Addison Reed (RP, NYM) - 2017 Fantasy Baseball Draft Values

BALLER MOVE: Target ~ 220 CURRENT ADP: ~ 250 ANALYSIS: Addison Reed had himself a career year last season with the Mets. The former closer set new career highs in innings pitched, K/BB rate, ERA, among many other things. By all accounts it was his most successful season as a reliever, and at 28-years of age there’s no […]

Podcast: After Hours With RotoBaller Radio - Closer Tiered Rankings & ADP Valuations

RotoBaller co-founder Real Talk Raph and esteemed co-host Anthony Aniano of RotoBaller Radio discuss 2017 closer and relief pitcher tiered rankings, ADP and draft valuations. Be sure to tune into RotoBaller Radio on SiriusXM (channel Sirius 210, XM 87) - every Saturday and Sunday between 5-8 PM EST. You can also find new weekly shows on BlogTalkRadio live or on […]

Blake Treinen (RP, WAS) - Closers and Saves Draft and Waiver Targets

BALLER MOVE: Draft / Add in All Saves Leagues OWNED IN: 15% of Yahoo Leagues ANALYSIS: At last, the speculation is over. Blake Treinen has officially been announced as the closer for the Washington Nationals. Not Shawn Kelley, and not Koda Glover (gasp!). If you are in a league that values saves, go add him now. If you […]

Using Sabermetrics For Fantasy Baseball Part 10: PITCHf/x

One of the most fundamental questions in fantasy sports is if a player's current performance is sustainable. More than any other sport, baseball has a slew of statistical measures that can be dissected numerous ways to analyze player performance. PITCHf/x is a publicly available pitch tracking system that provides a lot of different data to […]

Maximizing Yahoo DL and NA Slots In Your Draft

Most fantasy baseball leagues have at least one DL spot. Many have two, three or even more. While certainly useful during the season when players inevitably get hurt, they can also be part of your draft strategy. Not as widely used and relatively new to Yahoo leagues, NA slots allow you to stockpile difference-makers for the […]

Using Sabermetrics For Fantasy Baseball Part 9: Pitcher Batted Ball Distribution

The league average batted ball distribution in 2016 was 20.7% liners, 44.7% grounders and 34.6% flies. Last time, we took a brief look at 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 (.127 BABIP in 2016) consistently have […]

Draft Values: The 2017 All-Bargain Team

This article first appeared on the Metro news publication. Our long national nightmare is nearly over. No, not that one…here we’re referring to the lack of baseball. Opening Day is right around the corner, and not a moment too soon. After last week’s look at the busts, let’s end draft season on a happy note […]

Neftali Feliz (RP, MIL) - 2017 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers & Draft Values

BALLER MOVE: Target ~190 CURRENT ADP: ~222 ANALYSIS: The former closer has had an up-and-down career since 2014 so he will look for consistency in 2017 as the best candidate to close down wins for the Milwaukee Brewers. Entering the season under a rebuilding phase, the Brewers may trade Feliz if his value warrants a desire […]

Brandon Kintzler (RP, MIN) - 2017 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers & Draft Values

BALLER MOVE: Target ~200 CURRENT ADP: ~248 ANALYSIS: The Minnesota Twins are slowly developing pieces for the future. A secure spot on the roster appears to be closer Brandon Kintzler. While he pitched to a 3.15 ERA with just 17 saves, his job appears to be secure. Former closer Glen Perkins is recovering from a […]

Cam Bedrosian (RP, ANA) - 2017 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers & Draft Values

BALLER MOVE: Target ~190 CURRENT ADP: ~210 ANALYSIS: The son of a legendary closer that won a Cy-Young Award, Cam Bedrosian could very well have the Angels closer gig sealed up by the end of spring training. After his call up last year, he threw 40.1 innings in which he earned a 1.12 ERA and a […]

Relief Pitchers - Updated March Rankings and Tiers

We rolled out our final update on 2017 rankings this past weekend. While there haven’t been seismic shifts, some players have naturally seen their stocks rise or fall since our initial valuations were made in December. We’re gathered here today to look at relief pitcher rankings, tiers, and auction values, which have seen a bit of movement. As […]

Jeff Kahntroff's 10 Bold Predictions for 2017

Just when you thought it was over... this will officially conclude our Bold Predictions series for the fantasy baseball season. Last year was the debut of my 10 bold predictions, and I think I did pretty well. But you should be the judge for yourself and review how I did before deciding how much stock […]

Bill Dubiel's 10 Bold Predictions for 2017

Here at Rotoballer, we truly do believe in the "grand finale" concept--that's why you're getting MY bold predictions after all the other chuckleheads. By chuckleheads I mean my talented and respectable colleagues. Be sure to check out just how wonky we all get this time of year with our entire Bold Prediction Series. I didn't have […]

Milwaukee Brewers - 2017 Fantasy MLB Team Preview and Outlooks

As we wrap up our MLB team previews, it's time to preview one of the young, upcoming teams in the National League with the 2017 Milwaukee Brewers Team Outlook. The Brewers finished last season 73-89, but are a team that should be on the rise despite a relatively quiet offseason. We'll take a look at the team's […]

Relief Pitchers and Closers - Overvalued and Undervalued

Now that the first day of Spring has passed, we are now entering the prime season for fantasy baseball drafts. Before you enter your draft room this year, it would behoove you to check out our ADP analysis pieces here at RotoBaller. This will ensure you have a good working knowledge of how players are […]

Using Sabermetrics For Fantasy Baseball Part 8: BABIP For Pitchers

While FIP is a useful tool to predict a pitcher's future ERA performance, fantasy owners should remember that ERA, not FIP, is what really matters in most formats. This means that we are interested in the "luck" that separates the two statistics. While some of this luck is unpredictable, we can and should predict some […]

Closer Hot Seats and Setup Men Who Want To Sit In Them

"Closer" can more or less be considered a starting role in fantasy baseball. It's not a starting role in the sense that the player actually starts every game, nor does he start in a regular rotation, but he has a set role that his manager uses him in. The whole point of trying to convince you […]

Rick Lucks's 10 Bold Predictions For 2017

Our series of bold predictions continues with my piece. I felt that I was a little bolder than most of my colleagues last season, including the only recommendation I saw for Steven Wright's breakout campaign. I also touted Drew Storen as a top reliever for fantasy purposes. That one didn't work out so well. This […]

2016 Breakouts Who Will Continue To Shine

There are breakouts every year in fantasy baseball. Some can be seen coming, while others seemingly pop up out of nowhere. The key to a breakout player, however, is figuring out which ones are here to stay and which are simply putting forward a career year without any followups. Listed here are five fantasy baseball […]

JB's 10 Bold Predictions for 2017

Welcome back to the most infamous series at RotoBaller, our pre-season bold predictions. Since the beginning of this week through the end of next week, our brightest baseball minds offer their most audacious projections for the 2017 fantasy baseball season. Thanks to the Army sending me to the swamps of Louisiana, I missed out on the fun […]

Pierre Camus's Bold Predictions for 2017

I'm no stranger to making bold predictions, although this is my first go-around in this particular series. As a fantasy analyst, I always try to take an objective, statistic-based approach. As a fan, I am an unrepentant Marlins apologist and tend to hold grudges against players and teams for decades on end. I would have […]

Max Petrie's 10 Bold Predictions for 2017

Welcome to the first day of March Madness, but more importantly the 4th edition of RotoBaller's Bold Predictions series.  Over the next two weeks, our writers will be offering their most audacious projections for the 2017 fantasy baseball season. Last year I named Mookie Betts the fantasy MVP. I also noted Trevor Story would be […]

Mid-March Bullpen Updates for Closers & Saves

We're almost halfway through March and we have about as much clarity at the back end of some bullpens as we had in December. While many bullpens are set in stone, there are still a few heated competitions happening across Grapefruit and Cactus League play as managers try to decide who to hand the ball […]

Draft Values: The Bargain Bin Picks

This article first appeared on the Metro news publication. We’re right in the thick of fantasy baseball draft season. For any remaining drafts you have in 2017, consider the following bargain alternatives to some popular targets. ADP data is pulled from NFBC (National Fantasy Baseball Championship). Editor's note: For even more draft prep, visit our […]

Edward Sutelan's 10 Bold Predictions for 2017

It's time for everyone's favorite writer to give his Bold Predictions. Wait, Nick published his a couple days ago? Then I guess it's time for everyone's second favorite writer to give his Bold Predictions for the 2017 fantasy baseball season! Yes, that's right, it's me, Edward Sutelan. I made some predictions last season, and if you remember, […]

Using Sabermetrics For Fantasy Baseball Part 7: FIP & xFIP

The first advanced pitching stat most fantasy owners encounter is FIP. FIP stands for Fielding Independent Pitching, and attempts to measure a pitcher's actual skill instead of the effects of luck or his supporting cast. According to the DIPS theory that the metric is based upon, pitchers control only Ks, BBs (and HBP) and home […]

Nick Mariano's 10 Bold Predictions for 2017

Howdy, folks. It's your favorite writer ever, Nick Mariano, here to join the battle against tempered expectations. Over the next two weeks, our writers will be offering their most audacious projections for the 2017 fantasy baseball season. This is my second time around the sun with this Bold Predictions series. If you listened to me last […]

Industry Experts - March Mock Draft: The Overview

With your fantasy drafts rapidly approaching, we organized an expert mock draft last week. The 12-team "league" was selected on RTSports.com featuring writers from five different sites along with a few twitter fans. Among the RotoBallers represented were Kyle Bishop, Pierre Camus, Andrew Sullivan, JB Branson, and me. Also in the room were Nick Doran of […]

27-Year-Old Players Set to Break Out

The age of 27 has often been thought of as a baseball player’s peak, and the last chance for a guy who has yet to truly break out. There’s probably not much to the idea that there’s something magical about the age of 27, but certainly the chances for a guy to truly break out […]

Kyle Bishop's 10 Bold Predictions for 2017

Over the next two weeks, our writers will be offering their most audacious projections for the 2017 fantasy baseball season. This is my third go-round with this series. I've had some great successes and some equally terrible calls in both previous attempts, and this year should be no different. Hopefully the former outweigh the failures, […]