Explaining the Struggles of Andrew Benintendi

I, along with many others, was greatly disappointed with Andrew Benintendi in 2019. Last year he was supposed to take a step forward. Unfortunately, he instead took a giant step backward. What happened exactly? Is this what to expect from Benintendi going forward? These are the type of answers I seek to provide answers to.... Read More

The King's Insider Report: Views From an MLB Scout

The award-winning Fantasy Baseball Insider Series continues on RotoBaller, this time with the takes of a longtime Major League scout. Every year during fantasy baseball draft season, Scott Engel talks to prime MLB sources to get exclusive nuggets of information. On the condition of anonymity, former and current players, executives, scouts, media members and others... Read More

Hidden Gems to Watch - 2020 Infield Prospects

As we continue through this window of uncertainty, the chances of having a “normal” season are getting far less likely. And while we still don’t have any concrete solutions for having a 2020 season, some ideas seem to be more likely than others. Whether implementing regular doubleheaders in a truncated season or a universal designated-hitter,... Read More

Hidden Gems to Watch - 2020 Outfield Prospects

As we continue through this window of uncertainty, the chances of having a “normal” season are getting far less likely. While we still don’t have any concrete solutions for having a 2020 season, some ideas seem to be more likely than others. One such idea of implementing regular double-headers into an already-truncated season, with three... Read More

ADP Comparison: Biggest Fallers from March to May

MLB first announced that its season would be postponed on March 12. Over the past month or so, a plan to resume games has taken several forms, but nothing is set in stone yet. For now, it appears as though teams will play in a maximum of 100 games in 2020, with the minor league... Read More

Fantasy Baseball Impact of the Universal DH

With each passing day, we are receiving more news that points to Major Leauge Baseball starting sooner rather than later. Most of the news hints at an 80-100 game season, with the locations of the games still up for debate. There are also some roster changes that are being proposed for this shortened season, one... Read More

Eliminating Park Factors: Which Pitchers Will Suffer the Most

After weeks of half-baked proposals cribbed from rejected "BioDome" scripts, there now seems to be a scrape of light at the end of the no-baseball tunnel. MLB seems to be increasingly confident that a 2020 season will be played, whether it's playing all games in one location (the Arizona plan), playing in multiple warm-weather hubs (Arizona,... Read More

Eliminating Park Factors: Which Pitchers Will Benefit Most

After weeks of half-baked proposals cribbed from rejected "BioDome" scripts, there now seems to be a scrape of light at the end of the no-baseball tunnel. MLB seems to be increasingly confident that a 2020 season will be played, whether it's playing all games in one location (the Arizona plan), playing in multiple warm-weather hubs (Arizona,... Read More

Using xPA to Evaluate Lineup Movers: Victor Robles

We don't need to talk about how much a player's lineup spot matters. The higher you are, the more times a game you'll bat. Plus, you'll almost necessarily be surrounded by better players. That simply means more opportunities to pile up fantasy stats. Consider Ronald Acuna Jr., who was on pace for 658 plate appearances... Read More

Infielder Busts Set to Bounce Back in 2020

Fantasy baseball owners tend to put too much emphasis on the previous season when it comes to valuing players. There is a reason projection systems use three years of data, because while last year's numbers are typically the most important thing to consider, what a player has done in the past matters as well. Each... Read More

Mid-Round Third Base Targets and Avoids in 2020

Once you reach the middle-to-late rounds of drafts, it would be smart to consider drafting some upside fliers that can provide a great return on value. You can take a risk or two on a variety of different players, including a prospect, forgotten veterans, players returning from injuries, or even players with skills but have... Read More

Mid-Round Shortstops - Targets and Avoids in 2020

Once you reach the middle-to-late rounds of drafts, it would be smart to consider drafting some upside fliers that can provide a great return on value. You can take a risk or two on a variety of different players, including a prospect, forgotten veterans, players returning from injuries, or even players with skills but have... Read More

NL Players Who Could Benefit From Extended Rosters

Although we still don't have baseball, we're starting to get a lot of proposals on how we COULD have baseball this summer. The plans may wind up just being a fantasy, but, hey, this is a fantasy site, so it makes sense for us to take a look at it. One of the facets of... Read More

Introducing xPA to Project Plate Appearances

I like big rates and I cannot lie. You other readers can't deny. When a rate walks in with an itty PA and an integer in my face, I get sprung...Whoa! Wait just one second, Sir-Mix-A-Nick. Before I go full-Rhymenoceros on everyone, maybe we oughta back the track up a little bit. What I like... Read More

Dynasty League Buy/Sell

With the uncertainty of opening day, there is no better time to play in an MLB Fantasy Dynasty League. Due to the league format, it by far the most unaffected by the delay of Opening Day. Drafting and trading can proceed in full force as the value assigned to these players go long beyond this... Read More

How a Revamped MLB Season will Impact Fantasy Baseball

No matter how this MLB season plays out it will look like something we have never seen before. Not only is the start of the season already delayed, but there is no definitive end in sight. If we do see baseball this season, the game is going to look very different. First, there will be... Read More

Second Basemen Likely to Return a Loss in 2020

As mentioned in my article covering 1B that we might be over-drafting, my goal in these articles is to point out players who might "bust" at their current ADP. The definition of a bust that I'm using is when you invest a large amount of draft capital in a player who doesn't hit the production... Read More

OPS Overachievers: Using xOPS to Judge Performance

We've already dug into xOPS by looking at the biggest underachievers from last year. Now, it's time to examine the other side of the coin - the less shiny side. Many might believe that wOBA is the stat you should be looking for and people much smarter than I have been duking out this debate... Read More

Fantasy Baseball ADP Reflections - Relief Pitchers

We’re still awaiting concrete news on how a 2020 baseball season will look like (if it does exist). Different possibilities have surfaced in recent days which includes an option of multiple doubleheaders being played every week. It’s still far too early to tell how serious or plausible this is but should it come to fruition,... Read More

OPS Underachievers: Using Differences in xOPS to Judge Performance

Add a player's on-base-percentage to his slugging-percentage and you wind up with OPS. Easy-peasy, lemon squeezy. But some things don't need to be complicated to be useful and descriptive. There are a hundred ways to judge a baseball player's performance but OPS remains one of the best proxies for quickly judging a player's overall offensive... Read More

Stock Your Dynasty Farm: AL East Sleeper Prospects

The AL East features the top farm system in baseball, two uber-prospects, the only Canadian team, as well as two of sports’ most prestigious franchises. Needless to say, there are some storylines to mine for content here. And yet, what may be the richest and most influential division in baseball is, in my humble opinion,... Read More

AL Players Who Could Benefit From Expanded Rosters

Although we still don't have baseball, we're starting to get a lot of proposals on how we COULD have baseball this summer. The plans may wind up just being a fantasy, but, hey, this is a fantasy site, so it makes sense for us to take a look at it. One of the facets of... Read More

The King's Fantasy Baseball Insider Report: Exclusive Scouting Reports From an MLB Veteran

The award-winning Fantasy Baseball Insider Series continues on RotoBaller, this time with the seasoned input of a current Major League Player. Every year during fantasy baseball draft season, Scott Engel talks to prime MLB sources to get exclusive nuggets of information. On the condition of anonymity, former and current players, executives, scouts, media members and... Read More

Man vs. Machine: Nick Mariano and ATC's Over/Undervalued Players

Welcome to Round 2 of Man vs. Machine, where one fantasy analyst goes toe-to-toe with one projection system for ranking supremacy. We here at RotoBaller are fortunate enough to have FantasyPros’ Most Accurate Fantasy Baseball Draft Ranker from both 2018 and 2019 on our roster in Nick Mariano and Ariel Cohen, respectively. Ariel also created... Read More

JB's Bullpen Method - Building Aces out of Relief Pitchers

If you read my Top 10 Draft Tips piece, you got a preview of the method I have been using for many years in fantasy baseball. It's really less of a method or strategy, and more a state of mind. The Bullpen Method is a lifestyle! I always speak about the importance of balance on... Read More

First Basemen Likely to Return A Loss in 2020

We all dream of drafting the sleeper pick who vastly outproduce his draft-day value and carries our team to victory. However, the truth is that those types of selections are few and far between. Often a player will give you more value than you would normally expect from his draft slot, but it's likely only... Read More

Relief Pitchers Set to Break Out in 2020

We continue to wait on a start date for the 2020 MLB season. The extra time we have allows us to dig deeper into the player pool, looking for breakout players. We have seen the relief pitching position evolve over recent seasons, allowing for more and more draftable players. In this article, we will take... Read More

Mid-Round Second Base - Targets and Avoids in 2020

Once you reach the middle-to-late rounds of drafts, it would be smart to consider drafting some upside fliers that can provide a great return on value. You can take a risk or two on a variety of different players, including a prospect, forgotten veterans, players returning from injuries, or even players with skills but have... Read More

Closers Due for Regression in 2020

Finding reliable closers is always a challenge. There is a high turnover rate in the role every season, and in today's game, a lot of teams are going to a closer-by-committee approach, which adds a layer of confusion to the saves category. In each of the last three seasons, exactly 11 relievers have saved 30... Read More