Week 7 of the fantasy baseball season has arrived and with it comes another week of Waiver Flavor.  Let’s take a look at the players who are still floating around the waiver wire that can help make an impact on your fantasy roster going forward.

Catcher

Chris Herrmann, ARI - Herrmann is proving to be lethal against right-handed pitching this season as he’s tuning them up for a .304 average with 11 runs, four home runs, 16 RBI and an OPS of .998.  His production of late has been so good that the Diamondbacks have been playing him in the outfield in order to get both he and Welington Castillo in the lineup.  Seeing as the DBacks are more likely to face righties than lefties on a given night it’s a good bet that Herrmann will become more of a mainstay in their lineup and with the possibility that he picks up outfield eligibility to go along with his catcher eligibility he is certainly worth a pickup.

Chris Iannetta, SEA – As good as Herrmann is against righties, Iannetta is better against southpaws as the Mariners catcher is hitting .389 with five runs, two home runs, five RBI and an OPS of 1.094 against lefties this season.  His everyday play will ultimately keep his overall averages at a subpar rate but if you find yourself willing to simply play the matchups he can be a solid offensive option at the position.

J.T. Realmuto, MIA - Realmuto finds himself owned in just over 60 percent of standard leagues despite being ranked among the top five catchers in fantasy according to most sites.  He is hitting .320 with 14 runs, two home runs, 13 RBI and two stolen bases on the season and over the last week he finds himself hitting .421 with an OPS of 1.003.  Realmuto was a popular sleeper candidate heading into this season after his impressive rookie campaign and through six weeks he has lived up to the hype.  There is little reason Realmuto is unowned so check your roster and don’t be afraid to pick up the youngster from Miami.

First Base

Steve Pearce, TB - Fantasy owners may remember Pearce from his breakout 2014 season when he hit .293 with 51 runs, 21 home runs, 49 RBI and five stolen bases over 338 at bats for the Orioles.  After a dismal 2015 season where he hit .218, Pearce found himself signing with the Rays this offseason and he is beginning to look like the player we saw back in 2014.  Pearce has been a lefty masher this season, hitting .429 with five home runs, 13 RBI and an OPS of 1.401 against southpaws which is driving his overall production.  The Rays will face two lefties next week in Wei-Yin Chen and Justin Nicolino so those in leagues with daily moves should want to use Pearce in those matchups.

Mike Napoli, CLE - Napoli is still on fire, hitting .320 with five runs, two home runs and five RBI over the last seven days.  On the season he finds himself hitting a respectable .252 with 23 runs, seven home runs and 26 RBI which puts him on pace for a 30 home run season.  While projections are tough to trust this early in the year fantasy owners should trust Napoli’s power as he has proven in previous seasons that when healthy he can be a real home run threat.  The Indians have him hitting in the middle of their lineup which should continue to create RBI opportunities and is the reason why Napoli is ranked among the top 10 first basemen in fantasy this season.

Justin Smoak, TOR -  Smoak has been playing just about every day for the Blue Jays since the Chris Colabello suspension and he has been pretty solid, hitting .293 with 10 runs, three home runs and 11 RBI.  Over the last seven days Smoak has been even better, hitting .316 with an OPS of .988 while hitting one home run and driving in three.  The switch-hitting Smoak is much better from the left side of the plate where he is hitting .315 with an OPS of 1.001 on the year than on the right side where he is hitting just .250 with a .609 OPS so fantasy owners will want to make sure a righty is on the mound before deploying him.

Second Base

Jonathan Schoop, BAL - Schoop finds himself owned in just over 40 percent of standard leagues despite his impressive power potential at a relatively shallow position in fantasy.  Over the last seven days Schoop is hitting .318 with two runs, two home runs and 10 RBI while owning an OPS of 1.030.  He finds himself hitting sixth or seventh in the batting order on most nights but seeing as the Orioles offense is fairly productive he often comes up with men on base and has not missed out on driving them in.  On the year Schoop is hitting .260 with 14 runs, seven home runs and 22 RBI with the home run and RBI totals ranking him among the top 10 at the position this season.

Johnny Giavotella, LAA– This is far from a sexy name but over the last seven days Giavotella is hitting .400 with five runs, one home run, two RBI and one stolen base.  He finds himself owned in just under 2 percent of leagues so he is definitely floating around your waiver wire.  In 2015 he hit .272 with 51 runs, four home runs, 49 RBI and two stolen bases over 453 at-bats so I understand the mixed feelings on this one but he is hitting well right now so why not try and ride out the hot streak while you can even if it’s only for a week.  Giavotella has some pop and stolen base ability and with four multi-hit games over his last five contests he’s worth a shot if you need help at second base or a middle infield position.

Chris Owings, ARI – Ownings was the primary benefactor of the A.J. Pollock injury as he became the Diamondbacks' primary center fielder after having played mostly the infield during his first few seasons in the league.  Owings does not hit for any power but he can swipe you a bag which is where his real fantasy value stems from.  On the year he is hitting .283 with 15 runs, 12 RBI and six stolen bases but over the last seven days he has been much better, hitting .348 with two runs, three RBI and one stolen base while owning an OPS of .913.  Owings is owned in just over 15 percent of standard leagues so if you are looking for a cheap stolen base guy he should be available on your waiver wire.

Third Base

Eugenio Suarez, CIN - Suarez had been struggling a bit heading into last week which saw his ownership actually drop to about 70 percent but he is starting to come around once again and over the last seven days he is hitting .296 with three runs, two home runs and five RBI.  Suarez hits in the top of the Reds lineup which offers him some protection with Joey Votto right behind him in the order and therefore should see plenty of hittable pitches.  He is currently eligible to play both shortstop and third base which only adds to his fantasy value and with double-digit home run power as well as the ability to swipe the occasional bag he is certainly worth owning.  

Eduardo Nunez, MIN - Nunez is owned in just above 20 percent of standard leagues despite having dual elgibilty at third base and shortstop while hitting .333 with 14 runs, two home runs, 14 RBI and seven stolen bases.  He is struggling a bit of late but his ability to swipe bags with some home run potential should certainly have him owned more than he is.  If you finds yourself in need of an upgrade at either middle or corner infield you should go and pick him up.

Danny Valencia, OAK - What a week for Danny Valencia huh?  The A’s third basemen has hit .421 with six runs, six home runs and nine RBI over the last seven days.  He is owned in just about 40 percent of standard leagues but that number is quickly on the rise.  Valencia throughout his career has mashed lefties and that is holding true in a big way this season as he is hitting .375 with four home runs, seven RBI and an OPS of 1.361 OPS against south paws.  With the A’s scheduled to face lefties in two of their next three games now is the time to pounce on Valencia if he is a free agent in your league.

Shortstop

Jonathan Villar, MIL - Villar is owned in just over 45 percent of standard leagues despite the fact that he is hitting .286 with 17 runs, one home run, 12 RBI and 12 stolen bases on the season.  The Brewers leadoff hitter is also hitting .381 over the last seven days and with Ryan Braun returning to the lineup his run scoring totals should begin to increase.  Currently ranked among the top 10 shortstops in fantasy Villar also tied for second in baseball with his 12 steals which is certainly a useful fantasy asset.  Unless you are in an eight team fantasy league Villar is an upgrade at the shortstop position for somebody and he deserves to be owned at a rate higher than 45 percent.

Marcus Semien, OAK - Semien’s batting average of .222 certainly leaves something to be desired however outside of that he does have 10 home runs with 16 runs and 18 RBI.  The 10 home runs ranks him third in baseball among shortstops and his batting average should improve seeing as he owns a very unlucky .212 BABIP which is nearly 100 points lower than his career mark.  Semien is owned in just 25 percent of standard leagues but knowing that he should start to see his average rise along with his already double digit home run power he is worth grabbing off the waiver wire.

Alcides Escobar, KC - Escobar is far from an exciting player to own but he is consistent with his production and his ability to swipe around 20 stolen bases while hitting at the top of the Royals lineup makes him an appealing option in most standard leagues.  Escobar is owned in just under 40 percent of leagues so he is more than likely floating around your waiver wire and over the last few weeks he has started to swing the bat well, hitting .304 with six runs, six RBI and two stolen bases.  Given how shallow the shortstop position is you could certainly do worse than a player like Escobar.

Outfield

Adam Duvall, CIN - After an early season platoon in the outfield, Duvall was named the primary starter a few weeks ago and he has raked ever since, hitting .364 with 10 runs, five home runs and 11 RBI over the last 15 days.  The right handed outfielder is hitting .304 with an OPS of .820 against southpaws this season but he has also proven capable of hitting against righties as well which makes him a safe play on a day-to-day basis.  The Reds play in a very favorable hitters park which only adds to Duvall’s value so if you find yourself looking for a power bat to help your outfield he is certainly a player to target.

Marcell Ozuna, MIA - At just over 60 percent Ozuna is still tremendously under owned given his massive power upside that he provides and the fact that over the last two weeks he is hitting .414 with 13 runs, nine home runs and nine RBI while owning an OPS of 1.081.  Overall on the year, Ozuna is hitting .301 with 23 runs, seven home runs and 20 RBI which ranks him among the top 20 outfielders in fantasy baseball.  Ozuna had an impressive rookie campaign in 2014 when he hit 23 home runs but a disappointing 2015 season lowered his stock heading into this year however he has seemingly righted the ship and should be owned in nearly all possible formats.

Melvin Upton Jr., SD – Melvin Upton Jr. has seemingly turned back the clock as he finds himself on pace for yet another 20 homer/20 stolen base season that we last saw from him back in 2012 before he went on and singed a big free-agent deal with the Braves and looked as if he forgot how to play baseball.  2016 has been a career rejuvenation for Upton however as he is hitting .273 with 16 runs, five home runs, 16 RBI and seven stolen bases over the first 40 games of the year yet his ownership level sits at 25 percent because the fantasy world is not yet a believer.  Given his power and speed combo however Upton should be one of the top players added this week as you can’t continue to ignore his production.

Pitchers

James Shields, SD – Shields finds himself owned in just about 55 percent of standard leagues despite the fact that he is looking more like the “Big Game” James Shields of his Tampa days than the man who had a sub-par 2015 season compared to his standards.  Over the last 15 days Shields owns a 2.77 ERA while striking out 17 over 13 innings and those numbers are even better if you look at his production this month on a whole.  His next start will be at home against the Giants who he held to one run over seven innings an earlier start this season.

Kevin Gausman, BAL – Gausman had a rough outing against the Tigers in his last start but prior to that he had allowed just six total runs over his first four starts.  He draws a favorable matchup in his next start against an Angels team that has really struggled against right handed pitching this season and while they do have some dangerous bats in Mike Trout and Kole Calhoun there is still good upside here.  Gausman is owned in just under 45 percent of standard leagues but given his upside he should certainly be added prior to his start on Saturday.

Tyler Duffey, MIN - Duffey is proving that 2015 was no fluke as the Twins pitcher is 1-2 but with a 1.85 ERA while striking out 23 over 24.1 innings so far this season.  His next matchup will come on Friday against the Blue Jays that could be without Jose Bautista and has been less effective against righties than they have been against lefties so there potential that Duffey can limit their offense.  At just 13 percent owned in standard leagues Duffey is a player worth monitoring if you need starting help.

Sam Dyson, TEX - Dyson was named the Rangers closer after Shawn Tolleson really struggled to begin the season. Dyson on the season has picked up two saves while owning a 1.89 ERA over 19 innings this season. Dyson converted his last save attempt and seeing as he is owned in just over 13 percent of standard leagues is a player worth grabbing if you were a Tolleson owner or if you are looking for saves help.