Here we are deep-league friends, finally less than a week away from the MLB trade deadline, which also means we are two-thirds of the way through the fantasy baseball season. Here’s hoping this point in the season finds you with at least one team still in the hunt for a fantasy title or money finish, as we look to more names that might be of interest to those of us in NL-only, AL-only and other deep leagues.

AL

Austin Nola.  Nola has been playing pretty regularly for Seattle, and he’s been playing well, hitting .319 with 3 homers in his first 25 games.  He qualifies at short in most leagues, plus he’s played 18 games at first, 2 at second, 2 at third, 1 in the outfield, and 2 at catcher. Clearly the Mariners have been making an effort to get him into the lineup, and that should be even easier now that Dee Gordon is hurt.

Asher Wojciechowski.  A 30-year old pitcher who plays for a horrible team (sorry, Orioles) but has looked surprisingly good?  Sounds like a deep-league type to me!  Wojciechowski has now made 4 starts (5 total appearances) and has a 3.91 ERA while rocking a 1.04 WHIP, with 31 Ks in 23 innings.  Will it continue?  Probably not, but I’m grabbing him in at least one AL-only league where I need any pitching I can get, just in case he can deliver a few more quality starts.

Aledmys Diaz.  Diaz is healthy again and already has one big game since returning for the Astros, but is still only 10% owned in CBS leagues.  No, he may not play every day, especially since Carlos Correa is finally just about recovered from his “massage injury,” but don’t forget about Diaz in deep-ish leagues.  He qualifies all over the infield, and anyone who will get plugged into one of the best offensive lineups in baseball even semi-regularly can be useful in the deep-league world.

Greg Allen.  It hasn’t happened yet, but someday, somehow, I’m going to pick this guy up in a league and he’s is going to make an impact on one of my fantasy teams (and by “impact,” I mean hopefully steal a few bases that gain me a point or two in an AL-only league).  Maybe this is the time:  he’s finally up with the Indians again and getting his share of playing time, and also finally making use of it.  In just over a week, he’s raised his batting average from .228 to .264 and has a 2-steal game.

NL

Drew Smyly.  I’m too scared to pick up a guy who has a 7.69 ERA/1.81 WHIP on the year, but I’m at least going to mention him in deference to his slightly better than a-strikout-an-inning K rate (60 in 57.1 innings).  Maybe the folks in Philadelphia can fix Smyly a bit and get some quality starts out of him — those ERA/WHIP numbers should have no where to go but down, right?

Giovanny Gallegos.  If you’re looking for a middle reliever who seems to be striking out everyone he sees, you may want to introduce yourself to Gallegos.  He’s got a 2.23 ERA/0.74 WHIP in 48 innings out of the Cardinals’ bullpen (and has picked up 2 wins on the year), with a seriously impressive 70 Ks over that span.  He’s got a killer slider and great control, two things that often lead to relief-pitching success.

Andres Munoz.  More interesting relief pitching on the NL front, as Munoz has been making an impact in the Padres’ bullpen.  He is most intriguing in keeper leagues (any may be long gone in most NL-only formats, as his CBS ownership has quickly climbed up to 16%), including shallower ones.  He’s only pitched 5 1/3 innings so far, but hasn’t allowed a run (and has 6 Ks), but is pretty much considered the best relief pitching prospect in baseball, due in large part to his 104 MPH fastball.

Tommy Edman.  Edman has basically been starting every day for the Cardinals of late, and may continue to get playing time even when Matt Carpenter returns given his versatility (he’s played 2B and 3B this year, plus a game in the outfield, and qualifies at short in most league as well).  In 33 games, Edman is up to 4 homers with 15 runs scored and 14 RBI, plus 4 steals — you could do much worse in the deepest of leagues.