Tyler Flowers (C, ATL) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12-Team Leagues OWNED IN:  35% of Yahoo! Leagues   ANALYSIS: Tyler Flowers started off like a house on fire, though he must have started feeling the heat in July, since his production fell off. He's still hitting above .300, though his power has been lacking. With the rash of injuries that have befallen... Read More

Tucker Barnhart (C, CIN) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in Two-Catcher Leagues OWNED IN:  8% of Yahoo! Leagues   ANALYSIS: Tucker Barnhart is another one of those catchers who has seen a somewhat significant increase in ownership numbers. This time, though... it was a modest bump, from 1% to 8%. Not exactly an amount that you'd want to hang your hat on as... Read More

James McCann (C, DET) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN:  18% of Yahoo! Leagues   ANALYSIS: James McCann has been a hot property lately, with thousands of leagues snapping him up like he's the next coming of Mike Piazza. Well, maybe that's a little bit of hyperbole, but the fact that he drove in five runs on Aug.... Read More

Week 18 Waiver Wire: Catchers

When I looked at the ownership percentages on Wednesday, I was struck by how wide the difference is. There's a 30% difference between Brian McCann, who is at 79% and the next player, who is at 49%. Whoa, indeed. There is quite the gulf between ownership numbers. This is what trying to navigate that chasm... Read More

Week 16 Waiver Wire: Catchers

Now that the second half of the season is well underway, the real grind begins getting through the rest of July and then the scorching hot days of August. It's going to be really tough for those teams that are in pennant races to rest their catchers, and production might wilt under the brutal sunlight.... Read More

Week 14 Waiver Wire: Catchers

We're now close to the All-Star Game and the catching stats are pretty grim, as far as the waiver wire goes. Nearly all the backstops with double-digit homers are above 50 % ownership, with three exceptions. Who are they? You can probably guess. Hint: They all appear later in this column. Play the Jeopardy theme song, please....... Read More

Week 12 Waiver Wire: Catchers

Don't adjust your laptops, tablets or phones. There wasn't a Week 11 Catchers column, but I'm here for Week 12. I'm looking forward to helping you pick out some catchers who can boost your -- HEY! Wake up! It hasn't been THAT long since the last one: As for catchers who still high ownership numbers,... Read More

Week 10 Waiver Wire: Catchers

As far as catchers go, this season's been more confusing than the New York weather so far. They get hot for a brief bit and then get cold again just as quickly. June feels like April... and that's not just the temperatures talking here. Austin Hedges had another cluster of homers and then has gone... Read More

Week 9 Waiver Wire: Catchers

Once again, it seems like catchers have about as much forward momentum, stat-wise, as Buster Posey did when he rushed out to protect Hunter Strickland after Bryce Harper charged the mound. Oh... wait. Anyways, when I open the statistics page for catchers, this is what I feel like doing when I see nearly the same... Read More

Week 8 Waiver Wire: Catchers

Have you ever been reading a book or watching a TV show and things keep happening to characters that you don't care about... but they steadfastly refuse to show any events happening to the more important people? That's what this past week felt like when scanning catcher's statistics. Sure, Salvador Perez went on a homer... Read More

Austin Hedges (C, SD) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 32% of Yahoo Leagues ANALYSIS: San Diego Padres catcher Austin Hedges has put together a fairly respectable run of late. The Padres' backstop had a six-game hit streak before Wednesday's game and has an .870 OPS over the last 14 days. He's also got the lead for most... Read More

Week 7 Waiver Wire: Catchers

It feels like this season's moving in slow motion, stat-wise. Things have improved a bit since Gary Sanchez returned to give his fantasy owners SOME hope. Still, looking at the numbers for backstops can feel like an exercise in tedium. There's almost no real movement, save for very tiny increments. Austin Hedges hit another homer...... Read More

Week 6 Waiver Wire: Catchers

The state of fantasy baseball catchers is pretty dismal. How bad is it? The catching leaders in both home runs and RBIs have half of what the Major League leaders have in those categories. It's not only that, it's that they are so SLOW in getting these numbers.  The rest of your lineup may be... Read More

Week 5 Waiver Wire: Catchers

We're in May now... though it would have been hard to convince the people of Colorado, who were digging out of a late April blizzard. It feels like a lot of the catchers are buried under that snow, because the pickings are very slim. It's tough, because it seems like a catcher will get hot... Read More

Week 4 Waiver Wire: Catchers

Although the temperatures and the rain haven't been indicative, the calendar is, indeed, flipping to May. The grace period for players and teams off to a slow start is beginning to wind down. "It's early" will soon not be a valid excuse anymore. It's still tough out there in catcher-land. Trying to sift through these... Read More

Week 3 Waiver Wire: Catchers

This past weekend, people celebrated a miracle. We're speaking of Austin Hedges actually getting some hits, including two homers. Easter was pretty cool, too. The San Diego catcher's bat came alive and possibly saved his starting job... for now. If you think that we're going to be suggesting that you pick up Hedges on the... Read More

Week 2 Waiver Wire: Catchers

The news that Gary Sanchez was going to miss at least a month shook an already weak fantasy catching corps. Sanchez owners were suddenly panicking that they were going to have to find a live body to plug into the catcher's position for the next four weeks. I'd say that this was their reaction upon... Read More

Week 1 Waiver Wire: Catchers

The first week of the baseball season is maddening in so many ways. The schedule stops and starts worse than a senior citizen driver who isn't sure if the light is turning red or not. Judging players in these first few days is difficult. It also means that people shouldn't make any snap judgments yet.... Read More

New York Mets: 2017 Fantasy MLB Team Preview and Outlooks

Spring training is officially underway, and your fantasy draft preparations have likely begun in earnest. As part of RotoBaller's ongoing effort to help you win your leagues, we're previewing all 30 MLB teams. In these articles, we discuss each team's offseason moves, as well as their hitters, pitchers, and prospects. Today's installment covers the 2017 New York Mets Team... Read More

Boston Red Sox: 2017 Team Preview and Fantasy Outlooks

Welcome to our ongoing series of MLB team previews. As part of RotoBaller's ongoing effort to help you win your leagues, we're previewing all 30 MLB teams. For each team, we will take a look at their hitters, pitchers, prospects and offseason moves. Today we dive into the 2017 Boston Red Sox Team Outlook, and preview their potential... Read More

Fantasy Implications of Aroldis Chapman's Return To Yankees

When it comes to closers, one of the most recognizable names is Aroldis Chapman. Part of it might have been from the domestic violence incident that saw him miss the early portion of the 2016 season. Most of it though was his playing a huge part in helping the Chicago Cubs break their 108-year World Series... Read More

2016 in Review: First Base (1B) Breakouts

First base is tough to pick specific breakout players - 99% who finished in the upper echelon have been producing for years. People are yawning when they see, in no particular order, Joey Votto, Jose Abreu, Paul Goldschmidt, Anthony Rizzo, Miguel Cabrera, and Freddie Freeman all among the league leaders. It's a distinct "Been There,... Read More

2016 in Review: Catcher (C) Breakouts

Some time has passed since Anthony Rizzo caught Kris Bryant's throw to put an end to the 2016 season. Like Rizzo, I put baseball in my back pocket and just mellowed out - the season is a grind for all those involved, including baseball writers. Enough time's elapsed for me to look back. As far... Read More

Week 25 Waiver Wire: Catchers

Whew. Another fantasy baseball season is almost in the books. 2016 was definitely a weird one for catchers, since many of the big names either struggled to hit like they had in the past or started off red-hot and then fell off a cliff (Francisco Cervelli, I'm looking at YOU). All through this season, we... Read More

Week 24 Waiver Wire: Catchers

The baseball season is winding down. Scary, isn't it? It felt like I was just writing up Spring Training sleeper picks. Now I'm trying to help you possibly win a championship or at least first place in your roto league. Sadly, I can't come up with as gripping material as the division/ wild card chases... Read More

Week 23 Waiver Wire: Catchers

Yes, I know that it's playoff time for a lot of you guys out there. You're trying to get an edge that will help you win your championship. I'll get to that. I promise. But first I'm gonna celebrate that Yadier Molina is now at 70% ownership in Fleaflicker. Since he hit the cutoff, he's... Read More

Week 22 Waiver Wire: Catchers

It's September 2nd, and there are several scenarios in the news involving Tropical Storm/Hurrican Hermine. One of them could have some heavy rains and winds but nothing too bad whereas others could be the Harbinger of Doom for many areas. The same could be said of your fantasy leagues now. Gary Sanchez is a hurricane... Read More

Week 21 Waiver Wire: Catchers

We're in the last full week of August. Soon the talk will turn to Autumn and pennant races. Halloween gear will be in stores before we know it. Oh, who are we kidding? Stores have already started pushing the giant bags of trick or treating candy, knowing that we'll probably pig out on them well... Read More

Gary Sanchez (C, NYY) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in Deep Mixed Leagues, AL-Only Leagues OWNED IN: 49% Fleaflicker ANALYSIS: Gary Sanchez is fun to watch. He is hitting .391 since his call-up earlier this month, with five homers over his last seven games. If he keeps this up he may force the Yankees to think about trading Brian McCann in the... Read More

Week 20 Waiver Wire: Catchers

We're now in Week 20 of the season. This also means that most leagues have passed the trade deadline. It's definitely starting to get late early now. So... if you didn't emulate the Texas Rangers and make a bunch of trades trying to solidify a postseason run, then you might be hoping to grab some... Read More