2019 Bullpen Outlooks - American League East

With the National League already taken care of, it's time to jump into the bullpens of the American League and take a look at what we can expect for the 2019 season. After a slow offseason, it seems like relief pitchers are finally coming off the free agent board and signing with the teams they'll […]

Third Base - Early Points League Rankings and Tiers

The hot corner is stacked like never before, especially with the anticipated arrival of mega-prospect Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Waiting on a third baseman won't hurt given the relative depth of the position. With the multi-position eligibility of several players on this list, one could easily grab several of these names within the first few rounds […]

Second Base - Early Points League Rankings and Tiers

It’s never too early to start looking toward the fantasy baseball season, so I’m here to carry on RotoBaller’s position-by-position rankings analysis series for points league and head-to-head (H2H) formats with the keystone position. Traditionally a scarce position in fantasy, second base has truly risen over the past few years, and truthfully I'd be happy […]

No Way, Jose? What To Expect After Jose Leclerc's Breakout

There are two schools of thought regarding what to do with the reliever position in fantasy baseball. The first mentality is to grab an elite arm early, guaranteeing you elite ratios and a safe save source. The other method of thinking, that’s becoming increasingly popular, is to wait until the later rounds or to find […]

First Base - Early Points League Rankings and Tiers

It’s never too early to start looking toward the fantasy baseball season, so I’m here to kick off RotoBaller’s position-by-position rankings analysis series for points league and head-to-head (H2H) formats with the hard-hitting first base position. Traditionally a power haven, first base has a fairly clear top three tiers and then the floor starts to […]

Is Punting Steals a Viable Draft Strategy in 2019?

For readers who tune in to watch MLB games regularly, the phrase “small ball is dead” is becoming more and more the cliche. Managers do not feel the need to run as much, there is a decreasing rate of sacrifice bunts, and above all, no more hit-and-run as a primary offensive tactic. While many factors […]

Tyler Thornburg Could Have Shot At Closer Role

Boston Red Sox relief pitcher Tyler Thornburg (shoulder), who was shut down last September due to complications from thoracic outlet syndrome, could be a wild card in the team's bullpen this year. His injury in 2018 led to him allowing 15 earned runs in just 24 innings all year. The hard-throwing right hasn't been healthy […]

Three Up, Three Down for Prospects - First Basemen

Power. Nothing else defines the position more than pure, raw power. If you have it, you better display it in abundance, or there will be concerns. If you are smaller in stature, there will be concerns. If your talent is just hit tool, there will be concerns. If your defense is lacking, there will be […]

ADP Champ or Chump - Tommy Pham and Avisail Garcia

My main mantra when it comes to fantasy baseball is "value, value, value." I will often try and set myself up in the first two or three rounds in such a way that I have the flexibility to take advantage of value later in the draft. One of the best ways I have found to […]

Giants Sign Drew Pomeranz

The San Francisco Giants signed free-agent starting pitcher Drew Pomeranz to a one-year deal on Wednesday, according to sources. The deal is for $1.5 million and it can max out at $5 million with incentives. The left-hander had a rough year in 2018 with the Red Sox, going 2-6 with a 6.08 ERA, 1.77 WHIP […]

2019 Points League Draft Strategy - Fantasy Baseball

When discussing fantasy baseball. An often neglected-but-entertaining format is the points league. These exist in both cumulative season-long and weekly head-to-head formats. 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 player’s contribution […]

Rafael Devers Feels Healthier

Boston Red Sox third baseman Rafael Devers, who is still only 22, hired a nutritionist in the offseason and has been eating healthier after a challenge from team management after his first full season in the majors. “I feel healthy right now,” Devers said Saturday at the team’s annual Winter Weekend event. I think I’m […]

Using Sabermetrics For Fantasy Baseball Part 4 - Batted Ball Distribution (Hitters)

Fly balls can turn into home runs. Ground balls never do. It would seem as though fantasy owners want their batters to hit nothing but flies, yet this is not the case. Why would this be? The answer, of course, comes down to batted ball distribution and the manner in which batters make contact. In […]

Top 420: Points Leagues Tiered Staff Rankings (January)

Welcome back RotoBallers. Today we are here to start looking at points leagues and head-to-head (H2H) formats. In this column, you will find our staff's preliminary 2019 fantasy baseball points league rankings for January and the top 420 players. Over the next few days, we will also be publishing individual tiered rankings analysis columns for each […]

Red Sox Have Discussed Extension With Xander Bogaerts

The Boston Red Sox have had contract-extension talks with shortstop Xander Bogaerts this offseason, according to multiple sources. He can become a free agent after the 2019 season and had a breakout year in 2018, hitting .288 with a .360 on-base percentage, .522 slugging percentage and 23 home runs. Bogaerts makes a lot of contact […]

Chris Sale Feels Normal

Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Chris Sale (shoulder) said he feels back to normal already this offseason after dealing with left shoulder fatigue that landed him on the disabled list twice late in the 2018 season. “I feel normal again. I’m able to throw free and easy and feel loose and kind of have that […]

Dustin Pedroia Begins Running Program

Boston Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia (knee) is "doing great" as he begins his running program this week, according to president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski. Pedroia's left knee has been an issue since the start of the 2017 season, and he played in just three games in 2018. The veteran believes he'll be […]

Using Sabermetrics For Fantasy Baseball Part 3 - Statcast for Hitters

If you've watched a baseball broadcast in the so-called Statcast Era, you have undoubtedly noticed the broadcasters commenting on a batted ball's exit velocity, or EV. Many have taken to using stats like Hard% and Soft% to forecast how a player should be performing, expecting larger Hard% rates to produce larger BABIP and HR/FB figures. […]

2019 Outfielders - Early Fantasy Baseball Rankings

Outfield is a unique position in the fantasy world. The best of the best reside in the outfield, with our consensus top two picks and nine of the top 25 overall players making this list. On the other hand, it is by far the deepest and easiest to gain late-round value if you choose to […]

Willy Adames - The Breakout Is Coming

Major League Baseball is becoming dominated by young talent. Every year a new crop of players come into the league and show off their mouth-watering skill set. Just take a look at RotoBaller’s positional rankings, and you see players that are in their mid-20s or younger are among the top of every position. The youth […]

DJ LeMahieu to Yankees - Fantasy Impact

The Yankees needed to fill a void in their infield with Didi Gregorius likely to miss the first four months of the season and Troy Tulowitzki being unreliable to say the least. New York was (and still is?) heavily linked to superstar Manny Machado, but it was another former All-Star that the Yankees inked on Jan. […]

2019 Relief Pitchers - Early Fantasy Baseball Tiered Rankings

A tough position to evaluate is that of relief pitchers, as a lot of success for closers comes from success from teams. There are also a lot of bullpens by committee these days, further stifling the value of closers. That being said, only four of the pitchers that ranked in the top-10 in saves in […]

Dustin Pedroia To Start Running This Week

Boston Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia (knee) is scheduled to start running and testing his surgically-repaired left knee this week. The veteran second baseman had microfracture surgery in November of 2017 and played in just three games before being shut down in 2018. He underwent a second arthroscopic procedure in August. The team and […]

2019 Third Basemen - Early Fantasy Baseball Tiered Rankings

We continue our fantasy baseball tiered rankings analysis with the third base position. Even though it is only January, RotoBaller writers Nick Mariano, Pierre Camus, Chris Zolli, and I have come up with our initial pre-draft rankings to give you a sense of player values as early as possible. As the offseason progresses, these rankings […]

2019 Starting Pitcher - Early Fantasy Baseball Tiered Rankings

We continue our fantasy baseball tiered rankings analysis with the second base position. The sun is still rising on 2019, but RotoBaller writers JB Branson, Pierre Camus, Chris Zolli and myself are here with our initial pre-draft rankings to give you a sense of player values as early as possible. As the offseason progresses, these […]

Xander Bogaerts, Jackie Bradley Avoid Arbitration

Boston Red Sox shortstop Xander Bogaerts and outfielder Jackie Bradley Jr. both avoided salary arbitration on Friday by agreeing to one-year deals. Bogaerts will receive $12 million this season, while Bradley will make $8.55 million. Bogaerts is a tier below the top fantasy shortstops after hitting .288/.360/.522 with a career-high 23 long balls, 103 RBI, […]

Red Sox Avoid Arbitration With Eduardo Rodriguez

The Boston Red Sox avoided salary arbitration with starting pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez on Friday by signing him to a one-year, $4.3 million deal. E-Rod went 13-5 with a career-best 3.82 ERA, 1.27 WHIP and 10.1 K/9 over 27 outings (23 starts) for the World Champion Red Sox in 2018. He's struggled with injuries in his […]

Mookie Betts Avoids Arbitration

Boston Red Sox outfielder and 2018 American League Most Valuable Player Mookie Betts avoided salary arbitration on Friday by agreeing to a one-year, $20 million deal, according to sources. It's a new high mark for a second-year arbitration-eligible player. Betts is in consideration for the top overall fantasy pick in 2019 after leading all of baseball in […]

2019 Bullpen Outlooks - National League East

Last year's Bullpen Outlook got started with the American League, so let's take the National League on first this time around. Some signings and trades have made a splash in the bullpens of the NL East, and there may still be more to come. With some top free agent closers and setup men still looking […]

2019 Catchers - Early Fantasy Baseball Tiered Rankings

Catcher is a tough position to evaluate, as many teams utilize multiple catchers and it is rare for one to play 140 or more games in a season. Wear and tear as a backstop limits offensive value for sure, but there are still a group of solid catchers that can contribute in multiple categories. Beyond […]