far, as he's given up just one earned run while posting a 16:6 K:BB in 16.1 innings and recording his first two wins of the season over his last three starts. Opposing hitters don't make a lot of hard contact against him, and his 26.3 percent strikeout rate is easily high enough to offer plus value. His elevated walk rate (11.5 percent) and low groundball rate (29.3 percent) could get him into trouble occasionally, but they haven't stopped him from allowing three runs or fewer in all eight of his starts this season. FAAB: $3

 Zack Littell, Washington Nationals (19%)

Littell's 4.76 ERA and 1.31 WHIP for the season may look rather pedestrian at a quick glance, but the 2.27 ERA, 0.95 WHIP and 6-0 record he's posted across his last seven starts are anything but. It's also a pretty impressive turnaround when you consider he gave up 18 combined runs in the three starts that came immediately before his hot streak. It's worth noting that he hasn't been particularly flashy for someone getting the results he has, as he's logged just a 5.8 K/9 since the beginning of May, but the 30-year-old righty has never been one to rack up strikeouts in the first place, instead using elite control to limit baserunners. If you're looking for someone to stabilize your ratios who can also pitch fairly deep into a game and has a tendency to get a good amount of run support, Littell might just be your guy. FAAB: $3

Visit RotoWire's MLB Daily Lineups page to find out where each and every hitter slots in!

Relief Pitcher

 Jacob Latz, Texas Rangers (43%)

Here's one that I don't quite get. A 1.86 ERA and 0.62 WHIP through 29 innings, a 27.4 percent strikeout rate, saves in each of his last five appearances and virtually no competition for the closer job. All of those are green flags, yet Latz is somehow still available in the majority (a narrow majority, but still a majority) of fantasy leagues on Yahoo. I'm not sure I need to say much else other than that it would be a good idea to check whether your league is among the 57 percent in which he isn't rostered. FAAB: $7

 Alex Lange, Kansas City Royals (24%)

Taking over as his team's closer is the easiest way for a reliever to earn a spot on this list, and that seems to be exactly what Lange has done in Kansas City this month. Manager Matt Quatraro formally announced last Wednesday that the struggling Lucas Erceg wouldn't have a sole claim to save opportunities, and Lange has since tallied four consecutive saves while striking out seven batters across four shutout innings. The Royals skipper noted that he still views Erceg as the team's long-term closer option, but Lange is certainly worth a look as long as he continues to be the most trustworthy of Kansas City's high-leverage options. FAAB: $4

Catcher

 Dalton Rushing, Los Angeles Dodgers (18%)

Rushing is set to take over as Los Angeles' primary backstop for about a week while Will Smith is on the mend from a neck injury. The uptick in playing time couldn't have come at a better time for the 25-year-old, who has gone 8-for-22 (.364) with a homer, four RBI and five runs scored in six games since the start of June. There's really nowhere the Dodgers can put Rushing in the lineup where he wouldn't have high potential for runs and RBI, so he is definitely worth picking up if you need a bump in production from behind the plate, even if the spike in opportunities projects to be short-lived. FAAB: $2

First Baseman

 Kody Clemens, Minnesota Twins (14%)

Clemens probably won't have a career that compares to that of his legendary father, but that doesn't make him incapable of enjoying hot stretches like the one he's currently on. The 30-year-old has notched base hits in nine of his last 11 games, going 14-for-42 (.333) with four homers, six RBI, nine runs and a steal in that span. He's made most of his appearances this season as a first baseman, but the Twins have been forced to get creative to keep his red-hot bat in the lineup, resulting in him playing six games in center field – a position he'd only played one game at across his entire professional career before this season. He's also eligible to be used at second base in your league, further adding to the versatility that drives up his fantasy value. FAAB: $2

 Paul Goldschmidt, New York Yankees (14%)

Old Man Goldschmidt continues to get the job done at the plate and has seemingly settled into an everyday role with the Yankees, starting 18 consecutive games and slashing .339/.381/.542 with three homers, 14 RBI and eight runs scored across his last 14 contests. Like I said last week, Goldschmidt's playing time could take a hit whenever Jasson Dominguez (shoulder) and Giancarlo Stanton (calf) come back from the injured list, but I think Goldy is well worth rostering until then, and he may have even earned the right to continue starting over the other two. FAAB: $1

Second Baseman

 Matt McLain, Cincinnati Reds (47%)

McLain's OPS had plummeted all the way down to .614 by the end of May, but he's begun to show signs of life at the plate in June, going 8-for-26 (.308) with three homers, five RBI, six runs and three stolen bases in his last eight games. Already with eight round-trippers and 10 thefts on the season, the 26-year-old has the potential to achieve a 20/20 campaign, and the value he provides the Reds on the defensive side will ensure that he receives more than enough playing time to do so. It also doesn't hurt that he's picked up eligibility at shortstop while filling in for the injured Elly De La Cruz (hamstring). FAAB: $4

Third Baseman

 Zack Gelof, Athletics (22%)

Make it 15 games in a row that Gelof has recorded a base hit – a stretch that's seen him slash .339/.371/.525 with two homers, six RBI and six runs across 62 plate appearances. Those counting stats admittedly aren't that impressive given how hot he's been for as long as he's been, but he got a nice boost (two HR, four total runs) during the Athletics' latest series against the Brewers while playing in Las Vegas Ballpark, where it seemed like even a bunt had a chance to leave the yard. The A's are set to play another series in Vegas this weekend against the Rockies, who don't quite have the same level of talent in their pitching staff as Milwaukee and could allow Gelof to continue collecting hits and runs at an elevated rate. FAAB: $3

 Royce Lewis, Minnesota Twins (21%)

After posting a lowly .539 OPS through 119 plate appearances to begin the season, Lewis was sent down to Triple-A St. Paul to figure things out, and figure things out, he did. The 27-year-old slashed .340/.417/.868 with a whopping eight home runs, 19 RBI and 12 runs scored in just 13 games in the minors. Now back with the big club, he's tallied at least one hit in three of his first four games since returning, including a 444-foot moonshot off Framber Valdez during Wednesday's tilt. As I mentioned before with Clemens, the Twins are getting very creative with their defensive alignments recently, which has included using Lewis at first and second base since his return from Triple-A. If he continues to swing a hot stick and also picks up fantasy eligibility at one or both of those positions, he could end up providing great value relative to his current price. FAAB: $2

Shortstop

 Mauricio Dubon, Atlanta Braves (41%)

Last week, I suggested that Jorge Mateo's hot streak would allow him to take over as the main shortstop in Atlanta, only for Dubon to immediately catch fire himself and remind me that predicting the future is, in fact, hard. Since the start of June, the 31-year-old has gone 9-for-26 (.346) with three home runs, eight RBI, six runs scored and a steal over eight games. I'm a bit more confident in Dubon's ability to stick around as a lineup regular due to his vast defensive versatility – something Atlanta will likely look to take advantage of while Ronald Acuna is out with a strained hamstring. If you want someone to give you hits consistently with strong potential for RBI, Dubon can help you out at any position other than first base. FAAB: $3

Outfielder

 Braden Montgomery, Chicago White Sox (32%)

Montgomery is a Top 50 prospect in all of baseball and hit an extra-inning walk-off home run in his MLB debut – there was simply no way he wasn't going to be included in this week's article. It really shouldn't come as a surprise that he made an immediate impact with the White Sox, as he slashed .306/.417/.529 with nine homers, 37 RBI and 49 runs scored across 55 games between Double-A Birmingham and Triple-A Charlotte before getting called up. Already with four hits, three RBI and two runs through the first two games of his MLB career, the 23-year-old switch hitter doesn't seem to be too intimidated by major-league pitching and should quickly settle in as a mainstay in right field while providing a leadoff-caliber on-base percentage and plus power. FAAB: $9

 Jac Caglianone, Kansas City Royals (49%)

Caglianone has amassed seven hits over his last two tilts, further improving what was already an outstanding start to June and giving him a .538/.625/.962 batting line with three homers, eight RBI, seven runs, two steals and a 5:6 BB:K through eight games to begin the month. His surge in production has elevated his OPS to .804 through 62 contests – a 272-point increase over the mark he posted in the same number of games last season. Power will continue to be the 23-year-old's main claim to fame when it comes to what he offers fantasy managers, and that could result in more RBI going forward while he trends toward hitting in the heart of the order against right-handers. FAAB: $6

 Jung Hoo Lee, San Francisco Giants (43%)

Last week, I brought up how Lee was batting .625 with a 1.417 OPS since his return from the injured list. After playing another week's worth of games, I regret to inform you that he has cooled off and is now batting just .564 with a 1.270 OPS in 13 games since rejoining the active roster. He owns an 18-game hitting streak dating back to May 14 and is up to 10 RBI, 17 runs and three stolen bases in that stretch. His rostership rate has shot up 27 points over the last seven days, so if batting average and/or runs are weighing you down, now might be your last chance to pick up a player who can't seem to stop hitting and scoring. FAAB: $5