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Ottoneu leagues, available on Fangraphs, are a different beast, and for good reason. Most of the scoring formats are more advanced, there are intense roster requirements and it’s a year-round commitment.
It warrants constant monitoring and tinkering to fully optimize your lineup, and the innings restrictions per roster slot certainly force you to make some shrewd decisions on who to start and who to sit based on matchups. For this reason, depth is critical. It’s easy to get preoccupied with stocking up on prospects (you could fill out your entire 18-man bench with minor leaguers if you wanted) but having reserve starting pitchers and bench bats to slot in on off-days is absolutely necessary.
With that said, here are some recent free agent acquisitions and cuts from our RotoBaller experts league that were noteworthy along with the final bid amount and what these players are going for on average in Ottoneu leagues. One thing to keep in mind is the scoring format. This particular league uses Classic Ottoneu 4x4 scoring, which includes HR, R, OBP and SLG for hitters and K, HR/9, ERA and WHIP for pitchers.
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Recently Completed Transactions (RotoBaller League)
Add - Alex Verdugo (OF, LAD) - $2
Average Ottoneu Salary - $3.71, 93% owned
There's no doubting how much talent this young outfielder has, and he certainly has nothing left to prove in the minors--he's destroying the Pacific Coast League with a .340/.384/.505 slash line. The problem is, there's simply nowhere for him to go. Joc Pederson, Kike Hernandez, Yasiel Puig, and on occasion Cody Bellinger and Chris Taylor are all outfield options, and Verdugo might even still have a spot if not for Matt Kemp's surprise MVP-caliber season. I'm a bit shocked that he was cut at any point in this format, although I certainly understand the frustration of rostering a player who is unable to actually help your fantasy team. With that said, we are likely one injury away from Verdugo getting an extended look in the majors, and with his bat there's a very real chance he never goes back down.
Add - Freddy Peralta (SP, MIL) - $1
Average Ottoneu Salary - $4.21, 76% owned
Peralta for a buck could turn into a steal down the line, as the young righty has certainly impressed in his limited big league action. So far in three starts Peralta has notched 25 Ks in just 15.2 IP, while also posting a 2.30 ERA. What you care about for Ottoneu purposes though is the spectacular 0.57 HR/9 and 0.89 WHIP that he's currently rocking. He's due for another start on Tuesady, June 26th against the Royals, which is a matchup that could certainly allow him to improve upon those numbers in. Peralta may be up and down between the majors and minors in 2018, but if his performance so far is any indication, you'll want to be the owner who snatches him up when his cost is this low.
Cut - Tim Anderson (SS, CHW) - $1
Average Ottoneu Salary - $3.32, 96% owned
I'm a bit surprised to see Anderson given up on this early, especially considering he's in the running for a 30-30 season--he's on pace for 28 homres and 32 steals as of this writing, so it's absolutely a possibility. I'm not entirely sure why his former owner would have cut him with such a low price tag, especially considering how useful he is as an Ottoneu contributor. From the shortstop position, his .301 OBP certainly isn't anything to write home about, but the .433 slugging percentage is definitely useful for just a dollar. Add in the previously mentioned home run projection and you've got a useful bottom-of-the-roster player. Should you see Anderson dropped anywhere, definitely take a shot at adding him.
Cut - Jeremy Hellickson (SP, WAS) - $1
Average Ottoneu Salary - $2.83, 37% owned
I have to assume that this cut is due to Hellickson's DL stint, which is currently being served due to a hamstring injury. He had a rehab start yesterday and is looking to rejoin the Nationals rotation at some point this week. He's definitely someone you'd consider (especially at that price tag) given his production in the nine starts he had prior to hitting the DL. In 2018 Hellickson is riding a sparkling 2.28 ERA with just a 0.831 HR/9 and a sub-1.00 WHIP (0.923), all extremely useful benchmarks for the classic Ottoneu format. I certainly don't expect him to maintain those numbers, but even if he regresses closer to his career averages in all of those categories, he should return decent enough value to be worth the $1 pickup cost.
