Breakout Pitchers and Late-Round Draft Targets: WPC+

Pierre Camus and Nicklaus Gaut identify pitchers who could break out in 2021. Target these pitchers late in fantasy baseball drafts! Like and subscribe to the RotoBaller channel on Youtube to get all our latest podcasts and catch us on iTunes and BlogTalkRadio as well! Be sure to also tune into RotoBaller Radio on SiriusXM (channel Sirius […]

Emmanuel Clase (RP, CLE) - 2021 Fantasy Baseball Draft Sleepers

The Cleveland Indians finished the shortened 2020 season 10 games above .500 and earned a Wild Card spot out of the A.L. Central. They had this success despite key players like Francisco Lindor and Oscar Mercado not performing up to expectations. They also had success despite losing one of their key bullpen arms in Emmanuel […]

2021 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers - Chris Martin

Eric Samulski of RotoBaller analyzes Chris Martin as a 2021 fantasy baseball sleeper and undervalued draft pick. He breaks Martin's pitches, improvements from 2020, and other factors that could make him a sneaky late-round relief pitcher breakout candidate. Fantasy players should consider drafting Martin for their drafts this MLB Season. Be sure to also tune […]

Deeper League Sleepers at Third Base

Fantasy managers are always on the lookout for the sleeper that can turn into a breakout performer. I've already reviewed the best deep sleepers at second base, so now let's turn to third base. When defining a breakout, I look at it as a player that can take a step forward to a level they […]

Drew Smyly (SP, ATL) - 2021 Fantasy Baseball Draft Sleepers

Finding strong starting pitching that does not have a hefty price tag can be really tough. A lot of leagues are won by the team that had the most success with their later-round starting pitcher selections. Blake Snell, Shane Bieber, and Dinelson Lamet are three names of the last handful of years that went in […]

Adbert Alzolay (SP, CHC) - 2021 Fantasy Baseball Draft Sleepers

The Chicago Cubs suddenly have some openings in their rotation after jettisoning Yu Darvish in the offseason to, uh, not save money at all because that's totally not why they did it. Although we can agree that the additions of Zach Davies and Trevor Williams alongside Kyle Hendricks and Alec Mills make this staff a […]

Zach Eflin (SP, PHI) - 2021 Fantasy Baseball Draft Sleepers

Welcome back to RotoBaller's 2021 draft sleepers series. Here we'll take a look at one of my favorite breakout picks, Phillies starter Zach Eflin. Eflin elevated his game to new heights last year. The right-hander had his best season in the majors posting a 3.97 ERA, 3.50 SIERA, 1.27 WHIP, and a 10.2 SwStr% in […]

Richard Rodriguez (RP, PIT) - 2021 Fantasy Baseball Draft Sleepers

Saves are a scarce commodity in today's game, as more and more teams are relying on multiple relievers to handle ninth-inning duties. In last year's abbreviated season, just 10 pitchers reached double digits in the category. Going a little further down the list, only 18 closed out seven or more games, and that includes guys […]

Edwin Rios (1B/3B, LAD) - 2021 Fantasy Baseball Draft Sleepers

If there is one thing the league does not want to see, it's the Dodgers develop another breakout power hitter, but it sure is looking like that's a very real possibility with Edwin Rios. He did more than enough in his 83 plate appearances last year to draw our attention, so let's take a deep […]

Bobby Dalbec (1B, BOS) - 2021 Fantasy Baseball Draft Sleepers

It is safe to say Bobby Dalbec surprised us all as he came up and smacked eight home runs in just 23 games. A prospect known for his power, the production isn't as much as a surprise as how quickly it clicked for him. But be mindful, this came with a 42.4% strikeout rate and […]

Josh Naylor (OF, CLE) - 2021 Fantasy Baseball Draft Sleepers

People often forget that Josh Naylor was a first-round pick. He hasn't even been bad in the minors. His plate discipline has been a strength all throughout. He only struck out over 16.8% once as a minor leaguer and that was in his first run at Double-A. He posted a 20.6% strikeout rate that season. […]

Austin Hays (OF, BAL) - 2021 Fantasy Baseball Draft Sleepers

Austin Hays continues to bait me in as he shows flashes of upside. The appeal for Hays is the power potential, mixed with a little bit of speed. He had stolen 11 bases as recently as 2019 when combining his three stops. In 2020, he was in the 76th percentile for sprint speed and had […]

2020 Schedule Outliers - AL East Starting Pitchers

One of the major changes MLB teams faced during the 2020 season was the lack of a diverse set of competition. Instead of playing around 20 other teams as they would in a normal season, teams played only nine different opponents in 2020. Additionally, two-thirds of each team’s games came against opponents within their own […]

Three Rookie Sleepers that Debuted in Late 2020

For a wide variety of reasons, 2020 was an unusual season for baseball. But out of these unusual situations came some opportunities for top-tier prospects to get a shot at the big leagues. Now prospects that made a splash in their debuts like Ke'Bryan Hayes or Tanner Houck will be garnering the interest of many […]

Valuable Long Relievers of 2020 and the Lingering Impact (Part 2)

In part one, we examined the bullpens in Toronto and Cincinnati. The circumstantial insanity of the 2020 MLB season necessitated some adjustments in strategy, both for big-league managers and fantasy baseball GMs. One of these adjustments, prompted by frequent doubleheaders and the three-batter minimum rule, was the greater use of long-relievers and a generally reduced […]

Three Hitters Set To Break Out Later Than Expected

Finding breakout hitters can be a difference-maker for fantasy teams, especially when those hitters have had limited success at the major league level and are older than when players typically have their best seasons. Whether it be through added playing time, skill improvements, or some combination of the two, post-prime breakouts can be excellent draft […]

Valuable Long Relievers of 2020 and the Lingering Impact (Part 1)

The circumstantial insanity of the 2020 MLB season necessitated some adjustments in strategy, both for big-league managers and fantasy baseball GMs. One of these adjustments, prompted by frequent doubleheaders and the three-batter minimum rule, was the greater use of long-relievers and a generally reduced workload for rotation pitchers. That makes sense from the perspective of […]

Three Hitters Set To Break Out Earlier Than Expected

Finding breakout hitters can be a difference-maker for fantasy teams, especially when those hitters have had limited success at the major league level early in their careers. Whether it be through added playing time, skill improvements, or some combination of the two, pre-prime breakouts can be excellent draft values thanks to their unusually high upside.  […]

Statcast Review - Noteworthy xBA/xSLG Hitting Leaders

Thanks to its abbreviated schedule, the 2020 MLB season resulted in some unusual outcomes. Michael Conforto posted the highest full-season BABIP since Ty Cobb in 1913, Luke Voit was on pace for 60 home runs, and Robbie Ray walked a ridiculous 18% of the batters he faced. xStats were not immune to that weirdness, xBA […]

Nate Lowe to Rangers - Fantasy Impact

Nate Lowe has been FREED!!!!! The Tampa Bay Rays have traded their talented slugging first baseman as well as first baseman Jake Guenther to the Texas Rangers for catcher Heriberto Hernandez, infielder Osleivis Basabe, and outfielder Alexander Ovalles. This is the moment many fantasy baseball players have been waiting for, the chance for Nate Lowe […]

Statcast Review - Hard Hit/Exit Velocity Pitching Leaders

Pitcher contact quality can be a tricky attribute for fantasy managers to incorporate into their analysis. On one hand, pitchers are more at the whim of hitters when it comes to contact quality than the other way around. On the other hand, it certainly seems as though pitchers can exert meaningful control over their contact […]

Effects of an Innocuous Move: Brian Goodwin to Cincinnati

If you would've told me at the start of the 2020 season that one of the two moves made by the Cincinnati Reds at the Trade Deadline would be for a Major League outfielder, I would've been forced to assume that any four Reds outfielders had been suspended for the season for pulling some sort […]

Deeper Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 10

Just as soon as it began, it is now coming to a close. It's the final week of the regular season, and with that, another fantasy baseball season is in the books. Hopefully, you did well as it is most likely championship week. Every move matters at this point and there are, surprisingly, a few […]

Are You For Real? Surprising SP Starts from Week 9

Welcome back to "Are You For Real?" Each week, we look at lower-owned starting pitchers who have performed unexpectedly well in their last outing(s). Hard to believe, but the fantasy baseball season is already coming to a close. While it wasn't the long slog we normally love, we can at least appreciate it was here. […]

Statcast Hitter Leaderboard: Rolling xSLG Risers

The final Statcast numbers for 2020 will undoubtedly reap some interesting data. Small sample sizes abound, so throw in scheduling quirks, numerous injuries, seven-inning doubleheaders and a universal DH and you have the recipe for statistical outliers galore. Fantasy baseball season has one glorious week remaining, so the best use of this space would be […]

Hot Prospects To Watch: Two-Start Pitchers and Category-Specific Hitters

Perhaps there's nothing more tantalizing in fantasy baseball than drafting an up-and-coming prospect or rushing to the waiver wire to bid on a Triple-A call-up. With no minor leagues this year, our favorite prospects are now playing on taxi squads, making it difficult for us to fantasize about since we can't get eyes on their […]

Starting Pitcher Waiver Wire Week 10

What a full out sprint of a Major-League Baseball regular season. It provided highs, lows, and forced fantasy owners to make tough decisions that rewarded those who played boldly. Deciding which players would man a fantasy team’s rotation was the most important of all. Certain players had to be sold or bought much earlier than usual […]

Must-Add Category Streamers for the Final Stretch

Sadly, just 10 days of baseball remain in the MLB regular season and the fantasy season. At least the commissioner was nice enough to let everyone into the postseason, so there'll be plenty more ball games on the tube to watch. Unfortunately, fantasy leagues don't work that way. You're in the last leg of the […]

Finish Strong in 2020 (Adds, Drops, Streamers): WPC+ Videocast

Pierre Camus and Nicklaus Gaut discuss which hot hitters and two-start streamers to add for the final week of the season, as well as big-name players to drop. Like and subscribe to the RotoBaller channel on Youtube to get all our latest podcasts and catch us on iTunes and BlogTalkRadio as well! Be sure to […]