We’ve just crossed the halfway point of the major league season and must take an honest look at who’s playing well, who’s playing poorly, and who we can truly count on to help us out through the long summer months ahead.
With that, the waiver wire has been picked over and it’s getting more difficult to find impact players readily available in most leagues. Fear not, because there are still a handful of available players that have the chance to be difference makers in both the short and long term.
Here are three players that are under 40% rostered on Yahoo leagues that you should strongly consider adding.
If you want a larger list, Eric Samulski wrote his extended waiver wire piece on Sunday.
Ben Rice, 1B Yankees
(33% Rostered on Yahoo)
Rice was the first player featured on this column all the way back on April 8th, which feels like a lifetime ago. His incredible batted ball data and plate discipline made him exciting. He got even more exciting when he took over the Yankees’ designated hitter job early this season. It was all systems go.
He had a tremendous April with eight home runs and a .958 OPS while mostly hitting either first or second in the lineup. Again, incredible batted ball data and swing decisions made him seem like a burgeoning star.
Then, May came and he regressed a bit with a .739 OPS as he continued to play everyday. He wasn’t getting to his power as often and his walk rate fell sharply.
June was even worse for Rice, where he has not even been a league average hitter. That, plus the return of Giancarlo Stanton, has cut into his playing time and made him a tough hold in most leagues.
The Yankees clearly still value Rice’s bat though and have begun to give him reps at catcher. He’s been behind the plate in three of his last seven starts overall – two of those coming during their three-game series against the Athletics this past weekend – and appeared there six other times.
At nine total games, that puts him on the precipice of gaining catcher eligibility in most leagues.
Rice was originally drafted as a catcher out of Dartmouth and was still playing there regularly during the last two seasons when he moved through the upper minors. He’s never been regarded for his defense, but he has one of the quickest pop times in the league according to Baseball Savant and he’s caught one of two base stealers against him so far.
At the same time, the Yankees’ regular catcher Austin Wells has had another disappointing season. He’s never been regarded as a good defender and is not hitting nearly enough with a .214/.275/.424 slash line to have complete job security. Also, he’s missed a few games recently with a circulatory issue in one of the fingers on his left hand.
Similarly, Rice has started four of the Yankees’ last nine games at first base with Paul Goldschmidt getting five.
While he started the season red-hot, Goldschmidt has just a .233/308/.386 slash line since May 1st and looks more like the player that struggled through his last two seasons with the Cardinals than the one looked rejuvenated this past April.
Rice is a better hitter than either Wells or Goldschmidt and will likely siphon off starts from each moving forward. He would instantly become a great option at catcher in practically every league when he gets that eligibility.
Emmet Sheehan, SP Dodgers
(18% Rostered on Yahoo)
There needs to be a bit of optimism (and ample bench space) for adding Sheehan to make sense at this exact moment. If it’s something that can work for your team, the upside is huge.
Sheehan picked up steam while moving through the Dodgers system after being drafted in 2021 out of Boston College. He had an explosive fastball, plus changeup, and a newly developed slider that led him to a gaudy 40.6% strikeout rate in the minors before debuting with the team in 2023.
Those strikeouts came with Sheehan to the majors with a high walk rate and some very loud contact. In all, that came out to a 4.92 ERA in 60 1/3 major league innings. Yet, he ended the season on a high note with 24 strikeouts and just three runs allowed over 13 2/3 innings in three appearances. He was viewed as a pitcher with serious upside heading into last season.
Then, injury news trickled out starting last March that kept getting worse and ended with him having Tommy John surgery in May, 2024.
Well, he’s fully healthy now and impressed in his return to the big leagues with six strikeouts over four innings with one run allowed against the Padres two weeks ago. Then, surprisingly, the Dodgers sent him back down to Triple-A after that start.
Clearly too good for the level, he struck out 13 batters across six perfect innings in his first start back down there. He’s mandated to spend a minimum of 15 days in the minors after being demoted, so the soonest the Dodgers can call him back up – unless it’s to replace an injured player – is after this week.
He will make another start at Triple-A in the coming days and it makes sense for him to be back with the Dodgers after that.
As they’ve patched their rotation together well in spite of a litany of injuries, there’s plenty of space for Sheehan to mix back into it.
Shohei Ohtani is still pitching one-inning at a time as he builds himself back up after Tommy John surgery with Ben Casparius pitching bulk behind him.
Dustin May has been a disaster lately and is no longer generating swings-and-misses.
Justin Wrobleski had a 2.63 ERA in June over 26 1/3 innings with 26 strikeouts to stabilize this staff alongside ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto and the ghost of Clayton Kershaw, who continues to be effective.
It may not be in the most traditional sense, but there is space for Sheehan to pitch with this team at least until Tyler Glasnow and Blake Snell complete their lengthy rehab back from injury. When that happens, his strikeout upside will make him viable in nearly every league. It could make sense to try and forecast his promotion by stashing him now.
Dominic Canzone, OF Mariners
(2% Rostered on Yahoo)
A fellow Ohio State graduate, the 27-year-old Canzone just finished up a red-hot June since being recalled by the Mariners.
Through 62 plate appearances, he had five home runs and a .288/.323/.576 slash line that came with just an 11.3% strikeouts rate. The most notable of those home runs traveled 450 feet to tie a game in the ninth inning against the Diamondbacks a few weeks ago.
DOMINIC CANZONE GAME TYING DINGER IN THE 9TH pic.twitter.com/e6asolZhxu
— Dillard Barnhart (@BarnHasSpoken2) June 10, 2025
Starved for any type of offense they can get, Seattle is not about to turn their backs on what Canzone is doing. They recently gave him a serious vote of confidence by designating veteran Rowdy Tellez for assignment on June 20th to make room for Luke Raley as he came off the injured list.
They easily could’ve sent Canzone back down since he still has two minor league options, but kept him on the roster in favor of the vet and it’s paid off so far.
As far as trying to identify late bloomer types, Canzone has the traits we’d look for.
His raw power is real with a 115.9 max exit velocity and that 450 foot homer from above. He both pulls and lifts the ball at a high rate too, allowing him to access what’s suddenly plus raw power.
This is a bit of a new development though, as Canzone has added over 2.5 mph to his average bat speed since 2023.
First, last season, he lengthened his swing from 7.2 feet to 7.6 feet to generate that extra force. So far this season, he’s shortened it back down to 7.2 feet and is somehow swinging even faster. That’s how a player can add serious power while also maintaining their plus hit tool.
Legit power, great contact ability, and what looks like a starting spot is what makes him exciting.
His swing decisions remain poor, so don’t dream on a high on-base percentage to follow with this hopeful breakout. Yet, the profile lends itself to the type of player that could hit a new gear at this point in their career.
