Fantasy Baseball: Week 6 Waiver Wire Infielders

For the fantasy teams looking to add future fantasy upside to their rosters, Jac Caglianone and Matt Shaw are making their push to the majors.

Chicago Cubs Third Baseman Matt Shaw / Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

The waiver wire pool in Week 6 offers some young players with future stud upside and some beaten-down veterans looking to help major league teams.

Catchers

Luis Campusano, San Diego Padres

For the third week in a row, an upgrade at C2 is available in the free-agent pool. I’ve been a fan of Campusano for a couple of seasons, but the Padres have found ways not to get him in their starting lineup. San Diego called him up this weekend, and he went 0-2 with a walk in his 2025 debut.

Luis Campusano 109.1 MPH laser off Clayton Kershaw pic.twitter.com/NJbmo3Fr8i

— Danny (@dannybarrand_) May 1, 2025

Over 25 games at AAA, Campusano hit .322 with 21 runs, six home runs, 17 RBIs, and one steal over 87 at-bats while showcasing a winning approach (20 walks and 15 strikeouts). The Padres gave him 488 at-bats over the past three seasons in the majors, leading to a .260 batting average with 68 runs, 16 home runs, and 75 RBIs. Over this span, his strikeout rate (14.0) was in a winning area.

Elias Diaz is hitting .207 over 58 at-bats with eight runs, two home runs, and five RBIs. Campusano is an offensive upgrade over him and Martin Maldonado, but he doesn’t have a clear path to starting at-bats out of the gate. For now, Campusano is viable in deep formats while being only a follow in 12-team leagues with two catcher slots.

Freddy Fermin, Kansas City Royals

With Salvador Perez listed as day-to-day with a hip issue, Fermin should pick up more starts over the next week. The Royals may shift Perez to DH for some at-bats until his issue clears up. Fermin has been in Kansas City’s starting lineup four times over the past five days, leading to more success at the plate (7-for-15 with two runs and one RBI). In 2024, his bat was helpful at times in 15-team leagues at C2, but Fermin only has 339 at-bats (.271/40/6/36/2). At the very least, he should be a handcuff to Perez over the next week in deep formats.

First Basemen

Ty France, Minnesota Twins

France delivered a helpful fantasy week for the second time over the past month. In Week 4, he went 11-for-25 with six runs, two home runs, and six RBIs while quickly giving away his gains (one hit over 20 at-bats with two RBIs). He posted competitive runs (4) and RBIs (5) in Week 5, followed by a winning week (9-for-24 with three runs, one home run, and four RBIs).

France is on pace to hit .264 with 68 runs, 14 home runs, and 86 RBIs over 550 at-bats, making him a slight liability in power and no speed. He has been a much better hitter vs. right-handed pitching (.277/12/3/17 over 112 at-bats) this season, and the Twins are scheduled to face 11 righties over their next 12 games.

Jac Caglianone, Kansas City Royals

In an effort to create a better starting window in the majors, the Royals gave Caglianone some at-bats in the outfield over the past week. Over his last 13 games at AA, he went 20-for-48 with 10 runs, two home runs, 12 RBIs, and one steal while showing more patience at the plate (eight walks and 11 strikeouts).

No prospect in baseball has a higher power tool grade than Jac Caglianone 💪

The @Royals' 2024 first-rounder ups his Double-A @nwanaturals slash line to .310/.390/.520 on his 5th homer of the year. pic.twitter.com/h3pNjPLzmJ

— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) May 4, 2025

For now, Caglianone is only a player to follow, highlighted by his massive power over his final two seasons in college (.368/157/68/8 over 530 at-bats). The Royals drafted him sixth overall last season. They have a weakness in right field, and DH is an option in the majors.

Second Basemen

Luis Urias, Athletics

Over the past week, Urias qualified at second base in 10-game minimum leagues. He has a hit in eight of his last 10 starts, leading to a .258 batting average with six runs, three home runs, and six RBIs. This year, Urias has 10 walks and eight strikeouts, while showing improvement in his approach. When at his best in 2021. He hit .249 over 490 at-bats with 77 runs, 23 home runs, 75 RBIs, and five stolen bases, making him a viable middle infield option in most formats.

With Zack Gelof (1-for-7 with two runs and one RBI) getting closer to returning from his hamate bone injury, Urias should slide back to third base, where his bat has been much better than Gio Urshela's (.224/3/0/10 over 85 at-bats). Urias is a sneaky player who will be dismissed by most due to poor play in 2023 and 2024.

David Hamilton, Boston Red Sox

Over the past week, the Red Sox placed Triston Casas on the injured list (most likely out for the season), and Kristian Campbell has a slight rib issue. As a result, Hamilton has three consecutive starts (4-for-11 with three runs, one RBI, and three stolen bases). Boston must decide what it wants to do at first base (Rafael Devers), which may open up at-bats at DH. Either way, Hamilton could be a one-week flash player in speed to see if he can work his way into more playing time.

Vaughn Grissom (.286/24/3/14/1 over 112 at-bats) has made four starts at first base, but his bat has slowed down over his last 11 games at AAA (7-for-39 with four runs and four RBIs). The easiest move would be to call up Roman Anthony (.290/22/5/16/2 over 100 at-bats) due to the ceiling of his bat, and the Red Sox gave him 10 games of action at DH earlier in the year due to a shoulder issue.

Third Basemen

Ke’Bryan Hayes, Pittsburgh Pirates

Home runs tend to drive fantasy value from the free agent pool, but a trending bat in batting average can lead to future rewards in fantasy baseball. Over his last 13 games, Hayes went 16-for-51 (.314) while failing to score a run or hit a ball out of the park.

His early major league profile was a groundball swing path with upside in speed at third base. Pittsburgh will give him plenty of at-bats, and Hayes still can help fantasy teams as an injury cover until his production increases. Heading into Sunday, Hayes ranked 12th in third base at-bats for the week.

Matt Shaw, Chicago Cubs

For the fantasy teams looking for help at third base with buy-and-hold upside, Shaw has been trending higher over the past week (12-for-26 with seven runs, one home run, four RBIs, and two stolen bases). He has 10 walks and four strikeouts over his 43 at-bats, suggesting a return to the Cubs soon.

"He's ready to go back." @IowaCubs hitting coach Rick Strickland believes Matt Shaw had made some massive strides at the plate in Triple-A. A look at what he's worked on and how he's doing. https://t.co/Mk0HWQqKgn

— Tommy Birch (@TommyBirch) May 3, 2025

His speed will be an edge at third base while offering a reasonable floor in batting average and home runs. If someone wants to be ahead of the free agent market, Shaw should be added this week.

Shortstop

Javier Baez, Detroit Tigers

GRITTY TIGS 😤

Javier Báez joins the home run barrage! pic.twitter.com/E3vUjCcOU2

— MLB (@MLB) May 3, 2025

After two disappointing seasons with the Tigers (.208/83/15/96/20 over 782 at-bats), Baez has a five-game hitting streak (7-for-20 with five runs, three home runs, nine RBIs, and one steal), but he did sit twice over Detroit’s last seven games. His production (10 runs, three home runs, and 14 RBIs) on the year mostly came over the previous week, so Baez could undoubtedly be a fantasy trap. On the positive side, he qualifies at three positions (3B, SS, and OF), and his price point will be relatively free. Let’s make him a deep league flier.

Chase Meidroth, Chicago White Sox

After 10 days on the injured list, Meidroth has a three-game hitting streak (4-for-12 with four runs and one RBI) at the top of the White Sox starting lineup. His approach this season (15 walks and 13 strikeouts over 68 at-bats) between AAA and the majors grades well, and Meidroth did flash power (three home runs) this year in the minors.

He should offer help in batting average with a chance at neutral runs. His speed/power combo will be a liability early in his career in shallow leagues.

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