More Fantasy Baseball Week 26 Waiver Wire Adds: Byron Buxton, Luisangel Acuna, Wyatt Langford and More
Discussing the most-added fantasy baseball players in the last half of week 26 of the fantasy baseball season.
It’s time for another fantasy baseball waiver wire story.
Usually I put this together on Friday, but we’ll drop it a day early this week. It makes some sense considering every fantasy matchup now is crucial, and picking up the best waiver players could be the difference in winning a fantasy title or having your season ended.
The daily takeaway stories are also a good source to find waiver wire options from. Daniel Hepner does daily streaming stories, which cover the best starting pitcher waiver wire options. Let’s now go over several hitters from the Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Pickups page.
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Byron Buxton Fantasy Outlook
Buxton is back after a roughly month-long absence, and has a hit in each game since returning. That’s made him the top waiver wire hitter for this article. He’s rostered in 55% of fantasy leagues.
Buxton homered in his first game back, and has a double and two singles since. He’s drove in four runs, scored three times, walked twice and struck out twice in his first four games back.
He’s really had a pretty good season, with a .277 average across 318 at-bats. Buxton would be rostered in a lot more leagues if he had been playing all season.
But right now, Buxton is definitely a good waiver wire option in all leagues. He’s hot at the plate, offers some power and is going to play every day. Fantasy outfielders can be found pretty easily, but my guess is that Buxton is outplaying one of your options right now. At the very least, add Buxton as a depth option who can start until he cools off a bit.
Luisangel Acuna Fantasy Outlook
Acuna was called up less than a week ago and has five MLB games under his belt. All he’s done is collect seven hits, so his own percentage is moving up quickly. Acuna is at 8% rostered.
Among his seven MLB hits, Acuna has a double and two home runs - the homers came in the last two games. The rookie shortstop also has four RBIs, five runs scored, no walks and two strikeouts so far.
Acuna is getting playing time with Francisco Lindor battling an injury right now. Acuna could lose that playing time when Lindor is healthy, but the rookie is also hitting well enough to possibly keep in the lineup when Lindor is ready to go again.
At the very least, Acuna is worth an add in deeper leagues, and he can start for as long as he remains a starter for New York. Being just 22 years old and being a highly-regarded prospect, Acuna also needs to be owned in almost every dynasty league. Even if he’s not starting for the rest of this season, he’s already shown what kind of fantasy player he could be when he gets a starting role for the whole season. That likely will come next season.
If Lindor gets placed on the injured list, then I’d definitely consider adding Acuna in a standard league.
Jorge Soler Fantasy Outlook
Soler went hitless on Wednesday, but that snapped a recent hot stretch at the plate for him. He’s rostered in 61% of fantasy leagues.
Soler had a seven-game hitting streak prior to Wednesday. During that run, Soler had five doubles and two home runs among his 10 hits. He also had five RBIs, eight runs scored, four walks and five strikeouts over that span.
Soler can be a bit of a streaky hitter, but he’s only had four games this month without a hit, and just two of those since September 8. That makes Soler a pretty good waiver wire option in all league types.
He should have already been rostered in all deeper leagues, and he should be getting some standard league love right now. He should have enough games played in right field to be eligible there (along with designated hitter). If you need an extra fantasy outfielder, or are just looking for a hot hitter in general, Soler is definitely an option.
Nolan Schanuel Fantasy Outlook
Schanuel is back in the waiver wire story because he’s stayed hot at the plate. He’s now at 14% rostered.
Schanuel has a nine-game hitting streak, with 13 total knocks over that span. He’s doubled once and homered once as well, with the rest of the hits being singles. Schanuel has seven RBIs, three runs scored, five walks and just two strikeouts over those nine games.
There’s not a ton of power to his game, but a hot hitter can definitely be a good addition to a fantasy team in all league types right now. The first base position isn’t the best this season, so I’m surprised his own percentage isn’t higher. The lack of power recently plays into that, but again, he’s hot at the plate, so adding him isn’t the worst idea.
Determining whether or not to add Schanuel in a standard league comes down to your first base options currently. If your guys are struggling, then try to add Schanuel, because he’s delivered mostly positive showings of late.
Schanuel needs to be rostered in more deep leagues, and he’s just 22 years old, so he’s also a good dynasty option. Don’t let the bad offense around him stop you from adding one of the league’s hottest hitters right now.
Davis Schneider Fantasy Outlook
Schneider went hitless on Wednesday, but had seven hits in the previous three games, so it makes sense that he was a popular waiver addition. He’s at 7% rostered.
Across those seven hits, three were home runs, and he hit one in each game. Schneider had six RBIs, four runs scored, no walks and two strikeouts over that little three-game stretch.
He should have position eligibility at least at second base and left field, and that versatility is a nice thing in a deeper league setup. That’s where Schneider should be considered. His season-long numbers are underwhelming for the most part, but again, hot hitters are what you want to add right now.
Assess the rest of your league’s available free agents before making a decision on Schneider.
Wyatt Langford Fantasy Outlook
Langford has been pretty hot at the plate recently, so it makes sense to see his own percentage on the rise. He’s rostered in 73% of fantasy leagues.
In 16 September games and starts, Langford has 21 hits and a .344 average. He’s also getting on base at a .429 clip. He has seven doubles and four home runs this month, along with 12 RBIs, 16 runs scored, eight walks, three stolen bases and 16 strikeouts.
Looking at those numbers, I honestly don’t know why he isn’t rostered in more leagues. Part of the reason could be that he’s an outfielder, and there’s plenty of those to go around. But I can’t imagine that you roster too many outfielders who are hitting as well as Langford is this month.
He should have already been rostered in all deeper leagues and dynasties, but now really needs to be owned in just about every standard league. He’s hot at the plate, adding in some power and is playing every game. Don’t let his season-long numbers dissuade you from adding him.
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