Monday's Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Hitting Targets: Samuel Basallo, Ramon Laureano and More

It's time for the first fantasy baseball waiver wire story of the week.

Also be sure to check out the weekly projections article and Monday's starting pitcher streaming article.

Check out daily fantasy baseball projections at FantasySP all MLB season! Join the new FantasySP Discord to keep up to date with all the recent news from FSP!

Should You Add Miguel Andujar?

Andujar is up 6.41% today, bringing his overall mark to 46.09%.

Andujar went hitless on Sunday, but tallied 12 hits over the eight games before that. In 13 games and 44 plate appearances since joining the Reds, Andujar has a .359 average and .432 on-base percentage.

Over that stretch, Andujar has three homers and two doubles among his 14 total knocks. He's also posted nine RBIs, eight runs scored, four walks and nine strikeouts.

The trade to the Reds has been a nice fantasy boost for Andujar. He's playing daily and hitting cleanup, which is obviously a good spot to be in.

Another thing working in his favor is a little defensive position versatility. He's playing first and third base and left and right field this season. Check to see how many positions he could play in your league.

Andujar is on the rise as a fantasy asset, and has gone from barely owned to owned in about 50% of leagues in a hurry. He's a great deep-league asset, and depending on how many spots he can play in your standard league, could be a really good pickup there too.

Assess your team and see if Andujar is worth adding for the stretch run.

Should You Add Samuel Basallo?

Basallo is up 5.15% and sits at 22.63% overall.

Basallo is the Orioles' top prospect and was just called up over the weekend. He's the No. 8 prospect in all of baseball. 

The 21-year-old catcher and first baseman is 6-foot-4 and weighs 180 pounds. The left-handed hitter was signed by the organization back in 2021.

He's a 60-grade overall player, with a 70-grade arm and 60-grade power. His hit tool is a 55, while his fielding is a 45 and his run is a 40.

Over 401 career minor league games, Basallo has a .283 average and .366 OBP. He has 413 total hits, including 81 doubles, 73 home runs and seven triples. Basallo has 269 RBIs, 232 runs scored, 185 walks, 351 strikeouts and even 24 stolen bases.

He got into his first big league game on Sunday, batting sixth and serving as the team's designated hitter. Basallo posted a hit across five plate appearances, and also drove in two runs. He was also hit by a pitch and grounded into a double play.

The Orioles' offense has struggled most of the season, but there's enough talent in it to provide players starting regularly with good fantasy outlooks. If Basallo continues to play every day, there's a chance he becomes a pretty good fantasy asset down the stretch. 

I wouldn't call him a must-add hitter, because we don't know if he's going to start against left-handed starting pitchers yet. If he does, and hits at a decent clip, he could work into standard leagues in a hurry.

He's worth an add in deeper redraft leagues, and in time could be a pretty versatile fantasy bat. Keep a close eye on the highly-regarded prospect to see if he's playing daily, or simply starts mashing at the plate.

Basallo will be a better redraft option in 2026, and has his most value in dynasty/keeper leagues for now.

Should You Add Ramon Laureano?

Laureano was added in 2.4% of leagues and is rostered in 73.66% overall now.

Laureano ended last week on a five-game hitting streak. He had two doubles and three home runs among his nine hits in that stretch, while also posting four RBIs, seven runs scored, a stolen base, two walks and three strikeouts.

In 15 games and 62 plate appearances since joining the Padres at the trade deadline, Laureano has a .339 average and .403 OBP. He's tallied four homers, three doubles and two triples among his 19 total hits, while also posting 12 RBIs, 11 runs scored, a stolen base, five walks and 12 strikeouts.

For the season, Laureano has a .298 average and .364 OBP over 352 plate appearances. He's got 19 homers, 20 doubles and two triples among his 94 total knocks, while also recording 58 RBIs, 56 runs scored, five stolen bases, 27 walks and 84 strikeouts.

He's had a pretty solid all-around season, but is pretty underrated still. At a stacked fantasy position, he's not owned in as many leagues as he should be, but the outfielder is worth rostering in more leagues.

See if he's outperforming your fantasy outfielders and give him an add for the stretch run if you could use some help. He's in a better situation now than he was earlier in the season, and I'd take advantage of that.

Should You Add Noelvi Marte?

Marte is up to 54% rostered - he was at 43% on August 15.

Marte is riding an eight-game hitting streak, during which he has 15 hits. He's homered twice and doubled five times among those hits, while also tallying nine RBIs, six runs scored, no walks and six strikeouts.

He's played in 55 games and gotten 208 plate appearances this season. Marte is up to a .296 average and .332 OBP. He has nine homers, a triple and 13 doubles among his 58 total hits, while adding 37 RBIs, 28 runs scored, seven stolen bases, eight walks and 39 strikeouts.

Marte is also usable at a couple positions, having played third base and right field this season. He could also be eligible at additional spots from previous seasons.

He's mostly been hitting sixth of late for Cincinnati. It's not the best spot for him to be in, but he's made it work and is a worthy waiver wire add in some leagues.

I'd say he needs to be added in deeper leagues, at least for the time being. He will most often top out as a deep-league asset, but is also worth utilizing in standard leagues now since he's on this hot streak.

If you need some help at third base, or have some outfield needs, then Marte is a pretty solid pickup. Don't expect him to stick on your roster the rest of the season, but with so little time left, you can mix and match and afford to take gambles on some of the hotter hitters.

Should You Add Sal Frelick?

Frelick is owned in 70% of leagues now - he was around 57% on August 13.

Frelick went hitless in his last game, and didn't start against a lefty on Sunday, but had been red hot before that, collecting seven hits over the previous four contests. He had a double and a homer among the hits, while also posting five RBIs, nine runs scored, a stolen base, five walks and just one punchout.

He's one of the more underrated fantasy hitters this season. Over 445 plate appearances, Frelick has a .294 average and .356 OBP. A lot of people skip him because of his lack of power, but nine homers, three triples and 13 doubles among his 116 total hits shows he's not just a singles-hitter. Frelick has 47 RBIs, 58 runs scored, 18 stolen bases, 33 walks and just 57 strikeouts on the year.

So despite the lower power numbers, Frelick is a really solid all-around fantasy hitter, and doesn't hurt himself much with strikeouts. When he's in the lineup, he's batting leadoff, and that's a great spot to be, especially on a team as hot as the Brewers.

Don't overlook Frelick any longer. Especially add him this week, as Milwaukee has eight games scheduled.