Five First Base (1B) Deep Sleepers for 2014 Fantasy Baseball

  Five 1B Deep Sleepers for 2014 Analyzing first base is one fantasy proposition, but predicting the 2014 season’s breakouts is an entirely different ball game (pun intended).  Generally, when we think of the position’s elite options, we think of the slow contributor with no SB who provides a hefty percentage of your team’s HR […]

Top 10 for Batting Average: 2014 Fantasy Baseball Predictions

  Top 10 for Batting Average in 2014 Fantasy Baseball Today I'll be taking a look at another one of the major categories in roto formats: batting average. There's a certain type of player that fantasy owners can count on to hit for a high batting average. I'm talking about players with excellent line drive […]

Draft Prep: Daily Spring Training Fantasy Baseball Update 3/13

It's been a busy few days of baseball here in Arizona, as I've been going from ballpark to ballpark to check out as much spring action as possible. After taking in three games over the past two days, including an extra-inning nightcap yesterday, I can barely stay awake.  But I figured I'd share a few […]

Top 10 For WHIP: 2014 Fantasy Baseball Predictions

For those who don’t know, WHIP measures how many base runners a pitcher allows in a given inning. It’s calculated by adding together walks and hits and dividing that number by innings pitched. A 1.00 WHIP is excellent, a 1.10 is great, a 1.25 is above average and a 1.30 is average. Here is a […]

Kansas City Royals Storylines: The First Week of Spring Training

The first week of spring training has been an eventful one in two major ways for the Kansas City Royals. There is the story about Mike Moustakas and his hot start at the plate, and pitcher Luke Hochevar is out for the season after hurting his elbow and needing Tommy John surgery. Here are the […]

Draft Prep: Daily Spring Training Fantasy Baseball Update 3/11

Today I stayed home in Scottsdale, Arizona and went to the sold out Cubs-Giants game downtown.  The Cubs and Giants are the two most popular teams in Arizona this time of year, with plenty of fans in town from the Midwest and  the Bay Area to root on their team.  I sat next to some […]

Top 10 For Saves: 2014 Fantasy Baseball Predictions

I have a very strong opinion about closers in fantasy baseball, and that is they are the most overrated position in the game. Much like defenses in football, closers are very often drafted many rounds too soon. Relievers contribute little to most pitching stats, and there are often plenty of valuable options lower down the […]

Top 10 for Wins: 2014 Fantasy Baseball Predictions

Predicting pitcher Wins is one of the hardest things to do in fantasy sports. That's because, as many of you have probably found out the hard way, having a good pitcher or even an elite pitcher, doesn't guarantee a 16-20 win season. In order to get the win, a pitcher needs the support of his […]

2014 New York Yankees: Top Prospects, Part 2 of 2

The loss of Robinson Cano and A-Rod for the upcoming 2014 season exposed the Yankee farm system as being one of the weakest in baseball. The Yanks had spent years trading away their best young talent and had no one in their system  prepared to be their everyday second or third baseman. Unlike some other […]

Draft Prep: Daily Spring Training Fantasy Baseball Update 3/10

Philosophical question: if a routine fly ball lands untouched in the outfield, does it make a sound? Yoenis Cespedes: On Sunday in Phoenix, the answer is "yes," and the sound was from  the groans of Oakland A's fans watching Yoenis Cespedes struggle with the high desert sky. Cespedes had a game he'd like to forget against […]

Daily Fantasy Baseball Update: Cactus League 3/9

It was another fantastic day here in Arizona and another double-header to attend in the Cactus League. This afternoon, I went back to Salt River Fields to see the Oakland A's at the Colorado Rockies. A.J. Griffin started for Oakland and got torched for three runs in the first inning. A.J. Grffiin was one guy I […]

Daily Fantasy Baseball Update: Cactus League 3/8

Yordano Ventura: I spent the day in Surprise, Arizona, driving about an hour in traffic for really one reason: I wanted to see the Royals' Yordano Ventura pitch. I had read all the reports of his fastball hitting 102 last season. I had also read concerns about his size (he's under six feet tall), and concerns […]

2014 New York Yankees: Top Hitting Prospects, Part 1 of 2

This piece is the first of a two part series looking at the New York Yankees hitting prospects   Mason Williams, OF Williams was only drafted in the fourth round in 2010, but his great play in low-A ball the next year quickly put him on the radar as one of the top prospects in […]

Milwaukee Brewers Storylines: The First Week of Spring Training

The first week of spring training games have come and gone. The Milwaukee Brewers are seeing a player with a chip on his shoulder in Ryan Braun, and a pitcher who has some work to do in Matt Garza. Here is a look at how those two stories impact fantasy owners right now, with three […]

Daily Fantasy Baseball Update: Cactus League 3/7

  Cactus League Update for March 7th Trevor Cahill vs. Sonny Gray: I went back to Salt River Fields again yesterday to see the Diamondbacks for the second straight afternoon. This time they hosted the Oakland A's. I looked forward to a solid matchup between Trevor Cahill and Sonny Gray. As it turned out, both starters […]

Baltimore Orioles Pitching Analysis: 2014 Fantasy Baseball Projections

Editor's Note: This article was written before the O's acquisition of Johan Santana. The Orioles’ rotation is often described as a bunch of threes and fours.  Thus, while most lack true top-end fantasy value, all contain value as streaming or deep-league options.  A lot of any O's  starter's value will depend on his matchups; what you will […]

Holds Leagues Sleepers: Luis Avilan & David Carpenter

Luis Avilan & David Carpenter With the best current closer in the game, Craig Kimbrel, manning the back of the Atlanta Braves bullpen, the complementary pieces that bridge the starting pitcher’s win to Kimbrel’s seemingly inevitable save are worth a look. Jonny Venters is returning from injury and he will join a pair of relievers that held the […]

Cleveland Indians Offseason Overview for 2014 Fantasy Baseball

2014 Cleveland Indians - Team Overview Last offseason, the Cleveland Indians uncharacteristically opened up the pocketbook and invested over $100M in Michael Bourn and Nick Swisher. They also brought in Terry Francona to lead a team that had only won 68 games in 2012. A year later, Francona’s addition appears to be a stroke of […]

Daily Fantasy Baseball Update: Cactus League 3/6

  Cactus League Update for March 6th Today I enjoyed one of the baseball fans greatest pleasures, a Spring Training doubleheader.  At 1 p.m., the Arizona Diamondbacks hosted the Kansas City Royals at Salt River Fields. Then, after a nap, I attended a 7 p.m. game in Goodyear between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Cincinnati […]

2014 Fantasy Baseball Prediction: Top 10 for Runs

While pitching has seemingly dominated the past several seasons, there are still many players scoring a plethora of runs. Last year, there were nine players who scored more than 100 runs, and 22 who scored over 90. What follows is a forecast for how the runs leaderboard will look at the end of the upcoming […]

2014 Arizona Diamondbacks Top Prospects: Fantasy Baseball Analysis

The following column will take a look at top prospects in Arizona's farm system from two angles -- opportunity and talent. The opportunity ranking, on a scale of 1 - 10, will be based on how likely it is that the player will have a fantasy impact in 2014. The talent ranking, on the same […]

Three Overvalued Second Baseman: 2014 Fantasy Baseball Rankings

Here's the deal: I'm not hating on any of these players. The three I discuss here are talented players, and I am not saying you should not draft them...I'm merely warning you not to draft them too early. There might be a rush for them, given the relative thinness of the position, but you can […]

Daily Fantasy Baseball Update: Cactus League 3/5

  Cactus League Update for March 5th Another few days are in the books in Cactus League action.  On Monday, I had every intention of heading to Phoenix Municipal Stadium to see the A's host the Dodgers and Clayton Kershaw. However, a Scottsdale bar/restaurant called the Salty Senorita hooked me up with free tickets to […]

2014 Fantasy Baseball Prediction: Top 10 for Strikeouts

Spring Training is here, and with baseball officially in full swing, I think it would be a good time to begin taking a look at who we can guess will be the main category leaders for roto leagues this coming season. I'll be looking at strikeouts for this article, specifically which ten pitchers I think […]

2014 Boston Red Sox Top Prospects: Fantasy Baseball Analysis

The defending World Series champs boast one of the deepest farm systems in baseball-- and therein lies the problem. Boston's top prospects have some pretty stiff competition, both from each other and from the 25 men that form the roster that took home baseball’s biggest prize last October. Beyond the two youngsters slated for starting […]

Three Undervalued Second Baseman: 2014 Fantasy Baseball Rankings

Undervalued Second Baseman for Fantasy Baseball Drafts You're getting ready for your season, so I'm sure you've read the rankings from your favorite analysts. I'm here to tell you why they're wrong in some cases-- here, it's regarding undervalued second basemen. Let's get to it, shall we?   Daniel Murphy Murphy busted out somewhat in […]

Daily Fantasy Baseball Update: Cactus League 3/4

  Cactus League Update for March 4th It's been a while since I've chimed in on the goings-on in Arizona. Since I last wrote, I've been out to a ballgame each day, and I've had a nice conversation with Giants' bench coach Ron Wotus at the bar of a local seafood restaurant in Scottsdale. In […]

Billy Butler: 2014 Fantasy Baseball Sleeper

The 2014 season is one in which the Kansas City Royals are going to be expected to produce. If that is going to happen, though, Billy Butler is going to need to have a big season. Butler had a breakout 2012 with 29 home runs and 107 RBI, but he took a huge step back […]

Top 10 Home Run Hitters: 2014 Fantasy Baseball Predictions

Dingers. Big Flies. Longballs. They're fun to watch. They can change the momentum of the game. Chicks dig 'em. Whether you're playing in a roto league or head-to-head, there is no underestimating the value of having home run hitters on your team. But who will be the top producers in the HR category in the […]

Deep League Value Vault: Sleepers for 2014

Spring Training is finally upon us. It’s a magical time of year where visions of walk-offs and perfect games dance in our heads. The unofficial National Holiday that is Opening Day is near. I want to take a look at some overlooked players who could bring fantasy usefulness to the table. If you are at […]