17 hours agoAtlanta Braves second baseman
Ozzie Albies hadn't recorded a home run since Opening Day until he took
Edwin Uceta deep on Friday. Albies continued his power surge during Saturday's game against the Tampa Bay Rays. He was having a fairly quiet game until he blasted a solo home run off right-hander
Hunter Bigge in the eighth inning. Albies would finish his day 2-for-4 with an RBI and a walk, and a stolen base. Fantasy managers can be hopeful for more performances like this from Albies going forward.
--Andy Webb - RotoBallerSource: mlb.com
17 hours agoWinnipeg Jets winger Nikolaj Ehlers (foot) was limited to 9:01 of action in Saturday's 5-4 win over the Chicago Blackhawks. The Danish forward had to be helped off the ice after backing into an official in the second period, re-aggravating a foot injury. Ehlers returned from the injury only a couple of games ago. He was out for two games and could now miss additional time. Winnipeg returns to action on Sunday, facing the Edmonton Oilers on home ice. David Gustafsson figures to rejoin the lineup if Ehlers can't play. At the same time, Jets head coach Scott Arniel would have to shake up his second line.
--Taavi Pailk - RotoBallerSource: Sportsnet
18 hours agoDetroit Tigers first baseman
Spencer Torkelson has been a nice surprise for this offense early in the season. Torkelson continued his success at the plate during Saturday's game against the Minnesota Twins. The 25-year-old smacked a two-run home run off
Kody Funderburk in the sixth inning to help extend the lead. Torkelson would finish his day 2-for-3 with a homer, three RBI, and two runs scored in the victory. He's slashing .314/.419/.647 with four home runs and 10 RBI this season. He's red-hot right now so fantasy managers should take advantage of it while they can.
--Andy Webb - RotoBallerSource: mlb.com
18 hours agoNew York Yankees first baseman
Ben Rice has been on a tear at the plate early in the season. He stayed hot at the plate during Saturday's game against the San Francisco Giants. Rice drew a walk and singled early in the game. In the sixth inning, Rice took right-hander
Lou Trivino deeo for a solo homer to extend the lead. He finished the day 2-for-4 with a walk, homer, and two runs scored in the win. Rice is slashing an impressive .310/.431/.690 with four homers, five RBI in 13 games. He has been batting in the leadoff spot against right-handed pitching and it appears to be working well.
--Andy Webb - RotoBallerSource: mlb.com
18 hours agoSan Francisco Giants first baseman
Wilmer Flores has been crushing the ball all over the park to begin the season. He continued his power surge during Saturday's game against the New York Yankees. Flores tied the game with a two-run home run off right-hander
Will Warren in the second inning. He would later add on two more runs with a single in the sixth. Flores finished his day 2-for-4 with RBI in what would end up being an 8-4 loss. The veteran slugger is now slashing .275/.302/.267 with six home runs and 19 RBI this season. Flores has five hits and seven RBI over his last three games, so he's really picking up steam right now.
--Andy Webb - RotoBallerSource: mlb.com
18 hours agoChicago White Sox outfielder
Luis Robert Jr. tried to break out of his slump during Saturday's game against the Boston Red Sox. He was fairly quiet until blasting a two-run home run in the sixth inning to tie the game. Robert would later steal a base and score the game-winning run in the ninth inning. It has been an ugly start for Robert, but he is tied for the MLB lead in steals with six. He has also collected a hit in four of his last five games. Hopefully, Robert is now trending in the right direction, so fantasy managers should continue to hold him.
--Andy Webb - RotoBallerSource: mlb.com
18 hours agoAtlanta Braves outfielder
Michael Harris II came up clutch for his team during Saturday's game against the Tampa Bay Rays. Harris started out the game by singling and stealing a base. He was quiet the rest of the game until he blasted a two-run home run in the ninth inning off right-hander
Cole Sulser. Harris has been off to a slow start this season, but he helped give his team the win on Saturday. Fantasy managers should keep holding him as Harris has all the potential to be a stud in fantasy baseball.
--Andy Webb - RotoBallerSource: mlb.com
18 hours agoAthletics relief pitcher
Mason Miller was asked to hold a two-run lead versus the New York Mets on Saturday. The right-hander needed only 15 pitches to finish off this Mets lineup. He gave up a two-out single to
Tyrone Taylor, but was able to work around it and record his fourth save of the season. Miller has worked five innings, allowing zero earned runs, three hits, and striking out nine batters. He's an elite closer that should be rostered in all fantasy formats.
--Andy Webb - RotoBallerSource: mlb.com
18 hours agoKyle Larson of Hendrick Motorsports will start third for Sunday's Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway. Larson has a top-5 starting position at Bristol for the eighth time in his Cup Series career. In 17 races at the Tennessee short track, Larson has two wins, 12 top-10 finishes, and an average finish of 11.0. Through eight races so far this season, Larson has one win and five top-10 finishes with an average finish of 13.8. In practice, Larson was fastest in the overall, 10, 15, 20, 25, and 30 consecutive lap average categories. With top-notch practice speeds, a high starting position that makes him a favorite to lead laps early, and great equipment, Larson is expected to compete for the win and is a core DFS option this week.
--Sean Engel - RotoBallerSource: DriverAverages.com
18 hours agoHendrick Motorsports driver Chase Elliott will start 20th for the Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway. It will be the second time ever in his Cup career that Elliott will start 20th or lower in a Cup race at Bristol. In 15 races at the site, Elliott has 12 top-20 finishes, including nine inside the top 10, and an average finish of 11.0. After eight races so far in the 2025 season, Elliott remains the only driver to place in the top 20 at the end of every race, with five top-10 finishes. In practice, Elliott ranked 18th in overall lap averages while ranking as high as eighth in 30 consecutive lap averages. Due to his great track history, favorable practice speeds, and overall upside, Elliott is worth rostering in all formats for this week's race at Bristol.
--Sean Engel - RotoBallerSource: DriverAverages.com
19 hours agoWilliam Byron of Hendrick Motorsports obtained a starting position of 26th for this week's race at Bristol Motor Speedway, the Food City 500. Byron is the only driver from Hendrick to fail to qualify inside the top 20 this week. In 11 races at Bristol, Byron has seven top-20 finishes, with four inside the top 10. In eight races so far this season, Byron has one win, six top-20 finishes, and an average finish of 9.5, which is the best of all full-time drivers this year. In practice, Byron ranked eighth in overall lap averages while displaying top-10 speeds in the 20, 25, and 30 consecutive lap average categories. With his high upside, despite his last two Bristol finishes being underwhelming, Byron is worth rostering in all DFS formats this week due to his equipment and overall 2025 performance.
--Sean Engel - RotoBallerSource: DriverAverages.com
19 hours agoTyler Reddick of 23XI Racing will start in the 27th position for Sunday's Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway. Reddick has the lowest starting position of the three 23XI drivers for this week's race. In seven Cup starts at Bristol, Reddick has four top-20 finishes and only obtained positive place differential twice. Through eight races so far this season, Reddick has seven top-20 finishes and an average finish of 11.8. In practice, Reddick ranked 15th in overall lap averages while displaying top-15 speeds in the 15, 20, 25, and 30 consecutive lap average categories. Overall, Reddick is one of the more favorable DFS options available in the mid-tier range for this week's race who is capable of placing in the top 20, especially with how solid his overall performance has been in 2025, regardless of track type.
--Sean Engel - RotoBallerSource: DriverAverages.com
19 hours ago23XI Racing's Bubba Wallace starts 22nd for Bristol Motor Speedway's Food City 500 this week. Wallace was the top qualifier of the three 23XI entries for Sunday's race. In 11 races at Bristol in the Cup Series, Wallace has seven top-20 finishes, including three of the last five Cup events. With eight races completed so far this season, Wallace has four top-20 finishes and an average finish of 17.8. In practice, Wallace ranked 35th in overall lap averages while ranking as high as 21st in 20 consecutive lap averages. Although Wallace's history at Bristol has been mixed, and he has run well during the season, his salary of $8,500 makes him a bit difficult to roster over other drivers with more upside and better history in the salary range. Wallace is playable, but exposure should be kept modest for DFS this week.
--Sean Engel - RotoBallerSource: DriverAverages.com
19 hours agoTrackhouse Racing's Ross Chastain obtained a starting position of 35th after qualifying for the Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway. This will be the fifth time in his Cup career that Chastain will start 30th or lower in a race at Bristol. In nine previous races at the last great coliseum, Chastain has four top-20 finishes, which all came during his last five appearances at the site. Through eight races so far in the 2025 season, Chastain has six finishes of 12th or better. In practice, Chastain ranked 36th in overall lap averages while displaying top-20 speeds in the 15 and 20 consecutive lap average categories. Chastain looked off in practice but has been solid at Bristol in the last few years, obtained favorable results this season, and has plenty of upside this week. DFS players should utilize the driver of the No. 1 Chevrolet this week in all formats, as he is someone who can compete for a top-20 finish.
--Sean Engel - RotoBallerSource: DriverAverages.com
19 hours agoCarson Hocevar of Spire Motorsports will start ninth for Sunday's Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway. Hocevar is the top qualifier of the three Spire entries in this week's Cup race at Bristol. In three Cup starts at the site, Hocevar has two top-20 finishes, a best finish of 11th, and scored positive place differential twice. After eight races so far in the 2025 season, Hocevar has three top-20 finishes, with only one inside the top 10. In practice, Hocevar ranked eighth in overall lap averages and displayed top-10 speeds in the five and 10 consecutive lap average categories. Due to his low upside, it is difficult to recommend Hocevar for any lineup outside of tournament lineups, especially when his overall 2025 performance so far has been lackluster.
--Sean Engel - RotoBallerSource: DriverAverages.com
20 hours agoA.J. Allmendinger of Kaulig Racing will start eighth for this week's Cup race at Bristol Motor Speedway, the Food City 500. This marks the first top-10 starting position at the site for the driver of the No. 16 Chevrolet since 2016. In 25 Bristol starts, Allmendinger has 10 top-20 finishes, with only two top-10s. Through eight races so far this season, Allmendinger has four top-20 finishes, including three of the last four Cup events. In practice, Allmendinger ranked 22nd in overall lap averages. Although Allmendinger's recent performance in 2025 has been solid, Allmendinger's practice speeds and overall Bristol history point to him not being one of the top value options available. It is recommended to fade Allmendinger in all lineups outside of tournaments.
--Sean Engel - RotoBallerSource: DriverAverages.com
20 hours agoRFK Racing driver Ryan Preece will start 29th for this week's Cup Series race at Bristol Motor Speedway, the Food City 500. Preece's starting position for this week's race is his second-lowest of the entire 2025 season so far. In nine races at Bristol in his Cup career, Preece has eight top-20 finishes, but the No. 60 Ford driver has earned positive place differential in all of his Cup appearances so far. In the first eight races this season, Preece has five top-20 finishes and an average finish of 17.9. In practice, Preece ranked 37th in overall lap averages and 34th in 10 consecutive lap averages. Despite his slow practice speeds, Preece is a great driver to consider for all formats in DFS this week based on his upside and his Bristol history of obtaining positive PD.
--Sean Engel - RotoBallerSource: DriverAverages.com
20 hours agoAustin Dillon of Richard Childress Racing will start 17th for the Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway. This will be the best starting position of Dillon's Cup career at the Tennessee short track since 2022. In 19 starts at Bristol, Dillon has 12 top-20 finishes and an average finish of 18.2. The No. 3 Chevrolet driver also scored positive place differential in four of his last five appearances at Bristol. With eight races completed so far this season, Dillon has four top-20 finishes and nabbed positive or neutral PD four times. In practice, Dillon ranked ninth in overall lap averages while displaying top-20 speeds in all other categories. Although he does not offer as much upside as others in the value tier, Dillon is still one of the better overall options to consider as he will compete for a top-15 finish based on equipment and practice speeds.
--Sean Engel - RotoBallerSource: DriverAverages.com
20 hours agoFront Row Motorsports driver Noah Gragson will start 31st for this week's Cup race at Bristol Motor Speedway, the Food City 500. Gragson's starting position will be the lowest in his Cup career at the Tennessee short track. In two previous Cup starts at Bristol, Gragson's best finish is 12th. In the Xfinity Series at the site, Gragson is a two-time winner with four top-10 finishes in six starts. After eight races so far this season, Gragson has three top-20 finishes and four finishes with positive place differentials earned. In practice, Gragson ranked 10th in overall lap averages and almost ranked among the top 10 fastest in all other eligible categories. Based on his very high upside, equipment, and practice speeds, Gragson is a playable driver worth consideration for all formats this week.
--Sean Engel - RotoBallerSource: DriverAverages.com
20 hours agoCup Series rookie Riley Herbst will start 25th for Sunday's Food City 500 at Bristol Motor Speedway after qualifying. This will be the first ever Cup start for Herbst at Bristol. In six previous races at the site in the Xfinity Series, Herbst has four top-10 finishes and gained positive place differential five times. Through eight races so far in the 2025 Cup Series season, Herbst has four top-20 finishes while collecting positive PD five times. In practice, Herbst ranked 12th in overall lap averages while displaying top-10 speeds in almost all other categories. Despite being a rookie, Herbst is worth consideration for all types of DFS lineups due to his equipment and upside based on his starting position in the back half of the field.
--Sean Engel - RotoBallerSource: DriverAverages.com
20 hours agoCole Custer of Haas Factory Team will start 33rd for this week's race at Bristol Motor Speedway, the Food City 500. This will be the lowest starting position of Custer's Cup career at Bristol. In four previous starts at the Tennessee short track, Custer's best finish was eighth, his only top-10 finish at the site back in 2022. Custer has yet to score a top-20 finish this season but did earn positive place differential four times through the first eight races. In practice, Custer ranked 25th in overall lap averages and fourth in 10 consecutive lap averages. Considering his equipment and season-wide performance, Custer may not bring top results. Still, he is one of the more playable DFS options available, primarily due to his low salary of $5,900 on DraftKings combined with his incredible upside.
--Sean Engel - RotoBallerSource: DriverAverages.com
22
hours
agoTy
Gibbs
has
arguably
been
2025's
biggest
disappointment
because
normally
young
drivers
on
top
teams
are
supposed
to
rapidly
progress
while
Gibbs
has
been
significantly
slower
in
2025
since
losing
his
old
crew
chief
Chris
Gayle
to
Denny
Hamlin's
No.
11.
However,
Gibbs
is
starting
to
turn
it
read more...
22 hours agoJoey Logano has had a pretty baffling season as he ranks third in laps led this year and ninth in points despite only posting a single top-10 finish. He's had numerous unforced errors that usually resulted in finishes just outside the top 10, and he made another one on Saturday in Bristol qualifying, where he hit the wall and had a half-spin that resulted in a 38th-place starting position, his worst since 2017. Whenever a champion with speed qualifies that poorly, you almost have to jump on that for DFS place-differential points, but despite winning two races at Bristol, Logano has also failed to finish in the top 10 in his last eight Bristol starts and has finished worse than his starting position in each one, which is similar to his trend this season. In a race where other typical contenders like William Byron, Chris Buescher, Chase Elliott, and Ross Chastain qualified poorly, some of them may be better place-differential options.
--Sean Wrona - RotoBallerSource: Racing Reference
22 hours agoUnlike his contemporary Kyle Busch whose speed at Bristol markedly declined after he switched from Joe Gibbs Racing to Richard Childress Racing, Brad Keselowski has retained a lot of his speed there even after switching from Team Penske to RFK Racing. The three-time Bristol winner led 109 laps in the 2022 Bristol Night Race, the first with the Next Gen chassis and he probably would have won had he not blown a tire, then added an eighth and a third in his next two starts but was surprisingly lackluster last time, which eliminated him from the playoffs. The main issue is that Keselowski (who starts 16th today) has run terribly all season since replacing crew chief Matt McCall with Jeremy Bullins; he hasn't had an average running position better than 20th yet. On paper, Keselowski seems like one of the best options for DFS especially at $7,800, but his poor season performance suggests he likely won't have any speed.
--Sean Wrona - RotoBallerSource: Racing Reference
22 hours agoAlthough Chase Briscoe qualified 14th at Bristol, which doesn't sound terrible when you compare it to how the 23XI Racing Toyotas qualified, he was by far the slowest of the four Joe Gibbs Racing cars as his three teammates all qualified in the top seven. Briscoe is an agent of chaos who seems almost impossible to predict as this ties his worst qualifying run with this car even though he's now driving a JGR car that should by all rights be faster than the Stewart-Haas Racing cars he was driving before where he qualified 6th or better three times. Having said that, Briscoe has never led a lap at Bristol and finished worse than he started in all four races with the Next Gen chassis, so he likely is overvalued and his $9,000 cost on DFS seems to reflect the historical speed of the No. 19 car more than Briscoe's ability. All the other JGR drivers are likely better bets.
--Sean Wrona - RotoBallerSource: Racing Reference
22 hours agoDespite spinning out on his second qualifying lap on Saturday, Kyle Busch qualified 15th at Bristol. He is one of the track's all-time greats with eight wins and 2,598 laps led, but he has fallen on hard times since his arrival at Richard Childress Racing. Although Busch still frequently has speed on superspeedways and road courses at RCR, the team has generally been very lacking in short-track speed -- with Austin Dillon's grotesque win at Richmond serving as a rare exception. In his last five starts, Busch has only led five laps with a best finish of 20th, and he hasn't even run well, as his best average running position with this car is 19th. One would have to except Busch will figure out Bristol setups at some point and have another good run again, but until it actually happens, it's likely too big of a gamble to make.
--Sean Wrona - RotoBallerSource: Racing Reference
22 hours agoDespite only ranking 21st in points, Austin Cindric has looked consistently faster in 2025 than any previous season, so it's certainly plausible that he could get an unexpectedly strong result. However, the former road-course specialist has now steadily turned into a superspeedway specialist, and short tracks are not typically his specialty. He also qualified 21st for Sunday's race, far behind Ryan Blaney but well ahead of his other teammate Joey Logano. Cindric's best Bristol finish came in last year's night race when he finished 13th, but while he seems likely to have a regression to the mean after an unlucky season to date and a 50-point penalty, this seems far more likely to occur on a superspeedway than on any short track where he still lacks speed. He will probably finish around where he starts, and therefore has little DFS value.
--Sean Wrona - RotoBallerSource: Racing Reference
22 hours agoShort tracks have typically been Michael McDowell's Achilles heel throughout his career but he does seem to have figured something out at Bristol recently with the Next Gen chassis. Although he has still never led a lap here, he started 4th and finished 6th in the 2023 Bristol Night Race and ran in the top ten consistently. In his other three starts with this car, he has finished 11th with three top 15 average running positions. Now this time, he has qualified 13th. Although his two Spire Motorsports teammates Carson Hocevar and Justin Haley both outqualified him and Hocevar will likely outrun him, based on his recent history McDowell seems more likely to maintain his position than Haley. However, he's starting too well to earn many Place Differential points and likely won't be fast enough to lead or collect fastest laps, so he has little DFS value.
--Sean Wrona - RotoBallerSource: Racing Reference
22 hours agoJustin Haley qualified 10th at Bristol alongside his teammate Carson Hocevar, marking his best starting position ever at the track. This shouldn't come as a huge surprise as his Spire Motorsports cars are probably the fastest he has ever had here and Hocevar and Haley's predecessor Corey LaJoie both qualified in the top ten at the Bristol Night Race as well. Haley has improved his position in all three previous Bristol races in which he did not crash, but it's hard to conceive of him not sliding backward from 10th as he very rarely seems to have top ten speed anywhere, even though he did get a top ten at Homestead. It could help that Haley has crew chief Rodney Childers now who won two Bristol races with Kevin Harvick and Childers did lead 25 laps with Josh Berry last year, but it's hard not to see Haley sliding back to mid-pack as usual.
--Sean Wrona - RotoBallerSource: Racing Reference
22 hours agoErik Jones used to be great at Bristol in his early years at Furniture Row Racing and Joe Gibbs Racing, when he earned four top fives and led 260 laps from the pole as a rookie in 2017 before finishing second. However, since moving to the No. 43 car (especially after the team name changed to Legacy Motor Club) he has had next to no speed on short tracks anywhere and he's never been more invisible. Even last week at his arguable best track at Darlington, he only improved from 34th to 17th. He qualified a little better at Bristol (28th) and starts alongside the usually much-faster Tyler Reddick, but the only other Toyota he outqualified was his teammate John Hunter Nemechek and the fact that Legacy Motor Club seems to get less Toyota factory support than JGR or 23XI Racing means it's hard to imagine either Legacy Motor Club driver getting a good finish.
--Sean Wrona - RotoBallerSource: Racing Reference
RADIO
