Statcast Pitcher Risers/Fallers - Post-Break Contact Quality (Week 19)

Welcome back to Rotoballer’s series using Statcast to extrapolate, dig into, and commiserate over data to examine pitching performances. The weekly series will be dynamic as we fine-tune our findings and enlighten ourselves on the information and tools at our disposal. It’s August and we’re firmly in the dog days of baseball season. After a […]

Francisco Cervelli to Play First Base on Monday

Pittsburgh Pirates catcher Francisco Cervelli will slide over to first base for Monday's contest against the Colorado Rockies. Josh Bell (oblique) is still sidelined, so the Pirates are looking for ways to fill the void at first base. Cervelli has not played much first base during his career, but will do it on Monday against […]

Adeiny Hechavarria Traded to Pirates

Tampa Bay Rays shortstop Adeiny Hechavarria has been traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates in exchange for right-handed pitcher Matt Seelinger. The Rays designated Hechavarria for assignment on Wednesday, but it wasn't because of poor play. He's a solid defender and is hitting .258/.289/.332 with three home runs and 26 RBI in 61 games with the […]

FanDuel MLB DFS Lineup Picks (8/6/18): Daily Fantasy Baseball Advice

We have a 10-game slate giving us plenty of options to pick from, so ownership should be spread out. There are a few big name arms on the bump tonight, so you will be looking to have exposure to them in your lineups. In this article, I will be providing you with my daily fantasy […]

DraftKings Daily Fantasy Baseball Picks (8/6/18): MLB DFS Lineups

We have a 10-game slate on Monday night and Coors Field is back in the mix. Four games have an over/under of at least nine total runs. Naturally, the matchup in Colorado between the Pirates and Rockies lead the slate at 11 total runs. Colorado is favored in that game. Speaking of favorites, three teams […]

Week 19 Waiver Wire - First Base (1B) and Third Base (3B)

Rosters are ever-changing and player values continue to rise and fall, depending on the flavor of the moment. Consider making a couple of moves to keep your team competitive. If you're in jeopardy of missing the playoffs, take a risk to get a player that could make the difference. The corner infield spots generally offer […]

Corey Dickerson Batting Leadoff Sunday

Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Corey Dickerson will bat leadoff and play left field on Sunday against the Cardinals. This will be Dickerson's first start since returning from the disabled list with a hamstring injury. The 29-year-old has been a useful fantasy option this season, hitting .317 with 11 home runs and 44 RBI in 92 games. […]

FanDuel MLB DFS Lineup Picks (8/5/18): Daily Fantasy Baseball Advice

Normally I only write about the main slate, but I opted to write about the all day slate here. There are 15 total games, and we have plenty of options to choose from. That means there are multiple ways for lineup construction on this slate. In this article, I will be providing you with my […]

David Freese (1B/3B, PIT) - Week 19 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 14+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 3% of leagues ANALYSIS: At 35 years old, Pittsburgh Pirates corner infielder David Freese is demonstrating that he can be a productive player on your roster. In 211 plate appearances in 2018, he has a .286 batting average to go with eight homers and 36 RBI. […]

Francisco Cervelli Will Start At First Base Saturday

Pittsburgh Pirates catcher Francisco Cervelli will play first base Saturday against the St. Louis Cardinals. He will bat fifth in the lineup, just in front of catcher Elias Diaz. Cervelli has played seven major league games at first base, but has stated repeatedly that he would rather be a catcher. Cervelli is 7-for-19 with five […]

Corey Dickerson Reinstated, Not in Lineup

Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Corey Dickerson was reinstated from the 10-day disabled list Saturday. Adam Frazier will start in left field, however. Frazier has been a decent replacement for Dickerson, but Dickerson is batting .318 with 11 homers and 44 RBI. He had a six-game hitting streak just before being placed on the disabled list with […]

FanDuel MLB DFS Lineup Picks (8/4/18): Daily Fantasy Baseball Advice

We have a 12-game slate giving us plenty of options to pick from, along with no Coors Field, so ownership should be spread out. There are a few big name arms on the bump tonight, so you will be looking to have exposure to them in your lineups. In this article, I will be providing […]

Two-Start Pitcher Streamers: Week 18 (August 6th-August 12th)

We have 10 matchups on Monday, increasing our chances of having some decent two-start options in the fantasy baseball world. We have, potentially, 35 pitchers who could take two turns in the rotation in Week 18. For this post, we have a mixed bag of suggestions to stream. We have veterans and young arms. Most […]

Chris Archer Not Great In First Pirates Start

Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Chris Archer was less than great in Friday's start against the St. Louis Cardinals. Archer went 4 1/3 innings and gave up four earned runs on seven hits. He walked four batters and struck out six. Archer pitched around potential disaster all night, including having a lead off baserunner in all […]

Keone Kela on Pirates 25-Man Roster

Pittsburgh Pirates relief pitcher Keone Kela arrived in Pittsburgh and will be active for Friday's game against the St. Louis Cardinals. To make room for Kela, the Pirates optioned Nick Kingham to Triple A Indianapolis. Kela was the closer for the Texas Rangers before being moved at the trade deadline. He throws the traditional three-pitch […]

David Freese Batting Cleanup on Friday

Pittsburgh Pirates corner infielder David Freese will remain in the starting lineup for Friday's game. Freese will bat fourth and play first base against righty John Gant. This season Freese is hitting .299/.352/.515 with five home runs and 24 RBI against right-handed pitching. Freese is not normally someone you would count on in fantasy sports, […]

Jung Ho Kang Out 4-6 Weeks

Updating a previous report, Pittsburgh Pirates third baseman Jung Ho Kang (wrist) had surgery to debride cartilage in his left wrist on Friday, and the typical recovery period for this injury is four to six weeks. That means Kang won't be able to play until 2019. He's missed the last two years after another DUI […]

Jose Leclerc (RP, TEX) - Week 19 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in All Leagues OWNED IN: 23% of leagues ANALYSIS: With both Keone Kela and Jake Diekman shipped off to contenders at the non-waiver trade deadline earlier this week, Jose Leclerc appears to the be the man to own in the Rangers' bullpen. The 24-year-old has always missed bats at an impressive clip (career […]

Jung Ho Kang To Have Season-Ending Surgery

Pittsburgh Pirates third baseman Jung Ho Kang (wrist) will have season-ending wrist surgery that will keep him out for around three months, according to a source. The Pirates have a $5.5 million option on Kang for next year, so he may be playing for another team in 2019. Kang hasn't played in each of the […]

FanDuel MLB DFS Lineup Picks (8/3/18): Daily Fantasy Baseball Advice

We have a 14-game slate giving us plenty of options to pick from, along with no Coors Field, so ownership should be spread out. There are a few big name arms on the bump tonight, so you will be looking to have exposure to them in your lineups. In this article, I will be providing […]

Nick Kingham Optioned to Triple A

Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Nick Kingham has been optioned to Triple-A Indianapolis. Kingham gave up four runs and lasted just one inning versus the Cubs on Wednesday. Chris Archer has been activated, so Kingham was going to lose his spot in the rotation regardless. Relief pitcher Keone Kela was added to the 25-man roster, so […]

DraftKings Daily Fantasy Baseball Picks (8/3/18): MLB DFS Lineups

On Friday, we have a 14-game slate on DraftKings (thanks a lot, SD/CHC). Four games have an over/under of at least nine total runs. However, we’re still waiting for Vegas to make a determination on three matchups: CWS/TB, LAA/CLE, and BAL/TEX. At least two of those games could boost the O/U total for us. As […]

Chris Archer To Pirates - Fantasy Impact

The Tampa Bay Rays were long rumored to be unloading their ace (former ace? *cough Blake Snell cough*), Chris Archer, and many thought he would land with a clear contender like the New York Yankees or the Atlanta Braves, since he’s a relatively young pitcher with elite stuff and a team-friendly contract. Then, as the […]

MLB Closers and Saves Report - Week 19

With the non-waiver trade deadline now a few days behind us, we can confidently say: "a lot happened." But, seemingly more so than other trade deadlines in previous seasons, this time around we can also say: "a lot didn't happen." Zach Britton changed teams, to a team that absolutely no one suspected. Brad Hand changed […]

Holds Leagues - Waiver Wire Pickups and Adds for Week 19

Well, that was a fun trade deadline! While holds are even tougher to predict than saves, the players we’ll highlight today include some elite setup men to target off the waiver wire in Week 19. One-inning middle relievers are the constant sources for holds and specialists can manage to secure a hold even with one […]

Week 19 Waiver Wire: H2H Category Streamers

I like to consider myself a pioneer of the streaming approach. I won a league about seven years ago completely ignoring saves and just stacking up the starts each week. While streaming is undoubtedly more directly associated with pitching, there's plenty of value in streaming for offense as well. Maybe you have a stacked roster […]

Robinson Chirinos (C, TEX) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 40% of leagues ANALYSIS: The Texas Rangers were one of the more active teams at the deadline, trading away pitchers Cole Hamels, Keone Kela and Jake Diekman. With essentially every team in the AL West outside of the Rangers set up for success in the immediate future, it looks as if Texas […]

Champ or Chump: Tommy Pham and Brian Dozier

The Trade Deadline has passed, but the dust is yet to settle for fantasy purposes. The Brewers acquired Jonathan Schoop to apparently share two positions with Travis Shaw and Mike Moustakas. You probably don't want to count on anybody in the timeshare until it's clear how often everyone will play. Jonathan Villar figures to get […]

Week 19 Waiver Wire - Catcher

With the MLB Trade Deadline fully behind us, it's time to start preparing for the Fantasy Baseball playoffs. With likely major trades happening in your league, one position that could be forgotten is catcher. There's only so many superstars and many teams have to dig through the waiver wire to find their starter. That being […]

MLB Trade Deadline: Analysis and Fantasy Implications

The 2018 version of the MLB Trade Deadline was one of the most memorable in recent years. With players being dealt left and right, multiple teams around the league have changed the identity of their franchise for the present and future. With so much movement going on, the fantasy baseball landscape has taken a major […]