AL Only Deeper Draft Sleepers: Winter Hibernation Ends

The term sleeper is overused and commonly confused in fantasy sports. Too many people confuse the concept of a player being undervalued (i.e. a player getting drafted in the seventh round that is going to return fifth round value) versus a player being a true sleeper. When I think sleeper, I think Rip Van Winkle. […]

Hidden 2nd Base Draft Gems and ADP Value Picks

If you're looking to make a splash on draft day, you should give RotoBaller's ADP Draft Sleepers Tool a long, hard look. Part of our Premium Subscribers package, the Sleepers Tool allows you to compare a player's expected production against his top comparables going later in the draft. Frankly, it's a great resource for identifying […]

Top Five Shortstop Sleepers for 2015: Fantasy Baseball Rankings Analysis

  Five Undervalued Shortstops for 2015 So you've had a great draft, taking the best player available in each round. You are reasonably certain you will contend in all categories, and then you remember that you still need to fill a SS and MIF slot and it is Round 17. Ugh. While shortstop can be a […]

Scooter Gennett (2B, MIL) - 2015 Fantasy Baseball Sleeper

BALLER MOVE: Draft Target Late in All Leagues ANALYSIS: Scooter Gennett now holds the reigns at second base for the Milwaukee Brewers, since Rickie Weeks has departed. He's flying under the radar in most fantasy drafts with an ADP of 283, even thought many people feel he could end up being a top 10 player in a weak position. I tend […]

Three Batters Who Will See a Home Run Decline in 2015

Power Drought Coming? Each MLB season, the power numbers of certain hitters decrease. As fantasy players, we wish we could have seen it coming. In 2014, big names like Evan Longoria, Adrian Beltre, and Robinson Cano saw large dips in their home run numbers, each falling by more than 10 round trippers. Role players like […]

Auction Draft Strategy: How to Manage Your Budget

We previous looked at Part 1 (How to Prepare for Auction Drafts) and Part 2 (Five  Key Mistakes to Avoid Making) of our Auction Draft Strategy series. Today we look at how to budget your team's salary. The most important strategy for auction drafts is how to budget your allowance. Keeping track of how your dollars are […]

Top Five Second Base Sleepers for 2015: Hitters Who Will Outperform Their ADP

  Five Undervalued Second Basemen for 2015 You've got the strongest pitching staff in your league. Your outfield is stacked. You make sure to pick up a catcher early, pick up a hard-hitting first baseman, and - oh no - all of the decent second basemen are gone. It's common knowledge that one must focus […]

Neil Walker (2B, PIT) - 2015 Fantasy Baseball Sleeper

BALLER MOVE: Target ~160 ANALYSIS: Neil Walker has been providing enough value to fantasy owners in recent seasons to warrant an ADP higher than 176. Yes, he has missed time due to injuries in the past three years, but he is still second in HR (53) among second baseman during that span. Aside from speed, Walker is going to be […]

MLB Podcast on RotoBaller Radio: Injury Updates & Spring Training Standouts

MLB Injury Updates & Spring Training Standouts RotoBaller is very excited about the launch of our very own radio station. You can now find our new shows on BlogTalkRadio live or on demand, and on iTunes under podcasts. Every Wednesday night at 9:30 PM EST, RotoBaller co-founder Real Talk Raph and co-host Anthony Aniano of DraftSmashers Radio […]

Fantasy Baseball Spring Training Stock Watch: Veterans On The Rise

Earlier in the week here in the RotoBaller Stock Watch, we took a look at some fantasy prospects on the rise, who have a legitimate shot to break camp with a starting gig in-hand. A pair of prospects who we didn’t mention in that space, who went out and dominated on Wednesday night were Carlos […]

10 Bold Predictions for the 2015 Fantasy Baseball Season

  For the last few years, the staff over at RotoGraphs has been publishing their "10 Bold Predictions" series. These are typically among my favorite reads in the realm of fantasy baseball - and considering how much content I devour, that's saying something.   Since imitation is the sincerest form of flattery and all, I'm […]

2015 Fantasy Baseball Rankings: Top 300

Back in February, seven of the RotoBaller writers put together their consensus fantasy baseball rankings. Today, I'm branching out on my own to bring you RotoBaller's Top 300 for the 2015 fantasy baseball season. There's a number of players whom I like or dislike more than the expert consensus, so I'll add in a little bit of my […]

Howie Kendrick (2B, LAD) - 2015 Fantasy Baseball Sleeper

BALLER MOVE: Target in Rounds 11-13 in All Leagues ANALYSIS: Howie Kendrick is the 15th ranked second baseman heading into 2015. How(ie) is that possible? Seriously though, Kendrick's .293 batting average ranked third behind two top-tier picks in Robinson Cano and Jose Altuve and it's not a fluke: his batting average over nine years in the league is […]

Top 5 Middle Infielders: MLB Prospects and Impact Rookies for 2015

  A Bleak Landscape In 2001, ten middle infielders hit at least 20 home runs. Rich Aurilia, with 37, would have been tied for second in baseball with Giancarlo Stanton and Chris Carter last year. That year? He was tied for second...among middle infielders, with Bret Boone. Alex Rodriguez's 52 bombs, which paced the American […]

Five Sabermetric Overperformers: 2014 Studs Due for Regression

Hitters and pitchers will disagree on the ratio - but there is a general idea in baseball that for every hard-hit out you make, a blooper will fall in for a hit. This idea that chance plays a part in the game is the concept underlying the definition of regression. A hitter can sting the […]

Three 2B Who Will Outperform Their 2015 ADP: Rankings Analysis

  Don’t Splurge On Questionable Results The second base market is shaping to be a minefield in 2015, with numerous options in the middle of the pack and few truly elite players. In such situations it is important to show patience during draft day and wait out the market. Someone in your league is going […]

Fantasy Baseball Spring Stock Watch: Pederson, Ramirez, Tomas, Kang

  With March Madness in full swing, and the regular season still two weeks away, the temptation to take a break from the monotony of spring training is there for most fantasy owners right now. Heck, David Ortiz doesn't even care about these games, (though if you ask the Red Sox, he's just dehydrated).   […]

Auction Draft Strategy Part One: How to Prepare for Auction Drafts

Going Once, Going Twice... An auction is the most exciting way to draft in fantasy baseball, but it can also be the most difficult. For this article and the three to follow, I will be using the assumption that your league’s standard settings give you a $260 allowance. For those unfamiliar with the process, that is […]

MLB Podcast on RotoBaller Radio: Top Minor League Prospects For 2015

Preseason Analysis: Impact Dynasty League Targets RotoBaller is very excited about the launch of our very own radio station. You can now find our new shows on BlogTalkRadio live or on demand, and on iTunes under podcasts. Every Wednesday night at 9:30 PM EST, RotoBaller co-founder Real Talk Raph and co-host Anthony Aniano of DraftSmashers Radio will […]

Arismendy Alcantara (2B/SS/OF, CHI) - 2015 Fantasy Baseball Sleeper

BALLER MOVE: Target Late in Deep, NL-Only Leagues ANALYSIS: As of early March, Arismendy Alcantara hasn’t won any of the starting nine field positions but is listed second on Chicago’s depth chart at both second base and center field. However, with Joe Madden now in Chicago, plenty of opportunity for at bats in a utility role […]

Top 10 Batting Average Leaders for 2015

Time to Mash Let's start this article with a disclaimer: predicting batting average is something of a fool's errand. In a nutshell, the problem boils down to sample size. Barring injury, an everyday player will step up to the plate somewhere between 650 and 700 times over the course of a season. Between 60 and […]

Top 10 Projected Stolen Base Leaders: 2015 Fantasy Baseball Rankings

RUN, RUN, RUN! Predicting the top five or six stolen base leaders is a relatively easy process. Those guys are in situations that breed an abundance of opportunities and they do not have much, if any, depth behind them competing for playing time. They rack up stolen base by the dozens and have a clear […]

Four Stolen Base Surgers for 2015 Fantasy Baseball

Draft preparation 101: Billy Hamilton steals bases and Giancarlo Stanton hits home runs. Note: everyone knows that. If you want to win a fantasy baseball championship, you need to dig deeper to discover the unknowns that will either slip in drafts or should be highlighted on your draft day rankings. Luckily, I’m more than happy […]

Jace Peterson: Fantasy Baseball Second Base/Shortstop Deep Sleeper

Opportunity May Yield A Sneaky Source Of Steals Being a sleeper is all about exceeding expectations, and that’s what I expect from Jace Peterson in 2015. As of right now his ADP I’m pretty sure is nonexistent, so you should be able to snag him with your last pick or as a post-draft acquisition. As of […]

MLB Podcast on RotoBaller Radio: Breakout Players Coming Out Of Spring Training

Potential Breakout Pitchers & Hitters For 2015 RotoBaller is very excited about the launch of our very own radio station. You can now find our new shows on BlogTalkRadio live or on demand, and on iTunes under podcasts. Every Wednesday night at 9:30 PM EST, RotoBaller co-founder Real Talk Raph and co-host Anthony Aniano of DraftSmashers Radio will […]

5 AL Players Whose New Teams Will Impact Their Performance

Who Will Be Helped or Hurt by a Change of Scenery? J.A. Happ, Seattle Mariners Let’s be honest: Happ did not post Cy Young-caliber numbers in his most recent campaign. A 4.22 ERA and lackluster 7.6 K/9 IP made Happ one of many problems for the Blue Jays in 2014. That’s exactly why a transition […]

Mookie Betts (OF / 2B, BOS) - 2015 Fantasy Baseball Rankings Analysis

CURRENT ADP: 121 RANKINGS STATUS: Undervalued ANALYSIS: It is becoming increasingly obvious that Mookie Betts will be the Boston Red Sox Opening Day center fielder and leadoff man. He entered spring training expecting to compete with Cuban sensation Rusney Castillo for the center field job, but Castillo suffered an oblique injury which has prevented him […]

The Value of Veterans: A Howie Kendrick Story

Veteran Value What is Howie Kendrick worth? It's hardly the most exciting question, but if you're in the business of winning, it's one you ought to consider. Veteran players like Kendrick offer fantasy owners two things which can be worth their weight in gold during a long season: playing time and stable production. If veterans […]

Tiered 2B Rankings Analysis: Draft Strategy & Advice For Second Basemen

Over the next week, RotoBaller analysts will give you a sneak peak into our consensus Premium Tiered Rankings at each position with some in-depth analysis to help you prepare for your drafts. The rest of our tiered rankings can be found in our 2015 Fantasy Baseball Draft Kit & Cheat Sheet.    Tiered Second Base Rankings Analysis Tiered rankings are critical […]

Marcus Semien (2B/3B, OAK) - 2015 Fantasy Baseball Sleeper

BALLER MOVE: Target as MI in late rounds ANALYSIS: Marcus Semien should see consistent playing time in Oakland (unlike during his tenure with the White Sox), not only due to his position versatility, but also because of Oakland’s glaring need for middle infield help. Semien’s major league stolen base numbers don’t jump off the page, but in 2013 […]