Jakob Marsee, Romy González and more top fantasy baseball waiver wire options

New York Times

3 hours ago

Post trade deadline, many prospects are getting more of a look, and the natural ebbs and flows of hot streaks and slumps are surfacing some familiar names. To start, here are Yahoo's most-added hitters recently.
Jakob Marsee has shown some nice power in his first taste of MLB action, but his real calling card is his speed. He swiped 47 bases in 98 Triple-A games this year and stole 51 last year across two levels (and two organizations — he came to the Fish in the Luis Arráez trade last year). If he can maintain enough power and contact in the big leagues, he could be a really nice player.
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Darell Hernáiz was overmatched last year but has been great since his return to the MLB stage a week ago. Prospect reports note his exciting tools, but for 2025, he's more of a 14-to-15-teamer than someone who should be rostered across the board.
Another Romy González hot streak has put him back on the most-added list. The power is legit — he has hit a ball over 112 MPH three years in a row and has cut his strikeout rate while raising his barrel rate this year. The playing time uncertainty and the fact that he's suddenly breaking out make his value hard to pin down, but he's worth rostering for now.
Josh Jung is back and will start playing more third base, which could mean a regular spot in the lineup. If he's healthy, he offers a serviceable average and a steady source of power.
I was curious about Eli White earlier in the season, but I lost interest largely due to his lack of power. With Ronald Acuña out, White is suddenly doing his best impression of the superstar, slugging three homers in as many days this past week. I still think he's a roughly average hitter on a hot streak, but that's deep-league relevant, and there could be a spot for him in 12-team leagues, depending on the state of your outfield.
Kody Clemens has a regular role with Minnesota and some power to work with. He has eligibility almost everywhere and could be a handy fill-in in deep leagues. He's closer to replacement level in 12-teamers.
Joey Ortiz has put together a nice hot streak, but for fantasy purposes, he's mostly a speedster. The thing is, he doesn't steal enough for a guy you're rostering because of his speed.
As for the four catchers on the list, I'm an Alejandro Kirk fan, but I wonder if the Blue Jays will be careful with him after his return from a concussion. If he's playing every day, he can provide good value, even with middling power. Tyler Stephenson and Ryan Jeffers are both decent sources of power. Kyle Higashioka has a good hit tool, but he's more of a half-time player.
Jordan Beck (OF, COL) — Beck has plenty of power and speed. That's counterbalanced by a tendency to swing and miss, but he's still 12-team relevant on a regular week, and lately he's been making better contact and catching fire in the process.
Trent Grisham (OF, NYY) — Grisham continues to provide solid production atop the Yankees' lineup.
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Jurickson Profar (OF, ATL) — Profar started cold after returning from suspension, but has warmed up recently. Last year was likely his peak season, but it provides some optimism that he can get close to that level again.
Austin Hays (OF, CIN) — He's been ice-cold recently, but as long as this is more of a blip than a health issue, Hays is still a solid producer in a hitters' park.
If you need power or speed, and can take a hit in other categories, these guys can help plenty.
Matt Wallner (OF, MIN) — Wallner was injured and then struggled when he was back, but lately, he's been the best version of himself with a manageable average and lots of homers.
Chandler Simpson (OF, TB) — He steals a lot and usually hits leadoff. He's also an obvious trade target depending on how much you need that speed.
Daulton Varsho (OF, TOR) — He's back and has been crushing the ball since he returned. He will hurt you in batting average, but he helps everywhere else.
Jo Adell (OF, LAA) — He's essentially a more extreme version of Varsho — huge power, and showed in June that he can be one of the sport's top sluggers when things are going right. Adell can also run a sub-.200 average without enough home runs to justify it.
Eli White (OF, ATL) — See above.
Colton Cowser (OF, BAL) — He's a starter on Team 'He's Fine I Guess.' He offers power against righties and the occasional steal. In 12-teamers, I'm likely looking elsewhere, but there's a place for him in deeper leagues.
Isaac Collins (OF, MIL) — Collins is great in OBP leagues and is playing his way into the conversation in conventional leagues.
Romy González (1B/2B, BOS) — See above.
Colt Keith (1B/2B/3B, DET) — Keith is a solid hitter in a good lineup. He's a little better in real life than in fantasy, but still an asset in most leagues.
Warming Bernabel (1B, COL) — He's off to a blazing start, and his power and contact skills give him a good shot at success, especially at altitude.
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Matt Shaw (3B, CHC) — A star player is hidden in Shaw, who will emerge at some point, whether next year or the one after. For now, Shaw is a better fantasy player than a real-life one due to his penchant for steals. The average should rise a bit, and maybe we'll see some power flashes before the season ends.
Josh Jung (3B, TEX) — See above.
Noelvi Marte (3B/OF, CIN) — He's in a bit of a slump, but I'm still a fan of the tools.
Ernie Clement (3B/2B/SS/1B, TOR) — He's roster spackle for your team and the Blue Jays. His excellent contact rate leads to a high average and lots of runs.
Nolan Schanuel (1B, LAA) — You know the deal here — high average and acceptable counting stats.
Spencer Horwitz (1B, PIT) — He only plays against righties (and you only want him against righties), but he's an above-average hitter against them.
Luke Keaschall (2B, MIN) — Back from the IL with plenty of opportunity in the Twins infield, Keaschall is picking up where he left off after his blazing start was interrupted by a fractured right forearm. It's too early to know where he'll settle in, but he has decent power, a good hit tool and lots of speed.
Colson Montgomery (SS/3B, CHW) — Yes, he barely makes the roster rate cutoff to be listed here, and I'm not sure what he has to do to get noticed in the leagues where he's unrostered. Montgomery has been playing out of his mind, with seven homers in the past two weeks. Who knows how much of this continues, but the power is real.
Carlos Correa (SS, HOU) — Correa doesn't steal, and his swing doesn't lend itself to a ton of homers, but he's still a great hitter and valuable fantasy player, especially now that he's hitting in the top half of Houston's lineup.
Otto Lopez (2B/SS, MIA) — He's another regular in this column. I see another half-level of potential here, but the present value is still pretty nice.
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Lenyn Sosa (2B, CHW) — He chases way too much, but manages to make enough contact, and the power is real. Those are skills you can dream on, but improving one's batting eye is easier said than done. For now, he's still plenty productive.
J.P. Crawford (SS, SEA) — The recent trades knocked him to the back of the lineup, and the homers and steals will only show up occasionally, but he gives you a good average and OBP in a strong lineup.
Jonathan India (2B/3B/OF, KC) — I'm still pretty 'meh' here, but he can give you runs and a decent average.
C.J. Kayfus (1B/OF, CLE) — Kayfus has an increasingly familiar profile among hitting prospects: solid power and plenty of strikeouts. That worked fine in the minor leagues because the K rate stayed in the mid-20s, and his power allowed him to run high BABIPs, leading to a good average. From his first few days with the Guardians, it looks like he'll be in the lineup most of the time. He's been hitting eighth, but presumably he could rise if he's hitting well. The median outcome for the rest of the season isn't great, but he's worth a shot in deep leagues if you're searching for another bat.
Jakob Marsee (OF, MIA) — See above.
Logan Henderson (MIL); Luis Severino (ATH); Nestor Cortes (SD); Emmet Sheehan (LAD); Zebby Matthews (MIN)
Severino seems to have found the form that made him one of the better comeback stories last year. He has also been better (or luckier) at stranding runners lately. You might not want to start him at home in every matchup, but his uneven start is masking his strong recent results, and I like him going forward.
It's hard to know what we're getting with Cortes this year, seeing as he just made his first start since April. But there is reason for optimism in his excellent rehab starts, and San Diego is a nice landing spot for any pitcher.
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Cortes' trade to the Padres opens the door for Logan Henderson to get another shot in Milwaukee. He has ace potential and should be rostered everywhere.
I'm still optimistic about Zebby Matthews in the long term. A good fastball and a great slider are a very nice foundation. I think it all clicks if he can figure out a good third offering. For now, he may be stuck as a twice-through-the-order guy.
I'm still figuring out Sheehan, but I'm very intrigued. He put up insane (over 40%) strikeout numbers in the minors, and has had mostly good results, including a 25% K rate in three-to-five-inning chunks in MLB. The Dodgers have used him differently, but he seems to have a rotation spot for now.
Slade Cecconi (CLE); Adrian Houser (TBR); Charlie Morton (DET); Joe Boyle (TBR); Jacob Lopez (ATH); Logan Allen (CLE); Cam Schlittler (NYY)
I've mentioned the first four names here regularly. Morton and Cecconi are the ones I trust the most not to blow up your ratios. Boyle is the upside guy.
Lopez hit a rough patch, with three bad starts in four tries, but then bounced back and hasn't allowed a run in his past two outings. Among pitchers with at least 70 innings, he has the 29th-best K-BB rate at 17.5% (tied with Kevin Gausman), despite stuff that grades out as mediocre.
Schlitter has better stuff but worse results in a very small sample. He's the easy pick in this group for 2026. As for this year, expect some volatility, but he's a good pick for upside.
José Quintana (MIL); Justin Verlander (SFG); Patrick Corbin (TEX); Matthew Liberatore (STL)
It's disorienting to see Corbin pitch his way into fantasy relevance after being someone you could ignore for the past four years. He has tinkered with his pitch mix in the past two years, swapping his four-seamer for a cutter. That has helped bring his Stuff+ close to average. The K rate is around 20%, and he should be able to keep a low-to-mid-4s ERA going.
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Liberatore puts up similar figures. He can be a useful filler in deep leagues, but don't expect much from his counting stats. Verlander has had an uneven season but has righted the ship lately.
Quintana is the one I trust the most here. The K% won't be great, but he tends to find a way to good results.
Ronny Henriquez (MIA); Calvin Faucher (MIA); JoJo Romero (STL); Robert Garcia (TEX); Phil Maton (TEX); Tony Santillan (CIN); Garrett Whitlock (BOS); Edwin Uceta (TB)
The Marlins listed here are in the mix for saves and have been solid in whichever inning they pitch. Romero seems to have emerged with the closer role in St. Louis. I listed Garcia because he may keep the closer job if he can get back on track, but Maton looks primed to grab the job from him. The other three have been excellent lately and can be nice ratio stabilizers.
(Photo of Romy González: Brian Fluharty / Getty Images)
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