More Fantasy Baseball Week 24 Waiver Wire Adds: Taylor Ward, Lucas Erceg, Wyatt Langford and More

The weekend is here, which means it’s time for another fantasy baseball waiver wire article!

After perusing the FantasySP Waiver Wire Pickups page, it’s honestly a pretty weak group of waiver wire options, but we’re trying to help you chase a fantasy title, so we need to discuss several hitters and a reliever.

Let’s get into things!

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Taylor Ward Fantasy Outlook

Ward is the only veteran hitter that will appear in this waiver wire story. He’s rostered in 65% of fantasy leagues right now.

Ward has just a .245 average on the season, but does have 21 home runs. He’s been much better of late, with at least one hit in each of the past 14 games.

He’s hitting .327 in that span, with 18 hits in 55 at-bats. Ward has three doubles, two triples and five home runs among his hits, along with eight RBIs, 10 runs scored, two walks and 13 strikeouts. He’s been hit by two pitches, reached on an error and also stolen a base.

As I already mentioned, there’s not a lot of great waiver wire options in this story, and the way Ward is hitting right now, he might be the best option. The season-long average isn’t great, but he’s got some pop and is hot right now, so he’s worth playing until he cools off.

Because Ward is an outfielder, and the fantasy outfielders are plentiful, adding him really comes down to whether you need another player right now. I wouldn’t go out of my way to add him, but if you recently had a player hit the injured list, or have a roster spot to play with, why not take a chance on a hot hitter with some pop?

Lucas Erceg Fantasy Outlook

Erceg is our reliever for this article. He’s rostered in 33% of leagues. Over the past month, his own percentage has been as low as 12 and as high as 56.

Erceg was traded to the Royals at the deadline, and started fast with 11 straight scoreless outings. In that span, Erceg covered 12 1/3 innings, allowing just five hits and one walk. He struck out 15 batters too.

In his next three outings, Erceg was tagged for seven runs over two innings. He gave up seven hits and a walk, while striking out three.

He bounced back in his most recent outing, collecting his ninth save after working a 1-2-3 inning with a strikeout.

Overall with Kansas City, Erceg is 0-2, with six saves, two blown saves and six holds. He’s got a 4.11 earned run average, but also 19 strikeouts over 15 1/3 innings.

It’s wild what a couple of poor outings can do to a reliever’s ERA and overall numbers. Erceg has been good more often than not with the Royals, and on a winning team with a chance at the playoffs, Erceg has good fantasy value as a closer.

If you are desperate for saves down the stretch, Erceg is probably the best option available to you. He might have a few rough outings along the way, but if you can overcome those, his other strikeout-filled outings could prove very valuable in your quest for a title.

Jordan Lawlar Fantasy Outlook

Lawlar appearing as a top waiver wire target right now shows how weak this group of targets really is (more on that shortly). He’s rostered in 9% of leagues.

Lawlar hasn’t played in an MLB game in 2024 while dealing with several injuries. The No. 8 prospect in baseball has only played in 13 minor league games as well.

In parts of four minor league seasons, Lawlar has a .293 average, .391 on-base percentage, 37 home runs, 146 RBIs, 120 walks, 81 stolen bases and 228 strikeouts over 220 games.

The recent little surge in own percentage isn’t because he’s going to be playing in the MLB soon, it’s simply because he could return from the AAA injured list.

Lawlar played in 14 MLB games last season, hitting just .129, and because he missed so much time this season, it seems highly unlikely that Arizona would call him up for the stretch run, especially because they are in the playoff hunt. An injury could change things, but I’d bet Lawlar sticks in the minors for the remainder of the season.

I thought maybe the surge in own percentage was from dynasty owners, but as the No. 8 prospect, he already should be rostered in all those leagues. Maybe some owners dropped him when he was injured, but I’d have thought Lawlar would immediately get scooped up if he did.

Regardless of the reason behind his own percentage rising, Lawlar only looks to be a fantasy asset in dynasty/keeper leagues, so don’t waste a roster spot on him in a redraft league (regardless of the size).

Coby Mayo Fantasy Outlook

Mayo has been a part of a few waiver wire stories this season. His own percentage is still just at 12% though.

Mayo is another top-end MLB prospect, but he hasn’t gotten a ton of MLB playing time this season.

From August 2-14, Mayo played in seven games (six starts). He had just one hit in 17 at-bats. Mayo walked three times and struck out on 10 occasions.

Mayo recently got called up, but has made just two starts since. He had a hit and was plunked by a pitch in the first game - he also had a run scored and strikeout. Mayo went 0-for-4 in the other start, with two strikeouts.

His own percentage shows he’s only valuable in deep leagues, and because he’s just 22, he’s also a good dynasty option. 

Right now though, I’d avoid adding Mayo in a deeper league - he just isn’t playing or producing enough right now. Keep an eye on him though, because that could change in a hurry.

Mayo still needs to be rostered in dynasty leagues. You haven’t got much production from him all season, so hopefully you can just stash him on the bench for the rest of the season. Definitely do not give up on Mayo in a dynasty league though.

Pete Crow-Armstrong Fantasy Outlook

Crow-Armstrong has been in a waiver wire story several times over the past couple weeks now. His own percentage is at 53 right now.

He has two three-hit games over his past five games, but those are also his only hits in that span. He doubled and homered among his three hits in his last game, so seeing his own percentage rise again isn’t surprising.

He’s got just eight home runs over 297 at-bats, which is why I keep telling fantasy owners to only consider him in deeper leagues. PCA is hitting well enough to consider in a standard league, but without much power, I’d think there’s better waiver wire options out there.

Crow-Armstrong should be rostered and probably started in all deeper leagues right now, as well as dynasty leagues. Dynasty owners are simply hoping he can carry over some of his late-season success to a full season in 2025. 

Wyatt Langford Fantasy Outlook

How about another rookie to cap the waiver wire story? Langford is rostered in 66% of fantasy leagues.

Langford was a top-end prospect to begin the season, and while he’s had some big moments, he hasn’t exactly blown fantasy owners away. He’s got a .248 average and .318 OBP, with 10 homers, 62 RBIs and 55 runs scored for the season.

Langford is hot of late, with seven hits over the past four contests. He’s homered and doubled twice in that span. Langford also has eight RBIs, six runs scored, three walks and five strikeouts in that span.

Langford is a great dynasty asset, and should have been starting a good portion of the season in deeper leagues. His recent surge at the plate means he’s a standard league option for the time being. Like in the case with Ward, adding him comes down to if you need some fantasy help in your outfield. He’s hitting well enough lately, but also isn’t a major home run threat (10 homers in 415 at-bats).

I’d be OK with adding him in a standard league, but would also prefer Ward over him, and probably a few others sitting on your league’s waiver wire.