Waiver Wire Hitters: Luis Lara Headlines Emerging Fantasy Baseball Adds
From exciting rookie call-ups to hitters on massive hot streaks, here are four bats worth targeting in fantasy baseball leagues.
Let's discuss another round of fantasy baseball waiver wire hitters!
Here are our waiver wire articles from Monday and Tuesday, plus Wednesday's starting pitcher streaming article.
Fantasy baseball waiver wire options can be found all season on FantasySP!
Luis Lara - Milwaukee Brewers
Lara has been added in 7.92% of fantasy baseball leagues already, and is up to 22.64% overall now. He was called up to the big leagues on Tuesday, and got in the team's second game of a doubleheader against the Cardinals.
Lara is the No. 67 prospect in baseball, so he has plenty of hype around him as his big league career begins. He's just 21 years old, and was signed by Milwaukee back in 2022. Lara is 5-foot-7 and weighs just 169 pounds.
He is graded as a 55 overall player. Lara's top tool is he fielding (70). He has 60s in running and for his arm, a 50 for his hitting and 40 for his power.
Lara looked good in his first MLB game across five plate appearances. He avoided a strikeout and put together great at-bats. Lara singled in two runs, walked once and also scored a run.
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In Triple-A this season, he was at a .321 average and .432 on-base percentage. Lara had 92 total hits, including 10 doubles, nine home runs and three triples, plus 42 RBIs, 67 runs scored, 24 stolen bases, 54 walks and only 48 strikeouts.
There's a lot to like in those numbers, and makes Lara an intriguing asset right away. Playing time will determine how high Lara could fly right away. Right now, I like adding him in deeper leagues, and if he's playing daily, Lara could work into standard leagues in a hurry, so keep a very close eye on him.
Tyler Tolbert - Kansas City Royals
Tolbert has been picked up in 6.82% of leagues, which brings his overall mark to 7.75%.
He has two five-hit games in a row, and had two hits in the game before that. Tolbert has a double and two home runs in that three-game span, plus four RBIs and seven runs scored. He's also stolen a base and avoided any strikeouts.
Tolbert is up to a .396 average and .434 OBP across 30 games and 54 plate appearances. That won't stick, but he's worth adding and utilizing while his bat is hot. Tolbert has two homers and a double among his 19 hits, plus five RBIs, 17 runs scored, 10 stolen bases, four walks and 10 strikeouts.
He can play all over the field, which bumps his fantasy value up a bit. Tolbert is a sneaky-good streaming option in deeper leagues, and he can be utilized until he stops producing at the plate.
I don't see Tolbert being a long-term fantasy asset, so standard league usage is probably off the table. You could stream him in those leagues while his bat is hot, but there's better long-term options to try instead, like Lara.
Ryan O'Hearn - Pittsburgh Pirates
O'Hearn is up to 84.53% overall after a monster game on Tuesday. He had been trending down, but now is on the rise again.
He posted four hits on Tuesday, including three home runs. He drove in 10 runs and scored three times. O'Hearn has seven hits over his past three appearances, with three walks and just one strikeout in that three-game stretch.
O'Hearn now has a .293 average and .351 OBP over 77 contests and 319 plate appearances overall. He has 16 homers, 12 doubles, 85 total hits, 61 RBIs, 47 runs scored, a stolen base, 25 walks and 70 strikeouts.
He's trending up after a monster game, but was already a good fantasy asset. He's eligible at two stacked fantasy spots (first base and outfield) but is also producing enough to own and utilize in all deeper leagues, and most standard leagues too. At least roll with O'Hearn until he cools off a bit.
A.J. Ewing - New York Mets
Ewing is another player who was trending down, but is now going back up. He sits at 32.08% right now.
The rookie had a four-hit game on Tuesday, including a home run. Ewing drove in three runs, walked once and scored four times.
Ewing now has a .276 average and .359 OBP over 52 games and 200 plate appearances in his rookie MLB season. He has 48 total hits, including seven doubles, six home runs and a triple. Ewing has 23 RBIs, 24 runs scored, nine stolen bases, 22 walks and 50 strikeouts as well.
The center fielder has shown flashes of promise this season, but has been too inconsistent to trust outside deeper fantasy leagues right now. He's worth some deep-league adds after his four-hit outing, and will continue to be added if he keeps stacking hits. Ewing would need a week or more of strong hitting to be worthy of standard league adds, but he's worth tracking at the very least.
