Shogo Akiyama Likely To Bat Leadoff

Cincinnati Reds outfielder Shogo Akiyama is expected to serve as the team's leadoff hitter this season, according to manager David Bell. Bell reportedly likes the on-base approach from Akiyama and first baseman Joey Votto atop the Cincy lineup. Akiyama is embarking upon his first MLB season after spending the entirety of his nine-year career in […]

Tyler Naquin Will Need Doctor's Clearance

Cleveland Indians outfielder Tyler Naquin (knee) will need to go back to Texas to meet with his doctor before being officially cleared to resume full baseball activities, Mandy Bell of MLB.com reports. He suffered a torn ACL after colliding with an outfield wall in 2019 and had surgery in September. Naquin should be able to […]

Matt Adams Returns Following Cardiac Testing

New York Mets first baseman Matt Adams has returned to Grapefruit League action after passing all of his additional cardiac testing. Adams is in the Mets lineup, batting cleanup as the designated hitter for Monday's game against the Miami Marlins. In 2019, Adams hit only .226 with a .741 OPS, 20 home runs and 56 RBI […]

2020 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers - Sam Hilliard

We have reached the month of March, and that means we are very close to the start of the MLB season. Reaching March also means Fantasy Baseball draft season is ramping up. A major part of every fantasy draft is finding value and sleepers as the draft goes on to fill out a team. In […]

WPC+ Videocast: Must-Have Players for 2020 Fantasy Baseball

Pierre Camus and Nicklaus Gaut reveal the must-own players they are targeting in every single fantasy baseball league in 2020. Like and subscribe to the RotoBaller channel on Youtube to get all our latest podcasts and catch us on iTunes and BlogTalkRadio as well! Be sure to also tune into RotoBaller Radio on SiriusXM (channel Sirius 210, […]

David A Marcillo's Bold Bullpen Predictions for 2020

Updated on July 6: I stand by all of these predictions! There were plenty of surprises in the last few baseball seasons, including some huge ones that we didn't really find out about until 2020. There's no reason to think that this year will be any less surprising, and if anything, there's plenty to go […]

ADP Champ or Chump: Kole Calhoun and Rafael Devers

Welcome! This column takes a deep dive into two player profiles to determine if they represent value at their current draft day cost or if you would be better off looking at similarly-priced options. We incorporate every grain of relevant data we can, including info from Baseball Savant, Roster Resource, FanGraphs, FantasyPros, and Baseball Prospectus. […]

ESPN ADP Comparison - Overpriced / Underpriced Players

Average Draft Position (ADP) is a must-have piece of information when it comes to drafting. While every league is different and may have a particularly aggressive or conservative group of owners when it comes to certain players, it’s the best tool we have when analyzing players’ value. Now, instead of just talking about total ADP […]

Finding Over/Undervalued First Basemen 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 […]

Introducing the RotoBaller Points League Ranker Tool

Its time to shine some love down on point league players and help you crush your leagues with easy to understand and easy to leverage information that will put you streets ahead of the average competition. That's right, you over there who was thrilled last year to draft Ronald Acuna Jr. in the first round […]

MLB Spring Training Notebook - Injuries, Risers, and Fallers (3/9/20)

Welcome to the Spring Training Notebook for March 9, 2020, where we'll dive into a few of the bigger stories around Major League Baseball's Grapefruit and Cactus Leagues. As we head through the thick of Spring Training 2020, players are starting to separate themselves in the eyes of their organizations with hopes of making the […]

Jake Fraley Quiet Against Giants

Seattle Mariners outfielder Jake Fraley went 0-for-3 with a strikeout during the loss to San Francisco on Sunday. The 24-year-old has had a subpar spring outside of his two homers and is currently batting just .217 while striking out six times in his 23 plate appearances. His slugging percentage of .522 is respectable, as is […]

Trey Mancini To Miss Time For Non-Baseball Procedure

Baltimore Orioles outfielder/first baseman Trey Mancini left the team on Saturday and will miss time due to a "non-baseball medical procedure". The team has declined to disclose more information, although Mancini tweeted Sunday, “Once there is more clarity, I will be sure to keep everyone updated over the next few days. I look forward to […]

Willie Calhoun Fractures Jaw After HBP

Texas Rangers outfielder Willie Calhoun (mouth) was hit by a pitch during the first inning of his team's spring training game on Sunday and will be evaluated on Monday to determine how much time he will miss. Calhoun would have been the Rangers' everyday left fielder to start the year, but now those at-bats could […]

Trevor Larnach Drives In Two Runs In Loss

Minnesota Twins outfielder Trevor Larnach went 1-for-2 with a run scored and two RBI. The 23-year-old is having a strong spring, with three home runs, tied for the team lead with Nelson Cruz. He's also walked three times and collected seven hits in his intense competition with fellow minor leaguer Alex Kirilloff. Whoever wins figures […]

Willie Calhoun Leaves Game After Being Hit By Pitch

Texas Rangers outfielder Willie Calhoun left Sunday’s game against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the first inning after being hit in the face by a Julio Urias pitch. Calhoun was eventually placed on a medical cart and was taken to the hospital for further testing. Calhoun is a trendy breakout candidate in draft circles this […]

Four Late Round Fliers For Home Runs

Last season, 129 Major League players managed to hit at least 20 home runs. The 6,776 home runs hit across the Major Leagues broke the previous yearly record by a whopping 671 long balls -- nearly the same difference between the second-highest year and the ninth-highest year. Regardless of whether or not the home runs […]

J.D. Davis Returns To Mets Lineup On Sunday

New York Mets infielder/outfielder J.D. Davis (shoulder) is in the Mets lineup on Sunday for their Grapefruit League game against the Houston Astros. Davis is slated to bat cleanup and play left field. Davis is returning to the lineup from a jammed left shoulder he suffered earlier in spring training. Barring any setbacks, all signs […]

2020 MLB Sleepers - Austin Hays

One of my favorite aspects of fantasy sports is the excitement that it can bring to fans that otherwise might not have much to cheer about. Fans of the Baltimore Orioles certainly fit that description. The O's lost 108 games last season and didn't make many changes to the Major League club, with the exception […]

Nine NL Rookies Ready to Leap Into Starting Lineups

Every year, there are those rookies who we expect to make a splash right away; think Kris Bryant, Ronald Acuna, Cody Bellinger, Aaron Judge -- those guys. Once we make it through all the service time manipulation shenanigans, there are always youngsters ready to snatch roster spots immediately, and 2020 is no exception. Earlier this week […]

Joining the Launch Angle Revolution: Potential Power Risers

Launch angle has become perhaps the trendiest stat in all of fantasy baseball. If you turn on any podcast, you hear analysts mentioning that "if a player could only increase his launch angle, he could be a stud" (cough - Yandy Diaz - cough). Often, I think this analysis is oversimplified. Launch angle is obviously […]

Mallex Smith Unimpressive Once Again

Seattle Mariners outfielder Mallex Smith went 0-for-3 during the Cactus League loss to Oakland on Saturday. Batting just .190 this spring, the 2019 AL stolen base king continues to struggle. With four hits and eight strikeouts in 21 at-bats, his performance has undoubtedly been unsettling for those in dynasty leagues or for those who have […]

Oscar Mercado's MRI Confirms Mild Sprain

Cleveland Indians outfielder Oscar Mercado's (wrist) MRI results confirmed a mild sprain. Mercado sustained the injury while making a diving catch during Thursday's Cactus League game against the Giants. He's being listed as day-to-day and is still hoping to be ready for Opening Day. Mercado started 77 games for Cleveland last year and hit .269 […]

Giancarlo Stanton Resumes Running

New York Yankees outfielder Giancarlo Stanton (calf) has started running on a treadmill for the first time since straining his calf earlier this spring. Stanton is still on track to miss Opening Day, but the Yankees are encouraged by his progress so far and hope for the outfielder to be back in the lineup in […]

2020 Fantasy Baseball Busts - RotoBaller Staff Picks

As you prepare for fantasy baseball drafts in 2020, it's crucial that you avoid the dreaded bust who could sink your team. As we did with sleepers, our staff came together to share their thoughts on preseason ADP values, this time on their least favorite picks. While you've likely heard some of these names already […]

Mitch Haniger's Rehab Moving Slowly

Seattle Mariners outfielder Mitch Haniger's (back) rehab process continues to move along slowly, as he's limited to walking for about another week before he can move to the next phase of his rehab. Haniger had microdiscectomy three weeks ago for a herniated disc, and he also had surgery in February to fix a torn adductor […]

Max Kepler Records First RBI Of Spring

Minnesota Twins outfielder Max Kepler went 2-for-3 with an RBI single in the fifth inning of a 5-3 victory over the Rays. Kepler had a career year last season for Minnesota, belting 36 home runs along with 98 runs scored and 90 RBI. The 27-year-old has placed in the top-10 in Fly-Ball percentage for the […]

Trent Grisham (OF, SD) - Fantasy Baseball Draft Sleeper

BALLER MOVE: Target ~260s CURRENT ADP: ~290 overall ANALYSIS: There is a lot of upside for both power and speed here that may be getting overlooked a bit. Grisham is ticketed to be the starting center fielder in San Diego, and he has both Statcast metrics and a minor league track record to back him […]

Jon Berti (SS/3B/OF, MIA) - Fantasy Baseball Draft Sleeper

BALLER MOVE: Target ~240s CURRENT ADP: ~260 overall ANALYSIS: Until last season, Jon Berti seemed destined to be marked as a career minor leaguer, as he had never played above Triple-A in his first eight seasons. But those types of players can easily find their way into the mix in Miami, where Berti earned 256 […]

Aaron Judge Diagnosed With Stress Fracture

New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge (chest) was diagnosed with a stress fracture in his rib. Judge felt shoulder and chest discomfort early in spring training and had been sidelined from game action since the start of the spring. After undergoing a litany of tests over the past few days, Judge was finally diagnosed with […]