Johan Camargo Will Provide Modest Production As Long As He Holds Off Austin Riley

Johan Camargo stumbled a bit in 2019 after two solid seasons to begin his career with the Braves. A brutal .663 OPS and an infield full of studs ahead of him on the depth chart led to a forgettable 248 plate appearances for the 26-year-old. He's in an interesting position for 2020, as his role […]

Luis Rojas To Be New Mets Manager

The New York Mets are finalizing a deal with Luis Rojas on Wednesday to be the next manager. He'll replace Carlos Beltran, who the team parted ways with last week in the wake of Beltran's role in the Astros sign-stealing scandal. The 38-year-old was the team's quality control coach in 2019 and interviewed for the […]

Francisco Liriano Agrees With Phillies

The Philadelphia Phillies agreed with relief pitcher Francisco Liriano on a minor league deal on Wednesday, according to sources. Liriano can make $1.5 million with $1.25 million in incentives if he makes the major league roster. The veteran left-hander made 69 relief appearances for the Pirates in 2019 and had a 3.47 ERA, 1.36 WHIP, […]

Alex Gordon Back With the Royals in 2020

The Kansas City Royals agreed to terms on a one-year contract with outfielder Alex Gordon, worth $4 million. Gordon was a free agent but must not have received too many enticing offers this offseason despite a good-enough .266/.345/.396 line to go with Gold Glove defense in left field. He'll turn 36 next month and will […]

Using Sabermetrics for Fantasy Baseball: Barrels

Last time, we looked at how exit velocity (or EV) is only one piece of the fantasy analysis puzzle. Baseball broadcasts will commonly cite Launch Angle (LA) to complement their EV figures, but it is given in terms of degrees. Am I evaluating a baseball player or trying to find the hypotenuse of an isosceles […]

Braves Agree With Marcell Ozuna

The Atlanta Braves and outfielder Marcell Ozuna agreed to a one-year, $18 million deal on Tuesday, according to sources familiar with the deal. Ozuna will hit in the middle of Atlanta's order and help replace the power production of third baseman Josh Donaldson, who signed with the Twins. Ozuna, 29, slashed .241/.328/.472 with 29 home […]

Mitch Keller Suffered From Bad Luck In 2019

Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Mitch Keller, who had a 1-5 record and 7.13 ERA in just 48 innings over 11 starts in 2019, could be in line for a much better 2020 season if his luck improves. The former top prospect struck out 65 hitters and walked 16 of the 227 batters he faced and […]

Jameson Taillon Resumes Throwing

Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Jameson Taillon (elbow) threw a baseball from 60 feet on Monday for the first time since having his second Tommy John surgery. It was Taillon's first day of pain-free throwing since last spring. The 28-year-old made just seven starts for the Bucs in 2019 before going under the knife, posting a […]

Braves In Running For Marcell Ozuna, Nicholas Castellanos

The Atlanta Braves are still searching for a middle-of-the-order bat to replace third baseman Josh Donaldson, and outfielders Marcell Ozuna and Nicholas Castellanos are seen as the most likely options. Ozuna and Castellanos are both by far the two best available bats on the free-agent market. Both offer solid power profiles at the corner outfield […]

Dustin Pedroia Suffers Serious Setback

Boston Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia (knee) suffered what sources are calling a significant setback with his left knee. Pedroia is discussing his options with his family, agents and the Red Sox, and his availability for spring training is questionable. The 36-year-old has played in a combined nine games the last two seasons because […]

2020 Offseason Starting Pitcher Rankings (Part 3) - Fantasy Baseball Mixed Leagues

We continue with our analysis of the early 2020 fantasy baseball starting pitcher rankings by looking at the middle tiers. To read part one, click right here, or right here for part two. After a record-setting year for offense and a sense among the industry that 2020 likely won't be dramatically different, being able to […]

Using Sabermetrics for Fantasy Baseball: BABIP for Hitters

The most accessible of the fantasy-relevant advanced stats is BABIP, or Batting Average on Balls In Play. It simply measures a player's batting average on balls in play, with outcomes such as strikeouts and home runs removed from consideration. In general, the league average hovers around .300, a nice round number to remember. Many know […]

Yoenis Cespedes Sprinting In Rehab

New York Mets outfielder Yoenis Cespedes (heels) tweeted out a video of an offseason workout in Florida which showed him sprinting, swinging in the cage and catching fly balls in the outfield. Cespedes hasn't played in a major league game since July 20 of 2018. He suffered multiple right ankle fractures in a freak accident […]

Nolan Arenado Feels Disrespected By Rockies

Colorado Rockies third baseman Nolan Arenado made it clear that he is not happy with the team amid trade talks. “There’s a lot of disrespect from people there that I don’t want to be a part of,” Arenado said in a text. “You can quote that.” General manager Jeff Bridich said on Monday that Arenado […]

Brusdar Graterol Will Continue To Work In Relief Role

Minnesota Twins pitching coach Wes Johnson said that pitching prospect Brusdar Graterol will continue to work out of the bullpen for the time being as he builds a physical and mental routine in the big leagues. The 21-year-old Venezuelan right-hander is listed by MLB Pipeline as the Twins No. 3 prospect and No. 53 in […]

Nolan Arenado Trade Talks Off Table For Now

Colorado Rockies general manager Jeff Bridich said that All-Star third baseman Nolan Arenado will not be traded before spring training opens next month. Trade talks are off the table for now. The 28-year-old signed an eight-year, $260 million deal last February and is still owed $234 million for seven seasons. The seven-time Gold Glover and […]

Matt Carpenter Will Be Starting Third Baseman

The St. Louis Cardinals have indicated that Matt Carpenter will be the team's starting third baseman for the 2020 season despite his disappointing 2019 campaign that saw him finish with a .226 average and 15 home runs after signing a two-year, $39 million deal last April. Carpenter hit a career-high 36 homers and was an […]

Cardinals Could Discuss Extension With Jack Flaherty

St. Louis Cardinals chairman Bill DeWitt Jr. said there's a chance that the team will discuss a long-term deal with starting pitcher Jack Flaherty this spring. Flaherty was the best pitcher in baseball in the second half last year and finished with an 11-8 record, 2.75 ERA, 0.97 WHIP and 231 strikeouts in 196 1/3 […]

Braves Sign Felix Hernandez

The Atlanta Braves signed starting pitcher Felix Hernandez to a minor league deal on Monday. He will make $1 million if he's in the big leagues, and he will compete to become the team's fifth starter this spring. King Felix was once the cream of the pitching crop in baseball, but he's fallen far since […]

Yadier Molina Wants To Play Beyond 2020

St. Louis Cardinals catcher Yadier Molina said he hopes to play beyond the 2020 season, perhaps for two more years. However, he only wants to continue playing for the Cardinals, so if they don't want him back after the 2020 season, he will retire. The 37-year-old Molina played in just 113 games (his fewest since […]

Harrison Bader Confident He'll Be Starting Center Fielder

St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Harrison Bader is confident that he'll be the starting center fielder in 2020. "I'm the starting center fielder," the 25-year-old Bader said. "It's my position. I'm going to take it. There's no sense in talking about it. I'm looking forward to showing up Day 1, guns blazing and ready to go." […]

Four Teams Interested In Pedro Strop

The Marlins, Cubs, Rangers and Brewers are believed to be interested in relief pitcher Pedro Strop. The right-hander had a down year with the Cubs in 2019 by posting a 4.97 ERA, 1.27 WHIP and 49 strikeouts in his 41 2/3 innings of work over 50 outings. He did have 10 saves, however, and has […]

Eric Samulski's Prospects Live Bestball 50 Draft Breakdown

This offseason, Prospects Live announced a new draft format that they were hoping would bring together the dynasty crowd with more redraft-heavy players. The format was simple and also completely complicated. Each league would be a five-year Best Ball Dynasty featuring 30 teams where each owner would draft a roster of 50 players, and the […]

2019 Season in Review: Carlos Correa

Over the first five seasons of his career, Carlos Correa has demonstrated why the Astros chose him first overall in the 2012 MLB amateur draft. He captured American League Rookie of the Year honors in 2015, along with some down-ballot MVP consideration. In 2017, he made his first All-Star team, finishing 10th in the league […]

Will There Be Fantasy Fallout for the Astros?

The Houston Astros have landed in hot water this offseason after receiving sign-stealing allegations against them dating back to their World Series championship season of 2017. A long and thorough investigation by MLB has confirmed that the elaborate scheme to notify batters of specific pitches was indeed true, and the organization is now facing the […]

Is Mike Trout Still the #1 Pick in Fantasy?

Pierre Camus and Nicklaus Gaut debate whether Angels outfielder Mike Trout should still be the consensus number one pick in 2020 fantasy baseball drafts or if Ronald Acuna Jr. or Christian Yelich should be taken higher. Like and subscribe to the RotoBaller channel on Youtube to get all our latest podcasts and catch us on […]

Using Sabermetrics for Fantasy Baseball: Exit Velocity

If you've watched a baseball broadcast in the so-called Statcast Era, you have undoubtedly noticed the broadcasters commenting on a batted ball's exit velocity, or EV. Many have taken to using stats like Hard% and Soft% to forecast how a player should be performing, expecting larger Hard% rates to produce larger BABIP and HR/FB figures. […]

Early 2020 ADP Reflections - Shortstop

When a baseball season ends, the following season can’t come here soon enough for some fans, myself included. We start thinking about what we want to see from some players, which includes letdowns, bounce-backs, and even young prospects. Instead of letting them bounce off the brain walls, let’s put these musings into digits. This includes […]

2019 Season in Review: Danny Santana

One of the first articles I ever published with RotoBaller was a warning. Specifically, this column dissuaded fantasy owners from buying into Danny Santana's breakout 2014 season. (Yes, I've been doing this for a long time/am old.) That year, Santana had emerged from obscurity as a 23-year-old rookie to hit .319/.353/.472 with 70 runs scored […]

2020 Early Bullpen Outlooks - A.L. Central

Welcome to 2020, fantasy friends. There are four football teams still playing and basketball and hockey are in full swing, so it's time to start thinking about the 2020 baseball season. Free agency has been a little more front-loaded this season, leaving fewer questions about rosters heading into Spring Training. Still, there will be changes […]