Rolling In The Deep: Hitting The Midsummer Wall(s)

Hello again, friends! Well, somehow we are suddenly a week into August, and if you listen carefully, you can almost hear the footsteps of the fantasy crowd slowly but surely marching over to the land of fantasy football. It’s getting more difficult by the day to feel invested in a disappointing baseball team, real or pretend, as the days to help your team in a meaningful way are dwindling quickly. I will admit I’m more burned out than usual at this point in the season, but I’m also remembering how important it is to keep players on your radar late in the year. This is especially true with guys who are only deep league relevant for now, but may suddenly have some mixed league appeal next spring. While most fringe players now will still be fringe players heading into 2026, there are always some exceptions who seem to make an unexpected but significant rise in value between August and the end of March. We may not find any in this week’s list of potential deep league options, but ya never know. This week we’ll keep it ultra deep, with players who are just 5% owned or less in CBS leagues, as we look for a few deep-league guys who may have been playing a bit more than we realized, and/or may have been playing a bit better than we realized, after the settling of the trade-deadline dust.

AL

Taylor Walls (3% owned in CBS leagues). Walls may not be a new name or a fresh face, but pickings are slim in the 5% owned or less category, as we deep leaguers well know. Walls has been getting a bit more playing time in the middle infield after the team has shifted things around a little in light of Jonathan Aranda’s injury. This is basically a straight-up speed grab if you need one, and he’s available in your deep league, as his 14 steals on the year are the one thing worth noting about him from a fantasy perspective.

Colby Thomas (5% owned). For those that haven’t been paying attention, and much to the disappointment of us Lawrence Butler owners, Thomas has been taking some of Butler’s at-bats of late. It’s looking like Thomas may be basically in a platoon with Butler and will continue starting against most lefties. While he hasn’t done much with the opportunity so far (he’s a pitiful 4 for 31 on the season as I type this), he’s still just getting his MLB feet wet, and he’s worth a look-see if you’re looking for at-bats anywhere you can get them.

Darell Hernaiz (2% owned). We’ll stay in, well, Sacramento, to check in on Hernaiz, who I was intrigued by a year or two ago. He hasn’t made so much as a blip on the fantasy radar since then, but he’s got another chance to do so now. He’s had a few cups of coffee, and he’s currently getting another one with Jacob Wilson hurt (boo for Jacob Wilson being hurt). Hernaiz is still just 24, and he qualifies at both short and third in many leagues. He’s looked good in the mere 25 at-bats he’s had so far, hitting .280 with 2 homers and a steal.

Michael Kelly (3% owned). Okay, I wasn’t planning on making the first three-quarters of this post about the A’s, but here we are as we take a quick look at Kelly. His ownership has risen by 50% this past week (yes, he started at 2% owned), likely due to folks scouring their waiver wire for a save or two. I’m still reeling a little from the Mason Miller trade, even though I don’t own him anywhere, and then that was compounded by the surprsing-to-some-including-me decision to stretch Jack Perkins out and move him into the rotation. There’s not necessarily a ton to love with Kelly: while he’s limited runs in his handful of appearances so far, he’s walking too many guys, and may not even be given the opportunity to close should the A’s find themselves with a save opportunity. Oh, and did I mention that he just finished serving a year-long gambling suspension? Well, at least he was ahead of the Emmanuel Clases of the world on something.

NL

Blake Perkins (5% owned). I’m a little surprised Perkins is still just 5% owned since it looks like he’ll be the biggest recipient of playing time, on the team with the best record in baseball no less, since Jackson Chourio hit the IL. After a huge game the other day, he’s already got 3 homers and 3 steals, not to mention a .278 average, in his 54 at-bats. Depending on how long Chourio is out, and depending on how much Perkins is used late in the season to rest the regulars, he could have some value even in shallower leagues.

Javier Sanoja (2% owned). The Marlins have looked pretty darn impressive over the last month or so, and I’m at the point where I’ll take a look at any of their under-the-radar hitters for the right fantasy team. Sanoja has at least one game at all four infield positions this year, as well as 39 in the outfield, and he’s even made four appearances at pitcher for what that’s worth. He’s become a valuable real-life utility man, and may be able to send a few valuable counting stats (he’s got 30 runs scored, 4 homers, 24 RBI, and 3 steals) to your very deep league fantasy team as well.

Eli White (3% owned). One of the definite themes here at RITD this week is guys getting playing time due to someone else getting hurt, which now brings us to White. Not much has gone right for the Braves this season, but White has been taking advantage of a depleted outfield depth chart and has now appeared in 77 games this year. He’s got 7 homers and 7 steals and has been holding his own with a not-horrible (for this season anyway) .249 average. As long as even semi-regular at-bats are there for him, he should help you more than he hurts you.

Freddy Fermin (2% owned). Acquiring Fermin was not exactly the splashiest move the Padres made at the deadline, but it might be one of the more interesting ones from an NL-only or other very deep 2-catcher league perspective. He’s played in all of the Padres’ last five games, and over those 21 official plate appearances, he’s hitting .368 with a .429 OBP. While those numbers are obviously unsustainable, he does have an incredibly impressive .271 career batting average in his 256 MLB games. The change of scenery seems to have done Fermin good, and let’s not forget there were times when he was with the Royals that he looked like a legit breakout candidate, at least where catchers are concerned. He could end up being a very deep league fantasy asset for the remainder of 2025 and/or an ultra-late sleeper pick heading into next year.