Jesse Winker Dealing With Illness

Cincinnati Reds outfielder Jesse Winker will not participate in Wednesday's Cactus League game against the Chicago Cubs as he is dealing with an illness. Winker has already dealt with a bruised left wrist/forearm this spring after getting hit by a pitch a few weeks back. There is no reason to expect Winker to miss more […]

Nicholas Castellanos Expected Back Thursday

Cincinnati Reds outfielder Nicholas Castellanos (illness) is expected to return to Cactus League action on Thursday. Castellanos was scratched from the lineup last Friday after he got sick and hasn't played since. The veteran outfielder appears to be over the illness and should be back as in the lineup as he gets ready for his […]

Kyle Freeland Building Back Up

Colorado Rockies starting pitcher Kyle Freeland (back) threw a bullpen session on Monday and is set for another one on Thursday after he left his Cactus League outing last Thursday due to back spasms. Freeland went 3-11 with an ugly 6.73 ERA in 22 starts for the Rockies last year, a season that included him […]

Jakob Junis' Back Injury Not Serious

Kansas City Royals manager Mike Matheny said that starting pitcher Jakob Junis' (back) tightness is not a serious concern. Junis may throw on the side in a day or two, but the team is just being cautious at this time. The 27-year-old righty went 9-14 with a 5.24 ERA and 1.43 WHIP while striking out […]

Fernando Tatis Jr. Still Out Sick

San Diego Padres shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. (flu) missed his third straight day while dealing with the flu on Tuesday. Tatis' fever spiked on Tuesday, but he was feeling better later in the day. The shortstop phenom should be just fine in time for Opening Day. As long as the 21-year-old can stay healthy, something […]

Padres Passing On Kris Bryant

The Chicago Cubs and San Diego Padres recently had trade discussions involving third baseman Kris Bryant, with the Cubs primarily asking for starting pitcher Dinelson Lamet and catching prospect Luis Campusano in return, but the Padres declined. Bryant can play the outfield as well, but he's primarily a third baseman, and the Padres already have […]

Triston McKenzie Could Make Spring Debut Soon

Cleveland Indians pitching prospect Triston McKenzie (back, pectoral), who missed the entire 2019 season with injuries, could see action in a spring training game soon, but the Indians are still trying to determine what is best for the youngster. McKenzie hasn't pitched in a game since August of 2018, but he's thrown in live batting […]

Mike Clevinger Making Promising Progress

Cleveland Indians starting pitcher Mike Clevinger's (knee) extended his flat-ground throwing sessions to 150 feet on Tuesday and moved to the mound to start doing simulations on the mound to test his surgically repaired knee. Clevinger said "it was a really, really, really promising day of catch." He's been pleased to be pain-free so far, […]

Manny Machado Goes Hitless Against Brewers

San Diego Padres third baseman Manny Machado went 0-for-3 with an RBI and a pair of strikeouts in Tuesday's 9-0 win over the Milwaukee Brewers. The 27-year old continues to struggle at the plate this spring, as he has not collected a hit since crushing a home run in his Cactus League first at-bat. Since […]

Wil Myers Collects Third Spring Homer

San Diego Padres outfielder Wil Myers continued his hot hitting on Tuesday, going 1-for-3 with a walk and a home run, his third in six spring games. Myers is now slashing .313/.389/.875 and could be establishing himself as the Padres' full-time right fielder after a disappointing 2019. The 29-year old had his worst season in […]

Isiah Kiner-Falefa Belts Third Home Run On Tuesday

Texas Rangers infielder Isiah Kiner-Falefa hit his third home run of the spring on Tuesday against the San Francisco Giants. Kiner-Falefa took Logan Webb deep in the second inning and is now slashing .318/.348/.727 through nine Cactus League games. The utility infielder adjusted his stance in the offseason, and it looks to be paying off. […]

Garrett Richards Throws Two Scoreless Innings

San Diego Padres starter Garrett Richards threw two scoreless innings on Tuesday, allowing just one hit while striking out two batters in a 9-0 win over the Milwaukee Brewers. The 31-year old looked sharp in his spring debut, as his velocity was registered close to his pre-injury levels. Richards pitched just three games in 2019 […]

Jordan Lyles Gets Roughed Up In Spring Debut

Texas Rangers starting pitcher Jordan Lyles pitched three innings on Tuesday against the San Francisco Giants but gave up a three-run home run in the second inning to put a damper on his debut with his new team. Lyles’ three strikeouts in three innings continued a rising trend for the 10-year veteran. He averaged 6.2 […]

Auction Draft Dollar Day Targets

There are multiple strategies available to drafters in auctions. It is one of the reasons auctions are so much more interesting and fun than snake drafts. They award owners the ability to maneuver their roster the way they see fit. One of the most popular strategies is a stars-and-scrubs alignment, meaning owners pay up for […]

Kyle Bishop's 10 Bold Predictions for 2020

This will be my sixth season with RotoBaller, and consequently, my sixth time participating in this bold predictions series. Over that time, I've amassed a fairly strong record with bold predictions, generally clocking in with a success rate of 30 percent. I correctly predicted Bryce Harper's MVP campaign in 2015 and Kirby Yates leading the […]

ADP Cost Analysis: Aaron Judge vs. Franmil Reyes

Spring Training has finally begun. With the start of games, that also means fantasy baseball draft season is ramping up. As players prepare for drafts, they are always looking for value as they navigate the player pool. One way to locate draft day value is finding players at differing ADPs who will produce similar stat […]

Bases Loaded Podcast: Starting Pitcher Rankings Risers, Fallers and More!

Mike Kurland (@Mike_Kurland)and Sp Streamer revisit their starting pitcher ranks and discuss how their evaluations may have changed on a few players. Subscribe to the Bases Loaded podcast, part of RotoBaller Radio's Podcast Network. Like and Subscribe to the RotoBaller channel on Youtube to get all our latest podcasts and catch us on iTunes and BlogTalkRadio as […]

Noah Syndergaard Working To Limit Steals

New York Mets starting pitcher Noah Syndergaard is working this spring to curb base-stealing success against him. Syndergaard has been plagued by his inability to hold runners on first base throughout his career. For Syndergaard's career, base-stealers have been successful 89 percent of the time against him. In 2019, 42 of 45 (93 percent) of […]

2020 Keeper Value Rankings - Catcher

I've already revealed the 2020 Keeper Value Rankings throughout the infield: First Base, Second Base, Third Base and Shortstop. Now let's go behind the plate. Keeper Value Rankings are intended for Keeper Leagues in which a fantasy owner must forfeit a designated draft pick in order to keep a player into the upcoming season. These rankings are based […]

Finding Over/Undervalued Power Hitters Using Expected Draft Values

A couple weeks ago, we introduced our Expected Draft Values and explained how they would help us identify both over and undervalued players of all types. Power, speed, power+speed, batting average+power, and so on, with pitchers as well. Today, we'll look at four "power" hitters, as identified by our site projections. Stay tuned over the […]

Tyler Beede Feels Elbow Tightness Tuesday

San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Tyler Beede (elbow) exited his outing Tuesday against the Rangers after experiencing tightness in his pitching elbow, per MLB.com's Maria Guardado. Beede pitched one inning, allowing no runs on one hit and a walk with one strikeout. He is scheduled to undergo tests Tuesday night. The 26-year-old is currently fighting […]

Tommy Milone Dealing With Tender Trap Muscle

The Baltimore Orioles kept pitcher Tommy Milone (trapezius) back in camp to throw a simulated game on Tuesday because he's dealing with a "tender trap," according to manager Brandon Hyde. The Orioles are just playing this one cautiously, and they didn't want Milone to make his injury worse while taking a long bus ride. The […]

Matt Adams Still Absent

There is no update on New York Mets first baseman Matt Adams, who has now missed six days of work in camp since the Mets scratched him for additional cardiac screening. Adams has not been at the team's facilities doing baseball activities. It's unclear if this is a serious issue, but it's starting to get […]

Martin Maldonado Has Sore Thumb

Houston Astros catcher Martin Maldonado (thumb) took a foul tip off his thumb in the last few days and was scratched from the Grapefruit League game on Tuesday as a precaution. Maldonado should be just fine for Opening Day. The 33-year-old from Puerto Rico will be Houston's primary catcher with Robinson Chirinos out of the […]

Yordan Alvarez Dealing With Knee Soreness

Houston Astros outfielder Yordan Alvarez (knees) was scratched from the Grapefruit League game on Tuesday with soreness in his knees, according to manager Dusty Baker. However, Baker said the move was precautionary and he doesn't seem very concerned. Alvarez admitted to playing through knee issues in 2019, so this is something worth watching in camp. […]

Blake Snell Throws Tuesday

Tampa Bay Rays starting pitcher Blake Snell (elbow) tested his sore left elbow on Tuesday by playing catch. Snell threw 20 fastballs on flat ground, and pitching coach Kyle Snyder said the ball was coming out of Snell's hand well. Manager Kevin Cash said Snell will throw again on Wednesday and Thursday at increasing distances. […]

Carlos Carrasco Solid In His Spring Debut

Cleveland Indians starting pitcher Carlos Carrasco (hip) made his Cactus League debut Tuesday, allowing two runs on three hits in two innings against the Angels. Carrasco’s first outing got pushed back after he sustained a mild right hip flexor a few weeks ago. He is confident that he can ready himself by Opening Day. It's difficult […]

Bryce Harper Having Quiet Spring

Philadelphia Phillies outfielder Bryce Harper has been quiet in Spring Training as he prepares for his second season in Philadelphia. The star outfielder has just five at-bats across three games this spring, but still has plenty of time to get into the swing of things before opening day. Last season, Harper slashed .260/.372/.510 to go […]

Josh Donaldson Records Two Hits In Win Over Tigers

Minnesota Twins third baseman Josh Donaldson went 2-for-3 with one run scored in a 5-1 win over the Detroit Tigers. Donaldson recorded a pair of singles to give him four hits for the spring so far, tied for second on the team. The 34-year-old had an excellent season for Atlanta in 2019, with 96 runs […]

A.J. Puk Shut Down With Shoulder Strain

Oakland Athletics starting pitcher A.J. Puk has a mild shoulder strain and will be shut down for a few days, according to manager Bob Melvin. An MRI showed nothing structural, but he'll take a few days to rest and will be re-evaluated later in the week. Puk is a top pitching prospect and is expected […]