AL FAAB Factor: Waiver Pickups of the Week

This is our weekly look at American League free agents. We have two goals for this article:

1. Identify likely free agents and discuss their strengths and weaknesses.

2. Estimate how much of your $100 starting free-agent budget you should bid on them.

We've incorporated grids into the FAAB articles, so users can easily see at a glance how certain players stack up against others and how much they should command in a variety of formats.

The grids, which are sortable by column (click on the header), include a very basic "player grade" column. This serves as a reflection of a player's skills and role on an A-E scale. Shohei Ohtani would have been an "A" grade player last year – that mark will be reserved for similarly high-impact prospects stepping into an everyday role.

As always, if there is a player that was not discussed in the article that you would like to know about, feel free to ask about the player in the comments.

AL FAAB | NL FAAB

Starting Pitcher

Tanner Anderson, Athletics: The unheralded 26-year-old, a 20th-round pick of the Pirates back in 2015, made his first big-league start Monday and looked not bad at all, coming one out shy of a quality start in Tampa Bay. Anderson doesn't have a particularly fantasy-friendly profile, relying mainly on a 92-94 mph sinker, but he's posted excellent groundball rates in the minors with it and pitching to weak contact in front of Matt Chapman and the rest of the slick Oakland infield is going to lead to some nice lines now and then. Anderson's Triple-A numbers this year were grim, but that's to be expected in a hitter's haven like Las Vegas. His long-term role is probably long relief/swing man, but he'll get a chance to hold down a rotation spot until someone like Jesus Luzardo is ready for it. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: No; 12-team AL: $3

Nestor Cortes, Yankees: The Yankees' rotation is in kind of rough shape right now, with Domingo German joining Luis Severino on the IL and none of the lefties having much luck keeping the ball in the park. Rather than trading for pitching help, though, the front office decided they'd just keep outslugging everyone and brought in Edwin Encarnacion. Sure, that works too. That leaves Cortes as the fifth "starter", working as the primary behind an opener, and he picked up his first major-league win Saturday in that role. The 24-year-old was being used mainly as a starter at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, so he can give New York some length for however long they need him. Cortes is pretty much the definition of a crafty lefty, varying his release point from low three-quarters to true sidearm and working slow, slower slowest with his high 80s fastball, changeup and slider. There's no telling how long that arsenal and deceptive delivery will be effective against big-league hitters, but he pretty much breezed through the minors, and despite the fact that he pounds the strike zone and seems to be pitching to contact, he's adept at using the aggressiveness of modern batters against them and generating whiffs too. It's a tough profile to have a lot of faith in, but it's also one that could produce useful numbers for a lot longer than it has any right to, especially if you need wins and aren't too worried about the ratios that come with them. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: No; 12-team AL: $3

Odrisamer Despaigne, White Sox: The journeyman has been bouncing around for so long, and been mentioned in FAAB columns and other places so often over the last few years, I didn't even have to look up how to spell his name when I wrote this. Despaigne also has a career 4.93 ERA and 5.5 K/9, so, yeah. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: No; 12-team AL: $1

Brian Johnson, Red Sox: Johnson hasn't pitched in the majors since early April due to an elbow issue, but he'll get another chance to fill the fifth starter role until Nathan Eovaldi gets healthy, which might not happen until after the All-Star break. The left-hander has shown flashes of utility in the past, but he's another soft-tossing lefty in a run environment that makes any contact risky. Taking the mound every fifth day or so still has value in deep formats, but don't expect any kind of breakout, especially given Boston's struggles finding the win column consistently. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: No; 12-team AL: $2

Other two-start options, Mon-Sun (12-team Mixed: $1; 15-team Mixed: $1; 12-team AL: $1)

Brett Anderson, Athletics (vs. BAL, vs. TB)

Homer Bailey, Royals (at SEA, vs. MIN)

Andrew Cashner, Orioles (at OAK, at SEA)

Danny Duffy, Royals (at SEA, vs. MIN)

Mike Fiers, Athletics (vs. BAL, vs. TB)

Edwin Jackson, Blue Jays (vs. LAA, at BOS)

Lance Lynn, Rangers (vs. CLE, vs. CHW)

Wade Miley, Astros (at CIN, at NYY)

Daniel Norris, Tigers (at PIT, at CLE)

Ivan Nova, White Sox (at CHC, at TEX)

Michael Pineda, Twins (vs. BOS, at KC)

Felix Pena, Angels (at TOR, at STL)

Adrian Sampson, Rangers (vs. CLE, vs. CHW)

Tyler Skaggs, Angels (at TOR, at STL)

Ryan Yarbrough, Rays (at NYY, at OAK)

Gabriel Ynoa, Orioles (at OAK, at SEA)

Relief Pitcher

Cam Bedrosian, Angels: Back in the spring, if I'd told you Bedrosian had picked up the save right before Cody Allen had been waived by the Angels, you'd probably have thought Bedrosian was set to be a hot FAAB commodity. As it turns out, not so much. It's nice to see the right-hander back in the late-inning mix, but he's spat out that particular bit before, and he's seen more action as an opener in 2019 than he has in high-leverage spots. Hansel Robles should still be considered the top option for saves on the Angels until further notice. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: No; 12-team AL: $1

Joe Biagini / Daniel Hudson / Tim Mayza / Jordan Romano, Blue Jays: Ken Giles is on the IL with an elbow issue, although it's not thought to be serious, so if the Jays happen to see any save chances over the next week or two they'll need someone to fill in. Biagini was thought to be the top choice, but he ran into trouble in his first opportunity Wednesday and had to be bailed out by Hudson. Mayza could also see situational save chances as the team's top bullpen lefty, but the guy the rebuilding club should really be looking at is Romano. He had a bit of an odyssey in the spring – grabbed by the White Sox in the Rule 5 draft, dealt to the Rangers when Chicago decided it didn't have room for him, then sent back to Toronto when Texas decided not to keep him either – which either means a lot of teams saw upside in him, or he disappointed a lot of coaching staffs, depending on how you look at it. Anyway, he's in the bigs now and was on a roll as the closer for Triple-A Buffalo prior to his promotion. The right-hander is a converted starter who's popping 96 mph with his fastball, so the Jays could have lucked into a long-term bullpen piece here. If you're looking for a keeper or dynasty stash go for Romano, but any of the four could wind up with a save or two until Giles returns. All four – 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: No; 12-team AL: $1

Trevor May, Twins: May finished 2018 as the Twins' closer, so it was thought he'd head into this season as the favorite for the job, but instead it took him until June 11 to record his first save. Blake Parker's been struggling lately, so there's an opening here for May to assume the right-handed part of the ninth-inning committee alongside Taylor Rogers, but until he starts seeing more save chances, don't assume Parker's out of a job. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: No; 12-team AL: $2

Catcher

Roberto Perez, Cleveland: The catcher can run very hot and cold, but he's locked in right now, slashing .346/.419/.885 over his last eight games with four homers and nine RBI. Perez is generally a liability in batting average, but if you can stomach that, he will give you decent power numbers – his 11 HR in 48 contests this year is already a new career high. 12-team Mixed: $1; 15-team Mixed: $3; 12-team AL: Owned

Bobby Wilson, Tigers: Wilson and his career .577 OPS will back up John Hicks while Grayson Greiner is on the shelf. Huzzah? 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: No; 12-team AL: $1

First Base

Justin Bour, Angels: Bour is back up with the Angels after predictably pummeling PCL pitching, but he's started only two of five games since his promotion, and playing time will be precious behind Shohei Ohtani and Albert Pujols in the 1B/DH mix. Bour is better than his .170/.267/.368 slash line in the majors so far this year, but he may not get many chances to improve on it. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: No; 12-team AL: $3

Lucas Duda, Royals: Duda came off the IL this week and promptly went 0-for-6 in his first two games back. Ryan O'Hearn's demotion opens up playing time for the former Met, but the Royals have younger options to take those at-bats as well. Duda is better than his .154/.270/.288 slash line in the majors so far this year, but he may not get many chances to improve on it. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: No; 12-team AL: $2

Second Base

Joey Wendle, Rays: The 29-year-old returned from the IL on Friday and the Rays demoted Daniel Robertson to make room for him, which is a good sign for his playing time. Wendle had a rough start to the season before getting hurt, but the sample is too small to draw any conclusions, and he's still a guy with tremendous defensive flexibility who hit .300 with 16 steals last year. That's got value in almost any format, even if it's just as bench depth. 12-team Mixed: $2; 15-team Mixed: $5; 12-team AL: $11

Outfield

Yordan Alvarez, Astros: If you were forced to wait until this week to bid on Alvarez, well, he hasn't gotten any cheaper, has he? Four homers and eight RBI in his first five MLB games with a .471 batting average and a 6:5 BB:K is extraordinary, but we should be used to extraordinary debuts at this point in 2019. Alvarez will eventually cool off (duh), the question is what level he'll settle in at, and whether it's good enough to maintain a regular spot in a potent Astros lineup. The answers are probably "a really good one" and "yes", so don't be afraid to blow your budget on him. 12-team Mixed: $35; 15-team Mixed: $55; 12-team AL: $75

Jorge Bonifacio, Royals: Kansas City shuffled their roster around and are giving Bonifacio another look despite his .645 OPS for Triple-A Omaha. He could easily be the player sent back down once Hunter Dozier gets healthy, though, especially after going 0-for-3 in his first and so far only start of the season for the Royals. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: No; 12-team AL: $1

Victor Reyes, Tigers: The 24-year-old is back in the majors after posting a decent .286/.315/.487 line, nine homers and five steals through 52 games with Triple-A Toledo. Like just about every youngish semi-prospect in the Detroit system, Reyes has some upside in power and speed but it comes with contact issues, and in most fantasy formats, a bargain-bin JaCoby Jones isn't somebody you want to go out of your way to roster. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: No; 12-team AL: $1