Thunder Dan's "My Guys" For 2022 Fantasy Baseball Drafts

MLB season is almost here and I couldn't be more excited. I am totally copying my buddy Jon Anderson here as he put out his favorite five players last week and had previously brought me and a bunch of other baseball analysts on his fantasy baseball podcast for a special "my guys" episode. I've been […]

Jake Cronenworth Goes 0-For-3 On Sunday

San Diego Padres second baseman Jake Cronenworth went 0-for-3 with a walk and a strikeout in a Spring Training game versus the Athletics. Cronenworth is batting .222 with a .835 OPS this Spring as the 28-year-old figures to be a key contributor for the Padres with star shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. (wrist) set to begin […]

Ryan Mountcastle Hitless Sunday

Baltimore Orioles first baseman Ryan Mountcastle went 0-for-3 in his team's 8-2 loss to the Minnesota Twins in Grapefruit League action on Sunday. Despite Mountcastle's hitless afternoon, he is enjoying a solid spring, hitting .304 with two homers, four runs, and four RBI across 23 at-bats. The 25-year-old enjoyed a breakout season in 2021, hitting […]

Later-Round First Basemen - Fantasy Baseball Draft Values and Targets

Welcome officially to the 2022 fantasy baseball season! Now that an MLB deal is in place, a lot more fantasy drafts will be taking place -- and we're here as always to guide you through it. Once you reach the late rounds of drafts, everyone is looking to draft players with upside that can provide […]

Josh Bell Slashing .125/.192/.292 This Spring

Washington Nationals first baseman Josh Bell has been cold at the plate so far this spring. Over nine games and 26 plate appearances, he's slashed .125/.192/.292 with one home run, one double and five RBI. A notoriously streaky hitter, Bell shouldn't be scrutinized very much for a cold spring stretch. His 2021 season was completely […]

Jared Walsh Enjoying A Productive Spring

Los Angeles Angels first baseman Jared Walsh is having a solid spring, hitting .333 with one homer, four runs, and five RBI over 24 at-bats. Walsh had a breakout season in 2021, finishing with a .277 average, 29 homers, 70 runs, and 98 RBI over 144 games played. Walsh is much more productive against right-handed […]

Jamie Steed's Bold Predictions for 2022 Fantasy Baseball

Bold predictions can be the key to fantasy seasons. Predicting players who will outperform or underperform expectations by extreme amounts can win leagues. Bold predictions can also be entirely unhelpful, speculative thoughts that are just fun to consider. And the latter is what these are! Sort of. I'm not going to tell you I think Vladimir […]

Trey Mancini Avoids Arbitration With One-Year Deal

Baltimore Orioles first baseman Trey Mancini avoided arbitration by agreeing to a one-year deal with the team that includes an option in 2023. His one-year deal reportedly is worth $7.5 million in 2022 with a $250,000 buyout on the $10 million 2023 option. The 29-year-old slashed .255/.326/.432 with 21 home runs and 71 RBI in […]

Updated Fantasy Baseball Draft Rankings for Roto Leagues - Jacob deGrom, Craig Kimbrel, Gavin Lux, Hunter Greene and More

Welcome to another fresh update of our 2022 fantasy baseball draft rankings and rankings tiers for mixed roto leagues. These rankings are updated as of April 1st, and will continue to be updated every day to account for any relevant news that can affect our fantasy baseball draft rankings. For those who are not familiar, […]

Preseason MLB Injury News and Fantasy Baseball Injury Updates - Jacob deGrom, Max Scherzer, Lancy Lynn, Riley Greene and More

We have made it to the final week of the preseason. Opening Day is just around the corner. Fantasy drafts have been going on and are winding down as we get ready to see a full baseball season following a quiet few months of the offseason because of the MLB lockout. Very little injury information […]

Proposed Deal Involving Eric Hosmer Hits A Snag

The proposed deal between the San Diego Padres and New York Mets that would have sent first baseman Eric Hosmer, starting pitcher Chris Paddack, reliever Emilio Pagan and cash to the Mets for first baseman/outfielder Dominic Smith has hit a snag and may be off entirely. The Mets are looking for more pitching with ace […]

Alex Kirilloff Injured Saturday

Minnesota Twins first baseman/outfielder Alex Kirilloff (knee) is dealing with mild left knee soreness and was removed from the Grapefruit League game against the Kansas City Royals early as a precaution on Saturday. Kirilloff doesn't have any structural damage in his knee, but he'll be re-evaluated on Sunday and still has a shot to be […]

Spencer Torkelson To Make Tigers Opening Day Roster

Detroit Tigers first baseman Spencer Torkelson will make the Opening Day roster, according to the Detroit Free Press, and will likely assume the starting first base job. Torkelson is the best prospect in the Tigers farm system, as per MLB.com, and has hit .280 with a .406 OBP and .846 OPS in 25 at-bats during […]

Paul Goldschmidt Having An Excellent Spring

St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Paul Goldschmidt has been red hot this spring, hitting .526 with three homers, seven runs, four RBI, and a steal across just 19 at-bats. In 2021, Goldschmidt turned in yet another excellent season, hitting .294 with 31 homers, 102 runs, 99 RBI, and 12 steals in 158 games. The 12 […]

JB Branson's Bold Predictions for 2022 Fantasy Baseball

Welcome back to everyone's favorite series, the time where we allow rowdiness to surpass rationale ever so slightly and plant our flags on hills across the fantasy landscape. It's time for 2022 Bold Predictions. In case you missed it, my colleague Pierre Camus started us off with his bold picks from the leadoff spot. He […]

Players for $1: Salary Cap League Draft Targets for Fantasy Baseball - Dinelson Lamet, Brandon Nimmo, and more

We've already identified hitters and pitchers under $10 to target in salary cap league drafts. For this exercise, we're aiming lower and targeting players for just $1. That rules out roughly the top 350 players in drafts! From this vantage point, some managers may look for high-risk, high-reward plays to strike big with a small […]

Brandon Belt, Mike Yastrzemski To Play Saturday

San Francisco Giants first baseman Brandon Belt (knee) will make his Cactus League debut on Saturday against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Outfielder Mike Yastrzemski (quadriceps) will also be making his return to the spring lineup. Belt has been held out of spring action due to knee inflammation, but he's reportedly ahead of schedule and could […]

Padres, Mets Discussing Trade Involving Eric Hosmer, Others

The San Diego Padres and New York Mets have been in active conversations about a trade that would send first baseman Eric Hosmer and starting pitcher Chris Paddack to the Mets in exchange for outfielder/first baseman Dominic Smith, according to sources. The potential deal would allow the Padres to unload Hosmer's contract while addressing their […]

Later-Round RBI Targets for Fantasy Baseball - Joey Gallo, Rhys Hoskins, Matt Chapman

We are on to the RBI category in our later round categories targets series. This is a category that gets a bit overlooked just due to the nature of things, but it's important to have a good understanding of it. This post will follow the later round HR targets post pretty closely, so check that […]

Scott Engel's Fantasy Baseball Industry Draft Review - 2022 FSGA Experts League

In the final week of March, I was invited to represent RotoBaller in the industry's Fantasy Sports & Gaming Association’s Experts League Draft, which featured 15 teams from various fantasy sports outlets in a 5x5 Rotisserie style format. I will be attempting to win my third FSGA Fantasy Baseball Experts championship this season. I was […]

Updated Fantasy Baseball Points Leagues Draft Rankings - Aaron Nola, Luis Castillo, Jack Flaherty, Justin Verlander and More

And the hits keep on coming! As we deal with a variety of fantasy baseball news and injuries, below you'll find our updated 2022 fantasy baseball points league rankings. These fantasy baseball rankings are meant to reflect recent injuries and player news, and are geared towards points leagues and head-to-head (H2H) points league scoring formats. […]

Charlie Montoyo Given One-Year Extension

The Toronto Blue Jays extended manager Charlie Montoyo's contract through the 2023 season, according to an industry source. Montoyo's deal also includes two team options through the 2025 season. The 56-year-old skipper is heading into his fourth season with the team after originally signing a three-year deal that included an option for the 2022 that […]

ESPN H2H Points League Primer - Strategy, Bargains and Busts for Fantasy Baseball

Please, everyone just calm down. Don't worry! I'm not gonna do...what everyone thinks I'm gonna do...and FLIP OUT, man!!! I know that this is usually the space where I go on a big rant about ESPN point league coverage and how much they're failing the people by producing content that fails to match the realities […]

Launch Angle Analysis: Power Breakouts for 2022 Fantasy Baseball - Ketel Marte, Austin Hays, Jazz Chisholm Jr.

There are three essential components that go into hitting a home run. Putting a ball in play Hitting said ball at a certain angle range Hitting said ball above a certain velocity When forecasting how many homers a certain player will hit, these sabermetrics (strikeout rate, walk rate, launch angle distributions, and launch velocity distributions) […]

Brandon Belt Could Make Spring Debut Monday

San Francisco Giants first baseman Brandon Belt (knee) is scheduled to debut in an exhibition game on Monday, but it's "very tentative," according to manager Gabe Kapler. Tuesday is the final exhibition game in camp. Belt has yet to play in a Cactus League game this spring due to knee inflammation, but he's been taking […]

Royals Pick Up Mike Matheny's 2023 Option

The Kansas City Royals exercised their team option on manager Mike Matheny for the 2023 season on Thursday. Matheny took over as the lead man in Kansas City in 2020 and has led the team to a 100-122 record since. The former big-league catcher was with the St. Louis Cardinals previously for nearly seven years […]

Robinson Cano To Play First Base On Thursday

New York Mets infielder Robinson Cano is expected to play first base during Thursday's spring training matchup. Cano has only made 14 appearances at first base, which were all with the Seattle Mariners in 2018. Jeff McNeil should have the second base job locked up, so the Mets will look to increase Cano's versatility. The […]

Brandon Belt Could Return This Weekend

San Francisco Giants first baseman Brandon Belt (knee) was able to run the bases on Wednesday. The veteran infielder could return to the starting lineup this weekend. He has been dealing with lingering knee soreness, but manager Gabe Kapler expects Belt to be ready for Opening Day. Barring any setbacks, Belt could make his spring […]

Evan White Undergoes Sports-Hernia Surgery

Seattle Mariners first baseman Evan White (hernia) underwent successful surgery to fix a sports hernia on Wednesday, but his timeline for a return is unknown. White was injured last Thursday and will begin the 2022 season on the 60-day injured list most likely. The 25-year-old made his major league debut in 2020 but hasn't been […]

Michael Florio's Value Picks for Fantasy Baseball Drafts

Fantasy managers spend a ton of time spent breaking down player skillsets and what a player can do well. Chances are if you are on fantasy baseball Twitter at any point, you will see people arguing about a player. There will be people saying to reach for someone and others saying to fade him. But […]