Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire: Jake Burger is back on the menu

If you have fantasy baseball needs, we have solutions to fit any budget. Here’s a fresh batch of potential pickups, each of them available in well over 50% of Yahoo leagues and approved for use…

Jake Burger, 1B/3B, Texas Rangers (43% rostered)

Texas actually sent Burger down to Triple-A for recalibration earlier this month — a reminder that he was no longer with the White Sox or Marlins, but instead with a team that requires consistent production. Burger proceeded to go 9-for-23 with a pair of homers at Round Rock, earning back his spot in the majors. Recent big league results have been plenty encouraging:

We shouldn't need to tell you that Burger has 30-homer potential, because he's cleared the fence 63 times over the past two seasons. He's obviously not gonna run and his batting average will only be tolerable, not helpful. But he's been an excellent second-half hitter over the course of his career (.274/.335/.536), so the power surge is coming.

Ryan McMahon, 3B, Colorado Rockies (35%)

Ever since the calendar flipped to May, McMahon has been rolling. He's hit four bombs this month while also delivering four multi-hit games and slashing .357/.471/.762. Colorado has a full week of home games ahead with no off-days in MLB's best run-scoring environment, so let's be aggressive about adding various Rockies (also the visiting Phillies and Yankees) wherever possible.

Agustín Ramírez, C/1B, Miami Marlins (33%)

It's been a low-stress season at catcher in fantasy, with several playable young backstops emerging (and another who just arrived on the scene). In terms of fantasy appeal, I'd still take Ramírez over pretty much all of them. He's been an XBH-machine since arriving in Miami, launching his fifth homer of the season on Wednesday night. Ramírez is batting a perfectly respectable .260 for the Marlins. Also, there's a speed component to his game that's rare among catchers. He swiped 22 bags in 24 attempts in the minors last season and he was 5-for-5 on the bases at Triple-A before his promotion this year.

Ramírez is now hitting in the heart of the order for Miami, a favorable spot for run production. He’s looking like a top-10 fantasy catcher over the balance of the season.

Tim Elko, 1B, Chicago White Sox (1%)

If you are unfamiliar with the legend of Tim Elko, the short version is that he helped lead Ole Miss to a national championship in 2022 and, the prior year, he absolutely raked while limping around on a torn ACL. He authored a storybook collegiate career. Elko, now 26, was recently called up by the White Sox and it didn't take him long to make a splash:

Elko was crushing at Triple-A before the promotion, hitting .348/.431/.670 with 10 bombs (and stellar batted ball data). He's as ready as he's ever gonna get and should receive a long look from the Sox.

Connor Norby, 2B/3B, Miami Marlins (11%)

Norby has done some light tweaking to his swing recently, and the changes certainly seem to have helped. He put together an eight-game hitting streak and he's gone 9-for-28 with four XBHs over Miami's last three series. His minor league history suggests that a 20/10 season in terms of power and speed is a reasonable expectation. If you're playing in a mixed league with MI and CI slots to fill, Norby deserves a long look.

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Tyler Fitzgerald, 2B/SS/OF, San Francisco Giants (30%)

Understandably, Fitzgerald was mass-dropped when he hit the IL at the end of April, sidelined by a fractured rib. He just began a rehab assignment at Triple-A Sacramento and went 2-for-6 in his first two games, driving in three runs. When Fitzgerald hit the IL, he was slashing .284/.341/.432 with two homers and five steals for the Giants. He’s coming off a partial season at the MLB level in which he hit 15 bombs and swiped 17 bases over 96 games while batting .280, so this is a hitter with a fantasy-friendly profile. His multi-position eligibility is a nice bonus as well.

Ryan Weathers, SP, Miami Marlins (19%)

Weathers made his season debut for the Fish on Wednesday night in a degree-of-difficulty matchup with the Cubs, but he displayed no rust whatsoever. He was consistently hitting 98 on the gun (touching 99) as he struck out five batters over 5.0 innings while allowing just two hits, one walk and one run.

It's basically everything you wanted to see if, like me, you'd kept Weathers stashed in the IL spot because you were too cowardly to use him against Chicago. Weathers is a member of the best-shape-of-his-life club and he's coming off an impressive spring. He deserves a spot in the shallowest mixed leagues.

Justin Verlander, SP, San Francisco Giants (29%)

At 42, Verlander certainly isn't the peak version of himself on the mound, but he's still managed to string together a series of excellent outings. He's had no recent luck in terms of wins, but that's hardly a reflection of his performance. Over his last five starts, he's pitched 29.1 innings, striking out 23 batters while producing an ERA of 2.76 and WHIP of 1.09. Those numbers will play in pretty much any league.

Verlander's next upcoming appearance is a weekend home matchup against the Athletics, a highly winnable game for a curiously winless pitcher. After that, he should see the Nationals and Marlins.

José Soriano, SP, Los Angeles Angels (21%)

Soriano will take his triple-digit fastball and vicious splitter into a two-start week, facing the Athletics and Marlins. Like Verlander, he's been a bit win-challenged lately, but these upcoming starts are full of possibility. Soriano has been a ground-ball machine this season, per his usual, leading all starters in GB/FB by a mile (3.52). He's likely to be among the most appealing two-start arms in your league's free-agent pool at the moment. Make the add wherever you're chasing wins and Ks.