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 MLB Pitcher Starts from Week 20

Elliott Baas looks at starting pitchers who turned in surprising starts recently. These SP could emerge as waiver wire targets and sleepers for Week 20, or simply mirages.

Welcome back to "Are You For Real?", 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.

We're taking a trip to America's heartland this week, with two Central arms going under the microscope for a deeper look following some fine pitching. This week, we'll be looking at a strong start from Pittsburgh's JT Brubaker and the emergence of former top prospect Matt Manning in Detroit.

Roster percentages are taken from Yahoo and are accurate as of 8/22/22.

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

 

JT Brubaker, Pittsburgh Pirates -- 7% Rostered

2022 Stats (before this start): 113.1 IP, 4.45 ERA, 3.81 FIP, 13.9% K-BB%

08/18 vs. BOS: 7 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 7 K

Brubaker turned in one of his best starts all year on Thursday, blanking the BoSox over seven innings while picking up his third victory of the season. Brubaker has been a mainstay in Pittsburgh’s rotation all season, quietly racking up innings on a last-place team while remaining off fantasy radars.

There just hadn’t been that much to like about a pitcher with a 3-10 record and an ERA over four, but that may be about to change after Brubaker’s dominant start on Thursday. Does Brubaker have what it takes to be an impact arm down the stretch, or will JT Brubaker turn into JK Brubaker, fooling us all?

Originally drafted in the sixth round by Pittsburgh back in 2015, Brubaker was never much of a high-profile prospect. He gained some notoriety in the Pittsburgh organization, but had zero presence on a national level and didn’t crack the majors until he was 26 years old. The righty works with a five-pitch mix but relies heavily on three of those five pitches. Brubaker leans on his sinker, slider, and curveball on the mound, and throws the occasional four-seam fastball and changeup.

Breaking balls have been the catalyst behind Brubaker’s success (when he’s had it), and there are some impressive underlying numbers on both his slider and curveball this season. We’ll start with the slider as Brubaker throws the pitch 31.2% of the time, almost double the usage rate of his curve. Brubaker has gotten decent results with this pitch, including a .247 AVG, .414 SLG, and .317 wOBA against his slider this season.

Those numbers are passable, but according to Statcast's expected stats, Brubaker has been rather unlucky with his slider thus far. He has a .215 MBA, .366 xSLG, and .288 xwOBA with his slider this year.

Those expected stats are believable as well thanks to a whopping 21.2% swinging strike rate and 40.7% chase rate with the pitch. It’s a hard, sharp pitch averaging about 86 MPH on the gun. Brubaker’s slider also has exceptional side-to-side movement, boasting 3.3 inches of a break above the league average. Here are two particularly nasty examples from a start earlier this season.


Brubaker made Miami’s Bryan De La Cruz take one of the most foolish-looking swings this writer can remember seeing at the big-league level. While not a mind-blowingly great pitch, Brubaker’s slider looks like a plus offering capable of generating whiffs regularly and ensuring he maintains a healthy overall strikeout rate.

Brubaker’s slider has a lot of strong attributes, but the real gem of his arsenal is the curveball. Coming in at 80.1 MPH, Brubaker’s curveball is a traditional, loopy bender that often drops in at the bottom of the zone or just below it. The numbers on this pitch are darn impressive, as opponents have managed just a .211 AVG, .296 SLG, and .238 wOBA with the pitch this season, along with a 14% swinging strike rate and 37.9% chase rate with the curveball.

What makes the pitch so special? Spin rate. Brubaker’s curveball averages 2817 RPM, putting him in the 89th percentile of curveball spin in the major leagues. Here’s an example of the pitch from an earlier start this season.

That’s a classic curveball, with its rainbow arc allowing it to kiss the bottom of the zone. Between the curve and the slider, Brubaker has two above-average breaking balls, which is a very, very nice thing to have as a major league starter.

So, with two plus breaking pitches, it’s a wonder why Brubaker hasn’t been better this season. His sinker hasn’t gotten the best results (.281 AVG, .429 SLG against), but that’s hardly catastrophic. One of the biggest reasons behind Brubaker’s struggles seems to be plain old rotten luck. Brubaker has a .329 BABIP against this season.

Part of that BABIP is his own doing, as Brubaker has allowed a 22.3% line drive rate this year (league average is 20%) along with an 11.1-degree average launch angle. When you allow this many line drives, the hits are bound to fall.

Part of the reason, though, may lie in his defense. The Pirates rank 24th in the majors in outs above average (OAA) this season at -18 and have put up similarly miserable metrics in other advanced defensive metrics, such as UZR (-7), DRS (-5), and FanGraphs dWAR (-14.3).

This is just a bad team with a bad defense, and unfortunately for Brubaker, that isn’t changing anytime soon. Other than Ke’Bryan Hayes at third, no Pittsburgh regulars are plus defenders. The outfield has been especially bad, with centerfielder Bryan Reynolds turning in an abysmal -8 OAA and -9 DRS this season.

Bad luck and defensive woes aside, there’s still a lot to like about JT Brubaker. Not only does he have two solid secondary offerings, but his fastball velocity was also trending back upwards in this start after a prolonged dip lasting about a month, and he has a relatively long leash for any given start. He completed seven innings in this start against Boston and seems to be allowed to go deep as long as he’s pitching well. Innings limits and pitch counts are one of the biggest drawbacks to many waiver wire arms, so Pittsburgh’s apparent trust in Brubaker is a valuable commodity.

Verdict:

Brubaker’s arsenal suggests he can be an effective major league starter. He has a decent sinker with a velocity that can touch 97 MPH and has a strong slider and curveball. One of his biggest faults is out of his control, which is the team he plays for. If Brubaker was on a better, more high-profile team, he’d likely garner a lot more fantasy attention and attain a sleeper status. Use the East Coast and outcome-driven biases of other fantasy players against them and grab Brubaker now for a helpful arm to use down the stretch.

He’s probably not quite standard mixed league relevant yet, but Brubaker is a fine addition in leagues deeper than 12 teams. He’s still not someone we should trust in every single matchup, which is why Brubaker should be avoided if possible in his next start, which is home against Atlanta on Tuesday.

 

Matt Manning, Detroit Tigers – 9% Rostered

2022 Stats (before this start): 25 IP, 3.24 ERA, 3.76 FIP, 8.6 K-BB%

08/19 vs. LAA: 7 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 6 K

There was some great pitching Friday in Detroit, and while Manning was upstaged by Patrick Sandoval’s absolute gem of a start, the young right-hander still turned in one of the better starts of his career to this point. Manning held Los Angeles to a lone run over seven innings while striking out six in the tough-luck loss. Following this start, Manning now owns a sparkling 2.81 ERA on the year, but is he ready to take the leap, or will this recent surge prove a fake-out?

The ninth overall pick by Detroit back in 2016, Manning was considered one of the top pitching prospects in all of baseball before his graduation. He, along with Casey Mize and Tarik Skubal, was supposed to remake the Tigers' rotation into something fierce.

The results on that have been mixed thus far, but Manning has started to pull his weight over his last few starts. Manning works with a five-pitch mix consisting of a four-seam fastball, sinker, slider, curveball, and changeup. It may be a deep arsenal for Manning, but there’s one pitch that has stood above the rest this season, and it’s his newest pitch, the slider.

When Manning was a prospect, scouts raved about his fastball-curveball combo, but those pitches proved ineffective when Manning reached Triple-A, where he posted an unbelievably bad 8.07 ERA the first time around. They were equally ineffective in the majors, which is why Detroit had Manning develop his slider in the first place.

At 83.5 MPH, Manning’s slider is relatively soft compared to his 93.5 MPH heater and comes in a little loopier than your typical slider. Batters have been stymied by this pitch, posting a measly .190 AVG, .238 SLG, and .200 wOBA off Manning’s slider this year.

Manning’s slider isn’t a standout in velocity or spin, but it has shown exceptional vertical movement, with 7.4 inches of drop on his slider compared to the league average. This was a huge leap from last season as well, as Manning gained five inches of drop on his slider between this season and the previous one.

The effect of this change can be seen in the underlying numbers as well since Manning’s swinging strike rate with the slider nearly doubled from last season (10.2%) to this one (19.1%). The chase rate also jumped by 11% up to 36.4%, and the zone rate dropped by 5% down to 53.2%. It’s perhaps most evident in the heatmaps. Here is a comparison of Manning’s slider heatmaps from last season (top) and this season (bottom).

We can certainly visualize that zone rate drop, as Manning is now putting the pitch exactly where it belongs in the low and away corner. While it would be difficult for Manning to sustain outcomes this good on his slider, there is evidence of tangible change here with a direct link to success.

A year ago, Manning looked lost on the mound, and this writer had serious doubts about his long-term viability as a starter. These slider improvements are a huge step in the right direction, and Manning may have something to give fantasy players after all. Of course, the remaining issues with Manning didn’t evaporate overnight. The issue of strikeouts remains, as Manning has a pitiful 6.47 K/9 despite such strong numbers on his slider.

That means his other pitches are providing nothing in the strikeout department, and that appears to be true once one dives into the peripherals. Outside of his show-me changeup (6.2% usage rate), none of his other pitches has a swinging strike rate above 7.2% or a chase rate above 31%.

Manning is getting decent results on his fastball and curveball, but that’s thanks in large part to a .263 BABIP. All of his pitches are rocking a BABIP of .271 or lower, and his sinker has a laughably unsustainable .154 BABIP against. A point in Manning’s favor may be his propensity for allowing soft contact, as he’s shaved more than four MPH off his average exit velocity against for a cool 87.1 MPH this year. This is a nice trend, but 32 innings is far too small a sample size to extract anything meaningful yet.

Verdict:

Manning has made huge strides with his slider, gaining over five inches of drop on the pitch in 2022. That pitch has been the catalyst for his success this season and represents the first plus pitch Manning has flashed in the majors. The rest of his stuff leaves something to be desired, and he’ll likely never be an above-average strikeout pitcher.

Still, there are some things to like, such as his improvements in soft contact rate. Manning has gone from someone this writer would never touch in fantasy to a low-end streamer. There’s still a lot missing from his game, but he is startable in the right situation. His next matchup is a neutral one, home against San Francisco. He’s not a must-have there, but you could do worse in a deep league.



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

Eugenio Suárez17 mins ago

Eugenio Suarez Hits Go-Ahead Grand Slam Tuesday
A.J. Puk25 mins ago

Earns First Save Of Season Tuesday
Michael King32 mins ago

Fans 11 In Five Shutout Innings Tuesday
Christian Yelich41 mins ago

Hits First Homer Of Season, Steals Base Tuesday
Evan Engram45 mins ago

Sean Payton Excited About Evan Engram In Joker Role
Anthony Bender47 mins ago

Earns First Save Of Season Tuesday
Robert Hassell III50 mins ago

Has Three-Hit Day At Triple-A
Thomas Harrington57 mins ago

Hit Hard In MLB Debut Tuesday
Gunnar Henderson1 hour ago

Hits Solo Homer In Triple-A Rehab Game Tuesday
Marcelo Mayer1 hour ago

Hits First Home Run At Triple-A
Caleb Williams2 hours ago

To Spend More Time Working Under Center
Tom Hoge2 hours ago

Looking To Build Off Strong Performance At The PLAYERS Championship
Zebby Matthews2 hours ago

Twirls Five Shutout Innings At Triple-A
Daniel Jones2 hours ago

Anthony Richardson, Daniel Jones To Split First-Team Reps This Offseason
Terry McLaurin2 hours ago

Commanders Interested In Extending Terry McLaurin
Rashee Rice2 hours ago

Expected To Be Ready For Training Camp
Hurston Waldrep2 hours ago

Fans Seven In Win At Triple-A
Garrett Wilson2 hours ago

Jets Plan To Get Garrett Wilson The Ball "As Much As Possible"
Keaton Mitchell2 hours ago

Ravens Have High Hopes For Keaton Mitchell
Angel Genao2 hours ago

Dealing With Shoulder Injury
Derrick Henry2 hours ago

John Harbaugh Wants Ravens To Extend Derrick Henry
Christian McCaffrey3 hours ago

Is Healthy
Clarke Schmidt3 hours ago

To Return April 15 Or 16
Shane Baz3 hours ago

Strikes Out 10
Mike Tauchman4 hours ago

Begins Rehab Assignment
Wyatt Langford4 hours ago

Launches Another Homer
Nathan Eovaldi4 hours ago

Throws Complete Game Shutout
Michael Petersen4 hours ago

Traded To Atlanta
Matt Fitzpatrick4 hours ago

Looking For Consistency At Valero Texas Open
Corey Conners4 hours ago

Continues Strong Form Ahead Of Valero Texas Open
Patrick Cantlay5 hours ago

Eyeing Victory At Valero Texas Open
Reynaldo López5 hours ago

Reynaldo Lopez To Undergo Right-Shoulder Surgery
Gary Woodland5 hours ago

Showing Great Form Ahead Of Valero Texas Open
Akshay Bhatia5 hours ago

Aiming For Repeat At Valero Texas Open
Alejandro Tosti5 hours ago

A Volatile Choice At TPC San Antonio
NFL5 hours ago

Tush Push Unlikely To Be Banned For 2025 Season
Xavier Legette5 hours ago

Dave Canales Compares Xavier Legette To DK Metcalf
Brett de Geus5 hours ago

Phillies Claim Brett de Geus Off Waivers From Marlins
New York Giants5 hours ago

Ty Summers Re-Signs With New York
Nick Mears6 hours ago

Beginning Rehab Assignment At Triple-A
Sam Ehlinger6 hours ago

Signs One-Year Deal With Denver
Guerschon Yabusele6 hours ago

Out Against Knicks
Karl-Anthony Towns6 hours ago

Sits Out Tuesday's Game
Arizona Cardinals6 hours ago

Calais Campbell Returns To Arizona
Jevon Carter6 hours ago

Ruled Out Tuesday
Dalen Terry6 hours ago

Unavailable Against Raptors
Julian Phillips6 hours ago

Out On Tuesday
Jalen Smith6 hours ago

Available Against Raptors
Lonzo Ball7 hours ago

Still Out On Tuesday
Kevin Huerter7 hours ago

Cleared For Tuesday's Matchup
Josh Giddey7 hours ago

Will Play On Tuesday
Dalano Banton7 hours ago

Starting Against The Hawks
Royce O'Neale7 hours ago

Unavailable Against Bucks
Jerami Grant7 hours ago

Out Again On Tuesday
Bradley Beal7 hours ago

Out On Tuesday
Ron Holland II7 hours ago

Tagged With A One-Game Suspension Tuesday
Anfernee Simons7 hours ago

Ruled Out Versus The Hawks
Trae Young7 hours ago

Officially Available Tuesday
Marcus Sasser7 hours ago

Suspended For One Game On Tuesday
Giannis Antetokounmpo7 hours ago

Will Play On Tuesday
Jimmy Snuggerud7 hours ago

Ready For NHL Debut Tuesday
Isaiah Stewart7 hours ago

Suspended For Two Games On Tuesday
Jacob Trouba8 hours ago

Set To Rejoin Ducks Lineup Tuesday
Jonathan Kuminga8 hours ago

Ruled Out On Tuesday
Troy Terry8 hours ago

On Track To Play Tuesday
Jaylen Brown8 hours ago

Questionable Versus Miami
Jonathan Marchessault8 hours ago

Remains Out Against Blue Jackets
Alex Laferriere8 hours ago

Expected To Return On Tuesday
Luke Schenn8 hours ago

A Game-Time Decision Tuesday
Dante Fabbro8 hours ago

Returns Against Predators
Detroit Lions10 hours ago

Alim McNeill Could Miss Start Of Regular Season
Tennessee Titans11 hours ago

Justin Hardee Sr. Returning To Titans
Washington Commanders11 hours ago

Brandon Coleman Moving To Right Tackle For Commanders
Raheem Blackshear11 hours ago

Returning To Carolina
Kirk Cousins11 hours ago

Not Expected To Attend Voluntary Offseason Training
NFL11 hours ago

NFL Ownership Votes To Move Kickoff Touchbacks To 35-Yard Line
Olli Määttä11 hours ago

Olli Maatta A Game-Time Call On Tuesday
Jordan Greenway11 hours ago

Remains Sidelined On Tuesday
Dallas Cowboys11 hours ago

Cowboys Willing To Make Micah Parsons The Highest-Paid Non-QB
Jordan Staal11 hours ago

Doubtful For Wednesday
Matt Roy12 hours ago

Not Traveling With Team
Josh Norris12 hours ago

Not Traveling With The Team On Tuesday
Brady Tkachuk12 hours ago

Not Playing On Tuesday
Jordan Spieth13 hours ago

Needs To Find Consistency At TPC San Antonio
Jake Knapp14 hours ago

Making First Appearance At Valero Texas Open
Michael Kim14 hours ago

Looking To Find The Magic Again In San Antonio
Tommy Fleetwood14 hours ago

Is Nearly A Must-Play At Valero Texas Open
Tony Finau14 hours ago

Hoping For Better Approach Play In San Antonio
Eric Cole14 hours ago

Trending In Right Direction Ahead Of Valero
Casey DeSmith18 hours ago

Sharp In Monday's Victory
Mason Marchment18 hours ago

Tallies Two Helpers On Monday
Adam Klapka18 hours ago

Tallies Two Points In Shootout Victory
Ivan Fedotov18 hours ago

Sharp Against Nashville
Matvei Michkov19 hours ago

Continues Hot Stretch On Monday
Luke Hughes19 hours ago

Scores Goal, Adds Assist In Victory
Sam Stevens1 day ago

Enjoys Nice Result In Houston
PGA1 day ago

J.T. Poston Seeks To Contend At Valero Texas Open
Denny McCarthy1 day ago

Keeps Making Cuts But Needs To Make More Putts
Brian Harman1 day ago

Off To A Subpar 2025 So Far
Ilya Samsonov1 day ago

Nursing An Upper-Body Injury
Tomas Hertl1 day ago

To Sit Out At Least One More Week
Ryan Preece1 day ago

Has Three Straight Top-10 Finishes For First Time In His Career
NASCAR1 day ago

Bubba Wallace After Third-Place Finish At Martinsville: "What a Great Day"
Todd Gilliland1 day ago

Has Mistake-Free Day At Martinsville, Grabs Another Top-10 Finish
Brandon Moreno1 day ago

Wins Back-To-Back Fights
Steve Erceg1 day ago

Losses Third Consecutive Fight
Drew Dober1 day ago

Gets Knocked Out At UFC Mexico City
Manuel Torres1 day ago

Gets Back In The Win Column
Harry Hall1 day ago

Bounces Back In Houston Last Week
CJ Vergara1 day ago

Gets Submitted
Ryan Fox1 day ago

Showing Improvement Heading Into The Valero Texas Open
Édgar Cháirez1 day ago

Edgar Chairez Gets Submission Win At UFC Mexico City
Vince Morales1 day ago

Drops Decision At UFC Mexico City
Raul Rosas Jr.1 day ago

Gets Decision Win At UFC Mexico City
Saimon Oliveira1 day ago

Still Winless In The UFC
David Martinez1 day ago

Wins His UFC Debut
Kevin Borjas1 day ago

Earns His First UFC Win
Ronaldo Rodríguez1 day ago

Ronaldo Rodriguez Suffers His First UFC Loss
Joel Dahmen1 day ago

Scores Top-20 Finish At Texas Children's Houston Open
Jacob Bridgeman1 day ago

Had Some Rest Heading Into The Valero
Christopher Bell2 days ago

Powers His Way To A Second-Place Finish At Martinsville
Chase Elliott2 days ago

Strong Martinsville Performance Ends With A Top-Five Finish
Kyle Larson2 days ago

Collects A Top-Five Finish At Martinsville
William Byron2 days ago

Places 22nd After Struggles At Martinsville
Joey Logano2 days ago

Claims His First 2025 Top-10 Finish After Up-And-Down Performance
Tyler Reddick2 days ago

Fails To Place In The Top 10 At Martinsville
Denny Hamlin2 days ago

Silences Doubters After Crew-Chief Change
Ty Gibbs2 days ago

Earns Best 2025 Finish At Martinsville Despite Failing Cool Suit
Ross Chastain2 days ago

Has A Great Day At Martinsville
Chase Briscoe2 days ago

Has Solid Run At Martinsville
Erik Jones2 days ago

Disqualified At Martinsville For Weight Violation
Josh Berry3 days ago

Has Top-10 Upside At Martinsville
Joey Logano3 days ago

Don't Overlook Joey Logano This Weekend
Ryan Preece3 days ago

Could Get First Three-Race Top-10 Streak Of His Career
Chase Elliott3 days ago

Looking To Continue Great Runs At Martinsville
Christopher Bell3 days ago

Wins Pole At Martinsville, But Can He Stay Up There?
Ryan Blaney3 days ago

Fast In Practice But Skeptical About Car
Denny Hamlin3 days ago

New Crew Chief Has Terrible Martinsville Record
Steve Erceg5 days ago

Looks To Get Back In The Win Column
Brandon Moreno5 days ago

A Favorite At UFC Mexico City
Manuel Torres5 days ago

Set For Co-Main Event
Drew Dober5 days ago

An Underdog At UFC Mexico City
Joe Pyfer5 days ago

Looks To Win Back-To-Back Fights
Kelvin Gastelum5 days ago

Set For Middleweight Matchup
Vince Morales5 days ago

In Dire Need Of Victory
Raul Rosas Jr.5 days ago

Looks To Extend His Win Streak
Saimon Oliveira5 days ago

Looks For His First UFC Win
RANKINGS
C
1B
2B
3B
SS
OF
SP
RP

RANKINGS

QB
RB
WR
TE
K
DEF

MORE RECENT ARTICLES

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

Three Aging Fantasy Football Players To Sell In Dynasty Leagues

It's hard to always know when to sell off your aging fantasy football players. Often, it's also difficult to accept that it's better to move on from a player when he's coming off a productive season and still has a lot left in the tank. But I believe it's better to be a year early […]


J.J. McCarthy - Fantasy Football Rankings, NFL Draft Sleepers

Five Fantasy Football Superflex Quarterback Breakouts, Draft Targets (2025)

If you’ve ever played in a Superflex fantasy football league, then you know how important quarterbacks are in this format. The ability to start multiple stud quarterbacks can carry you to a Superflex title. Unfortunately, finding two such players isn’t so easy. All the top signal-callers come off draft boards first, and that makes it […]


Omarion Hampton - College Football Rankings, NCAA CFB DFS Lineup Picks - NFL Draft

Ideal Landing Spots For The Top 12 Fantasy Football Rookies - 2025 NFL Draft

Then, the NFL Draft continues to inch closer and closer. This is a very interesting class, with a handful of players who could be stars in the NFL and reshape fantasy football leagues going forward. Here are the ideal landing spots for the top 12 fantasy football rookies. These picks exist in conversation with each […]


Jalen Coker - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, Waiver Wire Pickups

Eight Best Ball Late Round Value Fantasy Football Players To Target For 2025

Fantasy football is the most popular game in all of sports. It has gone from a paper-and-pen game to a multi-million dollar-a-year one. While redraft leagues are the most popular form of fantasy football, best ball leagues are quickly gaining steam. The best part of best ball leagues is the ability to draft thousands of […]


Abdul Carter - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL Injury News

2025 NFL Draft Rankings: Top 10 Fantasy Football Edge Rusher Prospects

Edge rusher is the most important, most coveted, and most highly-paid position on defense in the NFL. It stands to reason that the most important position in the entire game being quarterback, and by a wide margin, means the most important position on defense are the players that are tasked with disrupting opposing QBs as […]


Brock Purdy - Fantasy Football Rankings, NFL Injury News, DFS Picks

Brock Purdy Dynasty Fantasy Football Outlook and Trade Value

Despite becoming the all-time leading passer for the Iowa State Cyclones, Brock Purdy wasn't a highly touted prospect due to his perceived lack of athleticism. The 49ers picked him with the final pick of the 2022 NFL Draft, but Mr. Irrelevant quickly proved everyone wrong. In his first two years, he started in back-to-back NFC […]


Michael Florio's Football Show - Podcast RotoBaller Network

Florio's Football Show: Scouting NFL Draft Prospects!

Michael F Florio goes over some of the top prospects from this years NFL Draft. Florio talks about what he looks for when watching prospect tape and explains what traits translate best to the NFL level. Be sure to also tune into RotoBaller Radio on SiriusXM (SiriusXM channel 87) on Sundays from 6-7 am. You can […]


Najee Harris - Fantasy Football Rankings, NFL Injury News, DFS Lineup Picks

Dynasty Fantasy Football Buy or Sell: Najee Harris, Rico Dowdle, Jordan Mason

One year ago, we discussed the futures of Josh Jacobs, Derrick Henry, Saquon Barkley, and Aaron Jones as those free agents found new homes. This year's headliners are Najee Harris, Rico Dowdle, and Jordan Mason. Not quite the same. Still, with every transaction come implications for dynasty fantasy football rosters across the globe. Below, we […]


Romeo Doubs - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL Injury News

Early 2025 Fantasy Football Sleepers: Undervalued NFC Draft Targets

While the 2025 fantasy football redraft season is still several months away, there is no such thing as being too prepared for your fantasy draft. Fantasy football is year-round, even for those who only play in redraft leagues. The landscape of fantasy football will change between today and the start of redraft season, with the […]


Detroit Lions Defense, Aidan Hutchinson - Fantasy Football DST Rankings, Streamers, IDP Sleepers

2025 Fantasy Football IDP Sleepers: Five Draft Targets

It's notably difficult to identify sleepers in fantasy football IDP leagues. The skill of the players in question is very important, but situation also plays a large factor, as does a recent history of injuries. Rather than bucketing them into groups, it's better to analyze each one individually, look at where they are in terms […]


Ashton Jeanty - College Football Rankings, NCAA CFB DFS Lineup Picks

Ashton Jeanty's Top Potential Landing Spots For 2025: Fantasy Football NFL Draft Outlook

Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty will enter the 2025 NFL Draft as one of the best prospects in the class. Jeanty just ran for 2,601 yards and 29 touchdowns across 14 games this past college season. Those 2,601 rush yards were the second-most of all-time in FBS history, only behind Barry Sanders's 2,628 rush yards […]


Bhaysul Tuten - NFL Draft Prospects, Rookie Rankings

2025 Fantasy Football Rookie Mock Draft: 12-Team, Single QB

The 2025 NFL Combine has now been completed, so it's worth doing another mock draft to see where everyone stands after the league's pre-draft testing event. Overall, there were a few surprises, but the order of many players will remain the same. The mental domain of the original rankings, which have been fairly set in […]


Rashid Shaheed - Fantasy Football Rankings, Draft Sleepers, NFL Injury News

2025 Fantasy Football Sleepers: Later-Career Breakout Candidates

Typically, most NFL players break out in the early parts of their careers. Between the ages of 20 and 25 is when you expect to see the majority of players have their first big season. Some waste no time and put together excellent years while they're rookies, while some need more time to develop. These […]