Weekly Waiver Wire Roundup — July 6, 2026

Jake McCarthy is the hottest hitter on the waiver wire right now, posting a .505 wOBA over the past seven days while cutting his strikeout rate from 16.5% to a minuscule 4.8%. That combination — elite contact quality alongside legitimate swing-and-miss improvement — is the kind of signal that separates real breakouts from noise. Across all 80 rising signals we detected this week, the throughline is clear: plate discipline improvements are driving the most actionable pickups, and the outfield position is overflowing with opportunity.

Top 5 Adds of the Week

Jake McCarthy (OF, COL) — 38% Owned (+24% 7d)

McCarthy is the no-doubt top add of the week and the ownership surge proves the sharper leagues already know it. His .505 wOBA over the past seven days dwarfs his .392 mark over the trailing 30 days, and the process is backing up the results: a 4.8% strikeout rate (down from 16.5%), 75.0% hard-hit quality, and 95.6 mph average exit velocity across 21 plate appearances. He's hitting .400 with a homer in that stretch. At 38% ownership and climbing fast, the window is narrowing — if he's available in your league, he shouldn't be after tonight's waivers clear.

Owen Caissie (OF, MIA) — 12% Owned (+6% 7d)

Caissie is flashing legitimate power potential in Miami, mashing to a .316 average with 2 home runs and a .422 wOBA on the week. The 99.4 mph average exit velocity is the standout number here — that's elite-tier raw power translating into game action. With 66.7% hard-hit quality across 22 plate appearances and ownership still at just 12%, this is a wide-open acquisition window. The rising wOBA trajectory (.352 over 30 days to .422 over 7 days) suggests a hitter finding his timing at the major league level.

Jacob Gonzalez (1B/2B/SS, CWS) — 8% Owned (+6% 7d)

Gonzalez is the deepest-league gem on this list, rostered in just 8% of leagues despite hitting .333 with a .365 wOBA over 27 plate appearances this week. The strikeout rate decline from 19.4% to 14.8% over the past month shows a hitter refining his approach. The multi-position eligibility (first base, second base, and shortstop) adds significant roster flexibility. The 47.2% hard-hit quality and 88.2 mph exit velocity are modest, so the profile is more contact-over-power, but in deeper formats his consistency and versatility make him a valuable add.

Nick Gonzales (2B/3B/SS, PIT) — 26% Owned (+1% 7d)

The ownership hasn't moved much yet, but the underlying numbers have exploded. Gonzales posted a .466 wOBA this week — up from .319 over the past 30 days — while his walk rate surged from 5.8% to 16.1%. That's a dramatic approach change, and the 19.4% strikeout rate (down from 21.4%) confirms he's not just being passive. Hitting .400 with a homer across 31 plate appearances, he has the largest sample in the top five. At 26% ownership, there's still time to act, but this is the kind of breakout week that triggers a wave of adds.

Josh Jung (3B, TEX) — 47% Owned

Jung rounds out the top five with the highest ownership of the group, but the signal is still actionable in the roughly half of leagues where he's available. His .431 wOBA (up from .345 over 30 days) was fueled by a disciplined approach: a 14.7% walk rate, up from 10.3%, paired with 62.5% hard-hit quality and 93.0 mph exit velocity. The .321 average and a homer across 34 plate appearances — the largest sample in the top five — give this signal real stability. Jung has always had the talent; the plate discipline surge suggests he's locked in.

Biggest Risers in Ownership

Jake McCarthy leads all ownership risers with a 24-percentage-point jump to 38%. As detailed above, the underlying data fully justifies the rush — the combination of a .505 wOBA, drastically reduced strikeout rate, and hard-hit quality make this one of the most well-supported pickups of the season.

Owen Caissie jumped 6 points to 12%, and given 99.4 mph average exit velocity and a .422 wOBA, he arguably should be rising faster. Leagues that are slow to react here are leaving value on the wire.

Jacob Gonzalez also climbed 6 points to 8%, driven by his multi-position eligibility and consistent at-bats with the White Sox. The contact-first profile may limit his ceiling, but the floor is rising.

Heliot Ramos rose 4 points to 39%, backed by a .385 wOBA with 69.4% hard-hit quality, 93.4 mph exit velocity, and 2 home runs on the week. The power-speed combination remains tantalizing.

Caleb Kilian is the lone reliever among the top risers, climbing 4 points to 12%. In a week dominated by hitter signals, his rise speaks to how thin relief pitching has become on the wire.

Buy Low Candidates

This is where the real edge lives. These players carry Watch classifications — meaning the signal hasn't fully matured — but the Statcast underpinnings suggest breakout potential.

Power-First Targets

Javier Sanoja (2B/3B/SS/OF, MIA) is the Statcast darling of the week: 100.0% hard-hit quality and 103.4 mph average exit velocity with a .563 wOBA. He's hitting .533 and is rostered in just 1% of leagues. The super-utility eligibility makes him even more attractive. The sample is early, but the quality of contact is impossible to ignore.

Colt Emerson (3B/SS, SEA) is cooling off in ownership (down 6 points to 18%), but the underlying metrics scream buy low: 100.0% hard-hit quality, 104.0 mph average exit velocity, and a 23.1% walk rate that's nearly triple his 30-day mark of 7.8%. The .200 batting average is suppressing his perceived value, but the .381 wOBA tells the real story.

Esmerlyn Valdez (1B/OF, PIT) posted a staggering .969 wOBA this week — yes, .969 — on the back of 3 home runs, a .667 batting average, and 70.8% hard-hit quality with 95.5 mph exit velocity. His strikeout rate plummeted from 23.8% to 10.0%. This is clearly a small-sample heater, but at 3% ownership, he's essentially free. The 30-day wOBA of .520 confirms this isn't entirely out of nowhere.

Contact-Quality Plays

Tyler Stephenson (C, CIN) is quietly putting together an elite week: .429 wOBA, 83.3% hard-hit quality, 95.6 mph exit velocity, and a strikeout rate that dropped from 20.0% to 12.5%. At just 5% ownership, he's a prime buy-low at a premium position. The walk rate doubling from 6.7% to 12.5% signals an improved approach.

Matt Shaw (3B/OF, CHC) is hitting .286 with a .386 wOBA, but the eye-popping number is 100.0% hard-hit quality at 96.7 mph exit velocity. His walk rate nearly doubled from 10.8% to 20.0%. At 9% ownership with Cubs playing time, Shaw is a priority stash.

Garrett Mitchell (OF, MIL) went supernova this week: .538 batting average, .669 wOBA, 83.3% hard-hit quality, and 98.8 mph exit velocity. Those are video-game numbers. At 5% ownership, he's one of the most underowned hot hitters in the player pool. Even with regression baked in, the contact quality suggests a real surge.

Process-Over-Results Buys

Josh Bell (1B, MIN) didn't hit a homer and batted just .250, but the process is pristine: a 0.0% strikeout rate over the week (down from 17.8%), an 11.1% walk rate (up from 5.9%), 56.7% hard-hit quality, and 93.4 mph exit velocity. The results will follow the approach.

David Hamilton (2B/3B/SS, MIL) also posted a 0.0% strikeout rate — down from 24.6% over 30 days — while hitting .429 with a .501 wOBA and 93.2 mph exit velocity. The speed element adds a stolen base floor. At 2% ownership, he's a deep-league steal.

Connor Wong (C, BOS) pairs a 27.3% walk rate with 83.3% hard-hit quality and 94.7 mph exit velocity. He's hitting .429 with a .428 wOBA, and at 0% ownership he's essentially undiscovered. Catcher is thin enough that Wong's combination of plate discipline and contact quality demands attention.

Kyle Karros (3B, COL) posted a .574 wOBA with 100.0% hard-hit quality and 98.2 mph exit velocity. The Coors Factor is real but so is the contact quality. At 2% ownership, he's a speculative add in all formats.

Michael Conforto (DH, CHC) crushed 3 homers this week with a .626 wOBA, cutting his strikeout rate from 34.2% to 12.5%. The DH-only eligibility limits his appeal, but at 1% ownership the power output is too loud to ignore.

Position Scarcity Report

Outfield dominated this week's signals with 15 OF-only signals plus additional multi-position players with outfield eligibility. The wire is deep at the position — managers should be aggressive about upgrading their weakest outfield slot right now.

Relief pitching generated 11 signals, the second-most of any position. With Caleb Kilian leading the ownership risers among pitchers, the RP wire remains active. Monitor bullpen roles carefully as we approach the trade deadline.

Catcher produced 7 signals — a notable number for a traditionally barren position. Tyler Stephenson, Victor Caratini, Joe Mack, Jonah Heim, Connor Wong, Gary Sánchez, and Endy Rodríguez all showed up as buy-low candidates. If you've been running out a subpar catcher, this is the week to upgrade.

Middle infield is well-represented through multi-position players like Jacob Gonzalez, Nick Gonzales, and Javier Sanoja, but pure shortstop and second base signals were relatively thin (2 SS-only, 1 2B-only). The scarcity at standalone middle infield positions makes multi-eligible players even more valuable.

Starting pitching was notably quiet with just 2 SP-only signals among the 80 total. If you need rotation help, the wire is thin — consider overpaying in trades rather than hoping for waiver solutions.

Looking Ahead

The plate discipline trend is the story of this cycle. Multiple players posted 0.0% strikeout rates or walk rates above 20% — and while those extremes will regress, the directional improvement in approach often sticks. Keep a close eye on Esmerlyn Valdez, Garrett Mitchell, and Javier Sanoja next week to see if the Statcast quality sustains even as the batting averages normalize. The All-Star break is approaching, and managers who load up on emerging talent now will have a significant edge in the second half. Don't wait for ownership to catch up to the data — by then, the value is gone.