Waiver Wire Week 15 - In The Zone
- John Gerbino
- Jul 6
- 8 min read
Follow me on Bluesky at https://bsky.app/profile/gerbilsports.bsky.social/post/3lt73wwyrf22u for secrets not mentioned on the blog!
Isn't it hard to believe we're technically past the halfway point? As we approach the all-star break, I just want to thank anyone who's read these weekly posts and interacted with me on socials, whether it be reddit or bluesky. It's been a lot of fun talking all things baseball, and I think I'll be posting til' the end of the season this time. Even if my season is pretty much dead and gone, I know we can still find a few more gems for those of you still in contention, and that's always been the intent of this blog! Now that guys like Tyler Freeman and Addison Barger are appearing on every waiver wire article in existence (weeks late IMO), it's time to look for the next group of breakout players. Even Moniak is, frankly, too mainstream at this point. The last thing we want to do is go stale and dwell on the same guys week after week. Yohel Pozo
Fleet of foot, smooth as butter,
The Pozo Stick swings, that ball's in the gutter.
A new slugger has arrived, and even Ivan Herrera aint' safe from the pull of the supermass that is Yohel Pozo. Is Herrera really still hurt? Is he really not cleared for his rehab starts? Or is it simply a case of the Cardinals not wanting to take Pozo's bat out of the lineup?
I believe it's the latter. With an xBA of .311 and whiff rates that could make Arraez blush, Pozo is hitting balls with the kind of swag you could only expect from a guy who truly takes care of his mind, _____, and soul. Add a beautiful 75th percentile squared up and sweet-spot percent, and you have a guy making some solid contact on some solid launch angles, giving little reason to believe he can't continue to hit well in the majors. Even looking at his prospectsavant metrics, shown below, Pozo shows us he's actually a bat-to-ball prodigy, posting the absolute best contact metrics in all of AAA. It carried over beautifully to the MLB, and now it's simply time to let it flourish. Cardinals, find a way to get this guy into the lineup for the rest of the season, please. He's fun!
Dominic Canzone
Dominic Can Hit-In-the Zone, and will hit in the zone. If there's one guy that's the going to have a breakout in the vein of Addison Barger, it's this guy. Bet on it. People need to understand that, back in 2023, Dominic hit .354 with a 1.065 OPS across 304 PAs for Reno before being traded to the Mariners. He was by far the best hitter in the minors, and I've followed him since, waiting for this juicy breakout. And guess what? Now that Prospectsavant (follow Duke on Bluesky, yeah? https://bsky.app/profile/oriolebird.bsky.social) exists, we can see exactly what fueled his 2023 dominance:
Look familar? It should, because it looks exactly like his current MLB statcast. This guy is a legitmate hitter and top 20 against RHP in all of baseball, of this I'm sure. His bat speed is well above average, giving him effortless power in the vein of someone like Addison Barger, and above all, Canzone has a 55th percentile whiff rate. I can't stress exactly how immense that is for someone with this kind of power ceiling. xBA? .305. xSLG? .564. Squared up %? 99th percentile? Does he strike out? Not really! I highly recommend Canzone because I promise you, people are going to catch on sooner rather than later.
Romy Gonzalez
Romy should no longer be ignored, and will no longer be ignored. His statcast looks incredible, and when compared to his 2024 metrics, the improvement seems rather feasible. The elite bat speed is up from 74.1 mph to 75.4 mph, and he's currently finding the sweet spot of the bat in a way he could not in 2024, improving from the 10th percentile to the 55th, a marked improvement. With a sample size of 124 ABs, it's getting easier and easier to believe Romy has improved at age 28. Even looking at Romy's 2024 prospectsavant, we can really see there was a ton of potential here for a guy that has just flown under the radar for years now.
Ha-Seong Kim Man, those three ABs really went well!
But, in all seriousness, Kim is the Raysiest player the Rays could have found in the offseason. For a team that loves small ball and guys who put the ball in play with good speed, Kim is one of the best fits for this roster in all of baseball. And even in his first game, he displayed exactly what the Rays expected of him - he snagged a hit, stole 2nd, and hurt himself attempting to steal 3rd. Not too shabby, minus the injury, of course! You want a guy who's going to put up tons of runs and stolen bases? Kim is your guy. And don't worry, the injury was minor, so expect him back tomorrow. This guy is underowned, but that will change soon.
Brandon Marsh
Okay, no joke - this is starting to look really good. We have solid whiff and BB rates clocking in at the 70th percentile, with some really nice power indicators - a 77th percentile hard-hit % and 68th percentile average exit velocity. Positive regression is beginning to smack Marsh across the face, and the results have definitely been there, as Marsh now has a run scored in 6 of his last 7 games. His whiff rates are up big-time over last year, going from the 33rd to 69th percentile (nice), and it would be reasonable to expect a really nice second-half for Marsh. Add the fact that he's a lefty that mashes RHP and this is a really nice bench bat to add, though I still recommend Canzone as the primary lefty specialist. What you will find with Marsh, though, is much more SB upside, as he had 19 SBs last year and currently boasts an 84th percentile sprint speed. Sure, he only has 5 on the season, but he's now getting on base quite a bit more. Marsh, at 6'2, is one of the more underrated uber-athletes in the league. Expect more from Marsh this summer, in a theater near you.
Brenton Doyle
First, let me say - damn bro, you're not very good this year. Doyle was one of the earliest Gerbilsports studs in the history of this blog, to the point where I had to go to war with people on reddit to defend him in the early days of his 2024 breakout.
And so, I drafted him early this year - with the 6th pick in the draft. Damn, no wonder this year has been a struggle.
Now let me say - fuck me for being an asshole, this guy lost his unborn child and has struggled to get his head in any kind of space to play good baseball . In the end, this is just a game that we engage with for the vibes and community, and it's really hard to give him any kind of shit for performing poorly in the face of tragedy. I wish Doyle nothing but the best, even at the expense of my fantasy enjoyment.
So now, let us rejoice, for Brenton may finally be getting his act together, having hit a pinch hit HR yesterday and snagging another hit today! His statcast actually isn't as ugly as you'd expect for a guy hitting .206 with a .592 OPS, and as the Rockies have found ways to generate offense with Tyler Freeman, Jordan Beck, Moniak, and Goodman all hitting the ball quite well, the vibes may just get Doyle going as we now enter the real heat of Summer. Doyle has been dropped in most leagues, and in most leagues, this is a guy with straight up league-winning potential. Keep an eye on the Rockies, because if Doyle starts to get it going, this is actually a fun offense that produce a shit load of runs at Coors!
Will Klein (faltered a bit today)
When I tell you that Will Klein is the nastiest pitcher on the entire Dodgers roster, I'm not actually playing around. No jest here. Remember this guy's name, because he's going to be a fantasy stalwart for the next five years, and will probably never be a waiver-wire pitcher again after 2025. Now that Kopech, who was featured on last week's post, is down with injury, Klein has been recalled from AAA. The assumption is he will now be the setup guy, making him fantasy gold in a Holds league.
Klein throws absolute cheddar, clocking in at 98 mph on average and touching 100 mph, at an extremely high 55 degree release point that makes the pitch ridiculously hard to track at the top of the zone. Then you add the fact that he has a 64th percentile extension, and this guy is touching 103 MPH of perceived velocity. Through 4.2 innings at the MLB level in 2025, his 4-seam currently rocks a .175 xBA against to go with a 37% whiff rate. He throws that pitch 67% of the time. And the curveball he throws 27% of the time? Good for a .230 xBA and 31% whiff rate. Sure, the sample size is small, but just look at his AAA metrics - it's clear he was far too good for the minors with an absurd .184 xBA against and the brightest red statcast you'll see for a reliever. The fangraph projections also look fantastic with a 107 stuff +, 111 location plus, and brilliant 114 pitching +. This guy has the stuff.
I'm almost certain this guy is unowned in your holds league, and I'm almost certain you should add him. A
Kody Clemens
You may remember Clemens from my earlier write-ups as a guy who fizzled quickly, receiving inconsistent playtime and played underwhelming ball when he did manage to get reps. However, with Royce Lewis having the health of Royce Lewis, he's begun to see the field more often, and has actually been fairly good at hitting some dingers. Cody still has a really nice stacast that includes a .528 xSLG and 80th percentile barrel and hard-hit percentages , and he's hit three HRs in his last 8 games. I'm surprised the Twins don't just give him a full-time job, as he's shown he has the potential to generate offense single-handedly. His .824 OPS against RHP SHOULD see him getting ABs often, but we'll see if Twins management ever catches on to the fact that this guy can actually swing the bat.
Zack Gelof
What does following me on bluesky look like? Well, like this!
Watching: Bello Rocker Logan Allen
Will Klein or Grant Taylor in a points league? Saves are worth more than holds.
Really went into the weeds this week!