2024 Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Adds: Jo Adell, Mike Tauchman, Keaton Winn

Playing the waiver wire effectively is crucial to fantasy baseball success throughout the season. Each week of the 2024 campaign, this article will help pinpoint which players are readily available to be picked up in most formats. All of them should help bolster fantasy rosters in the short and/or long term.

***Players included on the list below were rostered In less than 70 percent of Yahoo! Leagues at the time of writing. Stats are up to date through April 30.

Hitters   

Jo Adell – OF – Los Angeles Angels (36%)

Just when it seemed pretty much everyone was finally out on Adell, he’s now reeling them back in. A career .214 hitter with a .625 OPS over 619 MLB plate appearances before this year, it seemed the former top prospect would just simply never match the immense hype that once surrounded him. Over the last couple of weeks, however, manager Ron Washington cannot afford to take Adell out of the lineup.

Adell has hit safely in eight of his last nine games to close out the month of April. During this hot stretch, he has gone 12-for-31 with three homers and three doubles, recording a ridiculous 66.7 HardHIt%, 93.6 mph EV, and 33.3 LD%. Another notable development for Adell is his much-improved 22.2 K% on the campaign.

Willi Castro – 2B,3B,SS,OF – Minnesota Twins (23%)

Castro’s calling cards are defensive versatility and speed on the base paths. He swiped 33 bags in 38 attempts over 124 games for the Twins in 2023, and, though he has stolen just two bases so far this year, one of them came this past Monday. If he continues to swing a hot bat like he has lately, more steals should be on the way.

Castros is riding a seven-game hitting streak into the month of May, and he has hit safely in 12 of 13 games. In that span, he’s hit a cool .380 alongside a 1.018 OPS with eight extra-base hits, nine RBI, and six runs scored. A 47.5 HardHit% combined with a 35.0 LD% has resulted in a .462 BABIP. That’s obviously unsustainable, but fantasy managers should ride this hot streak out with Castro.

Mike Tauchman – OF – Chicago Cubs (17%)

With both Seiya Suzuki and Cody Bellinger out with injuries, Tauchman has stepped up right when the Cubs have most needed it. He’s turned in six multi-hit performances over the last two weeks, hitting safely in 12 of 13 games. These haven’t been inconsequential knocks either.

In those 13 games, Tauchman has hammered his way to a ridiculous 1.238 OPS with three long balls, five doubles, nine RBI, and 10 runs scored. The veteran outfielder has backed those numbers with a 43.8 HardHit% and five barrels (15.6%). He’s also displayed a keen eye at the plate, swinging at just 22 percent of pitches out of the zone and walking at a 12-percent clip. Even when the roster gets a bit healthier, Cubs manager Craig Counsell is going to have a difficult time sitting Tauchman.  

Pitchers

Keaton Winn – SP – San Francisco Giants (31%)

With a streak of three straight starts allowing exactly one run over six innings, Winn is in a serious rhythm right now. Across those 18 frames, the rookie right-hander has surrendered a mere 11 hits and three walks (0.78 WHIP) while striking out 15 batters (23.4%). Winn is a groundball specialist, inducing them at a rate of 61.4 percent during this stretch and 58.9 percent in 76.1 career MLB innings. Working his home games in pitcher-friendly Oracle Park is a perk too.

Reese Olson – SP – Detroit Tigers (19%)

Olson is following up his solid rookie season with some more good pitching to this point in 2024. Somehow, he’s 0-4 through five starts but has really only had one clunker, which came on April 8 at Pittsburgh. Over three starts since, Olson has posted a 1.96 ERA and 1.09 WHIP across 18.1 innings. He’s struck out eight batters in two of those three outings, recording a strong 26.7 K% overall. His 49.4 GB% for the year is also quite promising.  

Hector Neris – RP – Chicago Cubs (55%)

For those that have yet to notice, Neris has taken over the closer role for the Cubs and ran with it. He picked up his fourth save of the year this past Monday, slamming the door on a victory for the fourth consecutive appearance. Over that span, the veteran reliever has given up just one run on two hits with a 4-to-4 K/BB ratio over four frames. The walks so far this year are a concern, but Neris is the arm to target out of the Cubs’ bullpen right now.