Projecting Power in 2022: Increases in Air% Exit Velocities

Balls come and balls go but regardless of the current offensive environment in baseball, what hasn't changed is our fantasy love of power. But after the happy fun ball days of 2019 and 2020, the MLB went back to the lab in an attempt to deaden some of the bouncy ball hijinks. And deaden they... Read More

Valuing Injured Players Returning In 2022

Last year's season-ending injury list is an All-Star team. It holds three of the best players in the game and plenty of other superstar adjacent players. Now, heading into the 2022 fantasy baseball season, we have to evaluate the value of these injured players. Should we be concerned about Ronald Acuna Jr? Is Jacob deGrom... Read More

A Seam-Sifted Ranger Suárez Looks to Quantum Leap

He was a starter throughout his minor league career but Philadelphia's Ranger Suárez had only seen action from the bullpen in the big leagues before 2021 and again started this past year as a reliever. Suárez dominated from the jump, posting a 1.12 ERA (3.32 FIP) over 40.1 IP, starting as a multi-inning fireman role and... Read More

K-BB% Fallers for Fantasy Baseball - Starting Pitchers to Watch in 2022

We opened up this two-part series in this post, where we went over the K-BB gainers in 2021. Now, it's time to look at the other side of the coin and some of the most notable fallers. In the first part, I reviewed why I believe this statistic to be the most important metric to... Read More

2022 Fantasy Breakout Candidates - NL Central 

Identifying potential fantasy breakout players in drafts each Spring can be crucial in building a championship-winning roster for fantasy managers. Often times the breakout players, if they do in fact break out, will significantly outperform their draft position and help you find success. It may be a late-round pick performing like a quality contributor who... Read More

Marcus Semien and Corey Seager to Rangers - Fantasy Impact

The Texas Rangers made a big splash in free agency by signing Corey Seager (10 years, $350 million) and Marcus Semien (7 years, $175 million) to create their middle infield combination for years to come. This surprised a lot of baseball fans, as the Rangers traded Joey Gallo and Kyle Gibson at the trade deadline... Read More

Early One-Man Mock (Rounds 2-5) - 2022 Fantasy Baseball

I've already run through the first round of my one-man mock, which you can check out right here. Now, let's move on to the next few rounds with a look at how early drafts might shake out. I took roster construction into consideration so that a team didn't select three outfielders in the first three... Read More

Javier Baez to Tigers - Fantasy Impact

The Tigers got in on the free-agent spending spree by adding infielder Javier Baez. He signed a six-year deal worth $140 million dollars and makes the type of statement that Detroit wants the rest of the baseball world to know. “It sends a message to the rest of baseball. The Tigers are here to compete.”... Read More

Jon Gray to Rangers - Fantasy Baseball Impact Analysis

The Texas Rangers are spending some money this month, making multiple big-time splashes in free agency already. One of their smaller splashes was the signing of Jon Gray, whom they signed to a four-year contract in late November. It is looking more and more like the Rangers will have an above-average offense in 2022, so... Read More

Robbie Ray to the Mariners - Fantasy Impact

The hot stove is heating up just in time for the holidays as some of the biggest names in MLB have signed massive contracts in the past few days. Max Scherzer and Starling Marte to the Mets. Corey Seager and Marcus Semien to the Rangers. Kevin Gausman to the Blue Jays. Steven Matz to the Cardinals. Robbie Ray, another big-time free agent, winds up in Seattle. The 2021... Read More

Max Scherzer to the Mets - Fantasy Impact

The hot stove is already sizzling but the heat was turned up higher with Max Scherzer signing with the Mets. Scherzer is heading to New York on a three-year, $130 million contract with an opt-out after the second season. The $43.3 million AAV for Scherzer shatters the previous record for the highest AAV set by... Read More

Kevin Gausman to Blue Jays - Fantasy Baseball Impact Analysis

The Toronto Blue Jays scored the third-most runs in Major League Baseball in 2021 while leading the league in home runs by a huge margin. Despite the clear successes on offense and finishing 20 games above the .500 mark, the Jays missed the playoffs after landing fourth in their division. The main reason this team... Read More

ADP Showdown: Byron Buxton vs Adalberto Mondesi

One of the hardest things to do in fantasy baseball for players and contributors alike is to project playing time. Games played, plate appearances, and at-bats are the basis on which we project hits, home runs, walks, and all the various counting stats that make up various fantasy baseball formats. It is where rate stats... Read More

2022 Fantasy Breakout Candidates - NL East

One of the keys to a successful fantasy baseball draft, and a subsequently successful season, is finding players who outperform their draft position. By and large, you’re more likely to find those types of players later in drafts. Sure, you’ll find those relatively early-round players who perform at an elite level – think Max Muncy or... Read More

Byron Buxton 2021 Year-in-Review

Flashback to May 7, 2021. Major League Baseball had five full weeks in the books, and no player was looking like a better late-round draft pick than Twins centerfielder Byron Buxton. The former highly-touted prospect had registered 98 plate appearances, hitting for a .370 batting average while swatting nine homers to tie for second in... Read More

Noah Syndergaard to Angels - Fantasy Reaction

It seems like a lifetime ago that baseball fans were watching in awe as Noah Syndergaard broke into the league with his huge frame, his long flowing hair, and his triple-digit velocity. Thor, as he came to be known, seemed like a guy that would be one of the league's best starting pitchers on a... Read More

Eduardo Rodriguez to the Tigers - Fantasy Baseball Impact

What a way to kick off the baseball week. The Hot Stove is scorching, and it is not even December yet. Over the last week, Many teams have been discussing Eduardo Rodriguez, one being the Detroit Tigers, and on Monday morning, news dropped that Rodriguez would be signing with the Tigers. The deal is five... Read More

Francisco Álvarez - Prospects to Know for 2022

The 2021 season was a major coming-out party for Mets' backstop prospect Francisco Álvarez. Álvarez was signed by the Mets as an international free agent in July of 2018. He signed for a good-sized bonus of $2.7 million. However, if he continues on his current trajectory, there's a good chance that he makes that sum... Read More

2021 Fantasy Baseball Batting Awards

We've put a bow on the 2021 season, with the Braves finishing off their surprising season with a World Series victory over the Astros. That leaves fantasy baseball managers to eagerly await an offseason of hot stove rumors and draft prep. Before all that takes place, it's only right to pay tribute to the players... Read More

Jonathan India 2021 Year-in-Review

The Cincinnati Reds and their fans are probably more disappointed than happy with the team's 2021 performance, as the team finished with a winning record of 83-79. However, a very final month left pushed them out of the playoffs. They are left with a solid core of players, which gives the team hopes for a... Read More

2022 Fantasy Baseball Breakout Candidates - AL West

Even with the offseason now in full swing with players receiving qualifying offers, it’s never too early to start identifying the players who’ll help your team take the title next season. Of course, impact fantasy players taken near the top of drafts are crucial for fantasy contenders. But, finding breakout candidates late in the draft... Read More

Frankie Montas 2021 Year-in-Review

Frankie Montas was a trendy sleeper pick during the 2021 baseball offseason as fantasy managers thought he could rebound after a sub-par 2020 season. The 28-year-old struggled with a 5.80 ERA, 1.51 WHIP while surrendering 10 homers over 11 starts in 2020. Montas bounced back in a big way and ended the 2021 season on... Read More

Corbin Burnes 2021 Year-in-Review

One of the toughest decisions to make in 2021 drafts was what exactly to do with Corbin Burnes. We hadn't seen much of him at all in the Major Leagues before the 2020 season, and then we had less than 60 innings to go off of for Burnes from that 2020 season. While his performance... Read More

Aaron Nola 2021 Year-in-Review

Phillies right-handed starting pitcher Aaron Nola was one of the most dominant pitchers in the league in the short 2020 campaign. That season along with the upside we had seen from him previously, and his young age made him an SP1 on fantasy rosters coming out of the draft. Nola went in the top two... Read More

2021 MLB Strength of Schedule - In Depth Analysis

Strength of schedule analysis is a common thing you'll see in fantasy football analysis. With just 16 (17 now, I guess) games on the schedule every year, the list of teams on your schedule can make a big difference in your final year metrics. If you get to face the league's worst offense twice while... Read More

2021 Fantasy Baseball Pitching Awards

The World Series is underway, promising us a new champion this year. It will be followed soon thereafter by the announcement of the 2021 MLB Awards. Among those are MVP, Cy Young, Rookie of the Year, and the usual annual hardware that is doled out to those most deserving. For fantasy baseball purposes, we view... Read More

2022 Fantasy Baseball Breakout Candidates - AL East

As Major League Baseball’s postseason starts to move towards a conclusion, the greater fantasy baseball-playing world is probably either still basking in the glow of a fantasy championship or lamenting losses or missteps in coming up short. Either way, it’s never too early to start compiling a list of players who could help you win... Read More

Shohei Ohtani - 2021 Year-in-Review

Baseball fans had the pleasure of watching Shohei Ohtani play a full season, doing things we've never seen done on the baseball field all year long. It was an incredible year, to say the least, for the probable American League MVP. This is essentially a double-article since Ohtani functioned as two completely different players (for... Read More

2021 MLB Reflection and League Trends

Here at RotoBaller, we give you fantasy baseball coverage twelve months a year. The playoffs are still in full swing, which means it's probably not quite time to shift our focus to the 2022 season, but it won't be long before we're there. In the meantime, we want to spend some time reflecting on the 2021... Read More