Week 7 fantasy baseball FAAB check-in

There are only four FAAB periods to go, as the fantasy baseball season is over the halfway point. With FAAB budgets dwindling, you'll see bids become less aggressive unless you’re in a league with somebody hoarding money while still in contention. There are more closers available this week, giving you another opportunity to secure that unicorn. 

Some positive news is that teams haven’t had any recent positive COVID-19 tests. As of now, all games next week are projected to be played as scheduled. You will notice a few teams playing eight games and a handful getting seven, while the Giants and Tigers are only scheduled to play five. Streaming hitters on teams playing in seven or eight games will help increase your volume and productivity over a mediocre player only playing two games Monday through Thursday. Always be conscious of the lack of games played to begin the week for hitters. Volume is king. 

Schedule

Note: the amount of games played can change due to COVID-19. MLB has been shuffling the schedule around.

Five games

• Giants, Tigers

Six games

• Angels, A’s, Brewers, Diamondbacks, Dodgers, Indians, Marlins, Padres, Rangers, Rays, Rockies, Twins

Seven games

• Astros, Braves, Cardinals, Cubs, Mariners, Mets, Phillies, Orioles, Reds, Royals, White Sox 

Eight games

• Blue Jays, Nationals, Pirates, Red Sox, Yankees

Now, let’s take a look at the waiver wire options to target this week. Hitters and pitchers are broken down into tiers based on their projected budget allocation for Aug. 30. Budget allocation and ownership percentages come from NFBC — players mentioned will all have an NFBC ownership around 50% or lower.

15-team (sub-50% TGFBI ownership)

Hitters

$1-$9: Austin Barnes, Brendan Rodgers, Cedric Mullins, David Bote, Edwin Ríos,  Eric Thames, Jacob Stallings, Jake Cave, Jake Fraley, Jason Castro, José Iglesias, Matt Beaty, Roman Quinn, Tim Lopes, Tony Wolters, Yan Gomes 
1-5%: Andrelton Simmons, Brad Miller, Joey Wendle, Miguel Rojas, Nick Markakis
6-9%: Brandon Belt, Sam Haggerty 

Pitchers

$1-$9: A.J. Puk, Clarke Schmidt, Greg Holland, Jesse Hahn, José Cisnero, Josh Staumont, Yoshihisa Hirano
1-5%: Asher Wojciechowski, Buck Farmer, Chad Kuhl, Reynaldo López, Patrick Sandoval, Trevor Richards
6-9%: Rafael Dolis 
10-15%:  Daniel Bard, Gregory Soto, Richard Rodríguez, Tyler Rogers 
16-19%: Ian Anderson, Michael Pineda

12-team (sub-50% NFBC RotoWire Online Championship ownership)

Hitters

$1-$9: Adam Frazier, Andrelton Simmons, Austin Barnes, Cedric Mullins, Jeimer Candelario, Matt Carpenter, Luis García, Nick Markakis, Nomar Mazara, Roman Quinn, Shogo Akiyama, Travis Shaw, Yan Gomes  
1-5%: Brad Miller, Brandon Belt, Luis Urías, Sam Haggerty
6-9%: J.P. Crawford
10-15%: Gavin Lux, Nick Madrigal

Pitchers

$1-$9: A.J. Puk, Asher Wojciechowski, Buck Farmer, Chad Kuhl, Clarke Schmidt, Freddy Peralta, J.A. Happ, Jakob Junis, Jesse Hahn, José Cisnero, Josh Lindblom, Josh Staumont, Reynaldo López, Trevor Richards, Zach Eflin
1-5%: Alex Young, Dakota Hudson, Diego Castillo, Rafael Dolis, Tyler Mahle, Yusei Kikuchi
6-9%: Daniel Bard, Gregory Soto, Richard Rodríguez, Tyler Rogers 
10-15%: Ian Anderson, Michael Pineda

Two-start pitchers

Aaron Nola (vs. WAS, @NYM)
Alex Young (@LAD, @SF)
Asher Wojciechowski (@TOR, vs. NYY)
Brad Keller (vs. CLE, vs. CWS)
Cristian Javier (vs. TEX, vs. LAA)
Chad Kuhl (vs. CHC, vs. CIN)
Dakota Hudson (@CIN, @CHC)
Dallas Keuchel (@MIN, @KC)
Dinelson Lamet (@COL, @OAK)
Erick Fedde (@PHI, @ATL)
Germán Márquez (vs. SD, @LAD)
Gerrit Cole (vs.TB, @BAL)
Hyun Jin Ryu (@MIA, @BOS)
Kyle Hart (vs. ATL, vs. TOR)
Ian Anderson (@BOS, vs. WAS)
J.A. Happ (vs. TB, @BAL)
Jacob deGrom (@BAL, vs. PHI)
Jakob Junis (vs. CLE, vs. CWS)
Jon Lester (@PIT, @STL)
Jordan Lyles (@HOU, @SEA)
José Berríos (vs. CWS, vs. DET)
Julian Merryweather (vs. BAL, @BOS)
Julio Urías (vs. ARI, vs. COL)
Kwang Hyun Kim (@CIN, @CHC)
Lucas Giolito (@MIN, @KC)
Marco Gonzales (@LAA, vs. TEX)
Masahiro Tanaka (vs. TB, @BAL)
Matt Harvey (vs. CLE, vs. CWS)
Max Fried (@BOS, vs. WAS)
Mike Fiers (@SEA, vs. SD)
Patrick Corbin (@PHI, @ATL)
Patrick Sandoval (vs. SEA, @HOU)
Robbie Ray (@LAD, @SF)
Shane Bieber (@KC, vs. MIL)
Sonny Gray (vs. STL, @PIT)
Spencer Howard (vs. WAS, @NYM)
Trevor Richards (@NYY, vs. MIA)
Trevor Williams (@MIL, vs. CIN)
Yusei Kikuchi (vs. OAK, vs. TEX)

With MLB’s trade deadline approaching Monday, teams could potentially trade their closer away. If so, the next man is up. Speculating a dollar or two on a reliever who could potentially get the closer job if his teammate is traded generates a cheap way to get ahead of the curve on the next man up. Don’t be stingy with your FAAB budget, as there isn’t much time left. Monitoring beat reporters on Twitter while watching games on Sunday helps keep the news and players fresh in my mind while setting FAAB bids. Good luck this evening. 

Please feel free to tweet or DM me on Twitter (@_mattywood_) if you ever have any questions about the current FAAB week or any specific player.