X
Lost password?

Don't have an account?
Gain Access Now

X

Receive free daily analysis

NFL
NBA
NHL
NASCAR
CFB
MLB
MMA
PGA
ESPORTS
BETTING

Already have an account? Log In

X

Forgot Password


POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Draft Rankings
Draft Simulator
Enter League Settings
Compare Any Players
Rookies & Call-Ups
24x7 News and Alerts

Are You For Real? Surprising Fantasy Baseball Pitcher Starts From River Ryan and Tyler Phillips

River Ryan - Fantasy Baseball Prospects, Draft Sleepers, MLB Rookie Rankings

Welcome back to the "Are You For Real?" series as we dive into Week 19 of the 2024 fantasy baseball season. There were a lot of interesting starts over the weekend, and this week we're going to break down two young NL righties. First, we'll deep dive into River Ryan's debut week with the Dodgers. Then, we'll look at Tyler Phillips' complete game shutout against Cleveland.

For those who are not familiar, this is a weekly column where we take starting pitchers who had surprisingly good starts over the past week and put them under the microscope to determine whether they're legit or just smoke and mirrors.

Roster percentages are taken from Yahoo! and are accurate as of July 29.

Be sure to check all of our fantasy baseball draft tools and resources:

 

River Ryan, Los Angeles Dodgers – 20% Rostered

2024 Stats (AAA): 16.1 IP, 2.76 ERA, 3.62 FIP, 19.7% K-BB%
7/22 vs. SF: 5.1 IP, 4 H, 1 R (0 ER), 3 BB, 2 K
7/28 @ HOU: 5.2 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 8 K

Ryan followed up his one-run debut against the Giants on Monday with an eight-strikeout performance against Houston on Sunday. It was quite a week for the young right-hander, and with a plethora of injuries to the Dodgers’ rotation Ryan may secure a permanent rotation spot if he continues to pitch well. Is it worth blowing a wad of FAAB for Ryan, or should we pass?

Originally drafted as a two-way player out of UNC Pembroke in the 11th round by San Diego, Ryan was traded to the Dodgers in 2022 in exchange for Matt Beaty. That looks like a big win for the Dodgers following Ryan’s first two starts, especially since Ryan became something of a prospect after coming to Los Angeles and focusing solely on pitching. He was the Dodgers’ fourth-ranked prospect coming into 2024 as a 25-year-old, with scouts praising his stuff and athleticism. Ryan works with a deep six-pitch arsenal, consisting of a four-seam fastball, slider, curveball, changeup, sinker, and cutter. He may throw a lot of different pitches, but he’s relied heavily on two pitches through his first two starts, and that would be his fastball and slider.

A sharp 96.1 mph offering, Ryan has thrown his fastball 43.3% of the time through two starts. Ryan’s fastball can touch 99 mph and boasts above-average spin at 2,435 RPM, along with plus vertical movement. Batters have struggled to make quality contact against the pitch thus far, with opponents posting a .203 xBA and 89.6 mph average exit velocity off Ryan’s fastball thus far. Here’s an example of the pitch from this start.

Ryan has been attacking hitters heavily with this pitch, going at them in the zone and above the zone. Here’s a heatmap breakdown of his fastball usage thus far.

He hasn’t been afraid to go in the zone at hitters and has a 50.7% zone rate with his fastball. Oftentimes, this type of zone rate for a rookie pitcher would be worrisome, but Ryan’s fastball has a little juice and is good enough to live in the zone. Overall, his fastball looks like a plus offering.

Now, onto his slider, which Ryan has thrown 23.8% of the time thus far. It’s a hard breaking ball at 89.9 mph and boasts plus horizontal movement and spin at 2,496 RPM. Here’s a particularly nasty example from this start.

92 mph! Batters have really struggled against this pitch, hitting a mere .077 with a .154 SLG and .097 wOBA through two starts. The expected stats suggest that Ryan has been a little lucky, but he still has an impressive .197 xBA, .405 xSLG, and .253 xwOBA against his slider. It’s been too small of a sample to draw major conclusions from, but things are trending in the right direction for Ryan with his slider.

He also earned plenty of strikeouts with the pitch and his curveball against Houston. He earned five of his 14 whiffs with the pitch in that start, though he failed to earn a single whiff with it against San Francisco. It still has all the makings of a solid breaking ball and I think Ryan could be an above-average strikeout pitcher thanks in part to this offering.

The slider isn’t the only strikeout weapon at Ryan’s disposal either, as he wields a strong curveball that carved up Houston’s lineup. He only threw it 13% of the time but it had an incredible 58% CSW (Called Strike+Whiff rate). Batters are hitting just .200 against the curveball with a .200 SLG and .204 wOBA. Opponents also have a comically low 80.9 mph average exit velocity and a comically high 39-degree average launch angle against this pitch. Again, we’re dealing with a really small sample size, but these are encouraging numbers for Ryan.

The curveball has average spin at 2,584 RPM and acts as more of a slider-curve hybrid (slurve) than a traditional curveball. Here’s an example from this start.

The pitch has exceptional horizontal movement, allowing Ryan to paint the corner with a filthy backdoor curveball. Ryan had strong strikeout numbers in the minors, and between the fastball, slider, and curveball, he should be able to replicate that in the majors.

There’s a lot to be excited about with Ryan, but there are some flaws in his game that could hold him back. He has had trouble throwing strikes in the past and has issued three walks in each of his first two starts, giving him a bloated 14% BB%. Second, Ryan doesn’t have a lot of professional experience and the Dodgers may keep him on a short leash. In 2023 he threw 104.1 innings, but the Dodgers never let him go beyond five innings or 76 pitches last season. He threw 91 pitches against Houston so perhaps they’ll let him go deeper as the season progresses. However, with his control issues, Ryan may struggle to pitch deep into games, affecting his ability to get wins and quality starts.

Verdict:

River Ryan has a deep six-pitch arsenal, anchored by a plus fastball and two strong breaking balls. He also (barring any trades that happen after this is published) has a rather secure role in Los Angeles. The pitching injuries have been piling up for the Dodgers, so as long as Ryan is effective I think he’ll have a job. Ryan is definitely worth the add, and he’s worth a good portion of one's remaining FAAB as well. With just two months left in the season, time is running out for breakout pitchers to emerge, and Ryan could be a breakout arm down the stretch.

 

Tyler Phillips, Philadelphia Phillies – 30% Rostered

2024 Stats (prior to this start): 16 IP, 2.81 ERA, 3.90 FIP, 23.3% K-BB%
7/27 vs. CLE: 9 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 4 K

Phillips accomplished a rare feat in today’s MLB, going the distance for a complete game shutout against one of baseball's strongest teams in the Cleveland Guardians. It was the second straight start where Phillips didn’t allow a run, having also gone six shutout innings against Pittsburgh in his previous start. Phillips was promoted due to injuries in the Phillies rotation, but the young right-hander has pitched so well that he might’ve earned himself a bigger role on the team. It’s not like Taijuan Walker was setting the world on fire before hitting the injured list. Is Phillips worth the add, or will he be an afterthought?

Originally a 16th-round draft pick by the Rangers back in 2015, Phillips has had a long journey to the big leagues. He’s pitched professionally since the 2015 season when he was just 17 years old and finally reached the majors for the first time at age 26. He was designated for assignment by the Rangers in 2021 and claimed by the Phillies a week later. He works with a five-pitch mix consisting of a slider, sinker, four-seam fastball, curveball, and changeup. Phillips uses all of these pitches at least five percent of the time, but he relied heavily on his sinker and slider in this start.

Phillips’ most used pitch in this start was his sinker, which he threw 33% of the time. A 93.2 mph offering, Phillips’ sinker has above-average horizontal and vertical movement, making it an effective groundball pitch. Batters are hitting just .261 against the pitch, although a .609 SLG and .391 wOBA against are a bit concerning. Phillips has allowed a lot of hard contact with the pitch, as batters have a blistering 93.7 mph average exit velocity against the pitch thus far.

This doesn’t necessarily mean the pitch is bad or ineffective, but it gives Phillips less room for error. He’s kept the damage in check thanks to a two-degree average launch angle and a 59.1% groundball rate against the sinker, both exceptional numbers. Plenty of pitchers such as Framber Valdez, Cristopher Sanchez, and Logan Webb give up hard contact with their sinkers but get by due to their groundball prowess. It is way too early to compare Phillips to any of those guys, but it’s worth noting because hard contact isn’t the end of the world for a groundball-heavy pitcher.

Groundballs seem to be Phillips’ specialty. He only has a 41.2% groundball rate thus far, but he has a 59.1% groundball rate with his sinker and a 55% groundball rate with his curveball. Phillips also had a 50.9% groundball rate at Triple-A prior to promotion, and a monster 58.3% groundball rate at Triple-A the year prior, albeit in just 40.1 innings. Phillips doesn’t have big strikeout stuff, so he’ll need these groundball outs to get by in the majors.

Phillips may not have big strikeout stuff, but he does have a solid slider that’s gotten plenty of whiffs thus far. Batters are hitting just .176 against the pitch along with a .324 SLG and .212 wOBA. Even better, Phillips has a 17.7% swinging strike rate and a 33.8% chase rate with his slider. An 82.2 mph offering, Phillips’ slider is characterized by strong vertical movement. Here’s an example from this start.

It's a far cry from River Ryan’s 92 mph bender we saw earlier, but a solid pitch nonetheless, probably his best offering. Even so, don’t expect too much more than the 21.3% strikeout rate he’s posted thus far. Phillips routinely had strikeout rates below 20% in the minors, and most projection models have him between 16% and 17%. I think Phillips can beat those projections, but don’t expect his strikeout rate to get much higher than 20%.

While Phillips has been excellent thus far, there are a few red flags in his profile that suggest he’s overperformed. The biggest two would be his .215 BABIP against and his 94.6% LOB rate. Both of those will regress towards league average, and Phillips’ sparkling 1.80 ERA will rise when regression comes. Some groundball pitchers can maintain a lower-than-average BABIP, but not as low as .215, and not with just a 41.2% groundball rate. Expect more hits to fall against Phillips, and when they do, expect more of those runners to come around and score.

Phillips also has an unusually low 2.2% BB% thus far. He had a 9.4% BB% at Triple-A prior to promotion and an 11.5% BB% at Triple-A in 2023, so there’s simply no way he maintains this over time. Maybe batters are going after everything because he’s a rookie, or maybe there isn’t enough of a major-league scouting report on him yet. Either way, we cannot trust this walk rate going forward. The walk rate, BABIP, and LOB rate are all way too good to be true, and due to the small sample size, even ERA estimators are a little too rosy on Phillips in my opinion. Expect an ERA closer to 4.00 if he stays in the rotation long enough.

Verdict:

Phillips has been incredible thus far, and while there are some positive traits in this profile, fantasy managers should be skeptical of Phillips’ long-term viability. The best two things he has going for him are his sinker and slider, but he isn’t producing enough groundballs or strikeouts to stand out as elite, or even above average. He’s gotten by thanks to a .215 BABIP and 94.6% LOB rate, but we all know those numbers can’t last. He’s not the worst option for streaming, especially against a weak lineup, but he’s not someone I’d trust every time or spend a good portion of FAAB to acquire. Pick up River Ryan instead.



Download Our Free News & Alerts Mobile App

Like what you see? Download our updated fantasy baseball app for iPhone and Android with 24x7 player news, injury alerts, sleepers, prospects & more. All free!



More Fantasy Baseball Advice




POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Draft Rankings
Draft Simulator
Enter League Settings
Compare Any Players
Rookies & Call-Ups
24x7 News and Alerts

REAL-TIME FANTASY NEWS

Parker Meadows13 mins ago

No Timetable For Parker Meadows' Return
Jahmai Jones21 mins ago

Could Be Dark-Horse Candidate For Opening Day Spot
Trey Sweeney27 mins ago

Not A Lock To Start At Shortstop
Isaac Paredes34 mins ago

Could Hit Second In The Lineup
Philadelphia Eagles1 hour ago

Eagles Release Darius Slay
Jose Altuve2 hours ago

To Spend Most Of His Time In Left Field
Jorge Polanco2 hours ago

Making Cactus League Debut On Monday
Jordan Westburg2 hours ago

Expected To Return To Spring Action On Wednesday Or Thursday
Gunnar Henderson2 hours ago

Turning A Corner, Feeling A Lot Better
Félix Bautista2 hours ago

Orioles To Be Careful With Felix Bautista Early On
MMA2 hours ago

Asu Almbayev Gets TKO'd At UFC Vegas 103
Héctor Neris2 hours ago

Braves Sign Hector Neris To Minor-League Deal
Manel Kape2 hours ago

Gets TKO Win At UFC Vegas 103
Drake Baldwin2 hours ago

Could Open Season As Braves Starting Catcher
Tari Eason3 hours ago

Listed As Questionable Against Thunder
Sean Murphy3 hours ago

To Miss 4-6 Weeks With Cracked Rib
Dillon Brooks3 hours ago

Questionable With Knee Injury On Monday
Alperen Sengün3 hours ago

Alperen Sengun Tagged As Questionable On Monday
Julian Marquez3 hours ago

Loses Fourth Fight In A Row
Kyle Busch3 hours ago

Falls Short Of Victory At COTA While Finishing Fifth
Amen Thompson3 hours ago

Considered Questionable Against Thunder
Guerschon Yabusele3 hours ago

Available Against Trail Blazers On Monday
Kyle Larson3 hours ago

Has A Day To Forget At COTA On Sunday
Cody Brundage3 hours ago

Gets Back In The Win Column
Tyler Reddick3 hours ago

Continues His Top-10 Streak At COTA With Third-Place Finish
NASCAR4 hours ago

Bubba Wallace Has An Eventful Day At COTA That Ends In 20th-Place Finish
Esteban Ribovics4 hours ago

Drops Decision At UFC Vegas 103
Paul George4 hours ago

Tagged As Questionable On Monday
Noah Gragson4 hours ago

Scores His First Career Road Course Top-10 Finish At COTA
Nasrat Haqparast4 hours ago

Extends Win Streak At UFC Vegas 103
Quinten Post4 hours ago

Likely To Play On Monday
William Gomis4 hours ago

Takes Split-Decision Loss
Jonathan Kuminga4 hours ago

Remains Sidelined Monday Against Hornets
Hyder Amil4 hours ago

Remains Undefeated
Jacob Melton5 hours ago

Assigned To Minor-League Camp
Sam Patterson5 hours ago

Extends Win Streak To Three
Jackson Jobe5 hours ago

Rebounds In Second Start
Justin Wrobleski5 hours ago

Sharp In Sunday's Start
Danny Barlow5 hours ago

Suffers First Career Loss At UFC Vegas 103
Xavier Isaac5 hours ago

Returns To Starting Lineup
Filip Gustavsson5 hours ago

Shuts Out Bruins With 28 Saves
Josue De Paula5 hours ago

Assigned To Minor-League Camp
Roope Hintz5 hours ago

Records Second Consecutive Four-Point Game
Wyatt Johnston5 hours ago

Nets Hat Trick Against Blues
Zyhir Hope5 hours ago

Sent To Minor-League Camp
Adin Hill5 hours ago

Stops Devils From Scoring
Auston Matthews6 hours ago

Extends Point Streak To Nine Games
Sidney Crosby6 hours ago

Bags Three Points In Sunday's Loss
Jack Hughes6 hours ago

Exits With Injury Sunday
Christopher Bell6 hours ago

Wins At COTA, Ready To Keep Adding To It
Chris Buescher7 hours ago

Finishes Seventh At COTA, Sees Room For Improvement
Todd Gilliland7 hours ago

Nabs First Top-10 Finish Of Season After Bumpy COTA Race
Nick Loftin7 hours ago

Scratched With Wrist Injury
Tyler Black7 hours ago

Returns On Sunday
Ji Hwan Bae7 hours ago

Sustains Minor Hand Injury
Chase Elliott12 hours ago

Recovers From Lap 1 Spinout To Finish Fourth
William Byron12 hours ago

In Battle Between Last Two Race Winners, William Byron Comes Up Short
Shane Van Gisbergen12 hours ago

Shane van Gisbergen Dominates First Two Stages But Fades In Third Stage
AJ Allmendinger12 hours ago

A.J. Allmendinger Runs Well At Austin Until Late-Race Collapse
Alex Bowman12 hours ago

Recovers From COTA Penalty To Finish Ninth
Tyler Conklin17 hours ago

Not Expected To Return
New York Jets17 hours ago

Sauce Gardner Expected To Reset The Cornerback Market
New York Jets17 hours ago

Jets More Likely To Go After A Second-Tier Veteran QB
Davante Adams18 hours ago

Jets Taking Calls On Davante Adams
Kevin Durant18 hours ago

Suns Could Work Together On A Trade This Offseason
Anthony Edwards18 hours ago

Back In Action Against Phoenix
Julius Randle18 hours ago

Will Play On Sunday Night
Jimmy Butler III18 hours ago

Expected To Suit Up On Monday
Grayson Allen18 hours ago

Cleared To Play On Sunday
Bradley Beal18 hours ago

Upgraded To Available
LeBron James18 hours ago

Trending Towards Playing On Sunday
Luka Dončić19 hours ago

Luka Doncic Upgraded To Probable For Sunday
Zion Williamson19 hours ago

Starting On Sunday
Gradey Dick19 hours ago

Won't Return On Sunday
Tobias Harris19 hours ago

Ruled Out For Monday
Domantas Sabonis19 hours ago

Ruled Out For Monday's Game
P.J. Washington19 hours ago

Won't Play On Monday
Jacob Markstrom21 hours ago

Activated From Injured Reserve Sunday
Jonas Brodin21 hours ago

Deemed Week-To-Week
Matthew Tkachuk21 hours ago

Placed On Long-Term Injured Reserve
Justus Annunen21 hours ago

Starts Against Rangers
Jonathan Quick21 hours ago

Starts For Rangers Sunday
Reilly Smith21 hours ago

Sits Out Sunday's Action
Carolina Panthers23 hours ago

Panthers Expected To Be Aggressive While Searching For Defensive Upgrades
Atlanta Falcons24 hours ago

Falcons Interested In Trading No. 15 Pick In The Draft
Cleveland Browns24 hours ago

Browns Continue To Insist They Won't Trade Myles Garrett
Daniel Jones24 hours ago

Other QBs on Colts Radar
Russell Wilson1 day ago

Steelers Prefer Justin Fields Over Russell Wilson?
Daniel Jones1 day ago

Expected To Be On Browns Radar
Sam Darnold1 day ago

Vikings Won't Mortgage The Future To Keep Sam Darnold
Ja'Marr Chase1 day ago

Bengals, Ja'Marr Chase Remain Far Apart In Extension Talks
New York Giants1 day ago

Giants Could Be Willing To Trade Up To No. 1 Overall
Philadelphia Eagles1 day ago

Eagles Have Real Interest In Myles Garrett
Brandon Aiyuk1 day ago

49ers Looking To Trade Brandon Aiyuk?
Tyler Reddick1 day ago

Wins Pole At COTA, Looking To Become First Repeat Winner
Chase Elliott1 day ago

Will Be A Top Threat For The Win At COTA
Shane Van Gisbergen1 day ago

Shane van Gisbergen the Favorite to Win at COTA
Kyle Larson1 day ago

Is One Of The Top Favorites To Win At COTA
Christopher Bell1 day ago

Will Be A Fantastic DFS Play For COTA Lineups
AJ Allmendinger1 day ago

Struggling At COTA Despite Strong Practice Speeds
Austin Cindric1 day ago

Is One Of The Top DFS Recommendations For COTA Lineups
Connor Zilisch1 day ago

Making Cup Series Debut This Weekend
Ryan Donato1 day ago

Extends Point Streak To Four Games
Calvin Pickard1 day ago

Sharp In Victory
Pierre-Olivier Joseph1 day ago

Sustains Upper-Body Injury
Jake Sanderson1 day ago

Exits Early On Saturday
Quinn Hughes1 day ago

Set To Be Evaluated
Seth Jones1 day ago

Traded To Florida
Deebo Samuel Sr.2 days ago

Commanders Acquire Deebo Samuel Sr.
Jason Zucker2 days ago

Remains Out Saturday
Josh Norris2 days ago

Shane Pinto Available Saturday
New Orleans Saints2 days ago

Cameron Jordan A Cut Candidate?
Carolina Panthers2 days ago

Panthers Interested In Giving Jaycee Horn An Extension
Tennessee Titans2 days ago

Titans Plan To Meet With Abdul Carter, Travis Hunter, Cam Ward, Shedeur Sanders
Las Vegas Raiders2 days ago

Raiders Want A No. 1 Wide Receiver
MMA3 days ago

Asu Almbayev Looks To Remain Undefeated In The UFC
Manel Kape3 days ago

Looks To Win Back-To-Back Fights
Julian Marquez3 days ago

In Dire Need Of Victory
Cody Brundage3 days ago

Looks To Get Back In The Win Column
Esteban Ribovics3 days ago

Looks For His Fourth UFC Win
Nasrat Haqparast3 days ago

An Underdog At UFC Vegas 103
William Gomis3 days ago

A Favorite At UFC Vegas 103
Hyder Amil3 days ago

Looks To Remain Undefeated
Sam Patterson3 days ago

Opens Up UFC Vegas 103 Main Card
Danny Barlow3 days ago

Looks To Extend Win Streak
Emiliano Grillo5 days ago

Out Of Form Ahead Of Cognizant Classic
Sam Ryder5 days ago

A Course Horse For PGA National
Matt Kuchar5 days ago

An Intriguing Option At Cognizant Classic
Cameron Young5 days ago

A High-Risk, High-Reward Play At PGA National
Taylor Pendrith5 days ago

Is An Enticing Play At Cognizant Classic
Gary Woodland5 days ago

Aiming For Bounce-Back Performance At PGA National
PGA5 days ago

Kris Ventura A Value Pick At The Cognizant Classic
PGA5 days ago

Niklas Norgaard Making Third PGA Tour Start At Cognizant Classic
Erik Van Rooyen5 days ago

Looking For Sustained Success At PGA National
Jordan Spieth6 days ago

Looking To Bounce Back In Cognizant Classic Debut
Seamus Power6 days ago

A Risky Play With Upside At PGA National
Andrew Novak6 days ago

Searching For Consistency At PGA National
Denny McCarthy6 days ago

Eyeing First Career Victory At PGA National
Min Woo Lee6 days ago

Aims To Keep The Momentum Going At PGA National
Chris Kirk6 days ago

A Wild Card At PGA National
Mark Hubbard6 days ago

Trending In The Wrong Direction Ahead Of Cognizant Classic
Alex Smalley6 days ago

Continues To Impress Ahead Of The Cognizant Classic
Taylor Moore6 days ago

Continues Playing Well Heading To Cognizant Classic
Justin Lower6 days ago

Misses Cut At Mexico Open
Max Greyserman6 days ago

Hitting Stride Heading To Cognizant Classic
Jake Knapp6 days ago

Posts Solid Finish At Mexico Open
RANKINGS
C
1B
2B
3B
SS
OF
SP
RP

RANKINGS

QB
RB
WR
TE
K
DEF

MORE RECENT ARTICLES

 
Kenneth Walker III - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, Waiver Wire Pickups

5 Fantasy Football Breakout Candidates for 2025

It’s never too early to plan for the upcoming fantasy football season. One of the best ways to get a jump on your league mates is correctly identifying which players are set up for breakout seasons. Nailing some fantasy football breakouts can be the difference between hoisting your league’s championship trophy or performing some embarrassing punishment. […]


Josh Allen - Fantasy Football Rankings, NFL Injury News, DFS Lineup Picks

Dynasty Fantasy Football League Quarterback Draft Rankings: Who Is the QB1 For 2025?

Having an elite quarterback in dynasty leagues will go a long way for your fantasy team. The quarterback position usually provides fantasy managers with the most points every week, and these quarterbacks can sometimes win matchups by themselves. Of the top 10 players who scored the most fantasy points last season, seven were quarterbacks.  That […]


David Montgomery - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL Injury News

Every NFC Team's Most Undervalued Dynasty Fantasy Football Players to Target in 2025

Dynasty fantasy football is an ever-growing game. Only hardcore players partook in dynasty leagues years ago. However, it has become more common for casual players, too. Everyone loves seeing a blockbuster trade happen in their dynasty league. Nothing is more exciting than seeing a league-altering move. However, the league-winning moves are the ones for undervalued […]


Jaxson Dart - College Football Rankings, NCAA CFB DFS Lineup Picks

Top Rookie Quarterback Sleepers to Target in 2025 Dynasty Fantasy Football Leagues

The quarterback position is notoriously difficult to evaluate. A big reason for this is that it's the position that requires the most information processing, awareness of what's happening on the field both before and after the snap, and the ability to react to many different types of situations. As such, it's incredibly difficult to find […]


Zach Charbonnet - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL DFS and Betting Picks

5 Must-Stash Handcuff Running Backs for Dynasty Fantasy Football Leagues - Target These RBs in 2025

The dynasty offseason is in full swing. Here at RotoBaller, we’ve got you covered with all kinds of dynasty content including our pre-NFL Draft rookie rankings. One important aspect of dynasty football, which often goes overlooked, is stashing bench players with upside. Usually, these players are nothing more than lottery tickets. However, if you can […]


Tyreek Hill - Fantasy Football Rankings, NFL Injury News, DFS Lineup Picks

Dynasty Fantasy Football: 4 Veteran Players to Sell Low in 2025 Before Their Trade Value Crashes

Welcome to the 2025 NFL offseason, RotoBallers! As NFL teams prepare to scout for the NFL Combine and sign free agents on the open market, we will examine veterans to sell low on in dynasty fantasy football leagues. If there is one inevitable thing for athletes, it's Father Time. In addition to aging veterans, other […]


Jameson Williams - Fantasy Football Rankings, Waiver Wire Pickups, Draft Sleepers

Top 5 Dynasty Fantasy Football League Trade Targets: Fourth-Year Players to Buy in 2025

The offseason is critical for dynasty fantasy football managers wanting to shake up their rosters. Whether you're trying to improve one position or want to rebuild your entire team, making the right trades now can set you up for success in future years. Dynasty leagues reward those who are ahead of the curve. One of […]


Jonnu Smith - Fantasy Football Rankings, NFL Injury News, DFS Lineup Picks

Biggest Fantasy Football Tight End Surprises: 2nd-Year TE Breakout Stars & Sleepers for 2025 Drafts

Usually, you know what you're getting at tight end. Travis Kelce and Mark Andrews finish top three at the position in fantasy football. Young guys struggle to get going. Jonnu Smith fails to live up to the hype that I've personally had for him for years now. None of those things happened in 2024, though. […]


Jerry Jeudy - Fantasy Football Rankings, NFL Injury News, DFS Lineup Picks

Top Fantasy Football Wide Receiver Surprises: 2nd-Year WR Breakout Stars & Sleepers for 2025 Drafts

The 2024 NFL season was full of surprises, from expected playoff teams like the Cowboys and 49ers faltering during the regular season to unexpected players breaking out. While the top three wide receivers in fantasy scoring weren't a surprise to anyone (Ja'Marr Chase, Justin Jefferson, and Amon-Ra St. Brown), some of the names that followed […]


Tyler Allgeier - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, Waiver Wire Pickups

2025 Fantasy Football Backup Running Back Rankings for Dynasty Leagues: Sleepers & Value Picks

Ah, the backup running backs. Fantasy football managers hold them all season in the hopes that, for at least one week, they have a fantasy starter. Not all backup running backs are created equal. The top-end runners technically don't start but see an equal share of touches. There are the high-value handcuffs, the running backs […]


Jaylen Waddle - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL DFS Picks

Every AFC Team's Most Undervalued Dynasty Fantasy Football Players to Target in 2025

Dynasty fantasy football is a growing game. What started as a thing for hardcore players has become a format casual players enjoy, too. While everyone enjoys making a blockbuster trade, moving multiple superstar players and draft picks, that’s not how you win your dynasty fantasy league. Instead, the league-winning moves are the ones for undervalued […]


Tyler Warren - NFL Draft Prospect, Fantasy Football Dynasty Rookie Rankings

2025 NFL Rookie Dynasty Mock Draft: Top Picks for 12-Team Fantasy Football TE Premium Leagues

With the Super Bowl behind us, all football fans’ attention has turned to the upcoming offseason. The 2025 NFL Draft is full of potential future fantasy football superstars, primarily at the running back position.  While there are many different formats to play dynasty fantasy football in, one of the trendy formats is tight-end premium. This […]


Travis Etienne Jr. fantasy football rankings draft sleepers running backs

Top Running Back Breakout Candidates for 2025 Fantasy Football Drafts: RB1 Projections & Outlooks

There's plenty of change in the 12 players that finish the season as "RB1s" every season. It makes sense because running back is a position that depends heavily on factors out of the control of the back in question, such as offensive line play, being traded to other teams, injuries, and the like. The injury […]