Welcome to the Waiver Wire Picks, our daily fantasy baseball article that looks at the best players in baseball that you should be adding to your rosters. We’ll look at the players that are likely to be available in most leagues, as well as some deep league waiver wire options, and we’ll also look at the most added players in fantasy baseball across the major sites, and let you know which players to add and which players you can leave on the wire.
Top Priority Players to Add
Emmet Sheehan (LAD) – SP (Yahoo! – 29%)
I babbled about attending Sheehan’s debut game the first time I highlighted him as a priority pick; I’ll spare you all that this time. Sheehan flashed his brilliance against the Reds last night, racking up 10 strikeouts in seven scoreless innings. He punched out Noelvi Marte and Elly De La Cruz in back-to-back at-bats to close out the first, and kept cruising from there.
This was Sheehan’s first scoreless outing all year, and his ERA now sits at a respectable 3.56 for the season. He has a sweetheart schedule in the coming weeks, lining up against the Pirates, Rockies, Phillies (less good), Giants, and Mariners in Seattle. The Dodgers are highly motivated to compete for a playoff bye, and are sure to play hard to keep ahead of the Padres and Phillies. Sheehan is finally stretched out and should have plenty of wins and quality starts in his future. He’s cut down on his walks, which have always been a mark against him. He issued 10 in 21 innings in July, but managed to drop that number to six in 23 innings in August. We’re seeing Sheehan come into his own, and I’m looking to add him in all league sizes.
Ryan O’Hearn (SDP) 1B, OF (Yahoo! – 31%)
O’Hearn has an .834 OPS. Manny Machado and Brent Rooker also have .834 OPSes. Machado and Rooker are 99% and 98% rostered, respectively, while O’Hearn is just 31% rostered. O’Hearn’s not in the same bracket of fantasy players (he has five fewer home runs than Machado and 10 fewer than Rooker), but he’s under-rostered for how well he’s playing. He’s in a partial platoon, but the Padres won’t see any southpaws for the rest of the week. He’s a solid, well-rounded hitter, and he’s hitting particularly well at the moment.
Yahoo! and ESPN Most Added Players
Yahoo!
Cam Schlittler was a popular streamer for his matchup against the Nats. He dominated, delivering six shutout innings with eight strikeouts. He’s got great matchups down the stretch; he’s worthy of an add in all league sizes.
Michael McGreevy was a less successful stream yesterday. He lasted six innings and delivered seven strikeouts, but gave up four earned runs along the way. He has an excellent schedule to close out the season, so I’m willing to forgive him for this start.
Mark Vientos may finally be putting it together. After what seemed like a breakout season in 2024, Vientos’ 2025 has been a disappointment. He’s batting .238 on the season, but he’s averaging .313 with five home runs in the last two weeks. Maybe he was just saving all that power for the playoffs.
Jared Triolo is benefitting immensely from facing Rockies pitching. He’s averaging .444 with two homers in the last week, but I’d expect the fun to end in short order when he runs into the Red Sox, then Dodgers, then Brewers in the next few weeks.
Emmet Sheehan tore the Reds to shreds yesterday, when he racked up 10 Ks through seven shutout innings. He’s got a sweet schedule for the rest of the year. I went ahead and added him in the league above just after taking this screenshot.
ESPN
Hurston Waldrep has looked fantastic; he has a 0.73 ERA through 24.2 innings and is worth an add based on that alone. He’s lined up to face the Cubs in back-to-back outings, and I’d definitely sit him for the second game.
Shane Bieber was my priority pick last week ahead of his debut, and his debut went even better than I hoped. He looks to be back in elite form already, and I’d rush to pick him up in all leagues, definitely over rookies Waldrep and McLean.
Nolan McLean is having a fantastic debut, with a 1.46 ERA in 12.1 innings of work. Like Waldrep, he’s worth an add in all league sizes, but I’d opt for Bieber first if he’s available.
Jurickson Profar has been one of the best hitters in baseball over the last month. Maybe he really didn’t need the PEDs. It’s impossible to deny a .273 average with seven homers in the last month.
Cam Schlittler is yet another rookie pitcher, though he’s had a rockier go of it than Waldrep or McLean, with a 3.22 ERA in 36.1 innings. I’d prefer Schlittler to either of the other rookies listed here.
Streaming Pitchers
Check out Nick Pollack’s SP Streamer Rankings for breakdowns and recommendations for every start.
Luis Morales (ATH) – SP (Yahoo! – 5%)
Morales will square off against the Tigers tomorrow. He’s having a quietly excellent debut, and the Tigers’ bats have been quiet since July. But maybe you want to hang on to him longer…
Deep League Players to Watch
Luis Morales (ATH) – SP (Yahoo! – 5%)
I like Morales as more than just a streamer. It’s early days for Morales in his MLB debut, but the results are great so far. He holds a 1.72 ERA with 15 strikeouts in 15.1 innings of work. He’s not racking up the Ks like he did in the minors this year, and he’s giving up more walks than we’d like, but he’s not that far off from some of the more highly-rostered rookie pitchers. He has good matchups coming up against Detroit, St. Louis, and Boston, and I don’t see how he doesn’t stick in the rotation through the end of the season.
