Sean Newcomb Pitches Four Scoreless Innings In 2019 Debut

Atlanta Braves starter Sean Newcomb tossed four shutout innings, striking out three batters and walking four, during an 8-0 win over the Chicago Cubs on Monday night. The biggest issue for Newcomb was his control, as he needed 91 pitches to get through four-plus innings. Newcomb was a pleasant surprise for fantasy owners in 2018, […]

Mike Foltynewicz Two Weeks Out From Return To Rotation

Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Mike Foltynewicz (elbow) is scheduled to make his first rehab start for the Triple-A Gwinnett Stripers in their home opener on April 4. Foltynewicz has been sidelined with a bone spur in his throwing elbow since his first spring training start on Feb. 24. The Braves expectation is for Foltynewicz to make […]

A.J. Minter To Throw Live BP Tuesday

Atlanta Braves relief pitcher A.J. Minter (shoulder) will throw live batting practice on Tuesday and then the team will decide whether to activate him from the injured list on Thursday. With the uncertainty surrounding Arodys Vizcaino's shoulder, Minter could end up being the primary closer like he was for a lot of last season when […]

2B and SS Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 1

As long as the wait may have seemed, the 2019 MLB campaign is off to the races, and as usual, there has been no shortage of surprisingly strong starts from players across the board. With a slew of veteran and up and coming middle infielders starting off with scorching results at the plate in an […]

Updated Week 1 Start/Sit Matchups - Starting Pitchers

Opening Day is finally here! Welcome back everyone to our starts/sits column for Week 1. We are back again this year with our weekly starting pitcher matchups and recommendations. In case you missed it, this is our sixth year now writing this weekly column, helping fantasy baseball managers pick the best pitchers weekly. Below are […]

Week 1 Waiver Wire Pickups - After The Draft

Howdy, RotoBallers, and welcome to our all-encompassing waiver wire piece that is meant to follow your drafts and beat the mad rush to the WW grocery store once games start. In light of this, join me as we go position-by-position and look at players whose Yahoo ownership rate is 30% or under. I'll highlight some […]

Kyle Wright Loses All Control In MLB Debut

Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Kyle Wright went 4 1/3 innings pitched, giving up two hits, three earned runs and five walks while striking out four in the 5-1 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies. Wright struggled immensely with control, as he played a major part in the Phillies loading the bases twice. He also gave up […]

Max Fried Scheduled To Start Thursday Against Cubs

Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Max Fried is currently still on schedule to start on April 4 against the Chicago Cubs. This clarification was made after he came out of the bullpen in the series finale against the Philadelphia Phillies. He will be nothing more than an off-day streaming candidate, albeit a risky one.

Shane Carle Ejected From Sunday's Game In Philly

Atlanta Braves relief pitcher Shane Carle was ejected in the bottom of the seventh inning after hitting outfielder Rhys Hoskins on the left shoulder. The pitch came on the very next at-bat after Bryce Harper tattooed a ball deep into the Philly night, so home-plate umpire Rob Drake tossed him immediately. However, to be fair […]

Top 30 Impact Rookies for Redraft Fantasy Leagues (Preseason)

It’s no secret that teams are relying more and more heavily on young hitters and pitchers to not only fill out the 25-man rosters but to be key, impactful members of the club. That, in turn, means that prospect watching and analysis plays an increasingly important part of fantasy baseball. Jumping on the promising, raw […]

FanDuel MLB DFS Lineup Picks (4/1/19): Daily Fantasy Baseball Advice

We've got three slates on FanDuel today. The early only slate starts at 1:05pm eastern and covers the Cardinals-Pirates and White Sox-Indians matchup. The main slate starts at 7:05pm and covers nine games. There is also an all day slate that includes all matchups. I'll be covering players across all slates. In this article, I […]

Dansby Swanson Delivers Long Ball for Braves

Atlanta Braves shortstop Dansby Swanson hit his first home run of the season against Philadelphia Phillies starting pitcher Nick Pivetta. On the day, Swanson was 1-for-3 with a walk, two RBI and two runs scored. Swanson now has extra-base hits in back-to-back games to begin the regular season. After disappointing last season playing with an […]

Freddie Freeman Unstoppable in Braves Loss to Phillies

Atlanta Braves first baseman Freddie Freeman went 4-for-5 in the Braves 8-6 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies. Freeman’s day included two doubles and two RBI. Freeman went to the opposite field against the Phillies defensive shift on both doubles. Through two games this season, Freeman is 5-for-8 with a walk. After finishing fourth in MVP […]

Bryse Wilson Struggles in Season Debut

Atlanta Braves starting pitcher Bryse Wilson was unable to make it out of the fourth inning in his first start of 2019. Wilson allowed five hits, four walks and four earned runs in 3 1/3 innings against the Philadelphia Phillies. Still just 21 years old, Wilson was making his fourth career Major League start. After […]

Kevin Gausman Targeted To Start Friday

Atlanta Braves starter Kevin Gausman threw 90 pitches in a rehab game Saturday, and the team hopes to have the right-hander throw in Friday's tilt versus the Marlins. Gausman had been dealing with inflammation in his shoulder earlier this spring but has now thrown a couple of minor league games without any setbacks. It's a […]

Mike Foltynewicz Back Earlier Than Expected?

Atlanta Braves starter Mike Foltynewicz (elbow) "felt good" after throwing 63 pitches Friday in a rehab start and will throw 80 pitches this Thursday. The Braves may not require him to throw another rehab game if all goes well after Thursday's contest, which would bring him back sooner to the rotation than expected. Foltynewicz was placed […]

Tyler Flowers Starting Saturday, Batting Seventh

Atlanta Braves catcher Tyler Flowers is starting on Saturday against the Philadelphia Phillies and will be batting seventh. The 33-year-old hit just .184 with three home runs and 15 RBI against RHP in 2018. The Braves went with Brian McCann on Opening Day but with two aging veterans, the team is probably going to evenly […]

Opening Day Observations

When are we going to finally get around to making MLB Opening Day a national holiday? I can tell you the only thing that kept me from calling in sick was the fact that technology allows me to stream live games in HD on my cell phone while I sit at my desk waiting until […]

Julio Teheran Average In Opening Day Loss

Atlanta Braves starter Julio Teheran went five innings, allowing three runs on four hits, during a 10-4 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies on Thursday. He struck out seven batters while walking two. The Braves lack a defined ace for their staff, although Mike Foltynewicz (elbow) is the closest that they have. Teheran is an adequate […]

Josh Tomlin Makes Braves' Opening Day Roster

Facing a litany of injuries to their pitching staff, the Atlanta Braves have named veteran right-hander Josh Tomlin to the 25-man roster for Opening Day. The 34-year-old, who began the spring with the Brewers before being released, will likely serve as the long reliever out of the bullpen. A casualty of Tomlin's promotion is Adam […]

Josh Donaldson Batting Second On Opening Day

Atlanta Braves third baseman Josh Donaldson will be batting near the top of the order on Opening Day against Aaron Nola and the Philadelphia Phillies. Donaldson had a mediocre spring as he carried a .130 average across 27 plate appearances. Regardless, the 33-year-old has intriguing bounce-back potential playing in a deep Braves lineup this season. […]

Ronald Acuna Beginning Season In Four Hole

Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna is in the cleanup spot in the Atlanta Braves Opening Day lineup. After setting the world on fire to the tune of a .328/.409/.634 slash line as a leadoff hitter in 2018, the Braves are placing Acuna into more of a run-producing spot this season. Hitting directly behind other MVP candidates Josh […]

Predicting the Top 10 Finishers in Stolen Bases in 2019

Predicting the leaders in steals for the upcoming season may sound like a straightforward task, but it’s not as easy as it seems. There is quite a bit of variance involved, and the league as a whole has seen a sharp decline in stolen base attempts since the 2012 season (about 700 fewer attempts). Past […]

What to Expect from the Marlins' Young Rotation

In the days leading up to the start of the 2019 season, the Miami Marlins made it clear that the youth movement has completely taken over. Veteran Dan Straily was released and Wei-Yin Chen was sent to the bullpen, paving the way for a pitching rotation that doesn't boast a player over the age of […]

Updated Relief Pitcher Rankings - 5x5 Roto (Mixed Leagues)

We're back up on the bump for this edition of our mixed rankings analysis, and not a moment too soon. The 2019 baseball season is already here! RotoBaller writers Nick Mariano, JB Branson, Bill Dubiel, Pierre Camus, and Scott Engel want to make sure you are prepared for last-minute drafts, so they have given their […]

Updated Catcher Rankings - H2H Points Leagues

As we enter the final stretch for drafting it is time to take a look at the latest iteration of points leagues rankings from our amazing hard working rankings staff. Few things in fantasy baseball are more miserable for many than discussing catchers, with perhaps just injuries and suspensions taking the crown. However, getting the […]

Updated First Base Rankings - H2H Points Leagues

The RotoBaller Head-to-Head rankings review series winds down with a view of first base through the lens of our three-man expert panel of fantasy accuracy champ Nick Mariano and premier staffers JB Branson and Bill Dubiel. The top tier could conceivably have a new kingpin at any point, and not all of our experts believe […]

Updated Shortstop Rankings - H2H Points Leagues

The RotoBaller Head-to-Head rankings review series continues with a view of shortstop through the lens of our three-man expert panel of fantasy accuracy champ Nick Mariano and premier staffers JB Branson and Bill Dubiel. The position is well-stocked with useful starters, but as you get deeper, the H2H negatives will get exposed more. Near the […]

Updated Starting Pitcher Rankings - H2H Points Leagues

We are continuing our updated analysis of points league tiered rankings with a final look at starting pitchers. In H2H points leagues, starting pitchers are the lifeblood of a fantasy team. The more innings and strikeouts a starter can rack up, the further it carries your team toward a championship. There is a solid core […]

Where Are The Elite Starters? Looking for 2019’s deGrom

Researching elite starters has taught me a number of things about pitcher development. One of the most valuable has been the reminder that progress is never linear. Blake Snell and Justin Verlander present recent examples of that. Verlander has been in “obvious decline” on two occasions now, and both times he’s bounced back. 2016 Blake […]