Mike Zunino Returns To Lineup Friday

Tampa Bay Rays catcher Mike Zunino (biceps) is back behind the plate and is batting seventh on Friday against Minnesota Twins right-hander Dylan Bundy. Zunino missed two games due to a mild left biceps strain suffered earlier this week, but he's back in the starting lineup for the Rays to begin the series with the […]

Pete Fairbanks To Have Follow-Up Appointment May 11

Tampa Bay Rays relief pitcher Pete Fairbanks (lat), who was diagnosed with a 50% tear in his right lat, is scheduled for a follow-up appointment on May 11. Fairbanks was injured on the fifth pitch on March 27 and was shut down from throwing for six weeks. He received a platelet-rich plasma injection in Dallas. […]

Tyler Glasnow Playing Catch

Tampa Bay Rays starting pitcher Tyler Glasnow (ankle, elbow) has been playing catch with right-hander Yonny Chirinos at 90 feet, who is also rehabbing from Tommy John surgery, according to manager Kevin Cash. Glasnow had Tommy John surgery in August of last year and also had arthroscopic surgery to remove loose bodies from his right […]

Ryan Yarbrough Close To Returning To Rotation

Tampa Bay Rays left-hander Ryan Yarbrough (groin) was scheduled for a minor league rehab appearances with Triple-A Durham on April 28, and manager Kevin Cash would like to see him get to the 50-pitch mark before he rejoins the starting rotation. Yarbrough landed on the injured list on April 11 with left groin tightness. In […]

James Paxton Throwing Simulated Innings

Boston Red Sox left-hander James Paxton (elbow) threw two simulated innings in the bullpen in Fort Myers, Fla., on Thursday and was stretched out to 35 pitches. "He's in a good spot," said manager Alex Cora. The Red Sox continue to be encouraged with the progress that Paxton is making in his comeback from Tommy […]

The New York Mets Offense: A True Source of Fantasy Baseball Success?

The New York Mets lost their series finale on Thursday at St. Louis, but they are still one of the biggest positive stories so far in 2022. The Mets won 14 of their first 19 games, and only the legendary 1986 team had a better start, at 15-4. New York also won its opening six […]

Mariners Reinstate Mitch Haniger Friday

The Seattle Mariners reinstated outfielder Mitch Haniger from the COVID-19 injured list on Friday and designated right-hander Matt Koch for assignment in a corresponding move. Haniger tested positive for COVID-19 on April 16 and hasn't played since, so fantasy managers shouldn't be too surprised if is slow to get back into a groove at the […]

Joe Musgrove, Padres Apart In Contract Talks

The San Diego Padres recently made multiple attempts to sign starting pitcher Joe Musgrove to a contract extension, but talks did not lead to an agreement. Musgrove, who can become a free agent after this year, is making $8.625 million this year in his final year of salary arbitration. The Padres last offer was an […]

Peter Lambert Had Flareup In Forearm

Colorado Rockies manager Bud Black said that right-hander Peter Lambert (forearm), who is currently at the team's spring training facility in Arizona, had "a little bit of a flareup" in his forearm several weeks ago. Lambert is throwing and will progress to mound work shortly, however. The 25-year-old had Tommy John surgery in 2020 and […]

Garrett Hampson Could Be Nearing Rehab Assignment

Colorado Rockies infielder/outfielder Garrett Hampson (hand) took soft toss in the batting cages on April 26 and took batting practice on the field on April 27. It could take a couple batting practice sessions before he goes on a minor league rehab assignment. Hampson is currently on the injured list with a bruised right hand, […]

Travis Shaw DFA'd, Franchy Cordero Joining Red Sox

Boston Red Sox designated infielder Travis Shaw for assignment on Friday and are calling up Franchy Cordero to take his place on the roster, according to multiple sources. The team is also expected to activate pitchers Tanner Houck and Kutter Crawford from the restricted list. Shaw made the roster on a minor league deal, but […]

Nolan Gorman Promotion Seems Unlikely

St. Louis Cardinals infielder Nolan Gorman is unlikely to be called up to the big league roster anytime soon. The young slugger already has 10 home runs in Triple-A this season. He is clearly ready for the MLB, but the Cardinals don't have an everyday spot for him yet. Paul DeJong is struggling with the […]

Aaron Hicks Activated On Friday

New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Hicks was activated off the paternity list on Friday. He missed the previous series against the Baltimore Orioles, but is returning for the road trip. This season, Hicks is hitting .273/.377/.341 with one homer and two steals in 15 games. It's uncertain if he'll be back in the starting lineup […]

Mining the Minors for Hot Prospect Hitters and Call-Ups - Nolan Gorman, Triston Casas, Luis Garcia, and more

If you've played even one year of fantasy baseball, you know that predicting minor league call-ups can be a frustrating endeavor. We have to weigh not only the talent of the player and the potential lineup opening in his major league organization but also the relative competitiveness of that organization and any financial or service […]

Live Chat Fantasy Baseball Q&A @ 1PM

Baseball is back...do you know who to play in your lineups? Doug Goldring (@DougGoldring) will be hosting a Live Q&A chat session on Friday April 29th at 1:00 pm ET. Come join in on the fun and get your fantasy baseball questions answered, or just stick around for some MLB talk! All throughout the MLB season […]

Giancarlo Stanton Tallies Five RBI In Orioles Series

New York Yankees outfielder Giancarlo Stanton helped the team complete a three-game sweep of the Baltimore Orioles to start the week. He went 5-for-11 at the plate in the series, compiling one home run, one walk and five RBI. The 32-year-old slugger is now slashing .243/.257/.386 with three home runs, 13 RBI and four runs […]

Breakout Hitters to Watch for Fantasy Baseball Week 4

Welcome back RotoBallers to another edition of my "Breakout Hitters To Watch" series. What we're doing here is taking good, close look at the hitting data each week to see which hitters are standing out the most. The idea is to find hitters that have made changes and/or really improved this season to find start-worthy […]

Wander Franco Carrying Elite Expected Stats

Tampa Bay Rays shortstop Wander Franco certainly hasn't disappointed out of the gate for his sophomore MLB season. Through 18 games, he's slashing .307/.329/.587 with four home runs, seven doubles, two stolen bases, 12 RBI and 13 runs. While those numbers are no doubt impressive, his underlying statistics are even more eye-popping. He currently has […]

Francisco Lindor Cutting Down Strikeouts In 2022

New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor has been showing some improved plate discipline so far this year. Last season, he struck out 18.3% of the time, a career-high clip. Through 20 games this year, his strikeout rate is down to 14.6%, which is right around where it typically was during his days in Cleveland. Lindor […]

Mookie Betts Slashing .209/.338/.328 Through 17 Games

It's been a slow start to the year for Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Mookie Betts. Across his first 17 games, he's slashing .209/.338/.328 with four extra-base hits (two home runs, two doubles), three stolen bases, five RBI and 17 runs scored. His 15% walk rate and run scoring output from the top of the Dodgers […]

Jose Ramirez Lifts His OPS To 1.116

Cleveland Guardians third baseman Jose Ramirez had a productive four-game series against the Los Angeles Angels this week. In total, he went 4-for-14 with two home runs, a double, two walks and five RBI. He is now slashing .347/.407/.708 over 19 games on the year with six home runs, 25 RBI and nine runs scored. […]

Taylor Clarke Records His First Save On Thursday

Kansas City Royals relief pitcher Taylor Clarke closed out the team's 5-2, 10-inning victory over the Chicago White Sox on Thursday to earn his first save of the year. He retired the side in order in the 10th inning, recording two strikeouts along the way. This was his second save opportunity of the year, but […]

Josh Taylor To Pitch Back-To-Back Days At Triple-A

Boston Red Sox relief pitcher Josh Taylor (back) is expected to pitch out of the bullpen at Triple-A Worcester on both Friday and Saturday, throwing one inning in each game. The 29-year-old has been out all year due to a back strain, but if all goes well this weekend, we could see him back with […]

Early Pitching Outliers: Swinging-Strike Rate vs. Strikeout Rate

It is very early in the season, as the league leaders have made just four starts. Because of this, we have a lot of strangeness in the data that has been generated, especially with pitching, which is an inherently random exercise. One thing that can be a bit random over a small sample size is […]

Franchy Cordero Doing Work At First Base

Boston Red Sox outfielder Franchy Cordero has played first base in two straight games for Triple-A Worcester. The 27-year-old is typically accustomed to playing left field, but the move to first base suggests that he could be called up to give the team an alternative to the struggling Bobby Dalbec. Cordero has been swinging a […]

Where Have Robbie Ray's Strikeouts Gone?

Winning the Cy Young award is quite a prestigious honor. From Don Newcombe in 1956 to Sandy Koufax, Bob Gibson, Tom Seaver, Greg Maddux, Randy Johnson, Pedro Martinez, and many more, that honor puts you in elite company. Last season, we saw two pitchers take home their first Cy Young award. However, whereas Corbin Burnes […]

Fantasy Baseball Trade Targets - Buy/Sell For Week 3

Making the right trades can be crucial to championship success in fantasy baseball, almost as much as the draft, if not more. While most trades can have a significant impact on your fantasy team, it’s the deals where you acquire undervalued players and then see their production improve that can really tip the scales in […]

Updated MLB Prospects Rankings - Top 25 Fantasy Baseball Prospects (Week 3)

Bobby Witt Jr., Julio Rodriguez, and C.J. Abrams may have arrived in The Show already but the Triple-A level (and even Double-A) is littered with prospects looking to have explosive impacts at the MLB level in 2022. Quite a few top prospects are off to strong starts at the Triple-A level -- albeit in small […]

All-In-One MLB DFS Staff Picks and Analysis 4/29/22 (Premium Content)

  All-In-One MLB DFS Staff Picks and Analysis for 4/29/22 All other Premium Tools can be accessed on the premium dashboard. Full Friday slate, 13 games on the slate. It's a beauty, let's try to beat it!   Top Hitters for 4/29/22 I'm going to give you my favorite hitters on the slate here with […]

Free MLB Betting Picks - Today's Best Bets, Expert Predictions, Odds (4/29/22)

Happy Friday, RotoBallers! We bounced back yesterday, going 2-0 on both plays. Make sure you're following my Twitter, as I can't guarantee that I'll always be able to get the added plays written here in the article, but I will typically add whatever else I'm playing throughout the day. The entire RotoBaller team has been […]