The New Big Red Machine

For some, the nickname Big Red Machine conjures up fond memories of former WWE superstar and current Knox County, TN mayor Kane (real name Glenn Jacobs). However, the mere mention of the Big Red Machine in the mid to late 1970s made many big league pitchers shudder in fear at the prospect of facing a Reds […]

Deeper Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 5

As we continue to move along in this 2020 season and a little bit of the craziness winds down, teams are finally starting to click, and roles are being ironed out. For fantasy purposes, that means that the waiver wire is going to be busier than ever, and in deep leagues, there is still a […]

Hot Prospects To Watch: Tigers Rookies and Low-Owned Youngsters

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 […]

Are You For Real? Surprising SP Starts from Week 4

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). Something's fishy about this week's group...it's the Marlins! Miami has quietly built one of the most intriguing young staffs in the league, and we're taking a deep dive down south to […]

Statcast Hitter Studs and Duds - Barrels (Week 5)

We're cruising right along on our Statcast Hitter Studs/Duds series. Many fantasy baseball owners are starting to see the value of MLB's Statcast advanced stats in order to help identify potential risers and sleepers. Just as we do for pitchers, this weekly series will examine a handful of hitters who are performing surprisingly well or […]

Starting Pitcher Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 5

Most breakout starters who were afterthoughts to start the year have found their way onto a fantasy roster by now. Such as Dylan Bundy, Dustin May, Aaron Civale, and even the legend that is Randy Dobnak. However, there are still plenty of young, high-upside starters to be plucked from the waiver wire. Who to add […]

Two-Start Pitcher Streamers for Fantasy Baseball - Week 5

Welcome to RotoBaller's weekly article of two-start pitcher streamers for 2020! Successfully streaming pitchers can literally be a game-changer when it comes to fantasy baseball. When it comes to daily leagues, two-start streams aren't that important, since you can stream every day. But when it comes to weekly leagues, two-start streams become exponentially more important. […]

Hitter Streamers for Fantasy Baseball Week 5

Welcome back to another installment of the hitting streamers column! This edition is for August 17 through August 23. As will be the case every week, I will offer a couple of worthy streamers for each position (catcher, corner infield, middle infield, outfield) based on the number of games the players have for the upcoming […]

Statcast Pitcher Studs and Duds - xwOBA

The season rolls on and we have more data to digest by the day. Since many regular starting pitchers have taken at least three or four turns in the rotation, I will focus on Statcast data for those who have faced a minimum of 50 batters so far. This narrows the field to 101 pitchers, […]

From Farm to Roster: Potential Call-Ups For Week 4

Every Thursday for the duration of the Major League Baseball season, I'm going to be discussing players on a team's Taxi Squad or Alternate Site Camp who are worth keeping an eye on or stashing in hopes of reaping fantasy goodness. I'll list league sizes where the player could be relevant and give you information […]

Too Good To Be True? Buying/Selling Hot Pitching Starts

Last week, we dove into the hitters who were off to hot starts and tried to decide what was real and what wasn't as sustainable. Now we'll turn our attention to the arms. After two full weeks of baseball, we're over 20% done with the season, more FAAB dollars are being spent than ever before, and […]

Deeper Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 4

The 2020 season continues to move along and with it, more challenges to find deep league sleepers. Playing time situations are still a little shaky for some teams, and lineups are anything but stable as the season crosses the quarter mark. There are still some intriguing names who are being a little underlooked that can […]

Are You For Real? Surprising SP Starts from Week 3

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). This week we're looking at a trio of pitchers who put up surprising strikeout numbers over the weekend. Nathan Eovaldi dominated the baby Blue Jays, while Framber Valdez put up nine […]

Statcast Hitter Studs and Duds - Exit Velocity (Week 4)

We're off and running on our Statcast Hitter Studs/Duds series! Many fantasy baseball owners are starting to see the value of MLB's Statcast advanced stats in order to help identify potential risers and sleepers. Just as we do for pitchers, this weekly series will examine a handful of hitters who are performing surprisingly well or […]

Hot Prospects To Watch: Next In Line and Hot Starters

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 […]

Josh James Should Close for the Astros

The pitching woes in Houston continue to stack upon one another. Consider it bad luck, karma for cheating, or whatever you want, the fact of the matter is that this pitching staff is dealing with a litany of issues and cannot afford to make more mistakes throughout the rest of this shortened season. The Astros […]

Starting Pitcher Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 4

As week four approaches, the season is starting to take shape. Sample sizes for all statistics and analytics are getting larger, therefore becoming more indicative of future outcomes. Both pitchers and hitters are starting to show their true colors, making it easier to identify good matchups. With that being said let’s delve into the waiver […]

Hitter Streamers for Fantasy Baseball Week 4

Welcome back to another installment of the hitting streamers column! This edition is for August 10 through August 16. As will be the case every week, I will offer a couple of worthy streamers for each position (catcher, corner infield, middle infield, outfield) based on the number of games the players have for the upcoming […]

Meet The Replacement Mets

The New York Mets have been hit with a rash of injuries to begin the shortened 2020 season. Well before summer camp began, starting pitcher Noah Syndergaard suffered a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow requiring Tommy John surgery in late March. In addition, starting pitcher Marcus Stroman suffered a torn muscle in […]

Two-Start Pitcher Streamers for Fantasy Baseball - Week 4 (8/10-8/16)

Welcome to RotoBaller's weekly article of two-start pitcher streamers for 2020! Successfully streaming pitchers can literally be a game-changer when it comes to fantasy baseball. When it comes to daily leagues, two-start streams aren't that important, since you can stream every day. But when it comes to weekly leagues, two-start streams become exponentially more important. […]

Plate Discipline Standouts for 2020

Last year, I unveiled a new weighted index statistic for hitters – mPDI, which mirrors a famous quote by Hall of Fame pitcher, Greg Maddux: “The key to pitching is to have the ability to throw a strike when they’re taking and throw a ball when the hitter is swinging.” If we consider the inverse […]

Kyle Tucker May Be Arriving

Coming into this season, Kyle Tucker was widely viewed as an intriguing outfielder due to his prospect pedigree and power-speed profile while hitting in a stacked Astros' lineup. Tucker slashed .266/.354/.555 with 34 home runs and 30 stolen bases in 536 plate appearances at Triple-A last season, leaving fantasy players drooling over his upside. Tucker […]

From Farm to Roster: Prospect Call-Ups For Week 3

Every Thursday for the duration of the Major League Baseball season, I'm going to be discussing players on a team's Taxi Squad or Alternate Site Camp who are worth keeping an eye on or stashing in hopes of reaping fantasy goodness. I'll list league sizes where the player could be relevant and give you information […]

Batting Stance Adjustments Leading to Early Breakouts

It has been a wild and crazy season, to say the least, to start 2020. With samples still very small, the numbers are off a lot of the time in one direction or the other. This is why diving in and finding tangible change can be the difference in the production sustaining or it being […]

Is It Too Good To Be True? Buying and Selling Hot Starts

Normally, after only one full week of the fantasy baseball season, we're casually taking stock of our teams, seeing which guys are settling into lineup spots, which teams look like they might be surprising, and generally feeling pretty good about where we're at now. However, there is nothing normal about this season. After one full […]

Deeper Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 3

It is still the early portion of the season, where we still don't know enough about player performances to make a solid judgment, roles are still being figured out, and in some cases, teams are coming back from long layovers. It's definitely a crazy a season, but there is still some value to be found […]

Hot Prospects To Watch: Close Call-Ups and Hot Starters

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 […]

Statcast Pitcher Studs and Duds - Exit Velocity

It's fair to say we have enough Statcast data now to dig into the numbers and start identifying early risers and fallers. Many starting pitchers have only taken two turns in the rotation, so the safest place to start is with average exit velocity numbers. In future installments, we'll get to barrels, expected stats, and […]

Statcast Hitter Studs and Duds - Barrels (Week 3)

We're off and running on our Statcast Hitter Studs/Duds series! Many fantasy baseball owners are starting to see the value of MLB's Statcast advanced stats in order to help identify potential risers and sleepers. Just as we do for pitchers, this weekly series will examine a handful of hitters who are performing surprisingly well or […]