Leading Indicators - First Pitch Strikes and Strikeout Risers

Conventional baseball wisdom harps on the importance of the first-pitch strike (F-strike%). As pitchers get ahead in counts, they gain an advantage on hitters and have more pitch choices at their disposal. However, smart people discovered a hitter's average with a 0-1 count (.321) is only marginally worse than a 1-0 count (.337). The pitch […]

Using Sabermetrics For Fantasy Baseball Part 12 - Pitch Info

One of the most fundamental questions in fantasy sports is if a player's current performance is sustainable. More than any other sport, baseball has a slew of statistical measures that can be dissected numerous ways to analyze player performance. Pitch Info is a publicly available pitch tracking system that provides a lot of different data […]

Chris Taylor Rankings Debate - Comparing RotoBaller's Rankers

We continue our long-running series of articles debating fantasy rankings with a super-utility player that suddenly became a fantasy force in 2017. The question remains: is it repeatable? RotoBaller's expert writers have come up with our consensus rankings for mixed leagues, but that doesn't mean we agreed on everything. In this space, we'll hear from […]

Ottoneu Draft Strategy

Ottoneu is a format that only the fantasy baseball obsessed know about. For years I’ve been eyeing an Ottoneu league but was hesitant to take the plunge; the massive rosters, complex scoring system and year-round commitment were overwhelming, to say the least. But this year I’m ready to make the leap, having signed on with […]

Champ or Chump - J.T. Realmuto and Andrew Benintendi

Some fantasy owners prioritize upside over everything else in their draft. Upside wins leagues! Upside makes your team more exciting to follow! Upside encourages you to draft Byron Buxton and hold onto him until his lack of production has doomed you to the second division of your league! Upside doesn't win leagues, profit potential does. […]

Trevor Story Rankings Debate - Comparing RotoBaller's Rankers

We continue our series of articles debating the overall ranking of some of the most fantasy-relevant players of the 2018 baseball season with a player who captivated the world with the start of his career in 2016, but now finds himself in need of redemption after a disappointing 2017. Colorado Rockies shortstop Trevor Story is […]

First Base H2H Points Rankings - March Update

Welcome back RotoBallers. With the MLB season just a few short weeks a way, it's time to update our rankings and analysis to account for injuries, free agent signings, spring training risers/fallers and more. We kick off our updated March rankings today with the first base position. Bill Dubiel breaks down each tier and provides analysis […]

Catcher Preview - Anthony Aniano's RotoBaller Podcast

RotoBaller fantasy baseball expert Anthony Aniano gets a jump on the 2018 MLB Season with a preview of the Catcher position along with all the latest fantasy baseball news and notes. This radio show is sponsored by our good friends over at RT Sports. Be sure to also tune into RotoBaller Radio on SiriusXM (channel […]

Danny Duffy Rankings Debate - Comparing RotoBaller's Rankers

We continue our series of articles debating the overall ranking of some of the most fantasy-relevant players of the 2018 baseball season with a player who broke out in 2016 and showed flashes of brilliance in 2017. Kansas City Royals starting pitcher Danny Duffy is a mid-round pick who has shown incredible upside since joining […]

2018 Bullpen Outlooks - National League West

The National League West wraps up our 2018 Bullpen Outlooks series. Check out all of the American League divisions here: AL East, AL Central, AL West, and the rest of the National League here: NL East, NL Central. Stick with Rotoballer all season long for weekly Closer Reports including recaps of the week that passed, outlooks for […]

Best Ball Sleepers and Late Round Targets for Fantasy Baseball

Best ball leagues are one of the latest variations of fantasy baseball that are quickly growing in popularity. Draft day is the only day of the year where owners will have control over their roster. There is no waiver wire and there are no trades. Owners won't even set daily lineups, as they will instead […]

Updated Third Base Rankings - 2018 Fantasy Baseball

With the regular season blessedly just a few weeks away, it's time for the RotoBaller staff to update our rankings one last time. We continue our review of the March update with a look at the third base position. There's a ton of talent at the hot corner this season, with the usual elites at […]

Eric Hosmer Rankings Debate - Comparing RotoBaller's Rankers

We continue our long-running series of articles debating fantasy rankings with a player that has ignited a good amount of debate over the last few months within our rankers. RotoBaller's expert writers have come up with our consensus rankings for mixed leagues, but that doesn't mean we agreed on everything. In this space, we'll hear […]

Points League Primer - Fantasy Baseball Draft Strategy

When discussing fantasy baseball, an often neglected but entertaining format is the points league. These exist in both season-long cumulative and weekly head-to-head leagues. While existential debates about scoring categories and their true depiction of player worth are endless, points leagues arguably get closest to the objective of sabermetrics. Points leagues attempt to define a […]

Join The RotoBaller Challenge - Free Leagues, Win Cash Prizes

We are happy to announce that registration is open for the second annual RotoBaller Fantasy Baseball Challenge ? Fight for the title in 12-team rotisserie leagues. Also compete for the crown against all teams and leagues for a chance to win $1,000 in cash prizes. Drafts will take place from March 15th through March 28th.   Double The Fun […]

ADP Myth Busters - Debunking Myths in the AL East

This series will attempt to help fantasy baseball owners make informed opinions on players whose ADP may not be in line with their value for the 2018 season. As fantasy owners, we can fall into a "group think" mentality and start to overlook certain teams and players. If we aren't careful, those ideas can turn […]

Top First Base Prospect Rankings - 2018 Impact Rookies for Fantasy Baseball

Welcome back, RotoBallers. I'll be breaking down impact prospects by position. Today I'm bringing you my top 10 first basemen - MLB prospect rankings for the 2018 fantasy baseball season. First base is always a challenging position to find rookie stars. It’s not every year a Cody Bellinger and Rhys Hoskins reach the majors. Most […]

Xander Bogaerts Rankings Debate - Comparing RotoBaller's Rankers

We continue our long-running series of articles debating fantasy rankings with a player who was widely selected in the second or third round last year, but endured a disappointing 2017 campaign. RotoBaller's expert writers have come up with our consensus rankings for mixed leagues, but that doesn't mean we agreed on everything. In this space, […]

ADP Sleepers and Busts - NL Starting Pitchers

With the inherent injury risk to pitchers and innings management becoming more prevalent in baseball, nailing starting pitchers becomes even more important on draft day. After the big four of Clayton Kershaw, Max Scherzer, Chris Sale, and Corey Kluber are off the board, seemingly every pitcher has some sort flaw or concern going into 2018. […]

Using Sabermetrics For Fantasy Baseball Part 11 - Batted Ball Distribution For Pitchers

The league average batted ball distribution in 2017 was 20.3% liners, 44.2% grounders and 35.5% flies. We have previously seen how pitchers may specialize in either grounders or fly balls. Fly ball pitchers have a BABIP advantage over their ground ball-inducing counterparts, since fly balls (.130 BABIP in 2017) consistently have lower BABIPs than worm […]

Updated First Base Rankings - 2018 Fantasy Baseball

Welcome back RotoBallers. With the MLB season just a few short weeks a way, it's time to update our rankings and analysis to account for injuries, free agent signings, spring training risers/fallers and more. We kick off our updated March rankings today with the first base position. Harris breaks down each tier and provides analysis […]

Turning Two - Beware the Trending Six-Man Rotation

A six-man starting rotation? "That's just not what MLB is to me," Texas Rangers pitcher Cole Hamels said recently. As someone accustomed to being at the forefront of a pitching staff and who's logged 362 starts over 12 Major League seasons, it's only logical that Hamels would expect to keep trotting out there as much as […]

2018 Bullpen Outlooks - National League Central

The National League Central continues our series of National League bullpen outlooks. Check out all of the American League divisions here: AL East, AL Central, AL West, and the first National League article here: NL East The NL Central has several strong closers who could make some significant noise in fantasy leagues this season. Even with that being […]

Best-Ball Draft Strategy Overview for Fantasy Baseball

It's finally March, which can only mean two things: Spring Training and fantasy drafts. All the effort spent on rankings and draft prep finally come to fruition. Once your draft is completed, you then get to spend every day of the rest of the season analyzing player performances, scouring waiver wires and setting the best […]

Champ or Chump - Garrett Richards and Xander Bogaerts

Sometimes, you look at fantasy baseball ADP data and ask yourself, "why?" A deeper dive might reveal that your opinion on a given player has become outdated, or maybe you can see an argument that fails to convince you but might move the needle for somebody else. In either case, the price is justifiable. However, […]

Points Leagues Starting Pitchers - Overvalued and Undervalued

As we’ve discussed before, points leagues are a bit of a different animal from the more popular head-to-head and rotisserie formats. One of the most obvious differences between them is how pitchers are valued. In a points league, the top pitchers routinely outearn the top hitters. Most analysis will tell you to favor bats in […]

Outfield Preview - Anthony Aniano's RotoBaller Podcast

RotoBaller fantasy baseball expert Anthony Aniano gets a jump on the 2018 MLB Season with a preview of the Outfield position along with all the latest fantasy baseball news and notes. This radio show is sponsored by our good friends over at RT Sports. Be sure to also tune into RotoBaller Radio on SiriusXM (channel Sirius […]

Top Catcher Prospect Rankings - 2018 Impact Rookies for Fantasy Baseball

Welcome back, RotoBallers. Over the next few days, I'll be breaking down my top impact prospects for fantasy baseball by position. Today I'm bringing you my top 10 catcher prospect rankings - rookies that have the best chance to make fantasy baseball impacts for the 2018 season. Catcher is a vital spot for owners in redraft leagues. […]

Breaking Down the AL and NL East - RotoBaller's Champions Analysis Podcast

RotoBaller expert Kyle Richardson is joined by Blake Sullivan and Jesse Hiatt to discuss all the recent news that affect fantasy baseball owners. They also break down the AL and NL East with a mock draft. Plus, Kyle confirms his hate for nicknames and Jesse is compared to a well known sports media personality. This […]