Emilio Pagan's Nightmare Season Continues

San Diego Padres reliever Emilio Pagan took the loss Sunday against the Arizona Diamondbacks, serving up a game-clinching three-run homer. Summoned to protect a two-run lead in the eighth, the maligned Pagan relinquished a two-out blast to D-backs third baseman Eduardo Escobar. The 29-year-old has been a major bust since joining the Friars this offseason, […]

Burch Smith Lands On IL, James Kaprielian Called Up

Oakland Athletics right-handed pitcher Burch Smith has been placed on the 10-day injured list due to a strained right forearm, paving the way for righty James Kaprielian, the club’s No. 13 prospect, to earn the call to the Major League roster. Smith had yet to be scored upon in 2020 prior to his outing Saturday; […]

Yankees To Activate Aroldis Chapman On Monday

New York Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman is expected to rejoin the team on Monday after a lengthy coronavirus-related absence. Manager Aaron Boone was clear that Chapman would reclaim the closer role despite Zach Britton’s success, so Britton’s value takes a significant hit as a result. With a career 2.23 ERA and 30% K-BB, Chapman should […]

Roel Ramirez Gets Destroyed In His Debut

St. Louis Cardinals rookie relief pitcher Roel Ramirez got annihilated in his major league debut on Sunday. He got just two outs, allowing six runs on six hits and a walk. He threw 30 pitches, 17 for strikes, at one point allowing four home runs in a row. It was a disastrous outing for the […]

All 18 Marlins On COVID-19 List Working Out At Alternate Site

All of the 18 Miami Marlins players who were placed on the COVID-19 injured list after last month's breakout are back in Jupiter, Florida at the Marlins alternate site. That means all 18 players have now tested negative at least twice within a 24 hour period and are able to rejoin the team. They will […]

Taylor Williams (RP, SEA) - Week 5 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 24% of leagues ANALYSIS: As one might expect from a team that's emerged victorious in just seven of 22 games thus far, the Mariners don't find themselves with a ton of save opportunities. However, three of the five they've had so far have gone to Taylor Williams. While […]

Daily Slivers of the Fantasy Soapbox - Yesterday's Recap

Welcome to the August 16th edition of Daily Slivers of the Fantasy Soapbox. Discussing baseball is as fun as the game itself. It has a way of bringing people together to share different opinions about the sport we all love. A similar action can be done with fantasy baseball where we not only discuss topics […]

Ty Buttrey (RP, LAA) - Week 5 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues ROSTERED IN: 14% of leagues ANALYSIS: Los Angeles Angels relief pitcher Ty Buttrey appears to be the top candidate for saves right now on the team, despite the fact that he's been anything but smooth in the closer role so far this year. Buttrey has converted just two of his […]

Taylor Rogers Notches Fifth Save

Minnesota Twins closer Taylor Rogers navigated through a bit of a scary inning to notch his fifth save of the season. Rogers surrendered two hits but worked out of his own jam to save the first game of the doubleheader for Minnesota. The 29-year-old is now tied for second in the MLB in saves. True […]

Brad Hand Comes Through With Another Save

Cleveland Indians closer Brad Hand gave up an unearned run on a hit and a walk in the ninth inning Saturday but still came away with his fifth save of the season in a 3-1 win over the Tigers. Hand is not the same dominant reliever he was a couple years ago in San Diego, […]

Tyler Duffey Earns Win Over Royals

Minnesota Twins pitcher Tyler Duffey relieved Jake Odorizzi of his services on Saturday and earned the win in the first game of the doubleheader against Kansas City. Duffey pitched a scoreless inning and struck out one batter. The 29-year-old has eleven punch-outs against no walks in eight innings pitched in 2020. Duffey is relying on […]

Cole Sulser (RP, BAL) - Week 5 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues ROSTERED IN: 23% of leagues ANALYSIS: In true-to-form, bizarre 2020 fashion, the Baltimore Orioles have gotten off to a fantastic start to the year, winning 10 of their first 17 games. As a result, it might mean that this year we need to pay more attention to whoever is closing […]

Burch Smith Exits With Injury After Scoreless Streak Snapped

Oakland Athletics right-handed pitcher Burch Smith entered play Saturday against the Giants not yet having allowed a run in 2020. Before his night was done, he would yield three runs and exit due to injury with righty Lou Trivino taking over for him. Smith has turned himself into a staple of the Oakland relief corps, […]

Brandon Kintzler Takes A Loss On Saturday

Miami Marlins closer Brandon Kintzler took the loss in Saturday's game. He pitched the ninth inning of a tie game and allowed one run on two hits while striking out two. The solo shot he allowed was basically an excuse-me swing from Adam Duvall that somehow banged off the foul pole in left field. Kintzler […]

Andrew Miller Records First Save Of 2020 On Saturday

St. Louis Cardinals left-handed reliever Andrew Miller notched his first save of the year Saturday in the second leg of the club’s doubleheader against the White Sox. After Kwang Hyun Kim began the season in the closer’s role, the team has opened the job for competition, with Miller appearing to have first dibs as the […]

Darwinzon Hernandez Could Move Into Rotation

Boston Red Sox reliever Darwinzon Hernandez (COVID-19) is expected to be activated sometime next week after testing positive for the virus in July. He'll initially join the club in a long-relief role, but the inkling is that he'll shift into the starting rotation after he's built up enough arm strength. The lefty will throw three […]

Jose Alvarado Lands On Injured List

Tampa Bay Rays reliever Jose Alvarado hit the 10-day injured list ahead of Saturday's game with left shoulder inflammation. The southpaw had a rough outing on Friday, giving up two walks and four runs, upping his ERA to 6.00 on the season. Alvarado has done a nice job striking out 13 batters in nine innings […]

Kirby Yates Lands On IL Due To Elbow Inflammation

San Diego Padres right-handed pitcher Kirby Yates has officially been placed on the 10-day injured list due to right elbow inflammation. He was removed from Friday’s game with the ailment, with the team recalling right-hander David Bednar to take his spot on the roster. With Yates out of the mix, Emilio Pagan is the primary […]

A.J. Puk Tosses Bullpen, Could Return In Relief Role In 2020

Oakland Athletics left-handed pitcher A.J. Puk is on the comeback trail, having thrown a 20-pitch bullpen session Friday, with the plan being to ramp up to 30 pitches Monday. Manager Bob Melvin expects to have Puk back at some point in 2020, although he would be used in a relief-only role. Puk was anticipated to […]

Trevor Gott Implodes In Ninth Inning Friday

San Francisco Giants relief pitcher Trevor Gott had an awful outing in Friday's 8-7 extra-innings loss to the A's. Gott came on to start the ninth inning up 7-2. He proceeded to allow a solo home run, walk a batter, hit a batter, and allow a game-tying grand slam before getting the hook. Gott only […]

Pirates and Reds Games On Saturday and Sunday Postponed

Following up on an earlier report, Saturday's and Sunday's scheduled games between the Pittsburgh Pirates and Cincinnati Reds have been postponed in the wake of one player on the Reds testing positive for COVID-19. Owners in leagues with daily lineups should be sure to sit any Reds and Pirates this weekend.

The Cut List (Week 5) - Time to Let Go?

Welcome back to the Cut List, where we're about to call an audible--or, for a more baseball-appropriate term, throw a changeup. This article now reviews several of ESPN's 25 most dropped players in the past week and, in order from most dropped to least (with some exclusions for injuries or opt-outs), determines how reasonable that […]

Daily Slivers of the Fantasy Soapbox - Yesterday's Recap

Welcome to the August 15th edition of Daily Slivers of the Fantasy Soapbox. Discussing baseball is as fun as the game itself. It has a way of bringing people together to share different opinions about the sport we all love. A similar action can be done with fantasy baseball where we not only discuss topics […]

Pocket Aces: Week 5 Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire

Host Anthony Aniano of RotoBaller Radio discuss the 2020 fantasy baseball season and keeps you updated with all the latest news and analysis. In this episode he breaks down some of his recommend players to target as fantasy baseball waiver wire pickups and adds for Week 5 of the 2020 MLB season. Like and subscribe to the RotoBaller […]

Pirates and Reds Game On Saturday Postponed

Saturday's scheduled game between the Pittsburgh Pirates and Cincinnati Reds has been postponed in the wake of one player on the Reds testing positive for COVID-19. It remains questionable whether Sunday's contest between the two teams will also be postponed. Owners in leagues with daily lineups should be sure to sit any Reds and Pirates […]

Joakim Soria Earns Relief Win Friday

Oakland Athletics relief pitcher Joakim Soria earned a win in relief at the Giants on Friday after pitching a scoreless bottom of the ninth. Soria had been lights out to start the season and Friday was actually one of his worse appearances as he allowed a hit and a walk while failing to record a […]

Liam Hendriks Strikes Out The Side For Sixth Save

Oakland Athletics relief pitcher Liam Hendriks made quick work of the Giants Friday night to pick up his sixth save of the season. Hendriks struck out the side on just 13 pitches to protect a one-run lead, with the tying run at second base the whole time due to MLB's new extra innings rule. Hendriks […]

Hector Neris Blows Save, Picks Up Win

Philadelphia Phillies relief pitcher Hector Neris blew his second save of the season on Friday, but picked up the win when the home team walked-off in the bottom of the ninth. Neris wasn't hit hard as he allowed two infield singles and a walk to go along with two strikeouts. Despite being just 2-for-4 in […]

Cincinnati Reds Player Tests Positive For COVID-19

News broke in the early hours of this morning that a member of the Cincinnati Reds had tested positive for COVID-19. While there hasn't been a formal announcement on the status of the team's games against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Saturday and Sunday yet, it's safe to expect the two teams won't be playing the […]

Kirby Yates Leaves Friday's Game, Getting MRI On Elbow

San Diego Padres closer Kirby Yates (elbow) left Friday's game in the eighth inning after just six pitches as he was experiencing elbow soreness. Yates had been held out of action for the past week due to soreness in his back. He is currently scheduled for an MRI on his elbow and early indications make […]