Streaming Wars: Waiver Wire Targets for May 26

Welcome back to Streaming Wars, your one-stop shop for streaming the waiver wire. This article, which began last season, runs seven days a week. We are always ready to stream. For those who are newcomers to this feature - use this column on a daily basis to improve upon your neediest categories, and target players who may be […]

Rick Porcello Stumbles In Start Against Rays

Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Rick Porcello faltered in a 6-3 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays Thursday. Porcello could not make it out of the fourth inning as he allowed six runs, four earned, on eight hits with two walks and two strikeouts. He was inefficient, throwing 92 pitches in 3 2/3 innings. Porcello […]

Deck McGuire Optioned To Triple-A

The Toronto Blue Jays have optioned reliever Deck McGuire to Triple-A Buffalo. A corresponding move was not yet announced. This move is for the best as McGuire has been terrible in the Major Leagues this season, and that’s putting it nicely. Across 8 1/3 innings pitched, he owns an atrocious 6.48 ERA, 1.68 WHIP, and […]

Brad Ziegler (RP, MIA) - Week 9 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 28% of leagues ANALYSIS: Miami Marlins relief pitcher Brad Ziegler appears to have righted the ship and is still the closer for the Marlins. After imploding against the Braves on May 20 (allowing four runs in 2/3 of an inning), he has had two scoreless appearances. […]

Holds Leagues - Waiver Wire Pickups and Adds for Week 9

While holds are even tougher to predict than saves, the players we’ll highlight today include some elite setup men to target off the waiver wire in Week 9. One-inning middle relievers are the constant sources for holds and specialists can manage to secure a hold even with one out. However, while specialists can get many […]

Updated Relief Pitcher Rankings (May) - 2018 Fantasy Baseball

We are a quarter of the way through the regular season for Major League Baseball, so our crack staff at RotoBaller has updated our rest-of-season fantasy baseball rankings. We looked at starting pitchers yesterday, and now we’re ready to hand things off to the bullpen. Closers are known for their volatility and even the greats […]

Week 9 Waiver Wire: H2H Category Streamers

I like to consider myself a pioneer of the streaming approach. I won a league about seven years ago completely ignoring saves and just stacking up the starts each week. While streaming is undoubtedly more directly associated with pitching, there's plenty of value in streaming for offense as well. Maybe you have a stacked roster […]

Alex Colome Bounces Back Thursday Versus Boston

Tampa Bay Rays closer Alex Colome bounced back from a tough loss yesterday by closing out the game Thursday versus the Red Sox. He came in with two outs in the ninth and got the final out to earn his 11th save of the season. He had taken the loss Wednesday against the same opponent. […]

DraftKings Daily Fantasy Baseball Picks (5/25/18): MLB DFS Lineups

With the SF/CHC matchup starting at 2:20pm (EST), we have a 14-game slate on DraftKings with the first pitch starting at 7:05pm (EST). Six teams are massive favorites on Friday, posting odds of at least -195. Now that we established that our pitcher’s pool is stacked, let’s reference the offense. It can be described in […]

Blake Treinen Earns Multi-Inning Save Thursday

Oakland Athletics closer Blake Treinen earned his 11th save of the season Thursday in a 4-3 win over the Mariners. Treinen entered the game in the eighth inning with a 4-2 lead, two outs, and runners on first and third. He gave up a double and RBI to Kyle Seager but was able to get […]

Jared Hughes Earns Save On Thursday

Cincinnati Reds relief pitcher Jared Hughes picked up his second save of the season on Thursday in a 5-4 win against the Pirates. Hughes entered the game up by a run with one out in the ninth and the bases empty, recording the final two outs with no walks or strikeouts. Reliever Amir Garrett started […]

Darren O'Day Likely Getting Cortisone Injection

Baltimore Orioles relief pitcher Darren O'Day (elbow) is likely getting a cortisone injection in his right elbow, according to manager Buck Showalter. He was supposed to throw a bullpen session on Wednesday, but O'Day did not feeling healthy enough to do so. The Orioles will likely need to wait a few days after the injection […]

Liam Hendriks is Starting Rehab Assignment

Oakland Athletics relief pitcher Liam Hendriks (hip) is reportedly starting a rehab assignment on Thursday. He had surgery a few weeks ago to remove a cyst from his hip. It's unclear how long he's going to be out for at the moment. Hendriks has pitched just three innings this season. He should not be owned […]

Ryan Buchter Begins Throwing From 75 Feet

Oakland Athletics relief pitcher Ryan Buchter (shoulder) has reportedly begun throwing from 75 feet. He has been out since late April due to a shoulder strain. Buchter is playing long toss, so that's a good sign towards his recovery. There is a chance that Buchter begins bullpen sessions as early as next week. He does […]

Roberto Osuna May Receive “Significant Ban”

Toronto Blue Jays closer Roberoto Osuna may be facing a “significant ban” as the assault allegations against him are of a “physical nature”, according to Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports. Osuna’s administrative leave was extended this week through May 28, and you can bet it’s only going to be extended further with the initial hearing […]

Ryne Stanek To Start Saturday

Tampa Bay Rays relief pitcher Ryne Stanek will make the first major league start of his career Saturday. Stanek has started 41 games in the minor leagues but has been solely a reliever in his time in the majors. So far in 2018, Stanek has thrown five innings in the majors and owns a 5.40 […]

Streaming Wars: Waiver Wire Targets for May 25

Welcome back to Streaming Wars, your one-stop shop for streaming the waiver wire. This article, which began last season, runs seven days a week. We are always ready to stream. For those who are newcomers to this feature - use this column on a daily basis to improve upon your neediest categories, and target players who may be […]

Kenley Jansen Earns Fourth Save In Five Days

Los Angeles Dodgers closer Kenley Jansen earned his 10th save of the year on Wednesday against the Rockies and his fourth in five days by striking out the side. He's now brought his ERA down to 2.91 and carries a WHIP of 1.11. Whatever was bothering him at the beginning of the season is long […]

With Raisel Iglesias On DL, Closer-By-Committee Likely

The Cincinnati Reds placed closer Raisel Iglesias on the 10-day disabled list on Wednesday with a left biceps strain, retroactive to May 19. Iglesias is a right-hander, so the injury shouldn't be considered too serious, but the team will have to go without their most talented reliever for at least the next few days. The […]

Ryan Dull's X-Rays Come Back Negative

Oakland Athletics relief pitcher Ryan Dull had X-rays on his hand that came back negative, according to Jane Lee of MLB.com. Dull was hit by a line drive in the eighth inning against the Mariners on Wednesday. He stayed in the game but was visibly in pain afterwards. He pitched two-thirds of an inning, allowing […]

Making Moves - Fantasy Baseball Trade Advice for Week 8

Trading is the most creative and fun way to improve your fantasy baseball roster, but also the hardest. You have to be able to value your own players objectively while accurately gauging how your fellow league owners value their own players. It is a battle of strategy, risk, and chance that can pay off in […]

Hector Velazquez Returns From Disabled List

The Boston Red Sox have activated right-handed pitcher Hector Velazquez (lower back) off of the disabled list. Velazquez has had a solid season so far compiling a 5-0 record to go along with a 2.10 ERA across 25.2 innings of work. He projects to go back to the bullpen, although he could be used as […]

Brad Ziegler Picks Up Ninth Save on Wednesday

After not getting the save in his last two appearances, Miami Marlins closer Brad Ziegler picked up his ninth save of the year on Wednesday in the Marlins' 2-1 win over the Mets. Ziegler is now tied for 15th in the majors in saves, but among closers with at least nine saves his 6.55 ERA […]

Jeurys Familia Takes Blown Save Against Miami

New York Mets closer Jeurys Familia has been very, very good in 2018, but unfortunately he had himself quite the off day on Wednesday against the Miami Marlins. Entering the ninth inning with a slim 1-0 lead, Familia melted down by allowing two earned runs on four hits and a walk while striking out one. […]

Tyler Clippard Disastrous In Blown Save

This is why you can’t trust Toronto Blue Jays reliever Tyler Clippard. While he has (or should I say, had) sparkling statistics on the season, Clippard is always prone to blowup outings that will simply ruin a fantasy owner’s day. After clean efforts in his first two save opportunities with normal closer Roberto Osuna on […]

Rookie Report: Recent MLB Prospect Call-Ups (Week 8)

In a move nearly nobody predicted, the Washington Nationals called up teenage phenom Juan Soto in an effort to bring some firepower to the lineup on the heels of all the injuries the team has endured. Soto's first plate appearance was nothing to write home about but everything after that has been pretty noteworthy. I'll […]

Alex Colome Takes Loss Wednesday Versus Boston

Tampa Bay Rays closer Alex Colome had a rough outing Wednesday versus the Red Sox. The game was tied 1-1 going into the ninth inning when Colome was called upon. He was not helped by an early error by super prospect Willy Adames error but he would only last 2/3 of an inning giving up […]

DraftKings Daily Fantasy Baseball Picks (5/24/18): MLB DFS Lineups

We've got eight games split between six different slates today, including an all day slate starting at 12:35 eastern and an odd start time at 6pm for the featured slate. In this article, I will be providing you with my daily fantasy baseball lineup picks for DraftKings on 5/23/18. The lineup picks will range from some […]

Michael Lorenzen Pitches Solid Inning In Return From DL

Cincinnati Reds relief pitcher Michael Lorenzen was activated from the DL and pitched a solid 10th inning on Wednesday, giving up a single and a walk with no strikeouts in an extra-innings loss to the Pirates. The outing was Lorenzen's first of the season, as he had started the season on the DL with a […]

Jared Hughes Pitches In Ninth Inning On Wednesday

Cincinnati Reds relief pitcher Jared Hughes pitched in the ninth inning of an extra-innings loss on Wednesday against the Pirates. Hughes entered with the game tied 4-4, giving up a single with no walks and no strikeouts. Interim manager Jim Riggleman said that Hughes was one of five Reds relievers that could see save opportunities […]