Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire: Travel to the Rockies for hitting help

The fantasy baseball waiver wire is abuzz with players who could bolster teams' hitting and pitching capabilities. Kaelen Culpepper and Zac Veen, both from the Rockies, were promoted to the major league roster in the past week, joining other promising players like Max Clark and George Lombard Jr., who made their MLB debuts near the Trade Deadline. Meanwhile, on the pitching side, exciting new starters have yet to emerge, and closer situations on many weak teams remain unclear.

In hitters, Mickey Moniak, an outfielder for the Rockies, is a top pick with a .862 OPS, and is set to play 22 of the Rockies' last 38 games at Coors Field, a hitter-friendly venue. Cole Carrigg, another Rockies outfielder, also boasts a high roster rate of 26%. Zac Veen, recalled from Triple-A, has shown impressive stats in the Pacific Coast League, including a .997 OPS, 24 home runs, 87 RBIs, and 82 runs scored.

With his versatile skillset and the hitter-friendly Coors Field, Veen is expected to excel if given a full-time role. Kaelen Culpepper, a rookie shortstop for the Twins, has a similar skillset to George Lombard Jr. but has a slightly higher roster rate. Culpepper finished the season with 31 homers and 76 strikeouts in a similar number of minor league games, while Lombard recorded 26 strikeouts and a .284 batting average.

Starting pitchers with favorable matchups include Zack Gelof from the Athletics, who has shown improvement in cutting his whiff rate and has hit .280 with 13 homers and eight steals. Jake Burger, a powerful right-handed hitter, should thrive against left-handed pitchers and away from his home park, where he has a .731 OPS. Henry Bolte, another Athletics outfielder, is in a perfect position to continue his August surge with the team's upcoming series against left-handed pitchers.

Seán Manaea, a starter for the Mets, has reemerged as a valuable starter with a 3.50 ERA and 1.23 WHIP. Clayton Beeter, the closer for the Nationals, has emerged as a valuable option with five saves since the All-Star break.