Fantasy Baseball Week 17 Waiver Wire: Looking ahead to the second half
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- Ryan Jeffers returned from the IL Saturday after a hamate bone fracture and was enjoying a breakout before the injury, with the column noting he could land in a better lineup via trade deadline deals (66% rostered in CBS leagues).
- Royce Lewis has posted a 162-game pace of .270 average, 37 homers, 99 runs, 84 RBI and 16 steals since returning from Triple-A — a line the source says works at either corner infield spot (56% rostered).
- George Lombard has received public hints from Aaron Boone and Brian Cashman that a Yankees promotion could be imminent once he returns from a hand injury, with eight homers and 12 steals on his Triple-A season (20% rostered).
- Caleb Durbin is hitting .294/.351/.555 since June 1 with multi-position eligibility, though the column says it buys his breakout 'a lot less' than Lewis' and frames him as a hot-streak play rather than a long-term difference maker (60% rostered).
- Cole Carrigg is hitting .281/.360/.530 with four homers in his first 30 big-league games for the Rockies, and the column openly wonders what the holdup is on a larger role given the absence of obvious red flags in his profile (68% rostered).
- Kaelen Culpepper is hitting .272/.376/.492 as a 23-year-old at Triple-A with 20-20 potential; the source says injury issues in June are the only thing keeping him from a call-up, and notes the Twins could add second or third-base eligibility (16% rostered).
- The column also shifts strategic advice by format: points-league managers should prioritize making the playoffs over September upside and consider cutting injury stashes, while Roto managers should trade from positional strength to shore up weaknesses before the deadline.
Why it matters: With MLB games resuming next weekend, fantasy managers are less than two weeks from the trade deadline — meaning waiver adds and roster decisions made this week will directly shape contending lineups. The column's stash-over-hot-hands pivot rewards managers willing to look past current stats and target players whose value could spike through deadline-driven lineup changes, prospect promotions (Lombard, Culpepper, Carrigg) or September call-ups.
