Joey Votto (1B, CIN) - Week 5 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in All Leagues ROSTERED IN: 44% of leagues ANALYSIS: After two years of a providing a minimal power output in 2018 and 2019, Cincinnati Reds first baseman Joey Votto had a surprising power resurgence last year. During the shortened 2020 season, Votto hit 11 home runs and eight doubles over 55 games […]

Kendall Graveman (RP, SEA) - Week 5 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in All Leagues ROSTERED IN: 46% of leagues ANALYSIS: Seattle Mariners relief pitcher Kendall Graveman has been nearly flawless out of the pen so far this year. Through seven appearances and 8.1 innings, he's allowed just one hit and two walks without giving up a run. He also has a 34.5% strikeout […]

Paul DeJong (SS, STL) - Week 5 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in All Leagues ROSTERED IN: 49% of leagues ANALYSIS: St. Louis Cardinals shortstop Paul DeJong had a rocky start to the 2021 season. He went on an 0-for-23 slump over a seven-game stretch from April 4 to April 11, but since that cold streak, he's really turned things up. This past Monday, […]

Closers and Saves Report - Week 5 Waiver Wire

For all the wildness that has already happened in bullpens across the league this season, this week was a nice little respite. That's not to say that nothing went down, just that it wasn't an overwhelmingly non-stop bullpen news week like every other week had been. We have a few committees settling into more specific […]

Adam Eaton (OF, CWS) - Week 4 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in All Leagues ROSTERED IN: 44% of leagues ANALYSIS: It's been a smooth homecoming thus far for Chicago White Sox outfielder Adam Eaton. Eaton served as Chicago's primary leadoff hitter while Tim Anderson was sidelined, then shifted to the No. 2 spot upon Anderson's return this past week. He's done a great […]

Michael Kopech (SP, CWS) - Week 4 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12-Team Leagues ROSTERED IN: 48% of leagues ANALYSIS: Chicago White Sox pitcher Michael Kopech has looked fantastic through his first four appearances this year, all coming out of the bullpen. He's pitched 7 2/3 innings and allowed two hits, three walks and one earned run while striking out 13. Kopech was […]

Michael Taylor (OF, KC) - Week 4 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12-Team Leagues ROSTERED IN: 33% of leagues ANALYSIS: Kansas City Royals outfielder Michael A. Taylor is off to a solid start to his first season with the team. Taylor had productive stretches here and there during his seven years with the Washington Nationals, but injuries and inconsistent playing time hampered his […]

Jeimer Candelario (1B/3B, DET) - Week 4 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12-Team Leagues ROSTERED IN: 20% of leagues ANALYSIS: Detroit Tigers first baseman/third baseman Jeimer Candelario has picked up right where he left off in 2020, which was his most productive season as a pro to date. Through 15 games in 2021, Candelario is slashing .293/.369/.414 with one home run, four doubles, […]

Tomma La Stella (1B/2B/3B, SF) - Week 4 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 14+ Team Leagues ROSTERED IN: 13% of leagues ANALYSIS: Tommy La Stella never blows you away with home run totals or power metrics, but his sustained offensive success for his new west coast ballclub in conjunction with his defensive versatility should ring loud to Fantasy Managers in deeper formats. La Stella […]

Jazz Chisholm (2B, SS MIA) - Week 4 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12-Team Leagues ROSTERED IN: 34% of leagues ANALYSIS: Look out South Florida, there's a new star in town with a swing as smooth as silk and hair as blue as the ocean. Yes, Jazz Chisholm Jr. has arrived in the Majors and has forced his way not only into the Marlins' […]

Bryan Reynolds (OF, PIT) - Week 4 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 14-Team Leagues ROSTERED IN: 13% of leagues ANALYSIS:  Bryan Reynolds burst onto the scene in 2019, finishing fourth in Rookie of the Year voting while slashing .314/.377/.503.  He carried high expectations into 2020, but his numbers plummeted across the board in the shortened season.  A .231 BABIP was likely partially to […]

Kendall Graveman (RP, SEA) - Week 4 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12-Team Leagues ROSTERED IN: 24% of leagues ANALYSIS:  The Seattle Mariners had the worst bullpen in baseball in 2020, and Kendall Graveman was a member of that unit.  Graveman, a starting pitcher until the shortened pandemic season, was by no means the worst performer of the bunch, but his 5.79 ERA, […]

Taijuan Walker (SP, NYM) - Week 4 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in All Leagues ROSTERED IN: 36% of leagues ANALYSIS:  Taijuan Walker has largely struggled to stay healthy over recent years, only managing to throw 67 1/3 total innings over the last three seasons combined, as he underwent Tommy John surgery in 2018 and strained a shoulder during his comeback.  Throughout his whole […]

Jed Lowrie (2B, OAK) - Week 4 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in All Leagues ROSTERED IN: 49% of leagues ANALYSIS:  Jed Lowrie suffered two lost seasons in 2019 and 2020 with the New York Mets, and it seemed fair to assume that his time as a fantasy asset, not to mention a productive major league baseball player, was over.  When Lowrie was signed […]

C.J. Cron (1B, COL) - Week 4 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12-Team Leagues ROSTERED IN: 47% of leagues ANALYSIS: It's been an extremely disappointing start to the year for Colorado Rockies first baseman C.J. Cron. Through 13 games, including seven home games at Coors Field, Cron has slashed .195/.327/.750 without a single home run. Cron is simply just not getting under the […]

Dane Dunning (SP, TEX) - Week 4 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12-Team Leagues ROSTERED IN: 23% of leagues ANALYSIS: Texas Rangers starting pitcher Dane Dunning hasn't been going very deep into games so far this year, but he's been making the most of the innings he's managed to pitch. Through three starts and 15 innings, Dunning has allowed just 10 hits, two […]

Starting Pitcher Waiver Wire Pickups - Week 4

It is very unbecoming to be braggadocious, but hey if you read this article last week you just may have started a no-hitter from Carlos Rodon because of it. You may also have picked up Drew Smyly (forearm) just in time for him to give up five earned runs in as many innings and then land […]

Outfield Waiver Wire Pickups For Week 4

Injuries and game postponements have already forced fantasy managers to get creative with their rosters this season, making waivers as important as ever. In addition to shoring up fantasy lineups in the short term, valuable waiver pickups can also become mainstays in fantasy lineups and generate trade value for fantasy managers. It's worth noting that […]

1B and 3B Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 4

Heading toward the end of April, we approach the first major checkpoint of the 2021 season. An 0-4 fantasy start is not impossible to overcome, but it sure leaves a nasty taste in one's mouth. This is getting to the point where you want to consider mixing things up if nothing is working. The classic […]

2B and SS Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 4

We've passed the midway point of April. Hopefully your fantasy squads are dominating to the point where you don't need any help. More likely, whether due to injury or ineffectiveness, you're in search of a boost. You've come to the right place. Most of the players who will be written up in this feature won't […]

Catchers to Stream - Week 4 Waiver Wire

It's your resident catcher advocate here, with my weekly defense for baseball's most maligned position. Instead of giving into easy narratives about the lack of talent at the catcher position and how they're the kickers of fantasy baseball, I'm here to create a place where catchers are celebrated for how they can help our teams. […]

Points League Waiver Wire Pickups - Week 4

We'll be doing this roundup of point league happenings every week here at RotoBaller, with waiver wire targets and streaming pitchers being evaluated in terms of the different scoring systems of ESPN, Yahoo!, CBS, and Fantrax. Player values can vary wildly from platform to platform, so we'll make sure to highlight where players are the […]

Two-Start Pitcher Streamers: Week 4

Hoo boy. This one is going to be rough. OK before we get to this week's streamers, we'll recap how our first two weeks have gone. The winning pick from Week 2 ended up being JT Brubaker, who just narrowly edged out Jordan Montgomery for the Column MVP. And so far in Week 3, Huascar […]

Top Hitter Streamers and Starts for Week 4

Welcome to the top hitter streamers column for Week 4 of the MLB season (4/19 through 4/25). This weekly piece should be helpful for anyone looking to gain an edge in their league. If you need a fill-in for an injured player or want to exploit some plus matchups to gain an edge on your […]

Closers and Saves Report - Week 4 Waiver Wire

Another week of baseball, another flurry of bullpen moves. New injuries, lots of saves, and some blown ones as well. A few teams that had committees to start the season seem to be settling into fixed roles, but then some teams with what seemed like fixed roles are turning into committees. A Blue Jays rookie […]

Yimi Garcia (MIA, RP) - Week 4 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in All Leagues ROSTERED IN: 48 Percent of Leagues ANALYSIS: The first major bullpen shakeup happened in Miami with Anthony Bass out and Yimi Garcia in as the closer of choice for manager Don Mattingly. After Bass blew his first two save chances, Miami turned to Garcia who nailed down both of his save […]

Colin Moran (1B, 2B, 3B PIT) - Week 4 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues ROSTERED IN: 35 Percent of Leagues ANALYSIS: There hasn't been much for Pirates fans to cheer for lately, but Colin Moran has been a steady producer for the Bucs and could be buried treasure for fantasy managers hunting the waiver wire for infield help. Moran quietly had a solid 2020 […]

Willi Castro (SS/3B, DET) - Week 3 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12-Team Leagues ROSTERED IN: 21% of leagues ANALYSIS: Detroit Tigers shortstop/third baseman Willi Castro was a revelation for the team in 2020. He was the team's best hitter by just about every metric as he slashed .349/.381/.550 with six home runs, 24 RBI and 21 runs over just 36 games. This […]

Points League Waiver Wire Pickups - Week 3

We'll be doing this roundup of point league happenings every week here at RotoBaller, with waiver-wire targets and streaming pitchers being evaluated in terms of the different scoring systems of ESPN, Yahoo, CBS, and Fantrax. Player values can vary wildly from platform to platform, so we'll make sure to highlight where players are the best […]