FANTASY BASEBALL WAIVER WIRE PICKUPS
Kaelen Culpepper (SS Twins): Rostered in nine percent of Yahoo leagues
If not for hip/glute injuries costing him about half of June and most of July, Culpepper would have taken over as the Twins’ shortstop earlier this season. As is, he had to wait until Aug. 7, but he’s made the most of his time since, hitting .340/.382/.480 with two homers in 55 plate appearances.
Culpepper, the 21st overall pick in the 2024 draft, was brought up after hitting .271/.367/.478 with 14 homers and 17 steals in 74 games for Triple-A St. Paul. In spite of that impressive line, he didn’t draw much initial interest in shallow leagues, probably in part because he was going to be hitting at the bottom of the lineup for a mediocre offense. And that is an issue; through 14 games, Culpepper has totaled four RBI and six runs scored even with his impressive start. But he already has a case for moving up to the top third of the order. Culpepper offers above average bat speed and solid plate discipline. He might not have superstar potential, but he has a good chance of becoming an above average regular for a long time.
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To make an impact in mixed leagues in the short term, Culpepper probably will need to do some running. He’s quite capable, having gone 46-for-54 stealing bases in 213 career minor league games. With the stakes higher and the pitchers typically better at holding runners close, it often takes time for prospects to become comfortable trying steals in major league games. If Culpepper doesn’t get there this year, he’ll probably remain a fringe option. Still, he has a higher ceiling than he gets credit for.
Chris Bassitt (SP Orioles): Rostered in seven percent of Yahoo leagues
I didn’t expect to be writing about Bassitt this week, but then, I didn’t think Bassitt would come out firing 94-mph sinkers Tuesday against the Cardinals. In 6 2/3 innings of one-run ball, he averaged 93.4 mph with the pitch. That’s his highest mark since one start in May 2024. He hasn’t regularly been in that territory since 2022. Maybe it’ll turn out to be a fluke, but he was also better than his season average in his first two starts back from back surgery. He averaged 92.2 mph in those outings, which is higher than he’s typically been since 2024.
The extra velocity isn’t going to turn Bassitt into an ace, but he was impressive against the Cardinals, and he has another start coming up against the hugely depleted Athletics lineup. It’s pretty tough finding viable starters on the waiver wire at this point of the season, but a rejuvenated Bassitt would fit the bill. He’s just never been bad when healthy, and the last time he sat 93 mph, he won 15 games with a 3.42 ERA for the Mets.
Alek Thomas (OF Dodgers): Rostered in zero percent of Yahoo leagues
When the Diamondbacks gave up on Thomas in May, the Dodgers stepped in, despite having seemingly no real need for him. Still, picking up a legitimate major league outfielder in exchange for little more than taking on about $1.5 million in salary was just the kind of move baseball’s richest team is set up to take advantage of. Thomas spent the next three months in Triple-A, and it looked like little would come of the acquisition until Andy Pages suffered a fractured hand on a HBP last week. That got Thomas a callup, and he knocked in runs in each of his first three games as the Dodgers’ new center fielder against righties.
This probably won’t be a star turn for Thomas. It doesn’t seem like the Dodgers truly unlocked any hidden potential while he hit .285/.351/.472 with seven homers in 58 minor league games. Thomas has typically featured pretty average exit velocity numbers paired with too high of groundball rates, and these last two years, he’s struck out more and walked less than he did when he entered the league in 2022. If he performs as projections would suggest, he might fall out of the Dodgers’ plans as soon as Pages is ready to return.
Still, until then, Thomas is going to start about three-quarters of the time for one of baseball’s best offensive teams. He’s in a much better home run ballpark for left-handed hitters in L.A. than he was in Arizona, and he could steal the occasional base. He’ll probably be of some use for at least the next three weeks and maybe through the end of the regular season.
Waiver Wire Quick Hits
– Might Byron Buxton‘s injury setback Tuesday get Walker Jenkins to the majors? He’ll be the best pickup here if it does. Jenkins, the fifth overall pick in the 2023 draft and former teammate of Culpepper, is hitting .321/.416/.553 with 13 homers and 16 steals for Triple-A St. Paul.
– With Pete Fairbanks going on the IL, Calvin Faucher will probably pick up some saves in the Miami pen over the next few weeks. He was the choice in the ninth when Fairbanks was unavailable Saturday, and he’s allowed just two runs while striking out 21 over his last 14 innings.
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