2023 Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Week 17: Chas McCormick A Great Short-Term Pickup

Almost every week on the fantasy baseball waiver wire in the 2023 MLB season, it has felt like Christmas. There has been a standout waiver wire add, and many times it was a top prospect. Just last week, it was Christian Encarnacion-Strand and Grayson Rodriguez. This weekend, there aren't any big targets. That doesn't mean it's time to take a week off from adding players. Some weeks the waiver wire has some long-term options and others could be one of short-term solutions. There are several hitters available that have been hammering the ball recently and could help in the weeks ahead. There are several pitchers with two starts and appealing matchups to bolster your fantasy baseball team, too. As we saw last week, a lot can change from Saturday morning until Sunday night with injuries and players called up, so pay attention until the waiver wire run starts. Always adjust the recommended bids based on team needs and money left in the league. This is the time of season where budgets are low and looking at what others have remaining in FAAB is important in determining how much to bid.
Top Waiver Wire Hitters
Chas McCormick, OF, Houston Astros; FAAB Bid: 4-6%
McCormick has been one of the hottest hitters in baseball. Even if it's unlikely to continue the rest of the season, he can be a short-term help. Over his last 134 plate appearances, he is hitting .333 with 23 runs, ten home runs, 24 RBI, and five stolen bases.
Will Benson, OF, Cincinnati Reds; FAAB Bid: 4-6%
While the Reds have a lot of options on offense, Benson has been starting against some left-handers recently. While he strikes out 26.1% of the time, he has a 14.9% walk rate. Benson is hitting .292/.398/.533 with 25 runs, six home runs, 17 RBI, and nine stolen bases with a .914 OPS.
Edouard Julien, 2B, Minnesota Twins; FAAB Bid: 4-6%
Julien has been playing every day and most days is near the top of the order. He has reached base in nine of his last ten games and has 18 hits in his last 32 at-bats with five home runs. Julien sits against most left-handers with only 20 at-bats against them. He is hitting .316/.391/.566 with 25 runs, nine home runs, 16 RBI, and two stolen bases.
Alex Kirilloff, OF, Minnesota Twins; FAAB Bid: 4-6%
Kirilloff has been slowed down by injuries in his career. He played well in May, struggled in June and has turned it on in July. He is hitting .311/.373/.600 with seven runs, four home runs, and 17 RBI in 49 at-bats. For the season, Kirilloff is hitting .284/.372/.468 with 22 runs, eight home runs, and 31 RBI. He has four home runs in his last six games.
Spencer Torkelson, 1B, Detroit Tigers; FAAB Bid: 4-6%
Torkelson has been mentioned here sporadically and he's still available in 70% of Yahoo leagues. He has been streaky and is in the middle of a good stretch. In July, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2020 draft is 16-for-57 (.281) with 11 runs scored, three home runs, and 11 RBI. He is hitting .231/.306/.411 with 48 runs, 14 home runs, and 52 RBI with a 49% hard hit rate, which is in the 86th percentile.
Wilmer Flores, 2B, San Francisco Giants; FAAB Bid: 3-5%
Flores has been sizzling for a while. He has 31 hits in his last 80 at-bats with 14 runs scored, seven doubles, six home runs, and 15 RBI. He is hitting .292/.352/.526 with 29 runs, 12 home runs, 31 RBIs,and an .875 OPS in 210 at-bats. Flores has been hitting so well, he's getting at-bats against right-handers.
Top Waiver Wire Pitchers
Kenta Maeda, Minnesota Twins; FAAB Bid: 8-10%
Maeda's numbers are misleading due to one awful start in which he allowed 11 hits and ten runs over three innings. Without that start, he has a 3.20 ERA. Maeda missed time early in the season with a triceps injury and has been better since he came back. On Wednesday, he pitched 6.1 innings and allowed three hits, two runs, no walks, and struck out nine against the Mariners. In his last five starts, he has pitched 26.1 innings and allowed 18 hits, eight runs, nine walks, and struck out 36. Maeda has a 28.6% strikeout rate, 6.9% walk rate, and a 3.89 xERA despite a 5.10 ERA. Maeda has a two-start week with the Mariners at home and on the road at Kansas City.
Logan Allen, Cleveland Guardians; FAAB Bid: 6-8%
With injuries in the starting rotation, Allen got the call back to the majors after being sent down in late June. Allen made a start on Tuesday against the Pirates and pitched five scoreless innings and allowed one hit, walked one, and struck out eight. He has a 3.21 ERA, 1.37 WHIP, 24.3% strikeout rate, and 8.6% walk rate. Allen has a two-start week at home against the Royals and at the White Sox.
Nick Pivetta, Boston Red Sox; FAAB Bid: 6-8%
Pivetta has been coming in after an opener and pitching well. In his last appearance against Oakland, Pivetta pitched six hitless innings with two walks and 13 strikeouts. In his last 21.1 innings, he has allowed seven hits, five earned runs, walked seven, and struck out 38.
Michael Lorenzen, Detroit Tigers; FAAB Bid: 6-8%
Lorenzen is more for deep leagues since he doesn't get a lot of strikeouts. He has a 3.49 ERA, 1.09 WHIP, 19.1% strikeout rate, and 6.5% walk rate. Over his last three starts, he has pitched 18.2 innings and allowed eight hits, no runs, walked six, and struck out 14. Lorenzen has a two-start week with a start at home against the Angels and on the road at Miami.
Seth Lugo, San Diego Padres; FAAB Bid: 6-8%
Lugo has made five starts since coming off the injured list and despite allowing five runs over 5.1 innings in his last start, he has a 3.29 ERA, 1.06 WHIP, and a 26:2 K:BB ratio in that span. For the season, he has a 3.72 ERA, 1.27 WHIP, 22.2% strikeout rate, and a 4.5% walk rate. Lugo made a start Friday night and pitched six innings, and allowed six hits, two runs, walked three, and struck out seven in a win.
Kevin Ginkel, Arizona Diamondbacks; FAAB Bid: 6-8%
It's not clear if Ginkel is going to get the saves going forward, but he has the last two for Arizona on consecutive days. Scott McGough was getting most of the save chances recently, but he has allowed nine earned runs in his last six games. Ginkel had three strikeouts in a save against the Braves on Tuesday and allowed a hit and one run the next day in converting the save. The run was the first he allowed since May 30, a stretch of 11 games. Ginkel has a 2.39 ERA, 0.98 WHIP, 23.3% strikeout rate and 7.5% walk rate.
Jose Quintana, New York Mets; FAAB Bid: 3-5%
Quintana returned from rib cage surgery and made his Mets debut on Thursday against the White Sox. He pitched five innings and allowed two runs on six hits with three strikeouts. In his four rehab appearances over 11.1 innings, he had a 2.38 ERA. Quintana had a 2.93 ERA in 165.2 innings last season between the Pirates and Cardinals. Quintana is lined up to face a struggling Yankees offense and the Royals on the road in his next two starts.
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Daulton Varsho picked up three hits, three RBI and a homer in a win over the Angels on Thursday.
Varsho has only played in seven games this year, but they’ve been seven good ones. He’s homered three times already, and his slugging percentage is a remarkable — and entirely unsustainable — .727 over 22 at-bats. Varsho has been a mediocre offensive player in his two seasons with the Blue Jays, but it’s possible at the age of 28 he’s having a breakout campaign. Far from a guarantee, but possible.
Taylor Ward hit a two-run homer in a loss to the Blue Jays on Thursday.
Ward, 31, gave the Angels a 2-0 lead with a two-run homer off Chris Bassitt in the first inning. He’s now gone deep in two of his last three games, and it ‘improves’ his slash to .181/.224/.391. Ward has been one of the most hot/cold players players in the sport over the last few years, so fantasy managers who can afford to make some roster moves may want to look at Ward while the going is good.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. picked up three hits and scored twice in an 8-5 win over the Angels on Thursday.
Guerrero also drew a walk. It gives the first baseman multiple hits in back-to-back games, and it’s the third time in May that he’s reached that mark. That’s helped raise his average from .268 to .295, and the only thing fantasy managers can be disappointed with is his .432 slugging percentage. That number should continue to climb as the season unfolds, but Vladdy Jr. has had some inconsistent seasons when it comes to power production.
Chad Green picked up his first save of 2025 with a scoreless ninth against the Angels on Thursday.
Green got the save after Jeff Hoffman worked in back-to-back games — and struggled — in the first two contests against the Angels. He struck out two and looked the part while needing just nine pitches to get through the inning. Hoffman should remain the closer, but Green is on his tail if the struggles were to continue.
Chris Bassitt allowed five runs — four earned — while working six-plus innings against the Angels on Thursday while picking up a win.
Bassitt allowed three runs over the first two innings on a pair of homers, but settled down over his next four frames. He came out to work the seventh, but ended up being charged for two more runs after leaving the contest. The 36-year-old veteran has forged a 3.35 ERA and outstanding 49/8 K/BB ratio over the first quarter of the season, but this wasn’t him at his best. He’ll get the Rays next week if the rotation order stays the same for Toronto.
José Soriano allowed three runs over five innings while not factoring in the decision Thursday against the Blue Jays.
Soriano left with a 4-3 lead, but it was erased quickly after his departure. The 26-year-old was not exactly dominant in his outing with eight hits allowed and four free passes, but he did strike out six to help balance things out a smidgen. Soriano takes an even ERA of 4.00 into a scheduled start against the Padres in San Diego on Tuesday. There should be better options for that one.