Fantasy baseball waiver wire: Robby Snelling nears call-up as Marlins shake up rotation options

Prospect call-ups and rotation changes create new waiver wire opportunities

Chris Towers

May 6, 2026

8:33 am ET

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15 min read

I've been pretty sure the Marlins would call up Braxton Garrett whenever the first need arose in their rotation. Now I'm pretty sure I was wrong.

The need has arisen, as the Marlins designated Chris Paddack for assignment Tuesday after he put up a 7.63 ERA in his first seven games with the team. But, despite the fact that Garrett both has the most experience of any of the Marlins' top alternatives at Triple-A and is already on the 40-man roster, the Marlins opted to have Garrett make his regularly scheduled start Tuesday at Triple-A. And he threw 80 pitches across five innings in the start, which makes it pretty clear that he isn't going to be the guy they call on when Paddack's turn in the rotation comes around Friday.

So it's probably going to be Robby Snelling. That's not guaranteed, of course. The Marlins could turn to Ryan Gusto or Bradley Blalock, both of whom have MLB experience and are on the 40-man roster already – Blalock, in particular, has had a strong start to the season down in Jacksonville and struck out 12 in his most recent start. It's definitely not a guarantee that it'll be Snelling.

But it probably will be. And it probably should be. He's arguably the team's top pitching prospect and one of the top left-handed prospects in baseball, and it could not be more clear that there isn't much left for him to learn down in the minors. He had a breakout season in 2025 and has now put up a 1.46 ERA with 132 strikeouts in 98.2 innings across 18 career starts at Triple-A. He's had the occasional bout of wildness this season, but he's also coming off a no-hit outing in five innings during his most recent start and has at least nine strikeouts in three of his past five. Plus: His scheduled day to pitch is already Friday, lining him up perfectly for Paddack's spot in the rotation.

There hasn't been any reporting yet indicating which way the Marlins are leaning, but it's hard to come up with a baseball reason why it shouldn't be Snelling. He's the most talented option who is immediately ready and available, and the Marlins clearly have an expectation of competing this season – hence the notoriously frugal front office agreeing to eat the remainder of Paddack's $4 million contract, plus the decision to send Agustin Ramirez down to Triple-A amid his slow start. Passing on Snelling for Blalock or Gusto when he's pitching this well would be hard to justify.

That doesn't mean it's a sure thing. We'll surely find out well in advance of Friday's start, but either way, Snelling will be in the majors before long. If it isn't Friday, it's only a matter of time. He doesn't necessarily project as an immediate ace, but he's a polished lefty with a very good four-seam fastball and multiple secondary pitches with a whiff rate over 40% this season. I don't think he's necessarily an ace, but Snelling has dominated the high-minors since joining the Marlins and has a chance to be an impact arm.

I wouldn't drop someone like Payton Tolle for him, necessarily. But if you'd taken the flyer on JR Ritchie or Cade Cavalli in recent weeks, I'd be happy to drop either for Snelling now. I'd have a tougher decision to make with someone like Logan Henderson, who I like plenty, too, but I do think I would prioritize Snelling over Noah Schultz; he would be a priority stash ahead of Jared Jones, too.

Which is all to say: I would be looking to add Snelling in most leagues even before we know he's going to get called up for sure. The path to a promotion is open, and even if the Marlins don't put him on it this way – though I suspect they will! – he shouldn't be far.

Here's what else you need to know about from Tuesday's action around MLB:

Wednesday's top waiver-wire targets

Here's who we're looking to add coming out of Tuesday's action:

JJ Bleday, OF, Reds (7%) – There's probably going to be a ceiling on how high Bleday's roster rate can climb, seeing as he's likely to remain a platoon bat, but I don't think we're near the ceiling yet. The former top prospect is off to an incredible start to the season, as he homered for the second straight game and third time in four Tuesday, giving him four in eight games since joining the Reds. He's doing that while also showing a great approach at the plate and even a significant increase in bat speed, a sign that this might not just be a hot streak. At the very least, it's worth playing the hot hand until he slows down.

Tony Santillan, RP, Reds (24%) – Emilio Pagan suffered another hamstring injury Tuesday, and this one looks like it's going to be serious. He hopped off the mound after delivering a pitch and immediately went down, ultimately needing a cart to come out and get him off the field. Santillan has been the team's primary eighth-inning op