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 upside on an A-E scale, prioritizing skills and talent above role and playing time outlook. Gunnar Henderson would have been an "A" grade player last year – that mark will be reserved for similarly high-impact prospects that could thrive in 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.

Starting Pitcher

Osvaldo Bido, Athletics: The 28-year-old righty has had quite a start to August, producing back-to-back quality starts including six scoreless frames Saturday in a win over the Blue Jays. Bido doesn't have tremendous upside, but his 4.50 ERA, 1.33 WHIP and 55:16 K:BB through 48 innings at Triple-A Las Vegas this year are good numbers given the context, and the A's have nothing to lose by seeing if he can put himself in the team's 2025 rotation plans. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: $1; 12-team AL: $4

Matthew Boyd, Guardians: Carlos Carrasco's hip injury was poorly timed (at least for him), but he was probably on his way out of the Cleveland rotation anyway. Boyd worked 63 pitches in his most recent rehab outing Wednesday as he one-hit St. Paul over six scoreless innings with a 7:0 K:BB, and his next start seems almost certain to come in the majors, with Tuesday looking like a plausible day for his 2024 debut. The veteran southpaw had trouble keeping the ball in the park last year with the Tigers but still posted a 73:25 K:BB through 71 innings, and he does have a 200-strikeout season on his resume from 2019. Boyd could still have some fantasy upside, and he's in an organization that could help him unlock it. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: $3; 12-team AL: $7

Bowden Francis, Blue Jays: I wrote up Francis last week as only worth the risk in AL-only leagues, but since then he's fanned seven Orioles over five solid innings Wednesday, and now he lines up for a two-step that includes a juicy road start against the Angels on Monday (and then Wrigley Field on the weekend). It's time for a quick re-evaluation. The right-hander's new splitter appears to be a legit offering, and while his overall arsenal lacks a true plus pitch, his 82nd percentile extension does help everything play up a bit. Statcast also has a 'Similar Pitchers Based on Velocity and Movement' section that includes a couple very interesting names in 2024 Jack Flaherty, and 2024 Ronel Blanco. Francis still carries a lot of risk with an uncertain reward, but there appears to be some kind of upside here, and he could wind up being more than just a pop-and-drop streaming option. 12-team Mixed: $1; 15-team Mixed: $2; 12-team AL: $5

Kenta Maeda, Tigers: Detroit's bedraggled rotation is turning back to Maeda out of necessity, but the 36-year-old righty has been pitching a little better lately in long relief, posting a 4.26 ERA, 1.05 WHIP and 16:1 K:BB over his last 19 innings. The Tigers might be better off leaving him in that role and deploying him behind an opener, or in tandem with someone like Beau Brieske as they did Friday, but that would only improve Maeda's win probability a touch. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: No; 12-team AL: $3

Tyler Mahle, Rangers: Mahle made his season debut Tuesday and pitched well, allowing just one run over five innings, but the Rangers nearly got no-hit by Framber Valdez that night so the performance got lost in the shuffle. Mahle struck out just two batters and wasn't generating a lot of whiffs on his rehab assignment, so it's not clear if he still has the stuff that produced 210 Ks in 180 innings for the Reds in 2021. Without that kind of upside, he's a lot less appealing in mixed formats, but Texas needs him to take a regular turn. He does get a two-start week this period though, facing the Red Sox on the road and the Twins at home. 12-team Mixed: $1; 15-team Mixed: $3; 12-team AL: $7

Davis Martin, White Sox: Martin appears set for a rotation spot the rest of the way after completing his recovery from Tommy John surgery, but a guy who pitches for a historically bad team doesn't carry a lot of fantasy appeal. The 27-year-old righty did blank the A's over six innings Wednesday, and he's shown flashes of strikeout potential in the minors, but he has a lot to prove in the big leagues before he'll be anything more that an emergency option for fantasy staffs. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: No; 12-team AL: $2

Zebby Matthews, Twins: Given the incentive structure MLB has in place for rookie promotions, early August is basically the worst possible time to bring up a top prospect for good. With that in mind, the timing on Joe Ryan's potentially season-ending injury could have been worse. The Twins are in a dogfight for the AL Central title with a wild-card spot as a viable backup plan, and while Louie Varland will probably get first crack at filling Ryan's rotation spot, his issues with homers (12 in 73.1 Triple-A innings this year, seven more in 30.2 big-league frames) don't suggest he'll do much to help the team make the postseason. Matthews, on the other hand, dominated High-A and Double-A to begin the year (1.85 ERA, 0.76 WHIP and mind-boggling 91:6 K:BB in 78 innings) and while the 24-year-old right-hander had faced more opposition in his four Triple-A starts, he's still reeled off a 23:1 K:BB in 19 innings. The ideal scenario for Minnesota, even if they view him as an upgrade on Varland, would be if they can preserve Matthews' rookie status for 2025 before bringing him up, and if they wait until next week to promote him, he'll wind up with under 45 days on the active roster. Keeping him under 50 innings shouldn't be too tough, either. With Jackson Jobe having trouble finding the plate at Double-A, Matthews is the best pitching prospect with a realistic chance of making an impact down the stretch in the AL. 12-team Mixed: $1; 15-team Mixed: $2; 12-team AL: $5

Albert Suarez, Orioles: Suarez returned to the rotation Tuesday with five scoreless innings against the Blue Jays, and he figures to get another turn or two while Grayson Rodriguez is on the shelf. Suarez's early-season success has long since faded – he has a 5.11 ERA and 1.58 WHIP in 49.1 innings since the beginning of June – but the 34-year-old will still have a potent offense at his back and could snatch a win or two before returning to the bullpen. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: No; 12-team AL: $1

Louie Varland, Twins: As mentioned above, Varland is in line to fill Joe Ryan's rotation spot in the short term. The 26-year-old right-hander doesn't offer a lot of upside and significant downside given the gopherballitis he's displayed this year, but he should get a start or two to try and dissuade the Twins from starting the clock on Matthews. 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)

Ky Bush, White Sox (vs. NYY, at HOU)
Davis Daniel, Angels (vs. TOR, vs. ATL)
Trevor Rogers, Orioles (vs. WAS, vs. BOS)
Jose Urena, Rangers (at BOS, vs. MIN)

Relief Pitcher

Seranthony Dominguez, Orioles: Craig Kimbrel hasn't pitched since Tuesday, but when the O's had a two-run lead to protect in the ninth inning Saturday, they turned to Dominguez instead. Yennier Cano had pitched in the eighth, while Gregory Soto has had a rough start to his Baltimore tenure, so Dominguez may have looked like manager Brandon Hyde's best option. The right-hander has a 1.80 ERA, 0.80 WHIP and 10:2 K:BB in 10 innings since the All-Star break, and he did collect nine saves in 11 chances as recently as 2022 for the Phillies. Kimbrel isn't out of the job yet, but the trend lines aren't good. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: $1; 12-team AL: $4

Lucas Erceg, Royals: Kansas City's bullpen picture is starting to get a lot clearer. Hunter Harvey's on the IL, while James McArthur has an 11.05 ERA since the All-Star break (and that's with two unearned runs on his ledger). Erceg got the save Saturday after racking up five holds in his first five appearances for the Royals, and he has yet to give up a run for his new team with an 8:0 K:BB in 6.1 innings. Expect Erceg to get a long look in the closer role. 12-team Mixed: $5; 15-team Mixed: $11; 12-team AL: $21

Drew Rasmussen, Rays: Rasmussen came off the IL this week and will work out of the bullpen the rest of the year as Tampa Bay watches his workload carefully in his return from an internal brace procedure on an elbow which has already undergone two full Tommy John surgeries. That gives the 29-year-old righty little redraft value, but he's still likely to be in the Rays' 2025 rotation plans, so as a keeper stash he makes a great deal of sense if you can get him cheaply. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: No; 12-team AL: $1

Edwin Uceta, Rays: On the flip side, Uceta has emerged as a high-leverage option for Tampa, getting scored upon only once in his last eight appearances with a 1.50 ERA, 0.58 WHIP and 18:1 K:BB in 12 innings plus three holds. His sinker/change/slider combo is generating plenty of whiffs and weak contact, and while he's not going to steal Pete Fairbanks' job in the ninth inning, he should provide strong ratio ballast and Ks down the stretch. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: No; 12-team AL: $2

Second Base

Romy Gonzalez, Red Sox: The 27-year-old infielder is stuck in a short-side platoon role, but he's making the most of it. Since the All-Star break, Gonzalez has slashed .317/.364/.634 in 44 plate appearances, and three of his last four hits have left the yard. He's also added two steals, seven runs and seven RBI in that 15-game post-ASB sample. The lack of consistent playing time is an issue in most shallower formats, but he's eligible at multiple positions and could provide a nice boost to your offense if deployed judiciously. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: No; 12-team AL: $1

Third Base

Zach Dezenzo, Astros: Dezenzo is the latest guy the Astros are looking at as a possible upgrade at first base, but it does make you wonder why they didn't just trade for someone like Josh Bell at the deadline. A 12th-round pick in 2022, Dezenzo has had trouble staying healthy during his minor-league career but was slashing .283/.368/.504 in 33 games between Double-A and Triple-A this season with six homers and five steals. In his first four games for Houston he's gone 5-for-16 with a solo home run and a double, bumping Jon Singleton to the bench in the process. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: $3; 12-team AL: $7

Anthony Rendon, Angels: Rendon returned Wednesday from his latest IL stint, but this time around he's actually looked healthy and, dare I say, even productive. The brittle 34-year-old has gone 7-for-16 in four games since his return with a double, two walks and a steal. There are plenty of reasons to avoid Rendon, from his own track record to the state of the Angels roster around him, but if he keeps stringing together hits, he should have some value. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: No; 12-team AL: $3

Shortstop

Ernie Clement, Blue Jays: Clement shows no signs of slowing down, slashing .344/.375/.410 over his last 15 games with four doubles, four steals, four runs, eight RBI and a 2:2 BB:K. His hit tool appears to be legit, and while the 28-year-old utility player doesn't have a lot power, if he keeps contributing on the basepaths, that's be more than enough to put him on the radar in shallow formats. 12-team Mixed: $2; 15-team Mixed: $5; 12-team AL: Rostered

Nick Sogard, Red Sox: David Hamilton's spark has faded, but Boston may have found another spark plug in Sogard. The 26-year-old has started seven of the last eight games, going 7-for-25 (.280) with seven runs scored along with two RBI and a steal. He did pop 12 homers in 89 games at Triple-A, so he does have some power, and he's been the BoSox's everyday second baseman against RHP while shifting over to short against lefties. Hamilton has a .229/.289/.349 slash line since the beginning of July, and something will have to give when Tyler O'Neill returns from the IL. Based on current form and usage, it'll be Hamilton and not Sogard who gets booted to the bench. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: $1; 12-team AL: $4

Outfield

Andrew Benintendi, White Sox: I mean sure, why not. Five of Benintendi's 13 homers on the season have come in the last six games, and over his last 14 he's slashing .294/.333/.686 with nine runs and 12 RBI. Maybe all he needed was to have absolutely no pressure on him whatsoever. The 30-year-old only has one 20-homer campaign on his resume, and that from back in 2017, but he he suddenly looks like he's got a chance of reaching that mark again. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: $1; 12-team AL: Rostered 

Will Brennan, Guardians: The 26-year-old got a brief stint at Triple-A in which he batted .371 (13-for-35) with four doubles and a homer in nine games, but Brennan is now back with Cleveland in his usual strong-side platoon role, going 4-for-7 (all singles) in two starts. He offers minimal upside, but if he got cut loose when he was demoted, he's still useful in deep formats. 12-team Mixed: No; 15-team Mixed: No; 12-team AL: $3

Jonny DeLuca, Rays: DeLuca isn't quite playing every day – shocking for a Rays position player, I know – but he's been fairly productive the last couple weeks, slashing .282/.349/.462 in his last 12 games with three doubles, two triples, a steal, two runs and three RBI. The lack of counting stats is concerning but understandable considering he's mainly hit toward the bottom of the order, but the 26-year-old did get a look in the leadoff spot Saturday against Corbin Burnes. If he can stick in that spot, his fantasy appeal would shoot through the roof. 12-team Mixed: $1; 15-team Mixed: $3; 12-team AL: Rostered

Designated Hitter

Eloy Jimenez, Orioles: All Jimenez has done since getting traded to the Orioles is go 11-for-21 (.524) with two doubles and four RBI in seven games. Baltimore will find a spot for him in the lineup while he's hot, and the 27-year-old did post a respectable .272/.317/.441 slash line with 18 homers in 120 games last year, so there's no reason to think he's washed. The proverbial change of scenery may wind up doing wonders for him, provided he can actually stay healthy to take advantage of it. 12-team Mixed: $1; 15-team Mixed: $3; 12-team AL: Rostered