MLB FAAB Factor: Top Fantasy Baseball Waiver Targets

This FAAB article is in addition to the AL and NL FAAB articles that run Sunday. Bids are based on a $100 FAAB budget. Throughout the season, this column will have two goals:

1. Identify FAAB targets for fantasy managers in leagues with Thursday FAAB.

2. Offer a preview of FAAB targets ahead of Sunday's columns.

We're really getting down to it now, as there are only two full weeks remaining before we close the book on the 2026 campaign. That means for those of you who are still in the running for your league's title, it's pretty much now or never when it comes to bringing in outside help to give your team the final push it needs. Fortunately, there are always a few MLB players with a flair for the dramatic who wait until September to deliver their best stretch of baseball, so there's still plenty of talent on the waiver wire for you to take advantage of. Let's take a look at some of the top candidates:

The number in parentheses represents the player's rostership rate in Yahoo leagues.

Starting Pitcher

 Corbin Burnes, Arizona Diamondbacks (37%)

This isn't the first time that Burnes has made an appearance on this list, but it is the first time he's done so while being healthy. Nearly 15 months after undergoing Tommy John surgery, the 31-year-old righty took the mound for the first time at Triple-A Reno on Aug. 29 and worked two perfect innings. He then returned from the IL to make his MLB season debut Tuesday and fired three shutout frames, giving up two hits and two walks while striking out two batters. Burnes' value will likely be diminished by the fact that he hasn't quite been able to stretch out yet – he threw 57 pitches in his first start back – but he should be able to add to his workload over the final couple of weeks, and with Arizona firmly in the race for a wild card spot, the team has no reason not to send its best arms to the mound. FAAB: $2

 Yusei Kikuchi, Los Angeles Angels (14%)

Kikuchi didn't look great during his first start back from the injured list Aug. 23, allowing five earned runs in five innings during what was his first MLB action in nearly four months. However, after getting a chance to shake off the rust, he's allowed just two earned runs while posting a 12:4 K:BB in 13 innings over his last two outings. He also has a fairly favorable end-of-season schedule ahead of him. After Friday's matchup against the Nationals, he's lined up to face the Mariners (.684 OPS, 29th in MLB) before taking on an Athletics offense that's missing most of its impact bats, and then finishing off the year with another showdown versus Seattle. FAAB: $1

 Andre Pallante, St. Louis Cardinals (32%)

Pallante has been sharp since returning from the injured list last Friday, allowing just two runs in 10 innings over his last two starts. His numbers remain solid if you zoom out to include his entire body of work since the All-Star break: 2.35 ERA and 1.17 WHIP through 46 innings. Obviously, Pallante isn't someone you look to for strikeouts, and his 5.9 K/9 in the second half reflects that, but if you just need someone who can keep the ball on the ground and limit runs, look no further than this 27-year-old righty. FAAB: $1

 Ryan Johnson, Los Angeles Angels (6%)

Johnson became the fourth player since 2000 to make his professional debut in the majors last season, but it quickly became clear he wasn't ready for the bright lights after he allowed 12 earned runs in just 14.2 innings. His 5.12 ERA and 1.36 WHIP in 84.1 MLB frames this season still aren't all that spectacular, but his performance since August has made it a bit easier to understand why the Angels were so high on him after drafting him in the second round in 2024. The 24-year-old righty has turned in a 2.11 ERA and 1.10 WHIP in 38.1 innings across his last seven starts. The 26:19 K:BB he has in that timeframe doesn't quite jump off the page, but it's hard to argue with the results he's been getting – especially when it includes wins in two of his last four appearances. FAAB: $1

Relief Pitcher

 Kodai Senga, New York Mets (27%)

Senga has remained dominant in his new role as the Mets' closer, allowing only two runs in 7.1 innings and picking up three more saves since I last profiled him three weeks ago. Devin Williams (shoulder) recently began throwing off a mound for the first time since landing on the injured list Aug. 10, but his struggles in a Mets uniform have been well-documented at this point, so the team may not move Senga off his ninth-inning role if Williams manages to make it back before the end of the season. The Mets have also been on a bit of a run lately (albeit too little, too late), so Senga may have more opportunities to close games from this point on as opposed to other closers who may be available. FAAB: $2

Catcher

 Leo Bernal, St. Louis Cardinals (3%)

The Jimmy Crooks experiment didn't provide the immediate results that the Cardinals were looking for, but fortunately for them, they had another catching prospect they could try out in Bernal. Bernal is only nine games into his MLB career at this point, but he's hit safely in eight of them while slashing .278/.350/.472 with two homers, 10 RBI and six runs scored through 40 plate appearances. There isn't exactly a shortage of capable catchers in St. Louis, though Ivan Herrera seems to be spending most of his time at DH these days, and Pedro Pages has only two plate appearances since Aug. 28, so Bernal looks poised to play out the rest of the season with minimal competition for starts. FAAB: $3

First Baseman

 TJ Rumfield, Colorado Rockies (39%)

Does anyone else feel like it's been too long since we checked in on Rumfield? Well, now is the perfect time to do so, since he just put together a (now-broken) 12-game hitting streak in which he slashed a brilliant .439/.574/.707 with two home runs, seven RBI, eight runs scored and a 13:5 BB:K across 54 plate appearances. With a batting average just shy of .300 and an .846 OPS, the 26-year-old rookie has been one of the Rockies' most consistent performers all season, and he's heating up at the perfect time to give fantasy managers with a need at first base a nice performance boost to close out the year. It also doesn't hurt that the Rockies will be playing three of their final five series at Coors Field, increasing the likelihood of Rumfield's hot streak continuing. FAAB: $3

Second Baseman

 Thomas Saggese, St. Louis Cardinals (39%)

Saggese received a nod here last week after getting an uptick in playing time due to injuries to multiple Cardinals infielders, but it seems like he has a better chance to stay in the lineup for the final weeks of the season now that he's gone 16-for-35 (.457) with three homers, eight RBI, 12 runs scored and two steals over his last 10 games. Masyn Winn returned from the injured list Tuesday, but Saggese has remained in the starting nine for both of St. Louis' games since then. It remains to be seen how JJ Wetherholt's (wrist) impending return will affect Saggese's playing time, but the hotter bat tends to come out on top in these types of situations. FAAB: $2

Third Baseman

 Javier Sanoja, Miami Marlins (35%)

Sanoja's hitting streak has grown from four games to 10 since we examined him last week, and in that time he's gone 9-for-25 while adding another home run, four RBI and five runs scored. His three-steal game Aug. 26 now looks to be more of an outlier than a sign of things to come, and as frustrating as it is that the 24-year-old doesn't capitalize on his elite speed more often, the value he's brought with his bat since the beginning of August (.349 AVG, .929 OPS) has been more than enough to justify adding him for the final stretch. Did I mention that he can slot in nearly anywhere in your lineup? FAAB: $5

 Brett Baty, New York Mets (4%)

Speaking of versatile players riding a hitting streak, Baty makes an appearance this week after hitting safely in each of his last six contests, during which he's smacked two home runs while driving in 10 total RBI and scoring an additional run. He was pulled from Wednesday's game against Miami with a knee injury, so I would advise keeping an eye out for updates on his injury before making a move for him, but assuming he checks out fine, I like him as a cheap hot bat that the Mets are clearly making an effort to start regularly as they move him across the field. FAAB: $1

Find out who to target the rest of the way with RotoWire's MLB Rest of Season Projections!

Shortstop

 Brayan Rocchio, Cleveland Guardians (18%)

Rocchio's performance has been underwhelming since the All-Star break, as he's slashed just .193/.232/.316 in 183 second-half plate appearances, but he's shown recent signs of life to suggest that he might earn back some of the value he's lost over the past couple of months. The 25-year-old has notched seven base hits in his last seven games, three of which were homers, helping him to drive in eight RBI and score five runs himself. He also swiped two bags in that span, bringing him to 18 pilfers for the season. A lack of consistent production since the intermission could mean that Rocchio's recent surge won't last much longer, but that's a lot less of an issue now that the season isn't going to last much longer either. FAAB: $1

 Christian Koss, San Francisco Giants (1%)

The Giants don't have anything to play for now that they've been mathematically eliminated from a postseason berth, but don't try telling that to Koss. His OPS dropped as low as .360 on Aug. 8, but after slashing .279/.311/.558 while hitting all four of his home runs for the season within his last 13 games, that number is up to a far more respectable .608. The 28-year-old has also tallied seven ribbies and 11 runs scored in that stretch, which isn't bad for someone who finds himself at the bottom of his team's batting order virtually every day. Anybody who allows his OPS to drop into the .300s at any point in the season isn't going to be extremely trustworthy, but as long as Willy Adames (elbow) and Marcelo Mayer (forearm) are both out of commission, Koss is at least a safe bet to continue getting reps. FAAB: $1

Outfielder

 Josue De Paula, Los Angeles Dodgers (7%)

Here's an exciting one. The Dodgers announced after Wednesday's win over the Reds that they will be calling up De Paula – the team's top prospect – to replace Shohei Ohtani, who is ticketed for the injured list after missing six of the team's last seven games due to neck, knee and biceps injuries. De Paula earned the nod after slashing .303/.401/.547 with 27 homers, 104 RBI, 106 runs scored and 31 steals across 124 games at Double-A Tulsa. It wouldn't make sense for the Dodgers to promote their No. 1 prospect just to sit him, so I would expect the 21-year-old to get regular starts in either of the corner outfield spots or at DH until Ohtani gets back. It's always wise to be wary of prospects adjusting to MLB pitchers for the first time – especially when they're skipping Triple-A entirely – but it's hard to pass up someone with De Paula's combination of power and speed (not to mention the added perks that come with the supporting cast he'll have in Los Angeles). FAAB: $10

 Henry Bolte, Athletics (28%)

Bolte has been the owner of one of the hottest bats in the sport for about a month now, as he's slashed .337/.427/.545 with five home runs, 11 RBI, 19 runs scored and five steals over 117 plate appearances across his last 25 games. Four of those five dingers have come in just his last eight games, helping his OPS to soar from .708 to .761 in a little more than a week. The A's have begun to use the 23-year-old rookie as their everyday leadoff man as a reward for his offensive surge, which will bring down his potential to drive in runs but sets him up nicely to come across the plate regularly during the final weeks of the season. FAAB: $5

 Lazaro Montes, Seattle Mariners (5%)

What do you know, another top prospect who hit a home run in his MLB debut! At this point, I'm more shocked when it doesn't happen (no pressure, De Paula). Montes has already shown that he has the potential to be an impact player after blasting two homers in his first seven games while notching six RBI and scoring three runs. However, the 21-year-old developed a reputation in the minors for striking out a lot, and his lack of experience at the MLB level has only amplified that issue (nine strikeouts in 20 plate appearances). Of course, a high strikeout rate doesn't automatically mean someone is incapable of producing in the bigs, but it will prevent Montes from being the outfield prospect to grab this week if you're looking to gamble on some youngsters. FAAB: $2