Fantasy Baseball Waiver Pickup for Deep Leagues – Henderson Alvarez

Fantasy baseball waiver pickup for deep leagues - Henderson Alvarez stretchingHenderson Alvarez of the Toronto Blue Jays is an intriguing waiver pickup for those in a deep league. He induces a ton of groundballs but not a whole lot of strikeouts even with a fastball that is consistently in the mid-90s. Alvarez threw even faster in the minor leagues, touching 101 mph at one point in Double-A, but has since toned it down to be more effective with sinking action. The Venezuelan is only 22-years-old and threw his first career shutout against the Angels on May 4th while topping the six-inning mark in every start this season (8).

He took the loss in his last outing on May 15th, allowing two earned runs to the Rays in 6 2/3 innings pitched and didn’t walk any batters. Alvarez’s ERA currently sits in the mid-2’s and should be in the low-3’s by season’s end. He’s a pitcher that can give you quality starts more often than not, going deep into ball games because of all the ground balls he produces.

Fantasy Baseball Waiver Pickup for Deep Leagues – Yonder Alonso

Yonder Alonso is also a player to pick up if your team is in need of a first baseman and he also has outfielder eligibility in most leagues. He is also a younger ballplayer at the age of 25 who was born in Havana, Cuba. The left-handed slugger came up in the Cincinnati Reds’ farm system before being shipped to San Diego in the offseason trade for starting pitcher Mat Latos.

Alonso will hit cleanup for the Padres on most nights which will give him a chance to drive in runs. He’s going to have a pretty batting average this season, likely between .285 and .310 while his power numbers haven’t lived up to expectations yet. He’s only hit one homerun so far this season. Alonso will continue to develop at a good rate especially because he doesn’t have much competition on his own team at first base. He’s been given a golden opportunity in San Diego to play everyday, which he wasn’t going to get playing for the Reds with perennial All-Star, Joey Votto, playing ahead of him.

Fantasy Baseball Waiver Pickup for Deep Leagues – J.P. Arencibia

Last but not least in this week’s waiver tap, is Toronto Blue Jays’ Catcher J.P. Arencibia who is known for his raw power at the plate. He’s hit four homeruns so far in May, five total on the campaign, and has the talent to be fantasy relevant in every format and league. The downfall is that he doesn’t hit for a good average and strikeouts out a lot. At age 26, Arencibia could be a star in the Big Leagues if he figures out how to hit for a decent to good average and that could very well happen this year. He’s a great replacement for those owners who lost Wilson Ramos to a season-ending knee injury.

See, we didn’t forget about you guys in deeper formats! We will be coming out with more names for you fantasy baseball owners who are in shallow leagues as well so make sure to check back with The Couch often!

Fantasy Couch Store