Kris Bryant Not Expected To Play Too Much Outfield In 2021

Chicago Cubs third baseman/outfielder Kris Bryant isn't expected to play much outfield in 2021 according to manager David Ross. Bryant is traditionally a third baseman, but has seen time at the corner outfield positions throughout his career. With Jason Heyward and Joc Pederson set to be everyday starters in right and left field, Bryant will […]

Updated Top 50 Fantasy Baseball Redraft Prospects for 2021

Opening day is just around the corner. So what better way to celebrate the occasion than to refresh the Top 50 prospects list for 2021 redraft leagues. If you're a habitual prospect watcher then you could have a leg up on your fantasy competition in 2021. Managers around baseball will heavily rely on rookies like […]

Brian Anderson Draws A Walk And Scores A Run On Sunday

Miami Marlins third baseman Brian Anderson drew a walk and scored a run in Sunday's Grapefruit League win over the New York Mets. Officially, Anderson ended up 0-for-2 in the game. With Grapefruit League play over for the fish, Anderson finishes up the spring with a .233 batting average and a .576 OPS. A timely […]

Rougned Odor Not Guaranteed A Role

Texas Rangers infielder Rougned Odor's spot on the opening day roster is not a guarantee. Manager Chris Woodward was asked about the infielder's status on Sunday and he declined to confirm that Odor's inclusion on the team was guaranteed. With Nick Solak earmarked for second base this year, it was expected that the second base […]

Matt Carpenter Sinks Even Deeper

St. Louis Cardinals infielder Matt Carpenter continued to sink even deeper into his spring slump in Sunday's Grapefruit League game against the Washington Nationals. Carpenter got the start at third base and went 0-for-3 with a walk, lowering his spring batting average to .028. That's not a typo. That's .028. Carpenter has one hit in […]

Seattle Mariners Sleepers to Watch in 2021

In a division with the star-studded Angels and Astros and the ever-consistent Athletics, it's easy to overlook the Mariners and Rangers in the American League West. And while you may have good reasons to look past the Rangers, the Mariners have several intriguing fantasy players for the 2021 season that could be going a bit […]

ATC Projections Volatility for Multi-Category Players

One year ago, I penned my very first article on RotoBaller. I am truly honored that the Fantasy Sports Writers Association (FSWA) awarded the piece as the 2020 Baseball Article of the Year. “Finding Combo-Player Values Using Z-Scores and ATC Projections” provided a new perspective on how to find helpful multi-category players to fill out […]

2021 ATC Projections: Hitter Surprises

By their nature, projection systems don’t typically offer many big surprises. Outside of Lucas Giolito’s ZiPS projection, there aren’t many player projections that jump off of the page this season. Still, even seemingly small surprises can have significant fantasy implications, and it’s worth exploring those surprises. To add an element of objectivity to this analysis, […]

2021 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers - RotoBaller Staff Picks

As the 2021 MLB season approaches, it's time for the RotoBaller staff to once again reveal their favorite preseason draft sleepers. We recently asked some of our top fantasy baseball writers to get their take on which hitters and pitchers they are targeting the most in the later rounds of fantasy drafts. While you've likely […]

Analyzing the Theory of Hot and Cold Streaks

You hear it all the time. "This pitcher is really locked in right now" or "this hitter is just seeing the ball so well recently." Looking for patterns and explanations is part of human nature. This manifests itself in sports by people picking up on hot and cold streaks and making quite a big deal […]

Eugenio Suarez Expected To Be Everyday SS

The Cincinnati Reds are expected to make Eugenio Suarez their everyday shortstop this season, according to general manager Nick Krall. It is highly likely that Suarez is at shortstop on Opening Day when the Reds face off against the St. Louis Cardinals. Krall said, "I feel good about it. He has played well. He has […]

Jon Berti Hits A Triple On Saturday

Miami Marlins super utility man Jon Berti had another good game in a Grapefruit League matchup against the St. Louis Cardinals on Saturday. Berti got the start at third base and went 2-for-2 with a triple and an RBI. He's hitting a strong .435 with a 1.168 OPS in the spring and has gotten playing […]

Jose Rojas Makes Opening Day Roster

Los Angeles Angels third baseman Jose Rojas was informed on Saturday that he had made the Opening Day roster, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports. This comes after a solid spring performance by Rojas, who has slashed .333/.488/.667 with two home runs and a 4:10 K:BB rate in 22 games. Rojas has shown double-digit home run […]

Carter Kieboom Optioned

Washington Nationals third baseman Carter Kieboom will not be on the Opening Day roster as he was optioned to Triple-A Rochester on Saturday. Kieboom only hit .150/.227/.250 in 44 plate appearances this spring on the heels of a .181/.309/.232 line in 165 regular season PA to date. Kieboom was teetering on the ledge all spring […]

Miguel Sano Belts First Home Run Of Spring

Minnesota Twins first/third baseman Miguel Sano went 1-for-2 with a home run, a walk, and a strikeout in Friday's loss to the Braves. Sano's homer was a rocket, a 458-foot blast that left his bat at an exit velocity of 110.7 MPH. The 27-year-old does have a relatively alarming 18 strikeouts compared to just four […]

Joe Panik Makes Blue Jays Roster

Toronto Blue Jays infielder Joe Panik has made the club's opening day roster. The veteran utility player was in camp as a non-roster invitee and will need to be added to the club's 40-man roster. He was informed that would likely not occur until Major League Baseball's deadline to set rosters because the Jays' roster […]

Eric Samulski's Bold Predictions for 2021

It's bold prediction time! Everybody's favorite time of year. Last year I put out my bold prediction article, and it was a doozy. Obviously, publishing it before the shutdown which delayed the MLB season impacted some of the claims, but, actually, no, I'll just blame everything on that. Anyways, I'm back again to plant my […]

Todd Frazier Opts Out, Becomes Free Agent

Pittsburgh Pirates first baseman Todd Frazier exercised the opt-out clause in his contract and will become a free agent, MLB Network's Jon Heyman reported Friday. Heyman adds that the Pirates had informed Frazier he was not going to make the team out of Spring Training, which led to Frazier opting out. Frazier had looked good […]

Advanced MLB DFS Strategy: Sneaky Stacks Against Reverse-Splits Pitchers

With Opening Day of the MLB season right around the corner, it's time to start getting your mind right and preparing for a full season of MLB DFS action. Last summer we missed out on several months of MLB games due to the COVID pandemic, but we are going to get 6 months worth of […]

Rafael Devers Slump Continues, Goes Hitless Thursday

Boston Red Sox third baseman Rafael Devers continued his recent cold streak on Thursday, going 0-for-2 in a 7-4 Red Sox loss. Over his last six games now, Devers is hitting 2-for-15 with one RBI, one walk and four strikeouts, as he lowers his spring triple slash line to .182/.234/.409 in 17 games. This sluggish […]

Manny Machado Goes Hitless In Padres Win Thursday

San Diego Padres third baseman Manny Machado continued his spring slump on Thursday, going 0-for-2 with a walk, one RBI and a run scored in the Padres' 11-10 victory over the Rangers. Machado has gone hitless in his last three games now, as he has lowered his spring slash line to .235/.293/.324 with three doubles, […]

Travis Shaw Fine After Early Exit Thursday

Milwaukee Brewers third baseman Travis Shaw (leg) was removed as a precaution on Thursday after being hit by a pitch, Adam McCalvy of MLB.com reports. According to manager Craig Counsell, Shaw had a bruise after being hit by a pitch in his first plate appearance, and after it showed signs of swelling they removed him […]

Alec Bohm Day-To-Day After Early Exit Thursday

Philadelphia Phillies third baseman Alec Bohm (groin) is considered day-to-day after exiting Thursday's game early, according to Matt Breen of the Philadelphia Inquirer. Manager Joe Girardi said the move was "precautionary" as Bohm was removed in the fourth inning with tightness in his left groin. Bohm made his major league debut in 2020, where he […]

Nicklaus Gaut: Bold, Bolder, Boldest Predictions

Ahh, the time-honored tradition of making bold predictions is upon us. We hem and we haw; we make outrageous claims like Adalberto Mondesi invented the question mark, and bicker about the proper definition of "bold". In the NotBurtatorium (totally a real word), however, we worry not about this or that definition. Our goals are simple […]

Josh Donaldson Rips Two Extra-Base Hits Against Red Sox

Minnesota Twins third baseman Josh Donaldson went 2-for-3 with a double, a home run, and two RBI in a 7-4 win over Boston on Thursday. Donaldson got the Twins started in the first inning with a double- he then scored on a Byron Buxton double. In his second at-bat, the 35-year-old smashed an upstairs offering […]

Must-Have Hitters for 2021: WPC+

Pierre Camus and Nicklaus Gaut name the hitters they are targeting most in 2021 fantasy baseball drafts and explain why they could break out. Like and subscribe to the RotoBaller channel on Youtube to get all our latest podcasts and catch us on iTunes and BlogTalkRadio as well! Be sure to also tune into RotoBaller Radio […]

Overcoming Recency Bias on Draft Day

With all the draft analysis and sabermetrics being thrown at fantasy managers these days, I think it's time we take a step back and focus on the most important thing to dissect before your draft - YOU. A few months ago, I covered some of these cognitive biases for fantasy football season. Now, I believe […]

Using Sabermetrics for Fantasy Baseball: Statcast Exit Velocity

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 and HR/FB figures. […]

RotoBaller Friends & Family Industry Mock Draft Recap

The 2021 RotoBaller Friends & Family Mock Draft is the continuation of an annual tradition where we gather some of the biggest names from the fantasy baseball world and put together a mock draft just as spring training has commenced. Thanks to RT Sports for once again hosting and providing a custom draft site where […]

Brock Holt Makes Rangers Opening Day Roster

Texas Rangers utility player Brock Holt learned on Wednesday that he would be on the club's opening day roster. The move will give the Rangers added versatility as the veteran player handled third base, first base, and the outfield in 2020. Just two years ago, he also filled in at second base and shortstop. Holt […]