Baseball Award Predictions that (Probably) Won't Come True

My least favorite type of baseball articles to read are preseason predictions for awards. Nobody in their right mind is going to pick against Mike Trout for AL MVP and there's a very narrow population of players that are considered in the NL. It's not exactly informative to hear someone say, "Clayton Kershaw has a […]

ADP Champs or Chumps - Albert Pujols & Miguel Cabrera

I know what you're thinking. "ADP Champs or Chumps? The season has already started!" That may be true, but there are some leagues that wait until the first week of the season to conduct their drafts. Personally I think that this is a terrible idea, as values become more linear when you know Opening Day […]

Using Sabermetrics for Fantasy Baseball Part 12 - Barrels for Batters

If you've watched a baseball broadcast in the so-called Statcast Era, you have undoubtedly noticed the broadcasters commenting on a batted ball's exit velocity, or EV. Many have taken to using stats like Hard% and Soft% to forecast how a player should be performing, expecting larger Hard% rates to produce larger BABIP figures. There is […]

Brad Miller (1B/SS, TB) - 2017 Fantasy Baseball Draft Sleepers & Values

BALLER MOVE: Target ~150 CURRENT ADP: ~179 ANALYSIS: Shortstop is not the deepest position in fantasy baseball these days and there's a pretty steep drop-off after the top 10 are off the board. If you wait on the position, whether by choice or not, Brad Miller stands out as a name with great value. Miller […]

2017 Prospects - Top 30 Impact Rookies for Fantasy Drafts

Hello everyone, and welcome to my weekly Top-30 Fantasy Rankings for Impact Rookies! In this series, I will be going over the top prospects in baseball and discussing which ones figure to have an impact for the rest of this fantasy baseball season. Opening Day is almost upon us. As I am writing this, we […]

Maximizing Yahoo DL and NA Slots In Your Draft

Most fantasy baseball leagues have at least one DL spot. Many have two, three or even more. While certainly useful during the season when players inevitably get hurt, they can also be part of your draft strategy. Not as widely used and relatively new to Yahoo leagues, NA slots allow you to stockpile difference-makers for the […]

Scene Change - Four Hitters On New Teams

For those fantasy baseball players who don't follow and analyze every offseason move that occurs between October and March, catching up on those changes is a vital part of draft preparation. Below I'll quickly outline the four hitters who will likely have the most fantasy relevance for different teams in 2017. There doesn't figure to […]

Draft Values: The 2017 All-Bargain Team

This article first appeared on the Metro news publication. Our long national nightmare is nearly over. No, not that one…here we’re referring to the lack of baseball. Opening Day is right around the corner, and not a moment too soon. After last week’s look at the busts, let’s end draft season on a happy note […]

C.J Cron (1B/DH, LAA) - 2017 Fantasy Baseball Draft Sleepers & Values

BALLER MOVE: Target ~210 CURRENT ADP: ~240 ANALYSIS: It’s easy for lower-tier first basemen to get overshadowed in fantasy baseball, with the position being the home of mashers like Paul Goldschmidt and Mark Trumbo. Cron is one of those players – he’s shown consistency and a good amount of power in his first three years […]

Top Power-Metric Gainers - What to Expect in 2017

The baseball universe is really coming into its own when it comes to advanced data metrics that we can parse through, with hard-hit rates, exit velocities, spray charts and batted-ball outcomes all becoming accessible tools to throw in the toolkit before we go digging for answers. Today's piece caps off our short series looking at […]

Jim Turvey's 10 Bold Predictions for 2017

One of my favorite preseason series here at RotoBaller has been the “10 Bold Predictions” series. It allows authors to pump up a few of the players and teams they like (and deflate the guys they dislike), while also going on record with actual stats and metrics. Be sure to check out just how wonky […]

Cody Bellinger (1B, LAD) - 2017 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers & Draft Values

BALLER MOVE: Target ~400 CURRENT ADP: 461 ANALYSIS: A former fourth-round pick in the 2013 draft, Cody Bellinger has now become a top-10 prospect in MLB. The 21-year-old hit 29 HR with eight steals across three levels of the minor leagues in 2016, after demolishing High-A ball (30 HR, 10 SB) the previous season. He […]

Tommy Joseph (1B, PHI) - 2017 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers & Draft Values

BALLER MOVE: Target ~190 CURRENT ADP: 214 ANALYSIS: Tommy Joseph exploded onto the fantasy baseball scene during his rookie season in 2016 by smacking 21 HR with a monstrous .248 ISO, both ranking third among rookies. His PA:HR ratio (16.5:1) was actually better than that of Edwin Encarnacion, who led the position with 42 HR. […]

Justin Bour (1B, MIA) - 2017 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers & Draft Values

BALLER MOVE: Target ~270 CURRENT ADP: 302 ANALYSIS: Justin Bour was a popular low-end sleeper pick heading into the 2016 season, and he was certainly on his way to proving that to be true heading into July. In just three months he had racked up 15 HR, 46 RBI and a .873 OPS. The excitement came to an […]

Jeff Kahntroff's 10 Bold Predictions for 2017

Just when you thought it was over... this will officially conclude our Bold Predictions series for the fantasy baseball season. Last year was the debut of my 10 bold predictions, and I think I did pretty well. But you should be the judge for yourself and review how I did before deciding how much stock […]

Top Gainers in Fly Ball Rate - What to Expect in 2017

The baseball universe is really coming into its own when it comes to advanced data metrics that we can parse through, with hard-hit rates, exit velocities, spray charts and batted-ball outcomes all becoming accessible tools to throw in the toolkit before we go digging for answers. Today's piece continues the series where we explore some […]

First Base ADPs - Overvalued and Undervalued

In this piece, I'll lay out some first basemen who are shaping up as great values in fantasy drafts and also a few who are not worth their current prices. All ADP data can be found using our awesome rankings wizard. The first base position is an interesting one in fantasy. There's a clear top-three at […]

Bill Dubiel's 10 Bold Predictions for 2017

Here at Rotoballer, we truly do believe in the "grand finale" concept--that's why you're getting MY bold predictions after all the other chuckleheads. By chuckleheads I mean my talented and respectable colleagues. Be sure to check out just how wonky we all get this time of year with our entire Bold Prediction Series. I didn't have […]

Top Gainers in Pull Rate: What to Expect in 2017

The baseball universe is really coming into its own when it comes to advanced data metrics that we can parse through, with hard-hit rates, exit velocities, spray charts and batted-ball outcomes all becoming accessible tools to throw in the toolkit before we go digging for answers. Today's piece continues the series where we explore some […]

Top Gainers in Hard Hit Rate - What to Expect in 2017

The baseball universe is really coming into its own when it comes to advanced data metrics that we can parse through, with hard-hit rates, exit velocities, spray charts and batted-ball outcomes all becoming accessible tools to throw in the toolkit before we go digging for answers. Today's piece kicks off a series where we're going […]

Milwaukee Brewers - 2017 Fantasy MLB Team Preview and Outlooks

As we wrap up our MLB team previews, it's time to preview one of the young, upcoming teams in the National League with the 2017 Milwaukee Brewers Team Outlook. The Brewers finished last season 73-89, but are a team that should be on the rise despite a relatively quiet offseason. We'll take a look at the team's […]

2017 Prospects: Top 30 Impact Rookies for Fantasy Drafts

Hello everyone, and welcome to my pre-season Top-30 Fantasy Rankings for Impact Rookies! In this series, I will be going over the top prospects in baseball and discussing which ones figure to have an impact for the rest of this fantasy baseball season. This season is not even underway yet, and already there have been some […]

Greg Bird (1B, NYY) - 2017 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers & Draft Values

BALLER MOVE: Target ~183 CURRENT ADP: ~246 ANALYSIS: Many fantasy owners were already excited about Bird heading into the 2016 season after he hit 11 HR in only 46 games following a late season call-up in 2015. But fans received the disappointing news prior to spring training that Bird would miss the season after having shoulder […]

First Base: Updated March Rankings and Tiers

We rolled out our final update on 2017 rankings this past weekend. While there haven’t been seismic shifts, some players have naturally seen their stocks rise or fall since our initial valuations were made in December. All week long, we’re looking at the biggest movers and shakers at each position. In this installment, we’ll present […]

Potential First Base ADP Busts for 2017

We’re continuing our Positional Avoid series today with a look at first basemen. Earlier, we examined three potential busts at catcher. As the days in March go by, we are getting closer and closer to the witching hour. The time in which you must determine who is fit for your team and who you don’t mind […]

JB's 10 Bold Predictions for 2017

Welcome back to the most infamous series at RotoBaller, our pre-season bold predictions. Since the beginning of this week through the end of next week, our brightest baseball minds offer their most audacious projections for the 2017 fantasy baseball season. Thanks to the Army sending me to the swamps of Louisiana, I missed out on the fun […]

Pierre Camus's Bold Predictions for 2017

I'm no stranger to making bold predictions, although this is my first go-around in this particular series. As a fantasy analyst, I always try to take an objective, statistic-based approach. As a fan, I am an unrepentant Marlins apologist and tend to hold grudges against players and teams for decades on end. I would have […]

Max Petrie's 10 Bold Predictions for 2017

Welcome to the first day of March Madness, but more importantly the 4th edition of RotoBaller's Bold Predictions series.  Over the next two weeks, our writers will be offering their most audacious projections for the 2017 fantasy baseball season. Last year I named Mookie Betts the fantasy MVP. I also noted Trevor Story would be […]

Dynasty First Basemen: Top MLB Prospects for Fantasy Baseball

Welcome back, RotoBallers. I've already looked at the top 10 prospects for each MLB team, and now I'll be breaking down impact prospects by position. Today I'm bringing you my top 10 first basemen - dynasty prospect rankings for 2017 dynasty baseball leagues. First base is often home to some of the least athletic guys in […]

Edward Sutelan's 10 Bold Predictions for 2017

It's time for everyone's favorite writer to give his Bold Predictions. Wait, Nick published his a couple days ago? Then I guess it's time for everyone's second favorite writer to give his Bold Predictions for the 2017 fantasy baseball season! Yes, that's right, it's me, Edward Sutelan. I made some predictions last season, and if you remember, […]