Buy or Sell - Underowned and Overowned Players for Week 9

Rookies are always tricky to evaluate because they can look great one week and then completely fall apart the next. With some big name call-ups sticking around, what can we make of their initial success? More importantly, we need to figure out if these players are best used as keepers or trade bait. Scouting players […]

Strikeout Rate Risers and Fallers for Week 8: Buy or Sell?

Missing bats is the #1 way a pitcher can control his own fate. If hitters make contact, the pitcher is largely at the mercy of the atmosphere, the weather, the ball park, the ability/work ethic of his fielders, and sometimes just sheer luck. This is ultimately why strikeouts are so important. By looking at pitchers […]

Champ or Chump: Kevin Pillar & Michael Conforto

The fantasy community hypes up a few players every draft season without driving their ADP too high. Kevin Pillar was viewed as an intriguing speed play if he could hit enough to receive regular PAs, yet his ADP was just 321. Michael Conforto was buried on the Mets depth chart, but everyone thought he would […]

Week 8 Cut List: Players on the Chopping Block

Welcome back to the Cut List. Each weekend from now until the end of the season, I’ll be offering my thoughts on players who don’t deserve to keep drawing a nonexistent salary on your fake baseball teams. A column like this can be a tricky thing so early in the year. While the sample sizes […]

Strikeout Rate Risers and Fallers for Week 7: Buy or Sell?

We’re constantly trying to come up with new features that will help you dominate your fantasy leagues. Last year, we built a tool that identifies the biggest trends in a pitcher's strikeout rate over the last thirty days. With our sample size being so small this early in the season though, we will look at the difference between […]

Champ or Chump: Ervin Santana & Michael Pineda

One of the most amazing things about pitching is how many ways there are to do it successfully. Ervin Santana has compiled an ERA of 2.07 by allowing his defense to gobble up every ball in play. By contrast, Michael Pineda has succeeded by limiting the number of balls in play against him, striking out […]

Buy or Sell - Underowned and Overowned Players for Week 8

Big market, big name, big deal. Sometimes we need to let go of the past and take a hard look at some players who simply aren't living up to their reputations. Likewise, some players who fall under the "failed prospect" label could wind up providing better value than that big free agent signing you're holding […]

Champ or Chump: Todd Frazier & Jake Arrieta

Fantasy owners frequently pay attention to the shiny new toys that spring up every season, but underperformers may not be noticed as quickly. If your platform of choice lacks a write-up on a particular player, it is easy to assume that he put up a boring game like 1-for-4 with a run scored. Only when […]

Week 7 Cut List: Players on the Chopping Block

Welcome back to the Cut List. Each weekend from now until the end of the season, I’ll be offering my thoughts on players who don’t deserve to keep drawing a nonexistent salary on your fake baseball teams. A column like this can be a tricky thing so early in the year. While the sample sizes […]

Champ or Chump: Scott Schebler & Yonder Alonso

Power is the result of two things: hitting fly balls and hitting the ball with authority. If the ball is stuck on the ground, it can't go over the fence no matter how high its exit velocity is. If a fly ball is weakly hit, it becomes nothing more than a routine play for an […]

Strikeout Rate Risers and Fallers for Week 6: Buy or Sell?

We’re constantly trying to come up with new features that will help you dominate your fantasy leagues. Last year, we built a tool that identifies the biggest trends in a pitcher's strikeout rate over the last thirty days. With our sample size being so small this early in the season though, we will look at the difference between […]

Buy or Sell - Underowned and Overowned Players for Week 7

I'm not giving up yet on Jake Arrieta, who I may have hinted had a chance at winning another Cy Young award this season back in March. I am ready, however, to make amends to the Yankees after putting two of their players in the overrated section of my week 1 article in this series […]

Champ or Chump: Trevor Cahill & Dallas Keuchel

This has been a rotten year to invest heavily in starting pitching. Perhaps your ace is on the DL, like Madison Bumgarner or Noah Syndergaard. Maybe they are just underperforming, like Matt Harvey or Julio Teheran. Either way, you're probably looking for a reliable arm, or three. Trevor Cahill is far from the sexiest name, […]

Michael Conforto - Budding Superstar or Extraordinary April?

We all know the timeless adage, "Fool me once, shame on — shame on you. Fool me... you can't get fooled again.” At least that's the version I learned from George W. Bush. As of May 1st, 2016, Michael Conforto was sporting a 196 wRC+ fueled by a 1.118 OPS, a .411 BABIP, and 6.9% […]

Champ or Chump: Jay Bruce & Ryan Zimmerman

Fantasy baseball owners tend to roster two types of players. The first type is the flavor of the moment, whoever is hot lately or has scouts drooling over their potential. The second type is the boring veteran whose track record is so consistent he has to be valued highly. This approach frequently leaves the players […]

Week 6 Cut List: Players on the Chopping Block

Welcome back to the Cut List. Each weekend from now until the end of the season, I’ll be offering my thoughts on players who don’t deserve to keep drawing a nonexistent salary on your fake baseball teams. A column like this can be a tricky thing so early in the year. While the sample sizes […]

Strikeout Rate Risers and Fallers for Week 5: Buy or Sell?

We’re constantly trying to come up with new features that will help you dominate your fantasy leagues. Last year we built a tool that identifies the biggest trends in a pitcher's strikeout rate over the last thirty days.  The tool is for Premium subscribers only, and can be found here. With our sample size being so small this early in […]

Buy or Sell - Underowned and Overowned Players for Week 6

It seems that Thames Fever has been replaced by Marwin Mania! In the same way I chose not to go into detail on Eric Thames, I won't regurgitate what has been said about Marwin Gonzalez on numerous waiver wire and streamer posts already. My simple advice: grab him if you can, then sell quickly. Moving on […]

Champ or Chump: Joey Gallo & Aaron Judge

The old saying "Chicks dig the long ball" applies to fantasy baseball owners as well. Billy Hamilton is frequently criticized for offering nothing outside of steals, yet similar players who provide nothing but bombs are not only rostered, but taken inside the top 100. Hamilton goes high too, but at least two owners in every […]

Week 5 Cut List: Players on the Chopping Block

Welcome back to the Cut List. Each weekend from now until the end of the season, I’ll be offering my thoughts on players who don’t deserve to keep drawing a nonexistent salary on your fake baseball teams. A column like this can be a tricky thing so early in the year. We’re looking at a […]

Champ or Chump: Trey Mancini & Taylor Motter

Every year, fantasy owners scour minor league rosters in an effort to find the next breakout star that no one is talking about. We always think that anyone with the slightest chance of mattering in fantasy is on our radar. Then, April rolls around and somebody we have never heard of does something extraordinary. Left […]

Buy or Sell - Underowned and Overowned Players for Week 5

The weather's warming up and so is the trade market in fantasy leagues. You've likely received a few unsavory trade offers by now that leave you wondering what people think before hitting the "Propose Trade" button. While you don't want to be that guy, there are opportunities to be had if you can figure out […]

Strikeout Rate Risers and Fallers for Week 4: Buy or Sell?

We’re constantly trying to come up with new features that will help you dominate your fantasy leagues. Last year we built a tool that identifies the biggest trends in a pitcher's strikeout rate over the last thirty days.  The tool is for Premium subscribers only, and can be found here. With our sample size being so small this early in […]

Champ or Chump: Charlie Morton & Jason Vargas

We're getting to a point in the season when it is tempting to trust a player's numbers, but barring some major change, preseason projections are still a better indicator of future performance. The two names below were selected for entirely different reasons. Charlie Morton was seen as a sleeper based on 2016 success in an […]

Week 4 Cut List: Players on the Chopping Block

Welcome back to the Cut List. Each weekend from now until the end of the season, I’ll be offering my thoughts on players who don’t deserve to keep drawing a nonexistent salary on your fake baseball teams. A column like this can be a tricky thing so early in the year. We’re looking at a […]

Buy or Sell - Underowned and Overowned Players for Week 4

At this juncture, two things are becoming very clear: Eric Thames was a bargain in fantasy drafts and Byron Buxton is an albatross on your team. If you bought low on Thames or managed to snag him off the waiver wire, congrats. If you've had the misfortune of watching Buxton rack up Ks in your […]

Champ or Chump: Eric Thames & Francisco Lindor

Fantasy championships are never won in April, but it still feels good to be at the top of the standings. Eventually things will stabilize, making it more challenging to make a significant jump in a short period of time. When that happens, you definitely want to be in the hunt instead of an also-ran. Chances […]

Champ or Chump: Kendall Graveman & Amir Garrett

It is so easy to overreact to a small sample. Kendall Graveman is 2-0 with a 2.00 ERA this year, and fantasy owners are falling all over themselves to acquire his services. Why? Amir Garrett is also 2-0, inspiring the fantasy world to collectively ask, "Who is that?". It is time to take a closer […]

Week 3 Cut List: Players on the Chopping Block

Welcome back to the Cut List. Each weekend from now until the end of the season, I’ll be offering my thoughts on players who don’t deserve to keep drawing a nonexistent salary on your fake baseball teams. A column like this can be a tricky thing so early in the year. We’re looking at a […]