Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire: Matt Mervis finally joins the party

Let's head into the weekend with a six-pack of fantasy adds to address your fantasy needs. If your squad has issues, we have a few widely available solutions ...

Matt Mervis, 1B, Chicago Cubs (11%)

Finally, weeks after it should've happened, Mervis is on his way to join the Cubs. It's absolutely wild that it took so long, but let's just try to look ahead. Mervis was raking at Triple-A Iowa, slashing .286/.402/.560 with six bombs, 27 RBI and nearly as many walks (18) as strikeouts (19). He cleared the fence 36 times in the minors last season and hit 40 doubles, so his power credentials are well-established.

We'll be seeing a few of these at Wrigley very soon:

If you have power issues, Mervis is your guy. Go get him. This is an actionable fantasy event.

Tanner Bibee, SP, Cleveland Guardians (44% rostered)

Bibee opened his season with three excellent starts at Triple-A (15.1 IP, 8 H, 3 R, 19 K) before getting the call to Cleveland. He's now 11.0 innings into his big-league career, and to this point, he doesn't seem overmatched:

He has struck out 13 batters, walked none and allowed three runs in his starts against the Rockies and Yankees. Bibee's arsenal features four quality pitches, including that mean-spirited slider above. His next turn will be a home start Monday against Detroit, a team that finds itself at the bottom of MLB in OPS (.642). Grab Bibee today ahead of the upcoming rush.

Josiah Gray, SP, Washington Nationals (35%)

Josiah Gray

IL15

SP - WAS - #40

2023 - false season

159

IP

3.91

ERA

1.46

WHIP

143

K

80

BB

Gray added a cutter to the mix this spring, and the early results have been plenty encouraging. He enters Friday's start at Arizona with a 2.67 ERA, 31 Ks in 33 2/3 innings and wins in his past two turns. He has dialed back the use of his four-seam fastball — a pitch major-league hitters have crushed — in favor of the slider and cutter.

So far, so good. It's possible we have a breakout on our hands.

Jarren Duran, OF, Boston Red Sox (46%)

Last call on Duran, a power/speed outfielder enjoying a post-hype binge. He has been a run-scoring and on-base machine since rejoining the Red Sox in mid-April. His line-drive rate has nearly doubled year-over-year, and he's drawing the occasional walk, too. Duran has too much category juice to ignore, even if you feel you were burned by him in a previous season.

C.J. Abrams, 2B/SS, Washington Nationals (22%)

Recently, Abrams has been kind of a monster in clutch situations:

Over his three minor-league seasons, Abrams swiped 42 bags in 114 games, hit 12 homers and reached base at a .385 clip. He has been slowly climbing his way up the Nationals' batting order, which is nice to see. His stolen base upside is significant, so make him a priority if you have speed needs.

Michael King, RP, New York Yankees (36%)

King's past two appearances have been multi-inning saves, and he continues to pile up Ks (20 in 17.1 IP). Clay Holmes has been something less than lights-out (1.60 WHIP), so we should see King get a few additional ninth-inning opportunities. He's a must-add at the moment.