Alex Wilson Will Remain In The Bullpen

Detroit Tigers reliever Alex Wilson expressed interest in and ultimately auditioned for a role in the starting rotation heading into the upcoming regular season, but he will instead pitch in relief. He pitched three innings on Friday and actually threw the ball quite well, retiring the first seven batters he faced before allowing a walk […]

David Price Will Not Pitch In A Game Saturday

Updating a previous report, Boston Red Sox starting pitcher David Price will not be pitching in a game Saturday, according to Pete Abraham of The Boston Globe. Price will get his work done in a bullpen session. Price was originally supposed to pitch against the Twins this afternoon, but rain caused the plans to change. […]

David Price's Spring Debut Altered Due To Rain

Boston Red Sox starting pitcher David Price will pitch at Fenway South on Saturday morning instead of his afternoon start against the Twins, according to Pete Abraham of The Boston Globe. Price will pitch in a minor league game and have his first Grapefruit League start postponed. Coming off a season marred by injuries that ultimately concluded […]

2018 Bullpen Outlooks - National League West

The National League West wraps up our 2018 Bullpen Outlooks series. Check out all of the American League divisions here: AL East, AL Central, AL West, and the rest of the National League here: NL East, NL Central. Stick with Rotoballer all season long for weekly Closer Reports including recaps of the week that passed, outlooks for […]

Kenley Jansen Scratched With Hamstring Tightness

Los Angeles Dodgers closer Kenley Jansen (hamstring) was scheduled to pitch in his first Cactus League game Friday but was scratched with hamstring tightness. It doesn't seem serious since manager Dave Roberts said that Jansen will next pitch on Monday in the team's "B" game against minor leaguers. The plan is to then bring Jansen […]

Nate Jones And Joakim Soria In Contention For White Sox's Closer Role

Chicago White Sox manager Rick Renteria is not ready to name the team's closer. The battle seems to be between relief pitchers Nate Jones and Joakim Soria, but Renteria said he won’t hesitate to use the best guy for the right situation. For now it appears it will be a mix-and-match situation between the two, […]

Zach Britton May Bump Up Rehab Schedule

Baltimore Orioles closer Zach Britton (Achilles), who hurt himself in December and was looking at a possible July return, has now circled May on his calendar. He's progressing well and is having his protective boot removed next week. Britton is optimistic and wants to start throwing sometime soon. In the interim, make sure you have […]

Jeurys Familia Enduring Dead-Arm Phase

New York Mets reliever Jeurys Familia is currently enduring a dead-arm phase, but not to worry -- according to Familia, his arm feels this way every year in spring training as he grows accustomed to throwing every day. His arm currently feels “tight,” which makes sense given Familia’s dreadful appearance against the Nationals on Thursday. […]

Cardinals Are OK With Not Naming a Closer

The St. Louis Cardinals seem content to go into the season without naming a closer. While reliever Luke Gregerson was seen as the favorite to man the ninth inning, he is dealing with an oblique injury and has been limited to just one Grapefruit League appearance. Meanwhile, Dominic Leone and Tyler Lyons have pitched well enough […]

Cam Bedrosian Expected to Close in LA

Los Angeles Angels reliever Cam Bedrosian is considered the favorite to start the season as the closer, reports Jon Heyman of Fan Rag sports. Bedrosian was the favorite last year, but an injury limited him and ended up giving Bud Norris and Keynan Middleton opportunities to close out games. Bedrosian finished the year with six […]

Cubs Maul Jordan Lyles, Matt Strahm

Both fighting for starting spots, San Diego Padres pitchers Jordan Lyles and Matt Strahm were rocked in Thursday's spring training game against the Cubs. Lyles, who started, was pulled before he recorded an out in the second and gave up five earned runs. Strahm pitched a solid inning but struggled in his second. He left […]

Points League Primer - Fantasy Baseball Draft Strategy

When discussing fantasy baseball, an often neglected but entertaining format is the points league. These exist in both season-long cumulative and weekly head-to-head leagues. While existential debates about scoring categories and their true depiction of player worth are endless, points leagues arguably get closest to the objective of sabermetrics. Points leagues attempt to define a […]

ADP Myth Busters - Debunking Myths in the AL East

This series will attempt to help fantasy baseball owners make informed opinions on players whose ADP may not be in line with their value for the 2018 season. As fantasy owners, we can fall into a "group think" mentality and start to overlook certain teams and players. If we aren't careful, those ideas can turn […]

Brad Boxberger Throws Scoreless Inning

Arizona Diamondbacks reliever Brad Boxberger (arm) threw a scoreless inning Thursday, giving up a single hit against the Brewers. Boxberger looked good in his first game back from arm soreness, as his velocity sat in the 91-93 mph range with his fastball. The former Rays closer will continue to compete with reliever Archie Bradley for the […]

Domingo German Emerging As Starter Option

Young New York Yankees Dominican pitcher Domingo German is pitching his way into the conversation to start for the team this upcoming season. While Masahiro Tanaka, Luis Severino, Sonny Gray, CC Sabathia and Jordan Montgomery are the clear five starters for the club at this point, the 25-year-old has made three appearances this spring, allowing just […]

Luis Cessa Slated To Start On Saturday

After missing Wednesday’s game against the New York Mets with a stiff neck, New York Yankees pitcher Luis Cessa is expected to pitch on Saturday, again against the Mets. The 25-year-old last pitched at the end of February, surrendering five runs on six hits in four innings of work across two outings. Cessa might have […]

Kyle Freeland Throws Three Innings Against Reds

Colorado Rockies starting pitcher Kyle Freeland went three innings on Thursday, only giving up one run, two walks and three strikeouts against the Cincinnati Reds. Freeland gave up one run in the first inning after Rosell Herrera stole second base and Devin Mesoraco batted him in. However, Freeland looked good in the remainder of his […]

Wander Suero Leaves Game With Trainer

Washington Nationals reliever Wander Suero left the game on Thursday with his trainer and manager after throwing just two pitches. He's likely hurt but the team hasn't announced what happened. Suero was having a good spring. Through four appearances and innings, he had given up one run, two hits and one walk, while striking out […]

Using Sabermetrics For Fantasy Baseball Part 11 - Batted Ball Distribution For Pitchers

The league average batted ball distribution in 2017 was 20.3% liners, 44.2% grounders and 35.5% flies. We have previously seen how pitchers may specialize in either grounders or fly balls. Fly ball pitchers have a BABIP advantage over their ground ball-inducing counterparts, since fly balls (.130 BABIP in 2017) consistently have lower BABIPs than worm […]

Mark Melancon Still Feeling Discomfort

San Francisco Giants closer Mark Melancon (forearm) told reporters after his debut on Wednesday that he's still feeling discomfort but is still progressing. Melancon pitched in his first game since September after undergoing an operation to release pressure on the pronator muscle in his arm. Melancon initially was considered a bounce-back candidate heading into 2018, […]

Luke Gregerson Dealing With an Oblique Injury

St. Louis Cardinals relief pitcher Luke Gregerson is dealing with an oblique injury. Gregerson was scheduled to pitch Tuesday and didn't, then he missed Wednesday's scheduled appearance as well. Manager Mike Matheny described the issue as "minor," but oblique injuries are tricky for pitchers and can sometimes linger, taking much longer than expected to recover from. Gregerson […]

Zach Britton Supposedly Ahead Of Schedule

Well, it looks like Baltimore Orioles closer Zach Britton may be making more progress in his rehab from his Achilles injury than anticipated. How much more? Well, that's the unknown part. Manager Buck Showalter is keeping mum on that part. The team must be excited knowing that they may get their closer back sooner than […]

Chris Young Sharp, Luis Perdomo Struggles Against Royals

Two San Diego Padres competing for the starting rotation made their cases on Tuesday against the Royals. Pitcher Chris Young struck out four and allowed one earned run in three innings. Meanwhile, starter Luis Perdomo struggled in three innings, allowing two earned runs, but recorded five strikeouts. Young, a non-roster invitee, is a 38-year-old veteran with both […]

Michael Kohn Dealing With Nerve Issue

Minnesota Twins reliever Michael Kohn has been diagnosed with a nerve issue in his biceps and will be out of action for four to six months. The 31-year-old right-hander came down with soreness in the muscle last week and will be sidelined in order to rest and rehab the nerve issue. Kohn has dealt with numerous […]

2018 Bullpen Outlooks - National League Central

The National League Central continues our series of National League bullpen outlooks. Check out all of the American League divisions here: AL East, AL Central, AL West, and the first National League article here: NL East The NL Central has several strong closers who could make some significant noise in fantasy leagues this season. Even with that being […]

Best-Ball Draft Strategy Overview for Fantasy Baseball

It's finally March, which can only mean two things: Spring Training and fantasy drafts. All the effort spent on rankings and draft prep finally come to fruition. Once your draft is completed, you then get to spend every day of the rest of the season analyzing player performances, scouring waiver wires and setting the best […]

Tim Lincecum to Join the Bullpen

Jeff Wilson of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports that pitcher Tim Lincecum will be joining the bullpen for the Texas Rangers in 2018. What role he will occupy is still to be determined, according to general manager Jon Daniels, but the team has not ruled out using Lincecum in the late innings. The former Cy […]

Bud Norris Throws Live Batting Practice on Tuesday

St. Louis Cardinals right-handed relief pitcher Bud Norris (hamstring) threw live batting practice on Tuesday. Cardinals manager Mike Matheny said that the reason they were having Norris throw batting practice instead of pitching in a regular game was because they wanted him to be able to get his work in without having to worry about […]

Pedro Strop Could Pitch This Weekend

Chicago Cubs relief pitcher Pedro Strop (calf) is expected to throw a bullpen session on Tuesday. If all goes well, Strop could pitch in a game this weekend. Strop has been dealing with a sore left calf and has yet to get on the mound. Strop should be able to pick up some holds but […]

Anthony Gose Placed on Outright Waivers

Houston Astros Rule 5 pick Anthony Gose has been placed on outright waivers, per Jake Kaplan of The Athletic. If Gose clears waivers, the Astros would have to offer him back to the Texas Rangers. A converted outfielder, Gose only made one appearance in the Grapefruit League, walking all three of the hitters he faced. Despite […]