Fantasy Baseball Top Waiver Wire Adds

Mid-July waiver pickups can make or break your fantasy season. Here are three names you should be targeting right now. (Find more articles like this on fbaseball.com)

Esmerlyn Valdez, OF, Pittsburgh Pirates

This is the headliner. Valdez is putting up numbers that don't even look real — .306/.367/.724 with 11 homers in just 29 games. That's a 1.091 OPS. For a 22-year-old.

The Statcast profile backs it up too, which is what separates this from a pure hot streak. His barrel rate is 29.8%. His hard-hit rate is 52.6%. Average exit velocity at 92.1 mph. These are legitimate power indicators, not smoke and mirrors.

Now, there's a real gap between his actual stats and his xBA (.239) and xSLG (.580). That gap is worth watching. His xwOBA sits at .374, which is still very good — just not 1.091 OPS good. Some regression is coming. But even if he drops back to his expected numbers, that's still a very productive fantasy outfielder.

He only got to the big leagues this year after posting a .914 OPS at Triple-A in 2026. The power was always there. Pittsburgh is giving him a real shot, and he's making them look smart for it.

If he's on your waiver wire, drop whatever outfield filler you're holding and grab him today. The regression risk is real but the floor is still solid and the ceiling is massive.

Shane Bieber, SP

Bieber missed a chunk of time earlier this season with an injury, which is probably why he's sitting on your wire right now. That absence spooked a lot of managers into dropping him, and you can take advantage of that.

Here's the thing — his most recent start was a good one. Real encouraging signs that the stuff is back where it needs to be. Bieber has never been a high-velo guy, so when he's healthy it's always been about command and deception, and that appears to be clicking again.

The concern with any pitcher coming back from injury is whether they're fully stretched out and whether the team is going to yank him at a pitch count. Keep an eye on his workload over the next couple starts. But if he's making it through five or six innings and missing bats the way he's capable of, the mid-rotation upside is very much alive.

He works in all formats when healthy. Strikeouts, ratios, the occasional win — he checks enough boxes. Don't overthink it. If he's on your wire and cleared to go, add him.

Trevor Larnach, OF, Minnesota Twins

Larnach doesn't have the highlight-reel numbers Valdez does, but he's been quietly useful in 2026 and is worth picking up in most 12-team leagues.

He's hitting .286 with a .377 OBP through 82 games, which is a genuine improvement over his recent seasons. The on-base skills are real. His counting stats — 7 HR, 33 RBI, 45 runs — aren't going to win you a week by themselves, but he contributes across multiple categories without hurting you anywhere.

The Statcast numbers are modest. His barrel rate is 7.3%, hard-hit rate is 35.0%, and his xBA (.268) actually trails his real average slightly, which suggests the .286 isn't totally luck-driven. His xSLG (.411) is right in line with where his actual slugging has been. There's no power spike coming, but he's not going to crater either.

Larnach is a depth piece, not a difference-maker. In 10-team leagues, he's borderline. In 12-team leagues where your outfield has holes, he gives you a real OBP contributor who plays every day.

- Valdez: Add in all formats immediately - Bieber: Add if healthy, good sign from his latest start - Larnach: Add in 12-team leagues, good OBP and run-scoring upside the rest of the way

Valdez is the priority here. Don't sleep on him waiting to see if the regression hits — by then, he'll be owned in every league that matters.

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