NL-Only Waiver Wire Team of the Week for Week 6

Every week in baseball, a significant player will hit the disabled list, slip into a slump, or get traded out of a good spot. How fantasy owners adapt to these situations can make or break the season as a whole. One lousy add might not hurt the long-term standing of a team, but failing to... Read More

Finding Value on the Fringes: Roster Flexibility and Late Picks

The key to winning any fantasy league is finding value where others have not. Either this means buying in on the Matt Kemps of the world early and getting value late in a draft or using roster construction to maximize stat collection. Where players play matters as much as when and how they play for... Read More

Early Season Trade Etiquette for Fantasy Baseball

How does the old saying go? If you can not find the idiot in the room, it might be you? That works for fantasy owners as well. If you cannot see the annoying trader in a league, it just might be you. Fantasy baseball is a game with owners trying to win, so no strategy... Read More

Miles Mikolas (SP, STL) - Week 5 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 53% of leagues ANALYSIS: During draft season, Miles Mikolas was written off by most in the industry, other than being used as a streaming option, or at best an SP5. So far? Mikolas looks like a must-own if the fast start continues. Through 33 innings, Mikolas has... Read More

Shin-Soo Choo (OF, TEX) - Week 5 Waiver Wire Pick-Ups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 48% of leagues ANALYSIS: One of the most helpful things about fantasy baseball is that owners can afford to roster a player who is way overpaid, without having to worry about writing those checks themselves. Is Shin-Soo Choo a $20 million player? No. Is he a useful... Read More

Alex Bregman - Will He Deliver on His Potential?

Since being drafted second overall in the 2015 June Amateur Draft, much has been expected of Houston third baseman Alex Bregman. Shooting through the minors in only a year and change, Bregman made an instant impact with a 1.1 WAR in 49 games in 2016. It appeared that the Astros had their corner of the... Read More

Flopping Aces - Finding Value in Slow-Starting Pitching Performances

Growing up, the baseball mantra from my father was “wait until 40 games and then you can know how a team will play.”  Perhaps this was just a way for a Cleveland fan growing up in the 80s to keep hope, or maybe there is some truth to that saying.   Small sample sizes do... Read More

C.J. Cron (1B, TB) - Week 4 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 14+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 10% of leagues ANALYSIS: Since his trade from the Angels in the offseason, C.J. Cron has solidified his spot as the Tampa first baseman, not that he has much competition. Keeping a similar K%, Cron has seen a surge in his OBP and SLG so far this... Read More

Brandon Belt (1B/OF, SF) - Week 4 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 46% of leagues ANALYSIS: The serial fantasy disappointment, Brandon Belt, might be having that long-awaited breakout year. Through 18 games, Belt is hitting a career-high .290 with five home runs, and ten RBI. Add in the random steal on occasion, and there is a complete package that... Read More

Michael Brantley (OF, CLE) - Week 4 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 45% of leagues ANALYSIS: The fact that Michael Brantley is only owned in 45% of leagues is shocking. Through 12 games, Brantley is hitting .320 with one home run and eight RBI. Not only is he the only hitter in the Cleveland offense producing, but he is... Read More

Yuli Gurriel (1B, HOU) - Week 4 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 37% of Leagues ANALYSIS: Yuli Gurriel arrived in the Majors with more hype than most other Cuban players due to his age and lineage, but the jury is still out on his ceiling. Last season, a 1.7 WAR in 139 games limited him to a decent but not... Read More

Colin Moran (3B, PIT) - Week 4 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 14+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 12% of leagues ANALYSIS: Colin Moran was the key return from the Gerrit Cole deal for the Pirates and while underwhelming regarding the trade, offers an exciting play in fantasy. In a limited 17 game cup of coffee for the Astros last year, Moran demonstrated a good... Read More

Matt Kemp (OF, LAD) - Week 4 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 43% of leagues ANALYSIS: Matt Kemp has been a bit of a fantasy afterthought in the past seasons with career low numbers, and often only appearing in the news due to his relationship with Rihanna. When he joined the Dodgers Spring Training roster the expectation was... Read More

How Superior Setup Men Provide Value to Closers - AL Focus

The goal of the previous column in this series was to propose that the home runs allowed by relief pitchers have a significant impact on fantasy teams, even when those pitchers do not make the roster. While a baseball truism on some levels, home runs given up late in games tend to diminish the number... Read More

Bradley Zimmer (OF) - Week 3 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 40% of Leagues ANALYSIS: Bradley Zimmer represents the unusual combination of power and speed, but that often comes at the expense of contact and AVG.  Still, the glove alone keeps him the lineup, meaning that owners should not be worried about a platoon limiting Zimmer’s playing time.... Read More

Steven Matz (SP, NYM) - Week 3 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 39% of Leagues ANALYSIS: Not only are the New York Mets off to a great start, but Steven Matz looked impressive through his first three starts. With a rocky outing on April 18th, this is the perfect time to take advantage of the waiver wire. In his... Read More

Yonder Alonso (1B, CLE) - Week 3 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 14+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 46% of Leagues Analysis: At first glance, Yonder Alonso has started off 2018 in the same funk that characterized the end of last campaign. After his trade from Oakland Alonso's numbers took a nosedive and put a bit of a damper on a breakout campaign. So far this... Read More

How Superior Setup Men Provide Value to Closers - NL Focus

The era of the home run has been a bit of a double-edged sword for fantasy owners. On the one hand, the bench bat drafted in the 27th round can emerge as a 20+ HR hitter, adding value from an unexpected source. On the other side, pitcher ERAs are up, and the value of the... Read More

Yangervis Solarte (2B/SS/3B, TOR) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 39% of Yahoo leagues ANALYSIS: Often overlooked by fantasy owners is the value that position flexibility offers for roster construction, and Yangervis Solarte fits that mold. In most leagues, he is at least 2B/SS/3B/MI/CI eligible with other leagues being even more lenient. Without turning this into... Read More

Jorge Alfaro (C, PHI) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in Two-Catcher Leagues OWNED IN: 12% of Yahoo leagues ANALYSIS: Jorge Alfaro represents the ultimate problem for fantasy owners: is a toolsy player without production worth rostering for the upside? To be fair, Alfaro last season was certainly passable with a .318 AVG, five home runs, and 127 WRC+ in 29 games. At the... Read More

Preston Tucker (OF) - Week 2 Wire Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 14+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 13% of Yahoo leagues ANALYSIS: Preston Tucker is a name known to most fantasy players, but mostly due to his underperformance. Picked up to hold the spot for super prospect Ronald Acuna, Tucker has gotten off to one of the fastest starts among eligible batters with a .385... Read More

Michael Brantley (OF) - Week 2 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in All Leagues OWNED IN: 41% of Yahoo leagues ANALYSIS: Michael Brantley might never return to his 2014 near-American League MVP season, but Friday's Cleveland home opener shows just how valuable to the team he is. Slotting right into the five spot in the Cleveland order, Brantley swung at the first pitch he saw... Read More

Brandon Belt (1B) - Weeks 2 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 45% of Yahoo leagues ANALYSIS: The knock on Brandon Belt has always been the regrettable fact that he plays in the worst ballpark for left-handed power. While he has not changed teams or venues, the reliance on a pull-heavy power seems to be a thing of the... Read More

Hot Starts to Watch from Traditionally Slow Starters

If the Major League season were to end today, two of the favorites for the World Series (Cleveland and Los Angeles) would not be making the playoffs, and Pittsburgh would be a top seed. Not that we can put much stock into six games, they still serve as the beginning of some insight into the... Read More

Cesar Hernandez (2B) - Week 1 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 48% of Yahoo leagues ANALYSIS: Cesar Hernandez has quietly put up All-Star numbers the past two season posting 4.3 and 3.3 WAR in 2016 and 2017. These numbers are even more impressive considering how weak the Philadelphia offense has been. Last year, for example, the Phillies finished... Read More

Brandon Drury (2B) - Week 1 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 15% of Yahoo leagues ANALYSIS: Brandon Drury looks primed to take advantage of the “pinstripe bounce” during the 2018 season following a move from Arizona to the Bronx. Flying under the radar in 2017, Drury posted the 13th-best slugging percentage (.447) and fourth-best doubles total (37) of... Read More

Lewis Brinson (OF) - Week 1 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 37% of Yahoo leagues ANALYSIS: “Really? You want me to play a Marlin this year?” Perhaps the first thought as you saw Brinson's name on this list. Yes, yes we do. First, look to the fact that Brinson actually wants to be in Miami. As a Florida kid, the... Read More