Points League Players and the Platforms Who Hate Them

Trust. Whether in roto, point leagues, or otherwise, players should be able to trust that the rankings and values they choose to rely on will be accurate and specific to their league format. That standard seems to be a bit fuzzy when it comes to points leagues, even though point leagues should be fantasy baseball's […]

Jose Abreu Has Productive Day At The Plate

Chicago White Sox first baseman Jose Abreu had a productive day at the plate in Thursday's win over the Royals. Abreu went 2-for-3 with an RBI, a run scored, and a walk. The 2020 AL MVP has yet to hit his first spring homer, though he had gotten off to a similarly slow start in […]

Keston Hiura Strikes Out Three Times On Thursday

Milwaukee Brewers second/first baseman Keston Hiura continues to struggle at the plate this spring. Hiura went 0-for-3 with three strikeouts against the Angels, lowering his Cactus League average to just .154 with 11 total punchouts to just one walk. Three of his four hits so far have gone for extra bases, though it's hard to […]

Dominic Smith Close To Returning To Action

New York Mets outfielder Dominic Smith (wrist) took batting practice on Friday, one day ahead of his schedule to do so. Smith has been held out of the Mets' past few Grapefruit League games due to a sore right wrist. The injury does not appear to be serious and reports indicate that Smith should be […]

Later-Round Category Targets - Home Runs

Welcome back to my series of posts where I take us through a standard fantasy baseball category, break it down statistically and then locate some targets for 2021 to help you out in that category. We've already examined how to get an advantage in batting average. Today we will talk about home runs. You can also […]

Later-Round Category Targets - Batting Average

Of all of the fantasy sports, a baseball league using category scoring is the one most requiring manager strategy. You can draft a team full of players that overperform their draft cost but still not win your league if you don't fill up the categories correctly. If I had to give one piece of advice […]

First Base Fantasy Baseball Draft Sleepers

The first base position has some high-end options such as Freddie Freeman, Cody Bellinger, and Jose Abreu. All are typically going in the top 40 of most mixed-league drafts. But getting one of the top guys isn't imperative. There are plenty of other viable alternatives available later in drafts. Whether it is power, batting average, or […]

Hitter Targets Under $5 - Salary Cap League Values

It's a cliché to say that those managers who finally dip their toe into salary cap leagues never go back to snake drafts. Snake drafts have their own charm. There is simply more going on, and thus, more fun to have when participating in a salary cap draft. There become no bounds on how one […]

Undervalued Mixed League Draft Targets in 2021

Finding undervalued players during drafts can make or break your fantasy season. One of the ways we look for undervalued players is to utilize RotoBaller’s Expected Draft Value research developed by my colleague Nick Mariano.  We attempt to identify players who are forecast to return value in 2021 which is greater than the expected value […]

Infielders Ready to Break Out Late

Finding value is crucial on draft day and finding just one or two players in the mid to late rounds in drafts that provide better numbers than projected can give you a significant edge on the competition as you bid for fantasy glory. All too often, we look for the new shiny object in drafts […]

Hidden Gems To Watch - 2021 Infielder Prospects

When we talk about prospects, almost everybody wants to gravitate to the names at the top of the various lists; the guys like Wander Franco or Julio Rodriguez. The ones we've deemed "generational talents" or determined will "win you your league." But the issue, as we've seen with Vladimir Guerrero Jr., is that predicting prospect […]

Deeper Draft Sleepers - First Base

Don't look now, but baseball season is on the horizon. Actually, go ahead and look as it is beautiful to see the calendar shrink as each day brings us closer to the crack of the bat and, hopefully, the roar of the crowd as America (and Toronto!) creeps back towards normalcy. It's never a bad idea […]

Power Sleepers - Noteworthy 2020 Barrel Leaders

As we've continued to progress in the MLB offseason, I've been looking at barrel rates from 2020 in the hopes of finding players whose breakouts during the shortened season were real or those who may still have breakouts looming. As I've mentioned previously, I'm a firm believer that finding the barrel regularly is an incredibly […]

Hitter Targets Under $10 - Salary Cap League Values

Snake drafts are the more common method, but salary cap leagues offer a more complex flavor to your draft day. That's not for everyone, and that's fine; part of the beauty of fantasy baseball lies in its high degree of customizability. Salary cap drafts take longer, and they're much less straightforward than snakes, but for […]

Christian Walker (1B, ARI) - Fantasy Baseball Draft Values

BALLER MOVE: Draft target ~pick 175 CURRENT ADP: ~193 overall ANALYSIS: Walker put together a solid 2020 campaign hitting .271/.333/.459 with seven homers in 57 games, although that's hardly worth describing as a break out. Statcast emphasizes that Walker was unlucky in 2020 with regards to home runs as he had an expected home run (xHR) […]

Bobby Dalbec (1B, BOS) - Fantasy Baseball Draft Values

BALLER MOVE: Draft target ~pick 250 CURRENT ADP: ~277 overall ANALYSIS: After coming up through Boston's farm system as a third baseman, Dalbec now projects to be the Opening Day first baseman for the Red Sox with Rafael Devers manning the hot corner. Dalbec slugged his way through the upper levels of the minors, hitting 32 home runs […]

Ryan Mountcastle (1B/OF, BAL) - Fantasy Baseball Draft Values

BALLER MOVE: Draft target ~pick 130 CURRENT ADP: ~146 overall ANALYSIS: The frontrunner for 2021 AL Rookie of the Year may be a poor fielder but a full season at Camden Yards should yield profits. The 2020 small sample brought us a .333/.386/.492 slash with five homers over 140 PAs, but much of that was […]

Colin Moran (1B, PIT) - Fantasy Baseball Draft Values

BALLER MOVE: Draft target ~pick 375 CURRENT ADP: ~411 overall ANALYSIS: The departure of Josh Bell in a trade to the Washington Nationals has opened up a full-time spot at first base for Moran who put up his most impressive power numbers last year. Moran led the Pirates in 2020 with 10 homers in 52 games (having hit […]

C.J. Cron (1B, COL) - Fantasy Baseball Draft Values

BALLER MOVE: Draft target ~pick 235 CURRENT ADP: ~294 overall ANALYSIS:  Cron will enter his age-31 season having only logged more than 500 PAs once in his seven-year career. But he’s at the perfect price point where you shrug at the low floor while recognizing his stellar power potential. I realize power bats don’t mean […]

Tommy La Stella (1B/2B/3B, SF) - Fantasy Baseball Draft Values

BALLER MOVE: Draft target ~pick 290 CURRENT ADP: ~306 overall ANALYSIS: Finally signing with the San Francisco Giants, La Stella should play just about every day and hit atop the Giants Lineup. Tommy La Stella is what I categorize as a roster stabilizer. His production is not flashy, but you can write it in pen. […]

Jared Walsh (1B, LAA) - 2021 Fantasy Baseball Draft Sleepers

Jared Walsh burst onto the Minor League scene in 2019 after hitting 36 homers in 98 games and received a call up to the Angels. Prior to that, Walsh had 49 homers in 361 Minor League games so his power outburst came as a surprise. Walsh didn't have a great start to his MLB career […]

Cody Bellinger Slugs First Spring Home Run On Thursday

Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman/outfielder Cody Bellinger went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in his second Cactus League game on Thursday. Bellinger ripped a fly-ball 101.3 MPH on an out, then later registered an exit velocity of 107.3 MPH on his dinger. Manager Dave Roberts noted after the game that the 25-year-old had a […]

MLB Spring Training Notebook (3/18) - Montgomery, Alcantara Surging

Welcome to the 2021 edition of RotoBaller's Spring Training Notebook. Thankfully, we have real, live baseball being played every day again, and while it doesn't count for anything, these exhibition games gives us the smallest glimmer into players and teams heading into the new season. We're into our third week of spring training games and […]

Josh Bell Hits Third Home Run Of Spring

Washington Nationals first baseman Josh Bell went 1-for-3 with a solo home run in Thursday's 3-1 win over the Mets. Batting from the right side, Bell went the opposite way for this third homer of the spring- and his second to the opposite field. The switch-hitting first baseman now has nine hits in 11 spring […]

Using Sabermetrics for Fantasy Baseball: Ballpark Factors

If you have ever selected a streamable pitcher based on home park or benched an otherwise must-start arm at Coors Field, you already know how much a stadium can impact a player's bottom line. Ballpark Factors quantify the influence each stadium has, allowing you to make the most of your fantasy team's real-life schedule. However, […]

Paul Goldschmidt Finds Power Stroke

St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Paul Goldschmidt found his power stroke over the last few days. Goldschmidt hit two home runs off of Jack Flaherty in an exhibition on Tuesday- then followed it up with a two-run blast on Wednesday against the Astros, his first in Grapefruit League action. The 33-year-old slashed .304/.417/.466 in 2020, […]

Evan White Hits A Grand Slam

Seattle Mariners first baseman Evan White hit a grand slam home run Wednesday. White accounted for all four Mariners runs against the Angels, with the homer coming off of lefty Thomas Pannone in the sixth inning. After a tough start to spring, White has come around of late. His slash line of .185/.273/.606 surely leaves […]

Alek Manoah Among Players Sent To Minors By Jays

The Toronto Blue Jays sent 25 players to the minor league camp on Thursday, including starting pitcher and former first-round pick Alek Manoah. The hard-throwing righty made a huge impression this spring by dominating the Yankees in two appearances. Although he won't break camp with the Jays, he could possibly help the club late in […]

Dominic Smith Remains Sidelined Thursday

New York Mets outfielder Dominic Smith (wrist) remains out of the Mets' Grapefruit League lineup on Thursday for their game against the Washington Nationals. Smith was removed from Wednesday's starting lineup in Grapefruit League play due to "general wrist soreness." This wrist issue does not appear serious, despite sidelining Smith for the past two days. […]

Colin Moran Launches First Home Run Of Spring

Pittsburgh Pirates first baseman Colin Moran launched his first home run of the spring on Wednesday, as he finished 2-for-3 with two RBI in the loss to the Rays. It's been a rough start to the year for Moran, who entered Wednesday with a .167/.318/.278 line across eight games this spring. Moran looked solid last […]