Gregory Polanco To DH In First Two Spring Games

Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Gregory Polanco (shoulder) will be used as a designated hitter in his first two spring games, according to manager Derek Shelton. Polanco isn't really limited at all physically in camp, but the Pirates are slow playing it with him after he's dealt with shoulder problems the last two seasons. Some fantasy managers […]

Finding Combo-Player Values Using Z-Scores and ATC Projections

Towards the end of last season, I asked the question – “Draft Speed or Pound the Power?” Loaded in this seemingly simple query are two contradictory approaches – one for power and one for speed. Power Approach 1: Home run totals are dramatically up in baseball these days. Therefore, there are many power bats available […]

ADP Showdown - Whit Merrifield vs Austin Meadows

Spring training is officially underway, which means baseball season is upon us! Maybe you haven’t started prepping for your drafts, but fortunately for you, there have already been plenty of drafts, which means that fantasy players out there have already begun dealing with tough draft position decisions. The outfield position is deep as always, but […]

2020 Dynasty Leagues: Players to Sell (Premium Content)

As draft day approaches in dynasty leagues, the window to sell-high on a big name has never been better. The first days of spring training are a chance to cash in on players who may have hit their peak value before the 2020 season begins. Bartering is a matter of risk vs reward. You hate […]

Keone Kela To Face Hitters Thursday

Pittsburgh Pirates closer Keone Kela (illness) is scheduled to face live hitters on Thursday after missing his first live batting practice session due to a viral infection. The Pirates have named Kela their ninth-inning closer heading into the 2020 season after he posted a very nice 2.12 ERA and 1.01 WHIP with one save in […]

Bases Loaded Podcast: Early Round Values

Mike Kurland (@Mike_Kurland) is joined by Jorge Montanez (@Roto_Nino) and Zach Braff (@BraffZ) and they discuss early round values. They go through and highlight a few players that are going inside the top 150 in ADP that offer a great chance to return profit. Subscribe to the Bases Loaded podcast, part of RotoBaller Radio's Podcast […]

2020 Second Base Rankings - H2H Points Leagues

Points leagues may seem like a slight variation from traditional 5x5 category scoring leagues but you must approach draft day with a different strategy if you wish to truly compete. Rankings themselves are a different beast altogether, as category specialists like Mallex Smith and Dee Gordon (stolen bases), Kyle Schwarber and Franmil Reyes (home runs), […]

2020 Second Base Rankings - Fantasy Baseball Dynasty Leagues

As the season draws near, we realize more and more that it's draft season. There is a large portion of fantasy baseball busy with mock drafts, rankings, sleepers, and more mock drafts. The Dynasty community, on the other hand, is looking to continue their dominance, rebuild, or in a worst-case scenario, stick their hands up […]

Pablo Reyes Hit With 80-Game Suspension

Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Pablo Reyes received an 80-game suspension without pay after testing positive for Boldenone, a performance-enhancing substance. Reyes, 26 years old, can play the infield and outfield and made his MLB debut in September of 2018 while hitting .293 with three home runs and seven RBI in 63 plate appearances. He hit only […]

Keone Kela Dealing With Viral Infection

Pittsburgh Pirates closer Keone Kela (illness) didn't throw his scheduled live batting practice session on Tuesday because he's dealing with a viral infection. It's something that shouldn't keep Kela out for long. The 26-year-old (27 in April) right-hander will open the year as the team's ninth-inning man after posting an excellent 2.12 ERA, 1.01 WHIP […]

Adam Frazier Played Through Finger, Shoulder Injuries Last Year

Pittsburgh Pirates second baseman Adam Frazier (finger, shoulder) revealed that he played through a broken right index finger and separated shoulder in 2019. Frazier said he broke his finger in spring training and separated his shoulder on Opening Day, but he didn't want the team to disclose his injuries and he played 152 games. Despite […]

2020 Keeper Value Rankings - Second Base

Keeper Value Rankings are intended for Keeper Leagues in which a fantasy owner must forfeit a designated draft pick in order to keep a player into the upcoming season. These rankings are based on Keeper "Values". In the marketing world, Value can be defined as "the extent to which a good or service (player) is […]

Gregory Polanco Won't Be Limited In Camp

Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Gregory Polanco (shoulder) reported to camp on Saturday and will not have any physical limitations in workouts. Polanco had left shoulder surgery after the 2018 season and wound up playing in only 42 games last year because of complications with his shoulder. The 28-year-old Dominican says he's finally healthy, which could help […]

2020 Starting Pitcher Rankings - H2H Points Leagues

Points leagues may seem like a slight variation from traditional 5x5 category scoring leagues but you must approach draft day with a very different strategy if you wish to truly compete. All preseason long, RotoBaller has you covered with the latest rankings for all fantasy baseball league types. Here we present our points league rankings […]

Second-Half Improvements: Buy Into These Starting Pitchers

The second half of the season is always put under a microscope for starting pitchers. Fantasy players have a love for the second half of the season, as the belief is that pitchers who take a step forward could carry over that success the next season and perhaps even build upon it. But, as we […]

Mock Draft Review: Best Late-Round Targets

Last week, some members of the RotoBaller staff completed a 12-team mock draft for standard 5x5 format. After the draft, we each broke down our strategy and some of our favorite picks, which can be found here. However, I want to take a closer look at one portion of the draft in particular. Since we know that […]

2020 Relief Pitcher Rankings - H2H Points Leagues

Often regarded as an inferior fantasy baseball format, points leagues offer a different style of boasting over your friends or coworkers similar to that of fantasy football. These setups are typically head-to-head formats for a one-week stretch where the player with the most points gets a win. Easy right? While it's true that roster construction […]

2019 Barrel Breakouts: Who's For Real and Who's Next?

As pitchers and catchers get even closer to reporting and most fantasy leagues prepare for their drafts, everybody is looking for a leg up on the competition - a way to get in on a guy before everybody else does. In this article, we're going to look for a way to identify hitters who improved […]

2020 Shortstop Rankings - H2H Points Leagues

Points leagues may seem like a slight variation from traditional 5x5 category scoring leagues but you must approach draft day with a different strategy if you wish to truly compete. Rankings themselves are a different beast altogether, as category specialists like Mallex Smith and Dee Gordon (stolen bases), Kyle Schwarber and Franmil Reyes (home runs), […]

Gregory Polanco Expected To Report Healthy

Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Gregory Polanco (shoulder) is expected to report to camp healthy, according to director of sports medicine Todd Tomczyk. The Pirates will monitor Polanco closely in spring training after another injury plagued season in 2019 in which he played just 42 games. Polanco hit just .242/.301/.425 with six home runs, 17 RBI and […]

Jarrod Dyson Officially A Pirate, Jameson Taillon to 60-Day IL

Free-agent outfielder Jarrod Dyson has cleared his physical and has officially signed a one-year contract with the Pittsburgh Pirates. To make room on the 40-man roster for Dyson, the Pirates have moved pitcher Jameson Taillon to the 60-day injured list. The Pirates gain a top-10 active base-stealer in Dyson, which includes an 85% success rate […]

2020 Keeper Value Rankings - First Base

Many years ago, I noticed the managers in my long-time keeper league were consistently making terrible keeper decisions year after year. I thought I would help them out instead of taking their money every year and find a good set of Keeper League Rankings to share with them. What I found was quite disturbing. There […]

2020 Third Base Rankings - H2H Points Leagues

Points leagues may seem like a slight variation from traditional 5x5 category scoring leagues but you must approach draft day with a different strategy if you wish to truly compete. Rankings themselves are a different beast altogether, as category specialists like Mallex Smith and Dee Gordon (stolen bases), Kyle Schwarber and Franmil Reyes (home runs), […]

Keone Kela Earns Closer Role For Start Of 2020 Season

Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Keone Kela has earned the closer role for the start of the 2020 season, as stated by Pirates manager Derek Shelton. Kela doesn't have all that much competition, but for the manager to name him the closer after just one workout has to be great news in terms of how his offseason […]

Jarrod Dyson Has Agreement With Pirates

Free-agent outfielder Jarrod Dyson has reportedly reached an agreement with the Pittsburgh Pirates. The agreement is still pending a physical, but if all goes well, Dyson should be able to join the team for Grapefruit League action very soon. Dyson had 30 stolen bases and batted .230 last year with the Diamondbacks. His base-stealing upside is […]

2020 Dynasty Leagues: Players to Buy (Premium Content)

While redraft owners prepare for draft day, dynasty owners are scouring the trade market. The weeks preceding spring training are optimal to take a chance on young players who have yet to peak or may have question marks surrounding them. Not all buy-low scenarios will pan out as expected, but when playing the long game, […]

2020 NFBC Draft and Hold Strategy - Late-Round Pitching Category Boosters (Premium Content)

All other Premium Tools can be accessed on the premium dashboard. Pitching strategies are challenging to master on draft day. Should you draft two elite starters early and then wait to finish out your rotation? Do you load up on hitting early and devour all the pitchers in the middle rounds? When do you grab […]

2020 NFBC Draft and Hold Strategy - Late-Round Hitting Category Boosters (Premium Content)

All other Premium Tools can be accessed on the premium dashboard. Draft strategies are challenging to master regardless of the league. Should you focus on elite starting pitchers? Do you load up on hitting early and devour all the pitchers in the middle rounds? When do you grab a catcher in two-draft leagues? There are […]

2020 First Base Rankings - H2H Points Leagues

Often regarded as an inferior fantasy baseball format, points leagues offer a different style of boasting over your friends or coworkers similar to that of fantasy football. These setups are typically head-to-head formats for a one-week stretch where the player with the most points gets a win. Easy right? While it's true that roster construction […]

Sophomore Hitters Who Should Progress in 2020

We’ve been spoiled. In recent years, players such as Peter Alonso, Yordan Alvarez, Ronald Acuna Jr., and Aaron Judge have all entered the MLB ranks while performing at a high level. But it’s not supposed to be that easy for freshmen players. There are many examples of players starting out modestly in their rookie seasons […]