Relief Pitchers to Target in 2020 Drafts

The pitching landscape in 2020 is going to be an odd one, as most teams' starting pitchers are not going to be fully built up in time for the season to start. Some teams have even already announced that their starters may not go more than four innings to start the year, and openers could […]

Dellin Betances Looks Solid In Exhibition

New York Mets relief pitcher Dellin Betances (shoulder, Achilles) looked solid in the Mets exhibition against the Yankees on Saturday. Betances delivered a scoreless inning of work, allowing just one hit. Betances was consistently throwing 92-93 mph, topping out at 95 mph. While the velocity still needs improvement, Betances indicated that he is 100% and […]

Closers and Saves Report: Summer Camp Edition 2 - Handcuffs

It's a whole new ball game. Literally. Baseball is going to be weird this season, folks. Only 60 games. (Almost?) all in the same time zone. Tons of games against the same teams. The DH everywhere. Empty stadiums. Cardboard cutouts. Artificial crowd noise. 30-man rosters for a while. Then 28-man rosters for another while. It's […]

Trey Wingenter Undergoes Tommy John Surgery

San Diego Padres reliever Trey Wingenter (elbow) underwent Tommy John surgery on Friday. The 26-year-old posted a career 5.14 ERA across two seasons as a power reliever for the Friars and held minimal fantasy value. He likely won’t pitch again until 2022. While the Padres bullpen remains a team strength, Wingenter’s injury opens more opportunities […]

Top 700: Updated Fantasy Baseball Tiered Rankings (July)

Welcome back RotoBallers, we are quickly approaching the start of this crazy 2020 MLB season! The rankings team here at HQ has been adjusting their ranks all off-season, and now we our last major updates in place. Below you will find our staff's updated 2020 fantasy baseball tiered rankings (top 700) for mixed leagues, taking into a […]

Braves Purchase Contracts Of Josh Tomlin, Yonder Alonso

The Atlanta Braves purchased the contracts of right-handed pitcher Josh Tomlin and first baseman Yonder Alonso to the major league roster on Saturday. Tomlin, 35, could be an option to begin the year as an opener or as a piggyback option in Atlanta's rotation with Cole Hamels unlikely to be ready. That likely won't translate […]

Alex Reyes, Genesis Cabrera Closer To Joining Team

St. Louis Cardinals manager Mike Shildt said that pitchers Alex Reyes and Genesis Cabrera are "getting closer" to joining the team for workouts at summer camp. Reyes has not been at camp for undisclosed reasons, while Cabrera tested positive for COVID-19 during intake testing at the beginning of camp. He was asymptomatic. With Opening Day […]

Platoon Situations to Avoid in a Shortened Season

Fantasy baseball fans, the 2020 season is finally almost upon us, which means it’s time to start thinking about drafting and valuing players all over again! As I am sure you are all aware, the shortened season and rule changes will impact aspects of your fantasy baseball strategies, some more than others. One of the […]

The COVID Conundrum - To Drop or Not to Drop?

So….real, actual baseball games are almost upon us. Opening Day is July 23rd. And yet, we are still in the midst of a pandemic. At the time of my writing this, by my calculations, at least 90 players have had COVID-19 or have gone through the COVID Protocol due to players being traced back to […]

Mariano's Saves+Holds Rankings - Fantasy Baseball Relief Pitchers

To any reader who thinks they don't have a voice here at RotoBaller, let it be known that this article came from a simple Reddit comment about how those seeking Saves+Holds reliever ranks were often overlooked. Poof, and here we are. Allow me, Nick Mariano, 2018's most accurate draft expert and sharer of names with […]

One Last Mock! ADP Values and Reaches

As the sun prepares to rise on the 2020 MLB season (I'm all about hopeful metaphors these days), it also marks the end of draft season for fantasy baseball. This weekend will see a flurry of activity from fantasy league owners trying to figure out how to properly value players amid a global pandemic. Good […]

Top 250 MLB Dynasty Prospects - Final Preseason Update

The 2020 MLB season is going to look very different. But as long as the virus doesn’t rear its ugly head in an apocalyptic fashion, it’s still going to be fun. And to help fantasy managers prepare for this season and for those to come, we’ve updated our Top 250 dynasty fantasy baseball prospects list. […]

Introducing the MLB Baller Ranks

It’s my extraordinary pleasure to introduce The Baller Ranks, an up-to-date rankings sheet for player values. We wanted to roll this out back in March, but 2020 has had other ideas... Ideally, The Baller Ranks are not a set of pre-season rankings or draft recommendations. They are designed to be an in-season set of data-based […]

Underpriced Pitchers According to ATC Projections

While nothing is guaranteed, we can at least see the light at the end of the tunnel. Baseball is back, baby! Summer camp (I refuse to call it Spring Training 2.0) has now begun and Opening Day is set for July 23/24. Coming with the return are seismic changes; a universal DH, limited opponents, a […]

Giovanny Gallegos On His Way To St. Louis

St. Louis Cardinals relief pitcher Giovanny Gallegos is on his way to St. Louis and will try to be part of the team's Saturday workout. Gallegos hasn't been with the team in summer camp due to travel issues, so it remains to see how ready he'll be for the start of the regular season next […]

Toronto Blue Jays: Top 10 Dynasty Prospects

The Toronto Blue Jays will be our final stop on the farm to evaluate the best prospects on each MLB team. Once the 2020 MLB season begins, it may turn out that Minor League systems will be more important than usual. Franchises are losing money during the pandemic layoff, so many teams will be looking […]

Ryan Pressly Should Return Saturday

Houston Astros relief pitcher Ryan Pressly (finger) should return to action on Saturday. A blister on his right index finger kept Pressly from pitching in Tuesday's intrasquad game, but it sounds like it's not a big deal and shouldn't keep him from being ready on Opening Day. The right-handed reliever was already worthwhile in deep […]

Atlanta Braves: Top 10 Dynasty Prospects

The Atlanta Braves will be our next stop on the farm to evaluate the best prospects on each MLB team. Once the 2020 MLB season begins, it may turn out that Minor League systems will be more important than usual. Franchises are losing money during the pandemic layoff, so many teams will be looking for […]

Rethinking DFS Strategies for a 60-Game MLB Season

The 2020 MLB season is going to be weird. In a 60-game season, previous in-season game performance holds limited value, making game-to-game projections unusually difficult across the entire season. Consider what some player production looked like 60 games into last season: David Dahl had a .457 BABIP Jose Ramirez had a .202/.303/.307 slash line Jake […]

Tony Watson Faces Hitters Friday

San Francisco Giants relief pitcher Tony Watson (shoulder) faced hitters in game conditions on Friday for the first time this year and topped out at 88 mph. Watson's command was a little erratic, but it's understandable given his long layoff. It's not exactly a vote of confident, though, with Opening Day less than a week […]

Closers and Saves Report: Summer Camp Edition

In a normal year, we'd be talking about the upcoming trade deadline and how this team needs that player but that team needs this player but then that guy got hurt. During a normal baseball season, we'd be discussing the All-Star Game and how this player definitely didn't deserve a spot and that player was certainly robbed of his […]

Rockies Release Bryan Shaw, Jake McGee

The Colorado Rockies released relief pitchers Bryan Shaw and Jake McGee on Friday. Both relievers fell on hard times, as a lot of relievers do in Colorado, before being cut. Shaw had a 5.61 ERA, 1.55 WHIP, 112 strikeouts and 57 walks while allowing 21 home runs in 126 2/3 relief innings in his two […]

Matt Magill Projected To Start 2020 As Closer

Seattle Mariners reliever Matt Magill is expected to start the 2020 season as the team's closer. Magill had originally been projected as the Mariners setup man, but Yoshihisa Hirano was recently moved to the injured list after testing positive for COVID-19. Magill posted a 4.09 ERA between the Minnesota Twins and Seattle Mariners last season but seemed […]

Yoshihisa Hirano Tests Positive For COVID-19

Seattle Mariners relief pitcher Yoshihisa Hirano has tested positive for COVID-19 and was transferred to the injured list on July 14. Hirano had tested positive back on June 25 and has since had one negative test. He will need one more negative test in order to get back into camp with the Mariners. It is good […]

Tommy Hunter Reports To Summer Camp

Philadelphia Phillies relief pitcher Tommy Hunter reported to the team's summer camp on Friday. Hunter has finally been cleared to join the team after testing positive for COVID-19 earlier this month. The 34-year-old right-handed reliever may not be ready for the start of the season with a delayed start to summer camp and with Opening […]

Justin Anderson To Have Tommy John Surgery

Los Angeles Angels relief pitcher Justin Anderson (elbow) will have Tommy John surgery next week. An MRI exam revealed a tear in the UCL of Anderson's right elbow. Surgery will be performed on Wednesday by Dr. Keith Meister in Dallas, Texas. The right-hander made 111 relief appearances for the Halos over the last two seasons […]

Scott Oberg On Pace To Be Ready

Colorado Rockies relief pitcher Scott Oberg hasn't appeared in an intrasquad game yet in summer camp, but he's expected to do so soon. Oberg was one of the better relievers in baseball last year, going 6-1 with a 2.25 ERA with five saves and 58 strikeouts in 56 innings before undergoing surgery for blood clots […]

Pirates To Mix And Match With Keone Kela Out

Pittsburgh Pirates manager Derek Shelton said that the team will mix and match to fill the closer's role with Keone Kela (undisclosed) out to begin the 2020 season. Shelton doesn't anticipate using one guy to do the job, and it'll likely be matchup-based. It'll be a committee approach, but Kyle Crick is widely considered to […]

Ryan Pressly Dealing With Blister

Houston Astros relief pitcher Ryan Pressly (finger) couldn't pitch in the team's intrasquad game this week because of a blister on his right index finger. It's unclear when Pressly will be good to go, but he's running out of time to be ready for Opening Day next Friday. With closer Roberto Osuna behind in summer […]

Roberto Osuna Yet To Throw Off Mound

Houston Astros closer Roberto Osuna is still ramping up and hasn't thrown off a mound at the team's summer camp. The right-handed reliever is throwing long toss from 200-plus feet, but manager Dusty Baker isn't sure when Osuna will get on a mound. However, pitching coach Brent Strom still thinks that Osuna will be ready […]