Fantasy Baseball Prospect Outlooks for Michael Busch, Yency Almonte, Jackson Ferris, Zyhir Hope - MLB Trade Analysis

The Chicago Cubs and Los Angeles Dodgers hooked up on Thursday, January 11 for a trade that will have an immediate impact in all fantasy baseball leagues, but the deal could have tentacles that reach out for quite some time due to the players that were involved. The interesting part of this was two teams […]

Yankees And Rangers Interested In Hector Neris

Free-agent relief pitcher Hector Neris is drawing interest from both the New York Yankees and the Texas Rangers. Mark Feinsand of MLB Network stated that the two clubs have emerged as the front-runners to land the 34-year-old veteran. Neris is coming off an excellent 2023 season in which he finished with a 1.71 ERA, 1.054 […]

Sean Manaea Officially Signs With The Mets

New York Mets left-handed pitcher Sean Manaea has officially signed a two-year, $28 million contract with the team. This deal was announced last week but now the team has made it official. Manaea was a free agent this offseason and coming off a 4.44 ERA (3.90 FIP), 1.241 WHIP, and 128:42 K/BB over 117 2/3 […]

Danny Young Signs Minors Deal With Mets

Free-agent left-hander Danny Young signed a minor-league deal with the New York Mets on Friday, according to a source. Young will be invited to big-league spring training and would earn $825,000 if he's in the majors in 2024. The 29-year-old southpaw gave up one run in 11 innings pitched with two walks and 12 strikeouts […]

Braves Agree To Multi-Year Extension With Alex Anthopoulos

The Atlanta Braves agreed to a multi-year contract extension with president of baseball operations and general manager Alex Anthopoulos on Friday that will keep him with the team through the 2031 season. Anthopoulos was promoted to his current role in February of 2020 after joining the Braves as an executive vice president and GM in […]

Braves Sign Charlie Culberson As A Pitcher

The Atlanta Braves signed Charlie Culberson to a minor-league deal on Friday as a pitcher. The 34-year-old former infielder/outfielder is returning to the Braves after playing in just one game at the major-league level for them in 2023. He also spent three seasons in Atlanta from 2018-20, hitting .265/.314/.454 with 17 home runs and 66 […]

Jordan Hicks Inks Four-Year Pact With Giants

Free-agent right-hander Jordan Hicks has signed a four-year, $44 million deal with the San Francisco Giants. In a little bit of a surprising twist, the Giants plan to use Hicks as a starter rather than out of the back end of their bullpen. Just eight of Hicks' 212 big-league appearances have been starts, and the […]

Fantasy Baseball Outlooks for Robbie Ray, Mitch Haniger, Anthony DeSclafani, Andrew Kittredge, Jose Caballero, Luke Raley - MLB Trade Analysis

Last Friday, January 7, we saw a smattering of MLB trades. These were by no means any of the biggest names of the offseason, but we saw a former Cy Young winner and multiple All-Stars change teams. The three trades involved seven players and four teams, lefties, righties, youngsters, vets, pitchers, and position players. Let's […]

Closers and Relief Pitchers - 2024 Fantasy Baseball ADP Analysis, Draft Targets, Avoids

As we get into the middle of January, fantasy baseball draft season is gaining speed and momentum. By now, most of you have either already participated in a draft of some sort or are at least beginning your prep work and/or consuming more fantasy baseball content. This relief pitcher position is annually one of the […]

Brewers Avoid Arbitration With Devin Williams

The Milwaukee Brewers and right-handed reliever Devin Williams agreed to an undisclosed one-year deal to avoid salary arbitration on Thursday. The deal includes a team option for the 2025 season. Williams' 2024 salary will likely come out to around $7 million. The 29-year-old hard-throwing right-hander should be the first closer off the board in fantasy […]

Michael King Avoids Arbitration With New Club

New San Diego Padres right-hander Michael King and the team agreed to a one-year, $3.15 million deal for 2024 on Thursday to avoid salary arbitration. King was part of the package sent to San Diego when the New York Yankees acquired outfielder Juan Soto in December. The 28-year-old was moved from the bullpen to the […]

Clay Holmes And Yankees Settle At $6 Million

Right-handed reliever Clay Holmes and the New York Yankees settled at $6 million plus performance bonuses for the 2024 season on Thursday to avoid salary arbitration, according to a source. Holmes has been New York's primary closer over the last two seasons and has delivered a strong 2.70 ERA (2.75 FIP), 1.09 WHIP, 44 saves, […]

Billy McKinney Staying With Pirates

The Pittsburgh Pirates signed free-agent outfielder Billy McKinney, infielder Sergio Alcantara, outfielder Gilberto Celestino, right-hander Ben Heller, infielder/outfielder Jake Lamb, left-hander Michael Plassmeyer, right-hander Ryder Ryan and right-hander Hunter Stratton to minor-league deals with invites to spring training on Thursday. McKinney was traded to the Pirates from the New York Yankees in December and will […]

Brent Suter Agrees With Reds On One-Year Deal

Free-agent left-hander Brent Suter and the Cincinnati Reds agreed to a one-year deal on Thursday, pending a physical, according to sources familiar with the deal. The contract pays him $2.5 million in 2024 with a $3.5 million club option or $500,000 buyout for the 2025 season. The 34-year-old southpaw comes to Cincy after posting a […]

Blue Jays Avoid Arbitration With Jordan Romano

The Toronto Blue Jays and right-handed reliever Jordan Romano avoided salary arbitration on Thursday by settling at $7.75 million for the 2024 season, according to a source. This was Romano's second time being eligible for arbitration. The 30-year-old closer has had exactly 36 saves for the Blue Jays in each of the last two seasons […]

Paul Sewald Settles With D-Backs For $7.35 Million

The Arizona Diamondbacks and right-handed reliever Paul Sewald settled at $7.35 million for the 2024 campaign to avoid salary arbitration on Thursday, according to sources. Sewald was dealt from the Seattle Mariners to the D-backs at the trade deadline last summer and became a stabilizing force at the back end of Arizona's bullpen in the […]

Yency Almonte Heading To The Cubs

The Los Angeles Dodgers are working on a deal to send relief pitcher Yency Almonte to the Chicago Cubs, according to a source. It remains to be seen what the Dodgers will receive in return. Almonte already avoided salary arbitration with the Dodgers back in November, signing a one-year, $1.9 million deal. The 29-year-old right-hander […]

Hoby Milner Avoids Arbitration With Brewers

Left-handed relief pitcher Hoby Milner and the Milwaukee Brewers avoided salary arbitration on Wednesday by settling at $2.05 million for the upcoming 2024 season, according to a source. Milner had the best season of his career in 2023, going 2-1 with a 1.82 ERA (3.13 FIP), 0.96 WHIP, 13 walks and 59 strikeouts in 64 […]

Jake Woodford Signs Minors Deal With White Sox

Free-agent right-hander Jake Woodford signed a minor-league deal with the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday that includes an invitation to spring training, according to sources. Woodford had a 4.29 ERA in his four seasons with the St. Louis Cardinals. He also had a 1.37 WHIP, 63 walks and 119 total strikeouts over 80 appearances (18 […]

Dodgers Sign Elieser Hernandez To Minor-League Deal

The Los Angeles Dodgers signed free-agent right-hander Elieser Hernandez to a minor-league deal on Wednesday that includes an invitation to spring training, according to sources. Hernandez last pitched in the big leagues with the Miami Marlins in 2022, when he went 3-6 with a career-high 6.35 ERA (6.40 FIP) and 1.43 WHIP with 22 walks […]

Mariners Claim Mauricio Llovera Off Waivers From Red Sox

The Seattle Mariners have claimed right-hander Mauricio Llovera off waivers from the Boston Red Sox. Llovera was designated for assignment by Boston last week when the club's signing of right-hander Lucas Giolito became official. The 27-year-old split the 2023 season between the Giants and Red Sox, working to a 4.89 ERA across 30 appearances spanning […]

Rangers Ink Shane Greene, Austin Pruitt To Minors Pacts

The Texas Rangers have signed right-handers Shane Greene and Austin Pruitt to minor-league deals with invites to big-league spring training. Greene, 35, made just a pair of relief outings in each of the last two MLB seasons and spent the 2023 season in the Cubs organization, tossing a 1.75 ERA (alongside a 4.12 FIP) across […]

Chris Flexen Expected To Be In White Sox Rotation

Chicago White Sox general manager Chris Getz said Tuesday that newly-signed pitcher Chris Flexen is expected to be part of the team's starting rotation and provide a starter's workload in 2024, per MLB.com's Scott Merkin. The 29-year-old has served as both a starter and a bulk reliever throughout his career, functioning as both in 2023 […]

Garrett Crochet Preparing To Be A Starter

Chicago White Sox general manager Chris Getz said that left-hander Garrett Crochet is preparing to work in a starting role in 2024. "It's going to take a little bit of time to appropriately stretch him out, but we're going in with the intention of him to be a starter in 2024," Getz said. The rebuilding […]

Marlins Hiring Rachel Balkovec As Farm Director

The Miami Marlins are hiring Rachel Balkovec as their new director of player development, according to sources. She comes over from the New York Yankees, where she spent the last two years as a manager in the minor leagues at Single-A Tampa, the first female to do so. The Marlins are in the midst of […]

Re-Drafting The 2012 Fantasy Baseball First-Year Player Draft - Mookie Betts, Gerrit Cole, Francisco Lindor, Yoenis Cespedes, and more

This is the third edition of a series here at RotoBaller from Benjamin Chase. The series explores previous First-Year Player Drafts and re-drafts those FYPDs with the information we've received since from drafted players and international signees that would have been eligible. This series shows that often the top guys in FYPD drafts remain the […]

Cardinals Add Chaim Bloom To Front Office

The St. Louis Cardinals are set to hire Chaim Bloom to their front office in an advisory role, according to sources. The Cardinals had been linked to the former Boston Red Sox chief baseball officer, dating back to the beginning of the offseason. The 40-year-old was fired by Boston in September after the team was […]

Josh Hader Seeking Record-Breaking Deal For A Reliever

The consensus in the industry is that left-handed closer Josh Hader wants to exceed the five-year, $102 million deal the New York Mets gave Edwin Diaz in November of 2022, even though Hader is entering his age-30 season and is a year older than Diaz was. But Hader has better numbers with a 2.50 career […]

Sean Manaea Signs Two-Year Deal With The Mets

Free-agent left-handed pitcher Sean Manaea has signed a two-year, $28 million contract with the New York Mets. The deal includes an opt-out after the 2024 season as well. The 31-year-old lefty was solid with the San Francisco Giants last season, finishing with a 4.44 ERA (3.90 FIP), 1.241 WHIP, and 128:42 K/BB over 117 2/3 […]

Rangers Still Interested In Josh Hader, Jordan Montgomery

The Texas Rangers are making progress on a local TV deal this offseason and now seem likely to be back in play to re-sign left-hander Jordan Montgomery and make a run at free-agent lefty closer Josh Hader. The Philadelphia Phillies and Los Angeles Angels are possibilities for Montgomery if he doesn't return to the World […]