Waiver Wire Week 12 - Welcome Back, Heriberto

Apologies for Teng, ouch.

Heriberto Hernandez

Heriberto's turnaround happened in the blink of an eye, and he's now sitting at a 51st percentile sweet-spot after hovering right around the 5th percentile before his demotion to AAA. This is nothing short of incredible, and of course we're fucking happy, because Heriberto was one of our most fun sleeper guys in 2025.

His 5 stolen bases and 85th percentile sprint speed also come as a pleasant surprise, and I think most people haven't quite caught on to just how athletic and powerful he actually is. Please be aware, he's still stuck in a platoon, so he's probably not extremely valuable in redraft just yet. But I'm still including him as a name to watch. Check this out:

The first image is from before his demotion, and the second is post-recall. He's added 2.5 mph more bat speed, 2 degrees more swing tilt, 2 degrees to his ideal attack angle %, and 2 degrees to his pull tendency. Substantial improvements across for Heriberto that have all contributed to a nice sweet-spot fix!

Tyler Callihan, OF, PIT

The sample size is miniscule and the AAA production in 2026 doesn't really reflect this kind of power, but I'd be a fool not to at least give this kid a look. Somehow, someway, Callihan is managing to defy physics by posting some awesome power metrics while simultaneously displaying horrible bat speed and squared-up rates, both of which together usually indicate a lack of power.

His unsustainably perfect launch angles are carrying the load right now, but there is something to be said about his 35 degree swing tilt and 54.2% ideal attack angle, both above-average marks if you're looking for swings that produce nice launch angles. His 2025 AAA metrics also more closely resemble what we're seeing at AAA here, so I'm unsure exactly what to make of this dude. I like that he isn't chasing, and I love that he's taking his walks, and while his xBA is pretty awful, his xwOBA is quite elite. We should probably monitor Callihan as his sample size grows because there might be at least a little something-something cooking here.

Jared Young, 1B/OF, NYM

Jared Young was destroying the bat tracking data in the early going of the season, specifically the blasts per contact, before sustaining injury. Now he's back, and he's continuing to make some excellent contact with the ball. His 4 dingers, .288 BA, and .890 OPS across 75 plate appearances are sneaky good, and he's actually getting a ton of reps. In fact, he's played every single game since the beginning of June. I think Jared Young is entering the realm of that Nathaniel Lowe or JJ Bleday sleeper tier, and he's currently only 1% owned.

Elvis Alvarado, SP, LV

Elvis Alvarado and Juan Morillo were my two most anticipated sleeper relievers going into the year, and for a while, it had seemed like I only hit on Morillo. Now? I'm not so sure. After Alvarado got off to a slow start and earned himself a demotion to AAA, he really got his shit together and started absolutely shoving. Over 12 innings, Alvarado pitched to the tune of a 2.25 ERA and .186 BA against. But the most impressive part? His 72nd percentile BB rate, as opposed to the 20th percentile mark we saw in the majors. If you remember my very first underrated 4-seam piece, you'll probably remember I said Elvis Alvarado has one of the best 4-sema fastballs in the league. That really wasn't hyperbole - fangraphs currently has a 116 grade on it, and it's the type of rising heat you just wanna fill the zone with. There's no need to make guys chase when you're throwing a 98 mph fastball with 14.8 inches of iVB (up from 13.6 in 2025) out of a low 22 degree slot. That's absurdly good, and easily top 20 in the majors. That's all well and good, but here's the important part - Alvarado has been pretty good since being promoted! He's worked 5.1 innings of 0.00 ERA ball across three appearances since June 6th, and that includes a hold and two saves! Oh, and he hasn't walked a single batter. Uh-oh, here comes Elvis.

Sean Newcomb, RP, CWS

Sean Newcomb has to be one of the most underrated relievers in baseball, despite a 2.29 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, and some of the best pitch shape you'll find. You see, Sean Newcomb has done the thing. What's the thing, you ask? He's lowered his arm slot to the lowest point in his nearly decade-long career at 26 degrees, and yet, somehow managed to retain a 15 inch iVB on the 4-seam while adding some drop to his sinker and a serious amount of glove-side movement to the slurve. Everything is working much better than it ever has, with his 4-seam being of particular note; we're talking about a .100 xBA and 40% whiff rate on the offering. That's really fucking good. His primary pitch, the slurve, has also been pretty good with a .238 BA and 28% whiff rate against. These two pitches combined now account for 63% of his total usage, way up from 52% in 2025. It's pretty cool to see these veteran guys figure it all out so late in their careers, and Sean Newcomb is getting the job done at the ripe age of 33. That's not to say his 2025 was bad or anything - a 2.73 ERA and 1.35 WHIP got the job done - but what Newcomb is doing in 2026 is metrically superior by a wide margin.

Dustin May, SP, STL

I was cautious. I was skeptical. Lastly, I was mistaken. Dustin May is, still, real fucking good. In fact, he fits neatly into my favorite pitching archetype - tall and lanky, high extension, low arm-slot, high velocity, and good iVB. May's nasty 4-seam currently sits at the 93rd percentile in fastball run value with a .200 xBA against and 20% whiff rate. That pitch, plus an excellent .195 xBA sweeper, have made May a near-ace in a dominant stretch of recent games.

That's 4 quality starts over his last 7, and less than 6 Ks only a single time. And even when he's putting up less-than-ideal ERAs like 6.75 or 4.76, they're coming with a really nice strikeout total. I can't stress just how happy I am to see a healthy Dustin May going deep into games at age 28, because man, this dude has always had all of the potential in the world, and then some; I won't even exaggerate, a young Dustin May compared most to a young Payton Tolle, and I think people forget just how electric this guy once was. And the most awesome part? I can genuinely see Dustin May being one of those dude's who thrives throughout his 30s thanks to an improved physique that's already seen him reach 72.2 innings before the all-star break. Yep, May is one of those "best shape of his life" guys, after gaining over 20 lbs of muscle in the offseason.

I used to meme on May and his fragility, but I'm all in. He's still only 30% owned, and if he's available in your league, I think you should make the move.

Samad Taylor, 2B/OF, SD

Taylor has been Ichiro Suzuki reincarnate since earning his promotion to the bigs, slashing .375/.444/.986 with two multi-hit performances and two stolen bases. His discipline and contact metrics are pretty much all elite, and unlike Callihan, everything here is a bit more believable.

Taylor was equally excellent in these areas at AAA, where he hit for a .320 BA across 210 plate appearances. And although Taylor lacks bat speed, his 70th percentile squared-up rate more than makes up for it, and it completely makes sense as to why he's smacking the ball around at 99th percentile sweet-spot launch angles. But the weird thing is...it still doesn't make sense to me how Taylor isn't generating power metrics the way Callihan is, despite the clear difference in squared-up rates. But anyway, Samad Taylor is looking like a pretty nice upgraded Caballero-type option here, and perhaps one of the safer adds we've had in a long while?

Didier Fuentes, RP, ATL

Fuentes is now a bullpen arm, and fortunately, his stuff is extremely up to the task!

In his last five appearances out of the pen, Fuentes hasn't given up a single earned run, while also earning two holds and a save. Now that Fuentes is working high leverage situations for one of game's best clubs, he's pretty much a no-brainer add in SV+HLD leagues. He's genuinely already one of the better relievers in the league at only age 20, with a sparkling 2.33 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, and one of the sexiesg statcasts you'll ever see.

Also, don't worry - Fuentes isn't expected to be a bullpen arm long-term. If you own him in dynasty leagues, just enjoy the "bullpen Fuentes" stretch of his career. His 114 stuff+ will make him one of the better starters in the league in to time at all.

Andre Pallante, SP, STL

Pallante flashed quite a bit at times in 2025, but ultimately, found himself relegated to "streamer" status through bouts of inconsistency and inefficiency. In 2026, Pallante has made the appropriate adjustments to finding a level of consistency that I honestly wasn't expecting - and I genuinely don't understand how he's done this.

Without adjusting his arm angle, Pallante has somehow found a way to add over 2 inches of iVB to his 4-seam, 1 inch of vertical drop and 2 inches of horizontal break to his curveball, and 1.5 inches of horizontal break to his sinker. This is some incredible pitch shape improvement, and almost certainly the result of some serious weight-room gains over the offseason. Oh yeah, and he has a new pitch in the splitter, which he's throwing on 3% usage with a .000 BA against - Pallante is, dare I say, oozing with potential?

I hate the word "oozing," but hell, that's what comes to mind here. I'm not necessarily saying his 4-seam is a world-beater, as it's still an average to below-average offering at this arm slot, BUT, his sinker boasts a 107 stuff+ (despite a poor .257 xBA), and his curveball & slider are both plus offerings that really have batters flummoxed with .180 and .190 xBAs. If either of Pallante's fastballs start working, he could suddenly find himself being one of the better sleeper options on the waiver wire. For now, he's an elite streamer, rather than a low-tier streamer like he was in 2025.

Peter Lambert

Nice to see a quality start from Peter Lambert, but not so nice to see him removed from said quality start after being struck in the hand with a come-backer. He's considered day-to-day, so for now, I'm still going to recommend him as a waiver-wire add. Not much has changed here - the stuff is still pretty good, many of the metrics are slightly-above-average, and his .221 xBA is quite healthy. He definitely hit a rough-patch after we all added him (go figure), but the potential was once again obvious in this 6K, 6.1 IP quality start. He's not quite on Dustin May's level, but worth a shot if May isn't available.

Tyler Philips, SP, MIA

Phillips' most recent gem earned him a spot back on the waiver wire list, twirling 5.0 innings of 5K, 0.00 ERA, 0.80 WHIP goodness. Not much has really changed since I last included him here - Philips is a damned good pitcher in the final stages of being stretched out as a long-term rotation arm. There's been a few hiccups along the way, but ultimately, the stuff and talent is all here. It's probably the time to add him.