Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Pickups: Week 20

It’s Fantasy Baseball Week 20, time to scour the waiver wire for roster upgrades or replacements. We’ll try and look at suitable pick-ups for each spot in the lineup. We’ll select players who have been hot in the last week to month, and will be typically owned by half of the leagues or less out there. Taking a look at batting first:

*(positions in brackets are possible other eligible spots)

First Base

Mike Lowell - Bos: Mike Lowell returns from fantasy purgatory, and with a vengeance. 7Rs, 2HRs, 7RBIs and .324Avg line over the last two weeks. (3B)
Todd Helton – Col: Helton has also returned from absence and has put up very solid numbers. Pick him up while he is still surging.

Second Base

Ryan Raburn - Det: The second baseman has batted .318 with 7Rs, 3HRs and 8 RBIs over the last 14 days. (1B,OF)
Jerry Hairston Jr. - SD: Has been hitting close to .300 for weeks and also deliverin even stats in all categories. (SS,3B,OF)

Third Base

Bill Hall- Hou: Hall is known for bursts of production over his career. He has been hot lately, see if you can ride him to the end on a hot bat. Plus .300 avg and 4 HRs over 2 weeks. (2B,OF)
Pedro Alvarez- Pit: Still owned by only a small percentage!  Batted .326, 5Rs, 3HR, and 11RBIs last two weeks.

Short Stop

Ian Desmond - Was: A highly touted rookie who hasn’t provided eye-popping stats, but plays a scarce position and will provide some steals. a possible consideration for keeper in those formats. (2B)
Jed Lowrie - Bos: Has been very hot since coming back from the DL. Will provide a steal or two every week.

Outfield

Coco Crisp- OAK: Very under-owned, 5Rs, 6RBIs, 3SBs, and .341 AVG over last two weeks.
Mike Stanton- Fla: An absolute source of power lately with 5 HRs over 14 days.

Catcher

Yorvit Torrealba - SD: Won’t provide much but a nice batting average..

Now let’s switch to pitching:

Starters

Gio Gonzalez - Oak: Last months line looks like: 3Ws, 25Ks, 2.65ERA, 1.12 WHIP.
Vincente Padilla- LAD: Still available for the stretch run. He is very likely available in your league and has provided a line of 2 Ws, 27 Ks, .79 ERA and .74 WHIP in his last 34 innings.
Jeremy Guthrie- Bal: Not going to be much runs support,  but over the last month he has 2 Ws, 17 Ks, 1.95 ERA and .94 WHIP.
Keep an eye on Josh Tomlin – Cle, Jake Westbrook – StL and Joe Saunders – Ari. These guys might have new life after trade or promotion.

Closers

Alfredo Simon - Bal: Has pitched with good stuff and solid command, might share closer duty with Mike Gonzalez, but that hasn’t been the case yet.
Brandon Lyon - Hou: Has been collecting saves when the team has been able to get a lead.
Aaron Heilman - Ari: Nothing sexy but handling the job nicely.

Relievers

Sean Marshall, Brandon lyon, Hong-Chih Kuo,  Luke Gregerson, Johnny Venters and Scott Downs. All are maintaining a healthy ERA, WHIP and will get the occasional win/save.