Streaming Wars - Waiver Wire Targets for April 12

Welcome back to Streaming Wars, your one-stop shop for streaming the waiver wire all season long. This article, now in its second year, runs seven days a week. We're only two weeks into the season, but it's never too early to start streaming. For those who are newcomers to this feature - use this column on a... Read More

Andrelton Simmons (SS, LAA) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 55% of Yahoo leagues ANALYSIS: Los Angeles Angels shortstop Andrelton Simmons enjoyed the best offensive season of his career in 2017, hitting .278 with 14 home runs, 19 stolen bases, and 146 R+RBI in 158 games. Judging by his ownership rate, fantasy owners were not overly impressed with... Read More

Week 2 Waiver Wire - Second Base (2B) and Shortstop (SS)

April may not be the time for drastic decisions, but that doesn't mean you can't make improvements on the margins. Besides, injuries happen, and some already have. Whatever the reason for your need, RotoBaller has you covered on the top waiver wire targets. Every Monday until the end of the season, we'll look at the... Read More

Streaming Wars - Waiver Wire Targets for April 9

Welcome back to Streaming Wars, your one-stop shop for streaming the waiver wire. This article, which began last season, runs seven days a week. Even with only a week and a half of the season in the books, we are always ready to stream. For those who are newcomers to this feature - use this column on... Read More

Streaming Wars - Waiver Wire Targets for April 8

Welcome back to Streaming Wars, your one-stop shop for streaming the waiver wire. We are back at it again this year, publishing this article seven days a week. Even at this early juncture of the season, we are always ready to stream. For those who are newcomers to this feature - use this column on a daily... Read More

Matt Chapman (3B, OAK) - Week 2 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 55% of Yahoo leagues ANALYSIS: Fantasy owners showed a lot more love toward Oakland's other second-year Matt (that'd be Matt Olson) in drafts this spring, but Matt Chapman quietly smacked 14 home runs in half a season as a rookie last year. He's off to a great start... Read More

Jordan Montgomery (SP, NYY) - Week 2 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in All Leagues OWNED IN: 58% of Yahoo leagues ANALYSIS: Jordan Montgomery got the job done in his first start of 2018, allowing just one run on two hits in five innings of a 11-4 win over the Rays. He wasn't perfect - note the four walks, which kept him from going deep enough... Read More

Tyler Skaggs (SP, LAA) - Week 1 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 30% of Yahoo leagues ANALYSIS: Tyler Skaggs is off to a nice start in 2018. The 26-year-old southpaw has taken two turns thus far and boasts a 1.64 ERA and 0.91 WHIP with 10 strikeouts in 11 innings. Perhaps most importantly, he issued just two walks and didn't... Read More

Jacob Barnes (RP, MIL) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 23% of Yahoo leagues ANALYSIS: Corey Knebel is headed to the disabled list with a hamstring injury, which means that the ninth inning is up for grabs in Milwaukee. There are several viable candidates for the role. Josh Hader is the flashiest name, but also the most widely-owned.... Read More

Fantasy Baseball Health Check - Power in Patience

“To cut, or not to cut?” – Hamlet, more or less It’s funny. We spend months combing through data, crunching numbers, strategizing, researching…and then the games start and almost immediately, the overreactions begin. An unproven player goes 0-for-20 to start the season. Should’ve known his September was a mirage. A veteran starter coming off a... Read More

Streaming Wars - Waiver Wire Targets for April 5th

Welcome back to Streaming Wars, your one-stop shop for streaming the waiver wire. We are back at it again this year, publishing this article seven days a week. It's still just the first week of MLB games, but we are always ready to stream. For those who are new - use this column on a daily basis... Read More

Week 1 Waiver Wire - Second Base (2B) and Shortstop (SS)

The 2018 season is finally upon us, which means it's time to start overreacting to insanely small samples! Well, no – don't actually do that. As a rule, you shouldn't be making any drastic decisions at a time when Matt Davidson is tied for the league lead in home runs. But that doesn't mean you... Read More

Fantasy Baseball - Rough Drafts

Friends, it is a glorious day – baseball has returned at long last. After spilling gallons upon gallons of virtual ink in this space on projections, predictions, and ADP analysis, it’s finally time to see how the 2018 season will play out. Don’t get me wrong – along with the rest of my RotoBaller colleagues,... Read More

2018 Fantasy Baseball Draft Values - NL Starting Pitchers

If you've been following along with this series over the last week or so, you've heard my spiel about sleeper being a slippery term. "Values" feels more precise. It would come as a shock if you hadn't heard of any of the guys we're going to be discussing today. All we're trying to do here... Read More

2018 Fantasy Baseball Draft Values - AL Starting Pitchers

I've said it before, and I'll say it again - I'm not big on the term "sleeper." When anybody with a computer and a working Internet connection can drill down deep into any player's performance with a few keystrokes and a couple of clicks, the odds of you catching any of your rivals truly sleeping... Read More

2018 Fantasy Baseball Draft Values - NL Outfielders

There are many paths to success in fantasy baseball, but one of the simplest is to nail your draft. To do that, you need to find productive players with low price tags. Doing so carries the added benefit of bragging rights. Who doesn't love paying peanuts for the next big star and then getting to... Read More

2018 Fantasy Baseball Draft Values - AL Outfielders

Everyone knows that in fantasy baseball, values are king. Any of the different terms you might see bandied about - bargain, sleeper, flier, lotto ticket - are all driving at that same basic idea. Obviously, finding the players who can provide a huge return on a modest investment goes a long way toward winning your league.... Read More

2018 Fantasy Baseball Draft Values - Shortstop

At the risk of beating a dead horse, I dislike the term "sleeper." Maybe you share my qualms with terminology, maybe not; we can all agree that what we're after in our fantasy drafts is value. Obviously, finding the most valuable players leads to winning leagues, but there are few better feelings than snagging the... Read More

Kyle Bishop's 10 Bold Predictions for 2018

Every day from now until Opening Day, our writers will be offering their most audacious projections for the 2018 fantasy baseball season. This is my fourth go-round with this series. I've had some great successes and some equally terrible calls in both previous attempts, and this year should be no different. Hopefully the former outweigh... Read More

2018 Fantasy Baseball Draft Values - Second Base

Putting my personal hangups over the term "sleeper" aside, we can all agree that what we're after in our fantasy drafts is value. Finding the most valuable players leads to winning leagues, obviously, but it's also just awesome to get something good for way below what you should've had to pay. Over the next several days,... Read More

2018 Fantasy Baseball Draft Values - Third Base

Sleeper, draft value, bargain, flier, lotto ticket...whatever your preferred nomenclature, we can all agree that what we're after in our fantasy drafts is value. Obviously, finding the most valuable players leads to winning leagues, but it's also just incredibly satisfying to snag a guy anyone else could've had for a song before he blows up. As... Read More

Greg Bird Rankings Debate - Comparing RotoBaller's Rankers

As we move closer and closer to the start of the regular season, our writers are still vigorously debating each other's preseason rankings. In this space, we'll hear from rankers with the biggest differences of opinion on a well-known player and have them defend their position against each other. Today, the subject of discussion is... Read More

2018 Fantasy Baseball Draft Values - First Base

Whether or not you share my trepidation regarding the term "sleeper," we can all agree that what we're after in our fantasy drafts is value. Beyond the ultimate result of victory or not, nothing in this game is more satisfying that getting a great player for way less than you should have had to pay.... Read More

2018 Fantasy Baseball Draft Values - Catcher

In recent years, many fantasy baseball analysts – including yours truly – have wondered about whether the term “sleeper” has much meaning anymore. In an age where there’s more easily accessible information than ever before, it’s unlikely that too many impending superstars are truly flying under everyone’s radar. That doesn’t mean you can’t still find... Read More

ADP Busts - 2017 Infield Breakouts to Avoid in 2018

Earlier this week, I took a look at four outfielders whose disappointing 2017 performances made them potential draft bargains for the 2018 fantasy baseball season. Today, we’re taking the opposite tack. Overpaying for last year’s breakout is one of the easiest – and costliest – mistakes a fantasy owner can make, and we’ve all fallen... Read More

Undervalued: 2017 Outfield Busts to Target

Nobody likes having their heart broken, especially if money is involved. So when a player we reach for in our drafts doesn’t live up to expectations, it’s not always easy to trust him again in the future. You may not have been burned by the specific players we’re going to cover today, but if you... Read More

Updated Catcher Rankings - 2018 Fantasy Baseball

One final time before regular season baseball returns and our lives are, at last, complete, RotoBaller's staff writers are updating their 2018 fantasy baseball rankings. Today, we'll be taking a look at the shallowest position - catcher. As usual, after the few elite options are off the board, it's probably best to leave filling this... Read More

Updated Third Base Rankings - 2018 Fantasy Baseball

With the regular season blessedly just a few weeks away, it's time for the RotoBaller staff to update our rankings one last time. We continue our review of the March update with a look at the third base position. There's a ton of talent at the hot corner this season, with the usual elites at... Read More

Points Leagues Starting Pitchers - Overvalued and Undervalued

As we’ve discussed before, points leagues are a bit of a different animal from the more popular head-to-head and rotisserie formats. One of the most obvious differences between them is how pitchers are valued. In a points league, the top pitchers routinely outearn the top hitters. Most analysis will tell you to favor bats in... Read More

Points Leagues Outfielders - Overvalued and Undervalued

As we’ve established, player values can fluctuate pretty widely between points leagues and the more popular, traditional rotisserie and head-to-head formats. If this is your first experience with a points league, you may be wondering how to identify players whose contributions make them more or less appealing for that particular scoring system. You've come to... Read More