Thomas Pham: Deep Waiver Wire Pickup
By Bill Pivetz
There are just two weeks left in the fantasy baseball season. The playoffs are underway and owners are looking for any player that can give them the edge in any category. With all of the big-name additions already off the board, you need to dig deeper in the waiver wire. If you are looking for an outfielder that can help in power and contact, look no further than St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Thomas Pham.
The Cardinals have had outfield problems throughout the whole season. Veterans Matt Holliday and Jon Jay missed a combined 132 days this season. While they had Randal Grichuk and called up Stephen Piscotty, it just didn’t seem like it was enough.
But things started to click after the All-Star break. Jason Heyward has 65 hits, Piscotty is hitting .310 and Grichuk has nine home runs since the break. Plus, Holliday and Jay are back from injury, so things are looking good.
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To help their offense, Pham is hitting the ball well. He was first called up on July 3, but was quickly sent back down on July 20. He made it back on August 17 after Grichuk went down with an injury and has been a staple off the Cardinals bench. Since his second call up, Thomas Pham has 26 hits (two doubles, four triples, four home runs), 13 RBI, 22:11 K:BB rate and a .321 batting average.
While Thomas Pham isn’t an everyday player, 18 starts in last 28 games, he is somebody worth picking up as an off-day fill in or a replacement for one of your star outfielders.
Like I said, fantasy owners are looking for anyone that can help them win their matchup, even if it’s by a home run or .001 in batting average points. He’s been picked up in 13.2 percent of ESPN.com leagues, up from the 0.5 percent last week.
The Cardinals have a four-game lead in the NL Central, so he might not play a lot for over the next two weeks. However, when Thomas Pham does play, expect some pop in your lineup.