Hidden Bounties: Waiver Wire Adds for June 8th - June 14th

Addison Barger, Grant Taylor, and Heriberto Hernandez among this week's targets

By Justin May · June 8, 2026 · Updated October 13, 2026

{"template":"baseball-waiver-wire-picks","weekNumber":11,"weekDates":"June 8th - June 14th","intro":"Welcome back to another week of waiver hunting! Hope everyone's fantasy season is going well. Have a few deeper league options this week. The tough part about this being a weekly article, is that sometimes it's published a few days after a player's big breakout game. That's why I try to post instant updates on Twitter/X if there's something notable happening in that night's games as well. We'll look at some recommended waiver adds for this week, and of course some of you may need to decide on a couple of drops - so we'll cover those as well. These recommendations are mainly intended for redraft leagues, but some could be out there in dynasty leagues. Just a heads up, some add recommendations I made from previous weeks that should be rostered in more leagues: Troy Melton, TJ Rumfield, Colton Cowser, and Christian Scott are the main ones who are still under 25% rostered but shouldn't be. \n\nBefore we get started, I’d like to review some past recommendations from a month ago. I’ll be doing this every week just as a personal audit, to see how these play out a month later. \n\n\nAdds from 5/4: \n\nLogan Henderson: Workload hasn’t been there with just 5 IP in every start, but a 1.80 ERA and more than a K per inning absolutely plays. He’s on the IL but should return later this month and continue to be useful, even with workload limits. I’m taking the W here despite the injury. \n\nRobby Snelling: Made just one start before unfortunately needing Tommy John surgery. Major bummer, and a draw here due to injury. \n\nSam Antonacci: Hitting .292 with 8 steals since 5/4. Isn’t providing power but he’s been exactly as advertised, all while learning a new position this year. W \n\nJoe Mack: Hitting just .225 with a .583 OPS since being called up. L \n\nYohendrick Pinango: This is a tough one because he’s gotten more playing time than I expected, but has been a bit inconsistent as well. Since 5/4, he’s hitting .267 with a .719 OPS with 3 HRs in that span (90 PAs). I still believe long term but I’ll take an L since he hasn’t been a consistent starting option. \n\n\nSeason record for adds: 15-14 (6 draws) \n\n\nDrops from 5/4: \n\nCeddanne Rafaela: .311 AVG, .871 OPS, 4 HRs and 5 SBs since 5/4. Brutal L here. \n\nDaylen Lile: .269 AVG, .781 OPS, 5 HRs and 4 SBs since 5/4. Another L. \n\nMerrill Kelly: 4-0 with a 2.36 ERA in the past month as the pendulum swung in the opposite direction. Maybe the worst drop rec of the year so far. L \n\nOh my what an awful week that was. I usually give players a long leash even in redrafts but these were guys I had questions about beforehand who also weren’t performing. Apparently I shouldn’t have doubted them. \n\n\nSeason record for drops: 16-7 (3 draws) \n\n\nNow let’s get to this week \n","adds":[{"playerName":"Addison Barger","team":"TOR","position":"3B, OF","rosteredPct":"21%","blurb":"I had Barger as a drop early in the season. He hasn't played much since, missing time with ankle and elbow injuries, but I'm jumping back in. His power potential likely helps some teams out there, since HRs are tough to find on waivers. We don't have much of a 2026 sample to work with here, but in 2025 Barger hit 21 HRs with a .755 OPS. He had 93rd percentile bat speed with an average EV in the 86th percentile while keeping his K rate under 25%. Basically, he hits the ball hard consistently and doesn't strike out as often as some other big-swingers. Even with the platoon risk, he's a nice OF to have in standard leagues. He'll likely need a rehab assignment prior to returning, and he's not quite there yet. The latest reports say he's been hitting and throwing down at their Dunedin complex, so he may be a few weeks away. But with him currently 21% owned already, he's someone you may need to stash soon in leagues where he's available. ","espnId":"4997589","matchups":"","headshotUrl":"https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/headshots/mlb/players/full/4997589.png"},{"playerName":"Grant Taylor","team":"CHW","position":"SP, RP","rosteredPct":"15%","blurb":"Taylor has been a fan favorite in dynasty leagues for awhile, showcasing big time stuff since day 1 in the minors. He was initially developed as a starter, but shifted to the pen when he was called up last year, and remained there so far in 2026. Dynasty owners are hoping he shifts to a starting role next year, but he's having a great year as a reliever. He currently has a 1.93 ERA with 50 Ks in 32.2 IP. His K rate is an astounding 37.9% while he's walking just 6.8% of batters. 3 of his pitches have whiff rates over 30% as well. So any way you slice it - he's tough to hit and he's not allowing free passes like we see from a lot of relievers. He hasn't taken over the closer role just yet, but did notch his 2nd save on Saturday by striking out the side. There's no question he's more talented than Seranthony Dominguez, but the White Sox have used Taylor all over the place so he hasn't settled into a specific role. The writing has been on the wall though and I feel like he's the Sox' closer for the 2nd half. Regardless, he should be owned just about everywhere for the upside that he has. ","espnId":"4927630","matchups":"","headshotUrl":"https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/headshots/mlb/players/full/4927630.png"},{"playerName":"Heriberto Hernandez","team":"MIA","position":"OF","rosteredPct":"1%","blurb":"Hernandez was interesting late last year, as his numbers in about half a season's worth of ABs were solid (.266 AVG, 10 HRs, .785 OPS). But the Marlins didn't give him a starting job to start 2026, so that kind of killed the hype. Lately he's been producing and forcing their hand a bit, hitting .375 with 4 HRs in the past 2 weeks. The overall numbers won't jump off the page so far despite the recent hot streak, but he's got well above average bat speed and sprint speed. Plus he's put up a couple of 20+ HR seasons in the minors, while taking walks at a decent clip. We'll have to watch the K rate, but I'm betting on his raw tools making him fantasy relevant. Playing time was a question for him, but this week we've seen the Marlins play Kyle Stowers at 1B some days, shifting the struggling Connor Norby to more of a short-side platoon role. That's opened up playing time for Hernandez, as he's started 4 of the past 5 games. It's a small sample of games so definitely a fluid situation - but I'd much rather be early spotting trends like this. He's an interesting deep league add but could easily play his way to shallow league relevance soon. ","espnId":"42455","matchups":"","headshotUrl":"https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/headshots/mlb/players/full/42455.png"},{"playerName":"Hunter Dobbins","team":"STL","position":"SP","rosteredPct":"1%","blurb":"I've been a big Dobbins fan since his strong debut game last year. He has a deep pitch mix - with a fastball, slider, sweeper, splitter, and curveball - and displays strong pitchability. The stuff won't jump off the page but I'm hopeful that the splitter can be a legit whiff pitch over time. He's also been in the zone too frequently at times when he doesn't need to be, but he's generally been an efficient pitcher because of it. His numbers weren't stellar in Boston, but part of dynasty is forecasting improvement, and Dobbins is a guy I expect to get better over time. After tearing his ACL last year, he was moved to St. Louis in the offseason. His role has been fluctuating since returning from injury, but after a couple of strong bulk relief outings, he's scheduled to make another start this week. His stay in the rotation may be temporary as they're just going 6 man for this week, but this won't be the last game we see him start. To me he's a clear upgrade over Pallante or Leahy right now, and there's been rumors of Dustin May being a trade candidate. If Dobbins doesn't stay in the rotation after Thursday's start, I don't think it will be long before he breaks through. He's someone to watch as we approach the 2nd half of the season. He could give teams solid innings down the stretch. ","espnId":"4415836","matchups":"","headshotUrl":"https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/headshots/mlb/players/full/4415836.png"},{"playerName":"Endy Rodriguez","team":"PIT","position":"C, 1B","rosteredPct":"1%","blurb":"I was out on Rodriguez even in dynasty leagues last year, but he's been interesting lately. He has a .764 OPS with a homer and 2 steals in 42 ABs this year. Very small sample of course, but he's been hitting the ball hard and has a nice approach, with good contact and plate discipline. Not enough games yet to draw a strong conclusion so it may be some wishcasting based on his past prospect pedigree, but he's at least noteworthy enough to monitor to see if it continues. I've added him in a couple of deeper leagues so standard 10 or 12 teamers don't need to worry about him yet. He's more of a name to keep in mind as a guy who was a top prospect a few years back and is still just 26. He could be finally putting it together. I wouldn't vault him up too high just yet given the small sample, but teams out there who are starting guys like JT Realmuto could benefit from swapping him out for Rodriguez. ","espnId":"","matchups":""}],"drops":[{"playerName":"Salvador Perez","team":"KC","position":"C, 1B","rosteredPct":"87%","blurb":"Salvy has been a stud catcher for a long time so this one is painful. He's hitting just .204 with a .599 OPS on the year, and now that we're in June, time is running out for him to save his season. The metrics are down big time across the board as well - barrel rate, EV numbers, bat speed - everything that he needs to succeed as a power bat has fallen off a cliff. He's 36 years old so this might be the start of a career decline. It's unfortunate for sure, and if the metrics were better I would give him a longer leash. But I just can't keep hoping for better days ROS with little evidence, so it's time to drop. ","espnId":"31127","matchups":"","headshotUrl":"https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/headshots/mlb/players/full/31127.png"},{"playerName":"Nick Lodolo","team":"CIN","position":"SP","rosteredPct":"78%","blurb":"I've been pretty low on Lodolo for dynasty purposes, as between the injuries and inconsistency I just didn't see the hype. Me calling him a drop should be taken with a grain of salt in that case, but it doesn't change the fact that he's been rough this year. An ERA over 5 and a 17% K rate isn't helping any teams out there. Metrics are poor across the board with the exception of chase rate - but the chases aren't generating whiffs so they only take him so far. He's been getting hit hard as well. Just not enough here for me to cling to, even if I'm trying to be optimistic about him. ","espnId":"42433","matchups":"","headshotUrl":"https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/headshots/mlb/players/full/42433.png"},{"playerName":"Chandler Simpson","team":"TB","position":"OF","rosteredPct":"63%","blurb":"I've been a big Simpson defender, as he's been a polarizing player. With this past month of production, he lost me, at least for redrafts. Since May 8th, he's hit just .216 with a .266 OBP, and has just 2 steals (while being caught 4 times). It's been a brutal stretch and he hasn't been useful in any format. He's always been a niche fantasy asset, meaning he's good for teams with tons of power and little speed specifically. But if he's not hitting for average then he's not able to steal bases - and if he's not able to steal then his fantasy value gets reduced to nothing. Long term I still believe in the contact skills and his ability to improve his game in general (an increase of 11 OAA year over year is a testament to his work ethic to improve defensively). But in redrafts it doesn't make sense to me to hold through the current struggles. ","espnId":"4679983","matchups":"","headshotUrl":"https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/headshots/mlb/players/full/4679983.png"},{"playerName":"Mitch Keller","team":"PIT","position":"SP","rosteredPct":"44%","blurb":"Similar to Lodolo, I haven't been high on Keller in the past. I will say he's been a good arm for QS, but the ratios aren't special and he's been under a K per inning for the past 2 seasons. He just hasn't been able to replicate his 2023 season in the K department. After a rough start this year, I'm out. Keller was solid in April but has tapered off - registering just 1 QS over his last 5 outings, posting an ERA over 8 in that span. His K rate has also dropped further into the abyss, sitting at a lowly 18% on the year. If a boring ratios/QS arm isn't providing QS and obviously isn't helping with Ks, then he's not worth holding. Not to mention the Pirates have an overflow of SP options at the moment. ","espnId":"33722","matchups":"","headshotUrl":"https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/headshots/mlb/players/full/33722.png"}]}