Fantasy Baseball Week 4 Waiver Wire Adds: Brendan Donovan, Michael Lorenzen, Nick Lodolo and More

Discussing the most-added fantasy baseball players heading into week 4 of the fantasy baseball season.

The fourth week of the fantasy baseball season is about to get underway, so it’s time to dive into some popular waiver wire adds. 

Let’s discuss three pitchers and hitters from the FantasySP Waiver Wire Pickups page. We won’t include anyone who was part of the most recent waiver wire story.

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Michael Busch Fantasy Outlook

Busch has the highest own percentage increase at 22.17 after a great weekend, but he’s really been playing well most of the season.

Busch has a .327 batting average and .393 on-base percentage across 15 games at 56 plate appearances so far. Among his 16 hits, five have been homers and three have been doubles. Busch has 11 RBIs, eight runs scored, six walks and 14 strikeouts.

It’s Busch’s first season in Chicago, and appears pretty locked into the first base starting role right now. This is his first true chance at a big league role at age 26, and he’s taking advantage of it so far.

Busch is a top-10 fantasy 1B right now, and while that might not remain true for the rest of the season, I’m all for taking a chance on Busch if he’s still available in your league. There’s probably a player or two at the end of your bench that could be dropped to make room for Busch.

Brendan Donovan Fantasy Outlook

We’ll remain in the NL Central with St. Louis’ Donovan. The super utility player has forced his way into the lineup everyday with a hot start at the plate.

Donovan is hitting .273 and getting on base at a .388 clip so far. Among his 15 hits, he’s doubled four times, tripled once and homered twice. Donovan has nine RBIs, 10 runs scored, seven walks and nine strikeouts.

Donovan is a career .282 hitter, so there actually appears to be a little room for improvement in that department. He’s a valuable fantasy asset because he can start at so many different positions, but wasn’t a big draft commodity because he hasn’t topped 130 games in his first couple seasons. 

He appears pretty locked into an everyday spot in the lineup, and it’s one atop the order, which gives him plenty of chances to be a solid fantasy asset. If you are looking for a versatile fantasy player, Donovan is a great option.

Christian Encarnacion-Strand Fantasy Outlook

How about another NL Central option in Cincinnati’s Encarnacion-Strand.

The second-year player is off to a slow start at the plate, but fantasy owners have liked what they’ve seen over the past few games. CES has a .185 average and .191 OBP so far this season, with two doubles and two homers among his six total hits, 12 RBIs, six runs scored, one walk and 20 strikeouts across 15 games and 68 plate appearances. Encarnation-Strand has two-hit games in three of the past five games, with seven RBIs over that span.

CES had a .270 average and .328 OBP last season, with 13 homers across 63 games. It was too early in the season for fantasy owners to give up on the youngster, and now other fantasy owners are pouncing while he’s available. If you aren’t ready to start Encarnacion-Strand, at least stash him on the end of your bench for the time being. 

Michael Lorenzen Fantasy Outlook

Lorenzen is about to make his 2024 debut for the Rangers. He’s the team’s probable pitcher for Monday’s game against the Tigers.

Across three starts at Triple-A this season, Lorenzen had a 6.35 ERA across 11 1/3 innings, with 13 strikeouts and nine walks along the way. A season ago, he posted a 9-9 record and 4.18 ERA with the Tigers and Phillies. He covered 153 innings in 29 games (25 starts), with 111 strikeouts and 47 walks.

Lorenzen isn’t a top-tier fantasy option, but on a team with a stacked offense, his fantasy value definitely improves. The matchup against the Tigers is a pretty favorable one on paper, but also know that’s unlikely he goes over five innings, as he’s still getting ramped up after the late start to the season.

I still like the idea of streaming him in deeper leagues, or simply adding and stashing him. I expect a pretty strong season out of Lorenzen, and if you can afford to stash him for a little bit, he might be an extremely valuable waiver wire add in short order.

Javier Assad Fantasy Outlook

We’re headed back to the NL Central and Chicago’s Assad. He’s been great across his first three starts. Assad is 2-0 with a 2.16 ERA so far, striking out 18 and walking five over 16 2/3 innings.

This is Assad’s first real chance at a full-time rotation spot, and so far, he’s pitched well enough to keep that spot. He has a career 2.97 ERA, but his fantasy value is clearly higher if he’s starting and eating more innings. 

You could play matchups with him if you still aren’t 100% confident in him yet, but he’s shown me enough across three starts to trust against most opponents.

Nick Lodolo Fantasy Outlook

How about one more NL Central player in Cincinnati’s Lodolo.

Lodolo made his season debut over the weekend, striking out 10 over 5 2/3 scoreless innings. He allowed just one hit and a walk, so it’s no wonder his own percentage is on the rise.

He struggled with injuries in 2023 and is looking to get back to his 2022 form, when he had a 3.66 ERA across 19 starts and 103 1/3 innings. He’s worth a waiver wire add to see if he can keep things rolling after start No. 1.

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