Kevin Plawecki (C, NYM) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in two-catcher and NL-only leagues OWNED IN: 5% of Fleaflicker leagues ANALYSIS: Before the season began, many (including yours truly) were touting Travis d'Arnaud as a breakout candidate. TDA was well on his way to making good on that promise, slashing .317/.356/.537 through his first 11 games before having his hand broken by... Read More

Fantasy Baseball Strategy: 7 Tips to Avoid Early Season Jitters

  For Long-Term Success, Don't Overreact Early in the Season Perhaps more than at any other point in the season, fantasy owners are prone to overreaction in April. Everybody wants to get off to a good start, and correctly identifying breakouts and busts as early as possible can go a long way toward determining who... Read More

Jake Marisnick (OF, HOU) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in Deep Leagues; Monitor in All Other Leagues  OWNED IN: 9% of Fleaflicker Leagues ANALYSIS: Marisnick is already on his third organization, though he turned just 24 a few weeks ago. He was part of that mammoth Blue Jays-Marlins trade that broke the Internet back in 2012. Miami is known for aggressively promoting their... Read More

Dalton Pompey (OF, TOR) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in Deeper Leagues OWNED IN: 26% of Leagues ANALYSIS: Though the numbers came almost entirely in the low minors, a glance at Pompey’s performance reveals a lot to like. The 22 year old has shown impressive plate discipline, the ability to hit for average, and excellent speed. It’s primarily for the latter that many... Read More

Five Outfield Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 3

RotoBallers... assemmmmblleeeeeeeeee! It's time for your Week 3 waiver wire pickups in the outfield. As always, the players we'll cover today can be added free of charge in the majority of Yahoo leagues. Let's get to getting. Editor’s Note: to read about even more waiver wire options for outfielders, be sure to check out our famous waiver... Read More

Dexter Fowler (OF, CHC) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in Deeper Leagues OWNED IN: 63% of Fleaflicker Leagues ANALYSIS: Dexter Fowler won the game for his new team yesterday, hitting a two-run shot off of LaTroy Hawkinsin the ninth. He hasn’t gotten much of the ample press bestowed on the Cubs over the last couple of months. It’s easy to see why when... Read More

Wade Miley (SP, BOS) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 12% of Fleaflicker Leagues ANALYSIS: Wade Miley burst onto the scene with the Dbacks  in 2012. He finished second to Bryce Harper in Rookie of the Year voting on the strength of 16 wins and a 3.33 ERA. The following season, Miley weathered significant jumps in both walks... Read More

Brad Miller (2B/SS, SEA) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 10+ team leagues OWNED IN: 14% of Fleaflicker leagues ANALYSIS: Miller made quite an impression on fantasy owners as a rookie in 2013. In 76 games, he posted a .265-8-36-41-5 line. The only question heading into last season was whether or not he’d beat out Nick Franklin for the starting job... Read More

Anthony Gose (OF, DET) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in Deep Leagues ANALYSIS: Anthony Gose was a second-round pick by the Phillies in the 2008 amateur draft. Like many of the organization’s prospects, he was plucked out of high school with more athleticism than baseball skills. He was traded to Houston in the Roy Oswalt deal, then immediately flipped to Toronto. He shot... Read More

Five Outfield Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 2

The first week of the season is in the books. There likely hasn't been too much roster upheaval in your league unless you play with some Chicken Little owners. Remember, folks: It's a long season. Resist the urge to mash the panic button. But by all means, tinker on the margins. That's what we're here to... Read More

Travis Snider (OF, BAL) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLE MOVE: Add in Deeper Leagues OWNED IN: ESPN: 1 percent owned; Yahoo: 4 percent owned; Fleaflicker: 5% Owned ANALYSIS: A former first-round pick, Travis Snider made it to the majors at the tender age of 20. Once there, however, he battled injuries and a severe platoon split, ultimately punching his ticket out of Toronto. His first... Read More

Marcus Semien (2B/3B/SS, OAK) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 10+ team leagues OWNED IN: 17% of Fleaflicker leagues ANALYSIS: Semien was a trendy sleeper last season after posting a .284/.401/.489 line with 19 HR and 24 SB across two levels in 2013. He began the year as the White Sox starting second baseman, but struggled and was demoted in May.... Read More

Five Outfield Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 1

Happy Opening Day! Another long, bitter winter is behind us. It’s finally time to get in the game. Assuming you’ve been a regular around these parts, you undoubtedly had a terrific draft. As valuable as the foundation from a strong draft can be, we all know that leagues are won and lost during the season.... Read More

Drew Smyly (SP, TB) - 2015 Fantasy Baseball Sleeper

BALLER MOVE: Target ~175 Overall ANALYSIS: Mostly overlooked last season in a star-studded Tigers rotation, Drew Smyly was sent in the David Price deal to Tampe Bay, where he immediately thrived. Prior to being shut down at the end of 2014, Smyly made seven starts for the Rays, striking out nearly a batter per inning and flashing... Read More

Clay Buchholz (SP, BOS) - 2015 Fantasy Baseball Sleeper

BALLER MOVE: Target ~290 Overall ANALYSIS: A season after posting a ludicrous 1.78 ERA that sat a full run below his FIP, the pendulum swung all the way back for Clay Buchholz. His E-F was the highest among all qualified starters. As you might imagine, it’s fairly uncommon to see a pitcher’s ERA triple from... Read More

10 Bold Predictions for the 2015 Fantasy Baseball Season

  For the last few years, the staff over at RotoGraphs has been publishing their "10 Bold Predictions" series. These are typically among my favorite reads in the realm of fantasy baseball - and considering how much content I devour, that's saying something.   Since imitation is the sincerest form of flattery and all, I'm... Read More

Top 5 Starting Pitcher Breakouts - 2015 MLB Fantasy Draft Prep

  Hunting for Treasure Most of us in the industry say this every year: starting pitching is the easiest asset to add during the season. There are several reasons for this, not least of which is the number of starters who break out from nowhere on an annual basis.   Among last season’s top fantasy arms were... Read More

Top 5 Middle Infielders: MLB Prospects and Impact Rookies for 2015

  A Bleak Landscape In 2001, ten middle infielders hit at least 20 home runs. Rich Aurilia, with 37, would have been tied for second in baseball with Giancarlo Stanton and Chris Carter last year. That year? He was tied for second...among middle infielders, with Bret Boone. Alex Rodriguez's 52 bombs, which paced the American... Read More

Top 5 Corner Infielders: MLB Prospects & Impact Rookies for 2015

  Future Sluggers At Corner Infield If you missed the first part of our series on top prospects and rookies for the 2015 fantasy baseball season, click here. Otherwise, keep reading for the lowdown on the best corner infield options. This list is dominated by those who man the hot corner because the majority of prospects start at other... Read More

Top 5 Outfielders: MLB Prospects & Impact Rookies for 2015

  The Fountain Of Youth Has Been Found We continue our look at the best MLB rookies and prospects for the 2015 fantasy season, with our attention turning to the outfield. In case you missed it, yesterday I discussed the top 5 impact rookies/prospects for pitchers this year. There's a lot to like here, and... Read More

Three Relief Pitchers Who Will Outperform Their 2015 ADP: Rankings Analysis

Reliever Hijinks Last season was my best year of fantasy baseball in the dozen years I've played, as I managed to secure championships in all three of my leagues. This was in spite of the fact that I endured what I'll lightly term as the season from hell as far as closers are concerned. Most... Read More

Top 5 Pitchers: MLB Prospects & Impact Rookies for 2015

It's All About Youth The key to sustained success in keeper and dynasty leagues is identifying and acquiring the right young players. This much is clear, and obvious. In redraft leagues, however, cultivating this skill is also important and often overlooked. Much is made of the value of minimizing risk. It's true that boring veterans often... Read More

Top Five ERA Surgers for 2015: Fantasy Baseball Predictions

Scour the Pitching Peripherals It’s not a category in your typical fantasy league, but Fielding Independent Pitching (FIP) is a useful metric to uncover undervalued assets on draft day. FIP attempts to isolate the factors under a pitcher’s direct control to determine whether he was a victim of poor defense or rotten luck. Intuitively and... Read More

Jake Odorizzi (SP, TB) - Fantasy Baseball Sleeper

BALLER MOVE: Target Late in Mixed Leagues ANALYSIS: Jake Odorizzi started and finished his rookie season poorly, and consequently, his overall surface numbers (4.13 ERA, 1.29 WHIP) weren’t eye-popping. He had issues his second and third times through the batting order, and his release point was inconsistent. His OPS against was 345 points higher on the... Read More

Three Closers (RPs) Who Will Underperform Their 2015 ADP

Don't Pay For These Saves You hear it every year: Don't pay for saves. A simple, effective strategy if you're an active and intelligent owner. Which, if you're reading this, you are. And handsome to boot! Have you lost weight? Sometimes, though, that strategy can be a bit of a boondoggle. I changed closers more... Read More

Five Players Whose New 2015 Team Will Impact Their Performance (NL Edition)

  The Newbies Spring Training is finally underway, and while some players are still looking for new homes, the dust has mostly settled from the offseason. Odds are that your favorite team is probably not a contender, even with whatever moves they made over the winter, but what about your fantasy team?     Here... Read More

Top Five Starting Pitchers Due for Regression: Fantasy Baseball Predictions

  The Regression Monster Cometh While it isn’t an end-all, be-all stat – because those don’t exist – FIP is a much better tool for analyzing pitchers and predicting future performance than raw ERA. Case in point: In the past three seasons, the 10 pitchers who outperformed the FIP by the highest margins saw their... Read More

Phil Hughes (SP, MIN) - 2015 Fantasy Baseball Sleeper

BALLER MOVE: Target as High-End SP3 ANALYSIS: Phil Hughes posted 11.63 strikeouts for every walk he issued last season, the best ratio in MLB history for a starting pitcher. How did a pitcher who, in parts of five qualifying seasons as a starter, had never managed an ERA south of 4.00 manage to top such a... Read More

Three Second Basemen Who Will Underperform Their 2015 ADP

  God Help Us All The fantasy outlook at second base is...well, pretty dire. That's a nice way of saying that it stinks. There isn't a single one worth drafting in the first round in all but the largest and deepest leagues, and there really aren't any players at this position I can say I... Read More

Michael Saunders (OF, TOR) - 2015 Fantasy Baseball Sleeper

BALLER MOVE: Target in Late Rounds ANALYSIS: Michael Saunders posted a .273/.341/.450 line with eight homers and four steals last year in 78 games in 2014. Not particularly exciting, but useful in deep leagues. He’s two years removed from a 19 HR/21 SB season and, at 28, is still theoretically in his prime. But he’s not especially... Read More