Hidden Bounties: Waiver Wire Adds for May 18th-May 24th

Ben Brown, Connor Prielipp, and TJ Rumfield lead this week's recommendations

By Justin May · May 20, 2026

{"template":"baseball-waiver-wire-picks","weekNumber":8,"weekDates":"May 18th-May 24th","intro":"Welcome back to another week of waiver hunting! Staying active on waivers is key at this time of year. 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. \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 4/13: \n\nNoah Schultz: He was added to the 4/13 article after his call up was announced, but he hasn’t been that helpful in his first 6 MLB starts. There’s been a couple gems, but a 4.91 ERA and less than a K per inning isn’t great. L \n\nBrayan Bello: Oof. An ERA near 8 since the article and he just didn’t recover like I hoped. L \n\nKyle Manzardo: Just 3 HRs since the article, but a .276 AVG with a .788 OPS in that span is a nice turnaround, and I think he’ll continue on that path. W \n\nDominic Canzone: A .266 AVG and .760 OPS since 4/13 is solid. Just 2 HRs, but 14 RBIs are helpful. This is borderline but his Savant page is still so pretty - he should keep improving based on his underlying stats. W \n\n\n\nSeason record for adds: 8-9 (2 draws) \n\n\nDrops from 4/13: \n\nJose Caballero: He was great until landing on the IL recently, and took the starting SS job from Volpe while he was out. Bad call by me. L \n\nNoelvi Marte: Hasn’t been back up since being optioned to AAA. W \n\nLance McCullers Jr.: Hasn’t improved at all with a 7.5 ERA since 4/13. The underlying metrics are also poor. W \n\nDavid Peterson: He got shifted to a long relief role shortly after the article posting, and still has a 4.5 ERA since then. He hasn’t been helpful for fantasy. W \n\nWilli Castro: Since 4/13 he has a .247 AVG, .631 OPS, 1 HR and 2 SBs. 12 runs scored isn’t too bad but overall that’s a W drop. \n\n\nSeason record for drops: 11-2 (3 draws) \n\n\nNow let’s get to this week \n","adds":[{"playerName":"Ben Brown","team":"CHC","position":"SP","rosteredPct":"23%","blurb":"Brown was written off by a lot of folks after a rough 2025 where he posted a near 6 ERA in just over 100 IP. And there was good reason for it - as he was basically the worst pitcher in the league at allowing hard hits. He seemed destined for the pen, but with a good fastball/curve combo, there was some hope he could stick as a starter if he added another pitch. Fast forward to this year, and he added a sinker that has been a game changer. It's been keeping hitters off his 4-seam fastball, as the quality of contact against the pitch has improved greatly. His curve and sparingly thrown changeup have remained solid, and the sinker itself has been great for generating soft contact. Hitters have a lowly 83 mph average EV and are slugging .200 against the sinker (with an xSLG of just .220). It's a small sample for sure, as we only have two 4 inning starts so far to judge his stuff as a starter, but the pitch velocity has remained solid (around 96 mph for his fastballs) and the quality of contact has been there. His whiff and K rates have been similar to last year as well. We'll have to see how his velocity holds up as he gets into the 5th and 6th inning in future starts, but in general these are the types of adjustments we like to see. It shows he's growing as a pitcher. Brown wasn't originally going to get a shot to start, but the Cubs' pitching depth is in shambles. Cade Horton is out all year, Justin Steele suffered a setback and is out at least through the All Star Break, top prospect Jaxon Wiggins is injured in AAA, and Matthew Boyd is at least a few weeks away. If one of those pitchers returns, they have a chance to displace Brown, but that still gives him a few more starts to prove that he belongs in the rotation. Based on his body of work so far, I think he can impress enough to remain in the rotation all year. \nUpdate: Brown pitched 5 innings last night and kept his fastball velo at 96/97 mph into the 5th inning. 15 whiffs and overall a solid outing against a good lineup. Exactly what we wanted to see. ","espnId":"41516","matchups":"","headshotUrl":"https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/headshots/mlb/players/full/41516.png"},{"playerName":"Connor Prielipp","team":"MIN","position":"SP","rosteredPct":"16%","blurb":"I was skeptical of Prielipp from a dynasty standpoint due to frequent injuries and relief risk as a prospect, but he's done everything in his power to quell those notions this year. Since making his debut on April 22nd, he's posted a 2.88 ERA, 0.96 WHIP, and a 28% K rate. Most importantly, he's kept the walk rate in check, currently at a respectable 8.8%. That's a big deal for him, as his control in the minors was inconsistent. He should get plenty of runway in the rotation with the injuries they've had, and he's got the strikeout stuff to make good use of it. His innings will likely be limited at some point this year, as the most he's thrown in any pro season was 82 innings last year. He's currently at 40 innings between the majors and minors, and I'd expect around 110 total this season. He's still a useful arm in redrafts until that limit hits. ","espnId":"","matchups":""},{"playerName":"TJ Rumfield","team":"COL","position":"1B","rosteredPct":"12%","blurb":"I don't usually like to double up on recommendations with these articles, as Rumfield was included back in the Week 1 article, but I'm just surprised he's only 12% owned. He's not a top 12 1B at the moment, so standard leagues may have an excuse for leaving him on the wire. But so many leagues have multiple utility slots and he's been a solid, helpful bat so far. He's been able to beat the platoon concerns, and has a very solid .275 AVG and .794 OPS. He doesn't have eye-popping EV numbers, but he doesn't strike out much and has a good approach, all while playing half of his games in Coors. People will knock him for the bat speed, but Michael Busch hit 30 bombs last year with similar bat speed. Rumfield will likely end around 20 HRs this year, but should be a consistent producer all year and should be helpful in a good bit of these 88% of leagues where he's still available. ","espnId":"","matchups":""},{"playerName":"River Ryan","team":"LAD","position":"SP","rosteredPct":"11%","blurb":"River Ryan has been generating a lot of buzz lately, and for good reason. His stuff is legit, led by a big fastball and multiple solid breaking pitches. Videos and screenshots that show Ryan hitting 100 mph multiple times in his last start have made their way around social media lately, so the hype is growing. Those with dynasty shares are excited, but he will be redraft relevant if they elect to call him up from AAA. He's a bit older for a prospect as he's turning 28 in August, but between Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow, injuries are piling up for the Dodgers. Ryan has been tearing up AAA and could get a look in the rotation soon. He's worth stashing in deeper leagues and monitoring on waivers for a potential call up in shallower leagues. ","espnId":"5007605","matchups":"","headshotUrl":"https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/headshots/mlb/players/full/5007605.png"},{"playerName":"Austin Martin","team":"MIN","position":"2B","rosteredPct":"8%","blurb":"Martin was once a top prospect, and failed to live up to the lofty expectations so far. He's turned into a solid MLB regular, but not long ago he was viewed as a bust. This has been his best season yet, batting .308 with an .824 OPS, 1 HR and 7 SBs in 144 PAs so far. We know that his hit tool is legit, as he rarely whiffs, and his K rate is currently 87th percentile. He also has elite plate discipline, with a 99th percentile chase rate and a 94th percentile walk rate. He might be too passive at the plate, but with his elite zone contact, low chase, and being more of a contact+speed guy as opposed to a power threat, the approach works for him. He's been playing every day in RF for the Twins, but retains his 2B eligibility for Yahoo leagues. He won't provide power, but a solid on base/ratios bat with speed and multi-position eligibility is a nice player to have. He should be owned in more than 8% of leagues. ","espnId":"4297998","matchups":"","headshotUrl":"https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/headshots/mlb/players/full/4297998.png"},{"playerName":"Troy Melton","team":"DET","position":"SP","rosteredPct":"3%","blurb":"Melton was a top pitching prospect for the Tigers, posting strong K/BB numbers at every minor league stop. He also produced in the bigs last year as a rookie, putting up a sub-3 ERA in 45 innings. He throws hard and has a deep pitch mix. Borderline elite extension also helps him get the most out of his 97 mph fastball velocity. I was looking forward to watching him in year 2, but unfortunately he suffered an elbow injury in spring and is still making his way back. He's made 4 rehab starts so far and has reportedly looked good, most recently throwing 63 pitches in yesterday's start. He may only need another start or two before he returns. Based on the current state of the Tigers' rotation, he could be afforded a couple of starts to prove he belongs. Obviously if the rotation does get fully healthy there may not be a place for him, making this more of a deep league stash - but he's at least worth a look for pitching-needy teams out there. ","espnId":"5294127","matchups":"","headshotUrl":"https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/headshots/mlb/players/full/5294127.png"}],"drops":[{"playerName":"Trevor Rogers","team":"BAL","position":"SP","rosteredPct":"66%","blurb":"I hate giving up on an arm who posted a sub-2 ERA last year, but that's where we're at with Rogers unfortunately. I was skeptical of him repeating last year's success because it's so difficult for pitchers without elite stuff or K upside to have multiple great seasons in a row. Just too much has to go right for it to happen. This year we've seen the pendulum swing in the opposite direction, as his ERA sits at 6.87. His fastball has taken a major step backwards, as hitters are slugging .537 against the pitch, compared to .252 last year. The underlying metrics back this up too, as he's been getting hit hard. I'm not sure that the changeup can be the elite whiff pitch that it needs to be, so I don't know if or when he can turn things around. I usually give players with a history of production a bit more slack, but in this case he's fine to drop. ","espnId":"39640","matchups":"","headshotUrl":"https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/headshots/mlb/players/full/39640.png"},{"playerName":"Jack Flaherty","team":"DET","position":"SP","rosteredPct":"53%","blurb":"It could be the scorned Cardinals fan in me, but I just haven't been a big Flaherty guy for fantasy either. He's been inconsistent the last few seasons, and 2025 featured too many rough outings, leading to a 4.64 ERA. The volume strikeouts are helpful, but he's done more harm than good for fantasy teams lately. This year so far he's 0-5 with a 5.77 ERA. He's still averaging more than a strikeout per inning, but his whiff rates are down across the board on all of his pitches. His walk rate also jumped significantly, and he's been getting hit hard consistently. After a poor 2025 and rough metrics so far this year, I just don't think he's worth holding. ","espnId":"33837","matchups":"","headshotUrl":"https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/headshots/mlb/players/full/33837.png"},{"playerName":"Spencer Torkelson","team":"DET","position":"1B","rosteredPct":"48%","blurb":"I promise I'm not a Tigers hater…I mean, I did have one on the add list too. Tork is a tough cut for me since I was a big believer. But a .191 AVG and .671 OPS so far combined with a career-worst 33% K rate means it's time to move on. His contact rates are down, and he's been getting fooled by offspeed pitches yet again after showing improvement there in 2025. Even though the power metrics remain strong, the strikeouts are going to bite him. Tork has always been a streaky hitter - the power binges are fun but when he's not hitting homers, he has no fantasy value. I'm not saying his career is over by any means, as he could have a really good 2025-like season next year. But for redraft purposes I don't see him as an asset worth holding, especially with the depth at 1B. ","espnId":"4424286","matchups":"","headshotUrl":"https://a.espncdn.com/combiner/i?img=/i/headshots/mlb/players/full/4424286.png"}]}

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