Tommy Pham Expected to DH Saturday

San Diego Padres outfielder Tommy Pham (side) is expected to return to the lineup on Saturday against the Cincinnati Reds. The 31-year old was held out of the Padres previous game with soreness in his side. The injury appears to be minor and the Padres are expected to have their new acquisition at full health to […]

Elite Starters and Pitching Trends Revisited

Last year I wrote a series [Part 1, Part 2, Part 3] on whether we were properly valuing elite starting pitchers. The basic premise was that we were likely to see fantasy-relevant starters (not openers) throw fewer innings again in 2019. I hypothesized that if there were fewer and fewer starting pitchers providing 200 innings […]

Brandon Nimmo Cleared For Baseball Activity

New York Mets outfielder Brandon Nimmo was cleared for baseball activity on Thursday after multiple rounds of cardiac screening. It appears that Nimmo should be ready to go for Opening Day. Nimmo will face competition for playing time in a crowded Mets outfield. As a result, he could end up in a platoon role given the […]

ADP Cost Analysis: Gleyber Torres vs Max Muncy

Fantasy baseball is a great game, and there may not be a better time of the season than draft prep. The numbers are flying around, and the group texts are saying that it's Acuna's year to be No. 1 while others take the "If it ain't broke, don't fix it" approach with Mike Trout. The […]

Announcing RotoBaller's New Live Draft Tool

Last season at RotoBaller, we released a set of interactive cheat sheets to help fantasy players prepare for their drafts and the upcoming season. This preseason we have updated these cheat sheets and have also added a brand new Live Draft Tool to give you an edge while drafting in real-time!  In addition to the Live […]

Evaluating OAA for Pitchers Changing Teams (12-Team Leagues)

Last week, I looked at Statcast’s new Outs Above Average (OAA) leaderboard, which they’ve used to identify the best defensive infielders in the league. My initial exploration of the metric was designed to identify pitchers who might have been lucky or unlucky last year as a way of mining for bounceback value or avoiding potential […]

Rougned Odor Smacks Grand Slam In Rout

Texas Rangers second baseman Rougned Odor hit a first-inning grand slam in his team's 13-1 win over the Chicago Cubs on Thursday. After Elvis Andrus, Nick Solak, and Joey Gallo all made it on base, Odor launched Colin Rea's 3-1 pitch over the right-field wall to clear the bases. Odor finished the day 3-for-3 with […]

A's, Mets Checking In On Russell Martin

The Oakland Athletics and New York Mets and a few other teams have checked in on free-agent catcher Russell Martin. Martin has already turned down a few offers as he prioritizes a family situation, but he still wants to play in 2020. The 37-year-old Canadian is at the end of his career and will surely […]

Edwin Encarnacion Could Return In A Couple Of Days

Chicago White Sox first baseman/designated hitter Edwin Encarnacion (back) was removed prior to Thursday’s contest with back tightness. Manager Rick Renteria said that the removal of Encarnacion was precautionary and that he should be expected back in a couple of days. Encarnacion will be in the middle of a good offensive lineup and should help […]

Luis Severino Has Successful Tommy John Surgery

New York Yankees starting pitcher Luis Severino (elbow) had Tommy John surgery on Thursday. Severino’s surgery was reportedly successful, and the pitcher also had a bone chip removed from his elbow in the process. Severino’s best-case scenario for a return date seems to be the start of the 2021 season, but it’s more likely that […]

Aaron Judge Still Not Hitting Live Batting Practice

New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge (shoulder) has still yet to progress to live batting practice, but the 27-year-old said that he’s feeling good and is likely in line to play on Opening Day. Judge only missed one game with a shoulder issue last season, but the outfielder underwent shoulder surgery between the 2017 and […]

Taylor Trammell Records Two Hits, Winning RBI for Padres

San Diego Padres outfielder Taylor Trammell went 2-for-3 with an RBI in the Padres 1-0 win over the Los Angeles Angels on Thursday. The 22-year old drove home the only run of the game with a fourth-inning single that cashed in Gordon Beckham. Trammell's prospect stock fell a bit last year as he struggled to […]

Tanner Roark To Throw Sim Game This Weekend

Toronto Blue Jays starter Tanner Roark (flu) will throw a simulated game this weekend, followed by his Grapefruit League debut sometime next week. The veteran has had a late start to his throwing program after battling the flu, but he should be good to go by Opening Day to pitch in the middle of the […]

Danny Jansen Will Likely Platoon With Reese McGuire In 2020

Toronto Blue Jays manager Charlie Montoyo indicated on Thursday that he foresees a 60/40 split between catchers Danny Jansen and Reese McGuire this season. Jansen would be on the favorable side of the platoon despite the right-handed bat, but Montoyo wants both players to know the pitching staff well so he can play matchups during […]

Cavan Biggio Could See Time As Corner Infielder

Toronto Blue Jays manager Charlie Montoyo stated on Thursday that second baseman Cavan Biggio could see time at both corner infield spots this season. He had similar splits against both types of pitchers last season, so he could spell off Travis Shaw at first base versus left-handers while giving Vladimir Guerrero Jr. a breather at […]

Clint Frazier Crushes Solo Home Run

New York Yankees outfielder Clint Frazier crushed his first spring training home run of 2020 against the Rays on Thursday. A strong spring training can go a long way for Frazier, who is competing for playing time with Mike Tauchman and Miguel Andujar. Injuries to Aaron Judge (shoulder) and Giancarlo Stanton (calf) have opened up […]

Jake Cave Records Three-Hit Day With One Homer

Minnesota Twins outfielder Jake Cave recorded three hits in three at-bats of Thursday's tie with the Blue Jays. Cave doubled twice and homered to right field in the top half of the third inning. The 27-year-old is looking at the role of utility outfielder- though that could come with decent fantasy value- especially if starting […]

Randy Dobnak Strikes Out Two In Three Innings

Minnesota Twins pitcher Randy Dobnak made his second start of the Spring and tossed three innings of one-run ball in a 3-3 tie against the Blue Jays. That's back-to-back strong outings for Dobnak, who struck out four in two innings in his last time out. With the injury to Rich Hill and Michael Pineda's suspension, […]

Max Kepler Set To Make Spring Debut Friday

Minnesota Twins outfielder Max Kepler (back) will make his Spring debut on Friday against the Red Sox. The Twins believe that the soreness in Kepler's back is unrelated to last year's injury, which bodes well for the 27-year-old's fantasy stock heading into the 2020 season. Kepler could score and drive in 90 runs again like […]

Will Harris Dealing With Abdominal Issue

Washington Nationals relief pitcher Will Harris will be re-evaluated in three to four days after tweaking his abdomen recently. Harris was slated to make his spring debut before the injury popped up. For now, it appears to be a minor issue. Harris will be a relief ace for the Nationals this year, but Sean Doolittle […]

Robinson Cano To Debut On Friday

New York Mets second baseman Robinson Cano (legs) is set to debut in spring training on Friday when the Mets take on the Cardinals. Cano is spending more time strengthening his legs than previous spring camps in an effort to avoid the same leg issues he suffered in 2019. Quadriceps and hamstring injuries limited Cano […]

Reese McGuire Pops Spring Homer

Toronto Blue Jays catcher Reese McGuire slugged his first long ball of the spring off Twins right-hander Randy Dobnak on Thursday. He has a good chance at cracking the team's Opening Day roster if he can beat out veteran Caleb Joseph for the backup job, and he could even become the starter if Danny Jansen […]

Hyun-Jin Ryu Strikes Out A Pair In First Spring Start

Toronto Blue Jays starter Hyun-Jin Ryu made his Grapefruit League debut versus the Twins on Thursday, striking out two batters in two frames of work. He allowed a hard-hit double in the first inning that he worked around before serving up a no-doubt homer to Zander Weil in the second for his only blemish on […]

Jorge Alfaro Scratched With Oblique Tightness

Miami Marlins catcher Jorge Alfaro was scratched from Thursday's Grapefruit League lineup due to left oblique tightness. The Marlins will need to be extremely careful with Alfaro, because if the tightness were to become a strain, Alfaro would be looking at significant missed time. He likely won't see Grapefruit League action for a while as […]

Justin Verlander Throws Simulated Game

Houston Astros starter Justin Verlander (groin) threw a simulated game on the day he was scheduled to make his Grapefruit League debut. The session "went as good as I could have hoped" according to Verlander as he simulated two innings worth of work. The injury does not appear to be serious and the veteran opted […]

Justin Upton Flying Under The Radar

Los Angeles Angels outfielder Justin Upton will be looking to bounce back this season after a knee injury sidelined him for most of 2019. By the time the veteran could make it on the field, he played only 63 games and slashed an abysmal .215/.309/.416. But Upton claims he is healthy and, even better, is […]

Jack Flaherty Works Into the Third Inning on Thursday

St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Jack Flaherty pitched into the third inning in Thursday's Grapefruit League game against the Atlanta Braves. He ended up with 2 2/3 innings, allowing one run on two hits and two walks with one strikeout. Flaherty wasn't quite his dominant self in this one, but he was able to limit […]

Lance McCullers Jr. To Debut Sunday

Houston Astros starter Lance McCullers Jr. (elbow) will make his Grapefruit League debut on Sunday against the Cardinals. It will be the first time McCullers will take the mound since undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2018. The Astros are hoping that the right-hander can rejoin the rotation this season, but getting back on the mound […]

Scott Kingery Launches Two-Run Homer

Philadelphia Phillies second baseman Scott Kingery launched a two-run homer to dead center in the Phillies Spring Training game against the Red Sox Thursday. Kingery had an up-and-down season last year working in a super-utility role, but the Phillies have plans for him to stick at second base this year and hopefully some consistency will […]

Edwin Encarnacion Dealing With Back Stiffness

Chicago White Sox first baseman/designated hitter Edwin Encarnacion (back) has been scratched from Thursday’s game with back tightness. More should be known on the sluggers status as the day goes on and he should be considered day-to-day for now. Encarnacion is aging, but will be in the middle of a good White Sox lineup and […]