Gerson Bautista Appears To Injure Shoulder

Seattle Mariners prospect pitcher Gerson Bautista (shoulder) suffered an apparent right shoulder injury in his Cactus League spring appearance against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Bautista delivered a pitch, and immediately crumpled to the ground in a crouch, shaking off his glove and grabbing the area around his arm pit with his non-pitching arm. […]

Yusei Kikuchi Tabbed As No. 2 Starter

Seattle Mariners starting pitcher Yusei Kikuchi has been named the team's starting pitcher for the second game of the Japan Series in Tokyo against the Oakland Athletics. Kikuchi will likely have throngs of fans and a boisterous crowd cheering him on in his native country, facing off against veteran Marco Estrada. Kikuchi is 2-1 with […]

Under-the-Radar Pitching Prospects for 2019

We are thrilled to announce that Marc Hulet has recently joined the RotoBaller team! Marc is also the longest-serving, active writer at FanGraphs. For 10+ years he has been focused on MLB prospects and their fantasy baseball impacts. Follow along all season! This week I’ve kicked off my tenure at RotoBaller with a two-part series […]

Prospect Jo Adell To Miss At Least 10 Weeks

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim prospect outfielder Jo Adell (ankle, hamstring) is expected to miss 10 to 12 weeks due to the two injuries he suffered in Sunday's Cactus League spring training game against the Chicago Cubs. Adell was injured when he slipped on the bag while rounding second base. He suffered a sprained left […]

Adam Jones Nearing Deal With The Diamondbacks

The Arizona Diamondbacks are close to signing free-agent outfielder Adam Jones (Orioles), sources confirmed on Sunday. The deal would be for one season, and is pending a physical. With Jones signing to patrol center field, it has significance for Ketel Marte. He was making the move from second base to center field, but apparently that […]

JB's 10 Bold Predictions for 2019

It is such an honor to have been selected to hit lead-off for the 2019 RotoBaller staff Bold Predictions. Sure, I asked for it due to time constraints but that's not how I will tell my story to the grand-kids. Bold predictions are everyone's favorite articles. They are fun, not always entirely plausible, while still […]

Breakout Relievers Due for Regression In 2019

One of the hardest positions to pinpoint fantasy value for each season is a relief pitcher. You have your handful of dominant closers who are fantasy staples, but the remainder of fantasy value usually comes from surprise players who step into the closer role or are starters with reliever eligibility. With the progressing shift towards […]

Zack Godley's Ugly Spring Training Continues

After a disappointing 2017-18 season, Zack Godley has gotten off to a rough start in Spring Training. In fact, Godley owns a 7.36 ERA and 1.77 WHIP in three appearances. He's allowed four walks and two home runs in just 7.1 innings thus far, which are extremely discouraging signs considering that's what he struggled with […]

Miguel Castro Continues Strikeout Binge

Miguel Castro is one of the Orioles most valuable young arms, and he's been their best pitcher in spring training. In fact, Castro has eight strikeouts in five scoreless innings, and he's allowed three hits and zero walks. While he may not be in consideration to close for this club early on, there's a chance […]

Peter Alonso Keeps Raking in Spring Training

The name change from Pete to Peter has done Peter Alonso some good in spring training, as he's one of the league leaders with a 1.296 OPS. He also owns a .414 AVG, which is also one of the best marks in the early going. In total, Alonso has 12 hits in 29 at-bats. He's […]

Carter Kieboom "Gym Rat" According To Manager

Nationals infield prospect Carter Kieboom was praised by manager Dave Martinez recently: "He's like a sponge. He wants to absorb everything. He listens, and he's hanging out with some of our veteran guys and talking and stuff." Kieboom is hitting .300/.400/.600 through 25 PA this spring training, but as article author Christina De Nicola writes: […]

More Later-Round Closer Candidates - Targets and Avoids

Once you reach the later rounds of drafts, you start thinking about upside fliers that can provide a great return on value. These are the rounds to take risks on more unknown commodities like prospects, forgotten-about veterans, players returning from injuries or players that have previously showed promise but haven't put it all together yet. […]

More Later-Round Starting Pitchers - Targets and Avoids

Once you reach the later rounds of drafts, you start thinking about upside fliers that can provide a great return on value. These are the rounds to take risks on more unknown commodities like prospects, forgotten-about veterans, players returning from injuries or players that have previously showed promise but haven't put it all together yet. […]

One Dollar Bids - Auction Draft Targets

Auction drafts are an interesting animal. This especially comes through at the end of drafts. In a snake draft, that sleeper you really wanted may get picked just before your turn, but if he does get to your spot, he's yours. In an auction draft, someone you had tabbed as a $1 sleeper can be […]

When and How Do You Target Sleepers on Draft Day?

If you're the type of fantasy baseball enthusiast who enjoys the preparation as much as the draft itself, chances are you've been filing away names as potential under-the-radar breakout candidates. Maybe you've got your eye on a young utility player who is one injury away from regular playing time (not that anyone should be rooting […]

Predicting the Top 10 Home Run Hitters of 2019

Last year 14 players hit over 35 or more home runs; the year before that it was 18. The point is, narrowing such an impressive pool of players down to 10 is challenging. The list is realistic but I wanted to be slightly bold as well. It wouldn’t be much of a prediction if we […]

RotoBaller's Weekend Warrior Show: National League Central Preview

Host Anthony Aniano of RotoBaller Radio discusses the 2019 fantasy baseball season and gets you warmed up for the MLB preseason. This radio show is sponsored by our good friends over at RT Sports. Be sure to check out their Best Ball leagues, drafting every day, and their awesome contest the RealTime Fantasy Sports Baseball Championship with a […]

2018 Breakout Infielders Due for Regression in 2019

Nothing sinks a fantasy season quite like a bust, and the last thing we want to do as fantasy owners is deal with one of those headaches all season. Last year players like Brian Dozier, Marcell Ozuna, and Jonathan Schoop drove us mad, The goal of this article is to identify an infielder at every […]

Hunter Strickland Out With Minor Back Issue

Seattle Mariners reliever Hunter Strickland hasn’t pitched in a week due to tightness in his lower back. Manager Scott Servais doesn’t believe it to be serious, and he should return to action early this week. Strickland is the favorite for picking up saves in the M’s bullpen this season although Servais mentioned earlier this spring […]

Corey Dickerson Day-To-Day

Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Corey Dickerson is listed as day-to-day after tweaking his right ankle on a slide at second base in the third inning of a spring game on Saturday. He doesn't expect to be sidelined for long. The 29-year-old hit a cool .300/.330/.474 with 13 home runs and 55 RBI in 135 games in […]

Nick Mariano's Early-Round Avoids in H2H Points Leagues (Premium Content)

All other Premium Tools can be accessed on the premium dashboard. Fantasy baseball drafts (and their articles) are almost all about finding the next superstar and unearthing talent late, but we can't forget that surrendering value by over-drafting can be just as crucial. There's insight out there for most anything, but coverage of points leagues […]

Nick Mariano's Players to Target in H2H Points Leagues (Premium Content)

All other Premium Tools can be accessed on the premium dashboard. Fantasy baseball drafts (and their articles) usually cater to the biggest stars or the deepest sleepers, but there are very few articles that simply discuss the mid-round targets that deserve a boost in points league formats (even if points veterans will laugh at some […]

Marco Gonzales Tabbed For Opening Day

Seattle Mariners manager Scott Servais announced that Marco Gonzales will start Opening Day in Japan on March 20. This ends Felix Hernandez’ 10-year run as the M’s Opening Day starter. Gonzales had a fine season in 2018 going 13-9 with a 4.00 ERA, 1.22 WHIP and 145 strikeouts in 166.2 IP. The southpaw is an […]

How to Avoid Cognitive Bias on Draft Day

Cognitive bias: whether or not we fully understand what it means or how it operates, we have all seen it at one time or another on draft day, regardless of the sport in question. It can take the form of a co-worker who insists on drafting a full roster of players from their favorite hometown […]

2018 Outfielder Busts Who’ll Keep Junking It Up In 2019

The term “bust” in fantasy baseball can have a few different definitions. The distinct meaning is a player who does nothing more than stink up the place. Whether it’s not stealing bases, failure to find the bleachers with home runs, or just flat out not being able to hit the ball anymore, they are a […]

DJ LeMahieu To Get Time At First Base

New York Yankees infielder DJ LeMahieu is working on expanding his skill set and is set to play first base in a spring game early next week. LeMahieu is expected to be the backup to either Greg Bird or Luke Voit at first this year, even though the 30-year-old has only played 13 innings at […]

Kyle Seager Injured Friday Night

Seattle Mariners third baseman Kyle Seager (hand) was taken out of the spring game early on Friday after he injured his glove hand while diving for a ball. Seager said he came out of the game as a precaution, so this injury seems to be very minor. The 31-year-old disappointed last year by hitting just […]

Luis Severino Receives Injection Friday

New York Yankees starting pitcher Luis Severino (shoulder) received a pain-killing injection on Friday and said he no longer has pain when lifting his arm. Severino has been shut down from throwing for the time being and is now likely to begin the year on the disabled list. It hurts his fantasy value slightly, but […]

Jeff McNeil To Split Time Between Outfield, Infield

New York Mets manager Mickey Callaway said that infielder Jeff McNeil will work 50/50 in the outfield and infield for the rest of spring training. McNeil is expected to see most of his time in left field in 2019, but he might be needed on the infield to start the season with both Todd Frazier […]

Adam Eaton Sees Self in Dustin Pedroia

Washington Nationals outfielder Adam Eaton compared his playing style to Dustin Pedroia on Friday. "In ’07 and ’08 when I was still in high school and college and he was really getting in it, watching him, that’s exactly what I wanted to be," Eaton said. He elaborated further in the source article. Eaton, who has […]