Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Targets: Spencer Steer, Bobby Miller, Nolan Jones

Week 9 of the fantasy baseball season is here and man has it been a roller coaster. Well, it’s been a roller coaster in the pitching world. What was once considered the most stable position, at least at the top of the rankings, has become quite unstable. Guys like Sandy Alcantara, Corbin Burnes, and Alek Manoah have been a disappointment, to say the least.

On the hitting side of things, there have been a few struggles at the top. Julio Rodriguez and Trea Turner haven’t had the seasons many hoped they would. That seems to be finally turning around, though. Julio Rodriguez has really turned things up in the last two weeks, and Turner has found a bit of the power he’d been lacking.

Now when it comes to the waiver wire, there were some excellent additions that you hopefully were lucky enough to add last week. Especially Jorge Soler. So far this week, he’s hit an impressive four home runs and driven home six in six games. The type of production you love to see from anyone, especially someone you just picked up. While finding guys like Soler may be difficult this week, there are a few guys I think can really help you dominate this week. Let’s get into just who those guys may be.

Waiver Wire Priority Additions

Marcell Ozuna (OF, DH – ATL)

Despite his standing in the community off the field, but Ozuna has been tearing the cover off the ball. Especially these last couple of weeks. While many may not like him getting any attention (which I fully understand, trust me), it’s my job to highlight the guys I think can currently help you off the waiver wire.

He was atrocious in the month of April. He’s been the polar opposite in May. In 19 games, he’s hitting .366 with three doubles, nine home runs, and 20 RBI. He’s lowered his strikeout rate to 20% with an OPS of 1.226. His .554 xSLG is in the 93rd percentile, and his 15.6% barrel rate is good enough for the 92nd percentile. Say what you want about him off the field. His production on the field has been good enough to be added in both points and category leagues moving forward.

Spencer Steer (1B, 3B – CIN)

So many Cincinnati Reds prospects are the talk of the baseball world lately, yet Steer seems to be overlooked. He had a little bit of hype coming into the year, started slow, and faded into obscurity. He seemed to take offense to that, seeing as his production has since gone crazy ever since. In May, Steer hit .316 with eight doubles and four home runs. All of these are considerably better than his March/April numbers despite playing two fewer games.

Spencer Steer puts the Reds back on top! pic.twitter.com/6f6faoq1QP

— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) May 22, 2023

Much of that May production has come from his excellent 85.7% zone contact rate and his inability to make soft contact. His 5.3% barrel rate and 36% hard-hit rate aren’t earth-shattering, but it’s the fact he’s making soft contact just 9.3% of the time. Combine that with his uptick in line drive rate, and Steer has become an impactful fantasy player in all formats.

Matt McLain (SS – CIN)

I swear this isn’t going to become just a list of Cincinnati Reds players. These two for sure deserve to be on the list, though. McLain, in his first 10 games at the big league level, has been nothing short of sensational. Four doubles, two home runs, 10 runs scored, and a .325 batting average have made him viable in every fantasy format.

He’s been an excellent combo of both power and speed. His 11.5% barrel rate and 42.3% hard-hit rate show that the power he showed in the minors is real. He’s already registered a 94th-percentile sprint speed as well, despite the lack of steals. He should continue to hit at the top of the order and calls the best hitters’ park in baseball his home. Add and start him with confidence, even with shortstop being such a deep position.

Bobby Miller (SP – LAD)

If you played Diamond Dynasty on MLB The Show in 2022, you absolutely despised Miller. At least I did. He was damn near unhittable. That’s exactly how it felt watching his major league debut this season. Four hits across five innings with five strikeouts was excellent. Especially the fact that it came against the Atlanta Braves and that stacked lineup.

He flashed a five-pitch mix in his start when most young pitchers come with two and work from there. His fastball was hittable (.429 BAA / .391 xBA), but the rest performed very well. He gave up just one hit off the slider while giving up a combined zero hits off his changeup, curveball, and sinker. He’s not going to be the dominant pitcher someone like Bryce Miller is, but he should be consistently good enough to be worth an add in leagues of 12 or more.

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Deep League Additions

Jose Siri (OF – TB)

Much like the rest of the Tampa Bay Rays lineup, Siri has seemingly come out of nowhere to put up impressive numbers this season. Don’t get it twisted, though. There are still reasons to be hesitant. His 39.8% whiff rate and 33.2% chase rate are going to come back to bite him. For now, taking advantage of his early production is a must.

Jose Siri PIMPED it pic.twitter.com/dzBmaAEm3P

— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) May 24, 2023

Since May 12th, he’s been on fire. He’s hitting .333 with a double, six home runs, and has just a 19% strikeout rate. For the year, his 19.4% barrel rate show that the uptick in power is something that could be sustainable. While he likely isn’t going to hit 40 home runs, Siri could end up being a 25-home-run player who approaches 100 runs, even hitting at the bottom of the Rays’ lineup. 12 team leagues should add him while he’s hot. Leagues deeper than that should consider starting him from here on out.

Jeimer Candelario (3B – WAS)

Candelario is the type of player whose underlying numbers are never going to be exciting, yet he still finds a way to be fantasy relevant. Granted, he’s really just relevant in deep leagues, but he’s still relevant. Especially right now in that weak Nationals lineup.

Since May 15th, he’s been one of the hottest hitters in baseball. Hitting .409 with five doubles, two triples, two home runs, nine runs scored, and eight RBI. His low 14.6% strikeout rate in that timeframe makes him especially viable in points leagues. He won’t keep up this production forever, so add him and ride it out while he’s available.

Jose Caballero (2B, SS – SEA)

I promise my Mariners fandom didn’t cause me to want to sneak one into the article. It did help bring Caballero to my attention, though. With Kolton Wong being what many would deem to be a disappointment thus far, Caballero has stepped up and become the other half of Wong’s platoon. Surprisingly, he’s done a pretty damn good job and is flying under many fantasy radars.

In May, Cabby is hitting .341 with two doubles, two home runs, nine RBI, and four stolen bases. He’s proven to be a solid contributor in multiple categories as well as points leagues. He cut his strikeout rate in March/April almost in half to just 16.7% while walking at the exact same rate. Batting at the bottom of the lineup hinders the number of at-bats he will get, but he’s owned in almost no leagues and offers viable production in any deep league.

Nolan Jones (OF – COL)

Jones is probably the hottest-hitting prospect to get called up with almost no hype surrounding it. He got a taste of the big leagues last year with Cleveland and proceeded to tear the cover off the ball in Triple-A this season. His 1.193 OPS was too much for Colorado to ignore, and he now seemingly has an everyday role in the Rockies’ lineup.

We all know Coors Field is one of the biggest advantages a player can have, especially when it comes to fantasy baseball. He went hitless in his first game with the big club but finished Saturday 2-4 with a double and two RBI. He doesn’t project to hit for a high average, but he has the kind of power that makes him a 30-home-run threat if he gets consistent at-bats. Deep leagues and five-outfielder leagues should take notice.

MLB Waiver Wire MLB Weekly Advice Sandy Alcantara Corbin Burnes Alek Manoah Julio Rodriguez Trea Turner Jorge Soler Marcell Ozuna Spencer Steer (1B, 3B – CIN) Matt McLain (SS – CIN) Bobby Miller (SP – LAD) Bryce Miller Jose Siri (OF – TB) Jeimer Candelario (3B – WAS) Jose Caballero (2B, SS – SEA) Nolan Jones (OF – COL)