Power Sleepers - Noteworthy 2020 Barrel Leaders

As we've continued to progress in the MLB offseason, I've been looking at barrel rates from 2020 in the hopes of finding players whose breakouts during the shortened season were real or those who may still have breakouts looming. As I've mentioned previously, I'm a firm believer that finding the barrel regularly is an incredibly […]

Catcher Draft Targets for All Leagues

Enough with the catcher slander! As fantasy baseball drafts heat up, all I keep reading about is how we're "forced" to draft catchers and how they can tank your roster. Catchers are people too! I could use thousands of words writing about the value of catchers and how the grind of their defensive job and […]

Cody Bellinger Slugs First Spring Home Run On Thursday

Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman/outfielder Cody Bellinger went 2-for-4 with a solo home run in his second Cactus League game on Thursday. Bellinger ripped a fly-ball 101.3 MPH on an out, then later registered an exit velocity of 107.3 MPH on his dinger. Manager Dave Roberts noted after the game that the 25-year-old had a […]

2021 Starting Pitcher Rankings - 5x5 Mixed Leagues (Part 2)

We now move on to starting pitcher in our mixed-league rankings analysis series. If you missed them, here is our review of Catcher, First Base, Second Base, Third Base, Shortstop, Outfield, and of course, Starting Pitcher Part One. RotoBaller's rankers, JB Branson, Pierre Camus, Nick Mariano, and Ariel Cohen have updated our 2021 Mixed League rankings once more based on […]

Walker Buehler Allows No Earned Runs Over Four Innings

Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Walker Buehler had a strong outing against the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday. He pitched four innings and allowed five hits, one walk and one unearned run while striking out five. Buehler's had a few rough outings so far this spring. Through four appearances, he has posted a 4.50 ERA […]

Trevor Bauer Coasting Through Spring

Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Trevor Bauer has been phenomenal in his first spring training with the team. In his last start against the Milwaukee Brewers on Tuesday, he struck out seven batters in five innings while allowing three hits, no walks and two earned runs. In total, he's pitched 13.1 innings this spring and […]

Brusdar Graterol Tosses Bullpen Session Wednesday

Los Angeles Dodgers right-handed pitcher Brusdar Graterol (undisclosed) has been brought along slowly during Cactus League play in 2021, but he was able to throw a 25-pitch bullpen session Wednesday, his latest step in a return to the mound. There were once injury concerns around Graterol's elbow that scuttled a trade involving Boston and Minnesota, […]

MLB Spring Training Notebook (3/17) - Jorge Polanco Leaves Game

Welcome to the 2021 edition of RotoBaller's Spring Training Notebook. Thankfully, we have real, live baseball being played every day again, and while it doesn't count for anything, these exhibition games gives us the smallest glimmer into players and teams heading into the new season. We're into our third week of spring training games and […]

2021 Keeper Value Rankings - Third Base

Many many years ago, I noticed the managers in my long-time keeper league were consistently making terrible keeper decisions year after year. Instead of taking their money every year thought I would help them out and find a good set of Keeper League Rankings to share with them. What I found was quite disturbing. There […]

Clayton Kershaw To Start Opening Day For Dodgers

Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Clayton Kershaw will take the mound for his team on Opening Day against the Rockies. Kershaw will be making his ninth career start on Opening Day, which is the most in Dodgers' franchise history. The veteran left-hander pitched to a 2.16 ERA in 58 1/3 innings last year while posting […]

2021 Starting Pitcher Rankings - 5x5 Mixed Leagues (Part 1)

We now move on to starting pitcher in our mixed-league rankings analysis series. If you missed them, here is our review of Catcher, First Base, Second Base, Third Base, Shortstop, and Outfield. RotoBaller's rankers, JB Branson, Pierre Camus, Nick Mariano, and Ariel Cohen have updated our 2021 Mixed League rankings once more based on early spring training action. You can […]

Spring Training Lineup Takeaways: Recapping Week 2 - Bases Loaded Podcast

Continuing on to week two of Spring Training lineup coverage! Subscribe to the Bases Loaded podcast, part of RotoBaller Radio's Podcast Network. Like and Subscribe to the RotoBaller channel on Youtube to get all our latest podcasts and catch us on iTunes and BlogTalkRadio as well! Be sure to also tune into RotoBaller Radio on SiriusXM (channel Sirius 210, […]

Corey Seager Homers Sunday

Los Angeles Dodgers shortstop Corey Seager went 1-for-2 with a solo home run in Sunday's 8-4 loss to the Kansas City Royals. Seager is now 9-for-21 with four home runs, nine RBI, and six runs scored across his first 10 spring games. Seager is raking so far this spring and is coming off a solid […]

Launch Angle Analysis - Potential HR Risers

With the onset of Statcast data, we can now better predict which hitters may be due for a power surge. Before recent years, we only had things like hard-hit rate and home runs per fly ball ratios to look to as predictors of future changes in home run rates. Now that we have launch angle, […]

Spring Training Lineup Takeaways - Week 2 Lineup Trends

Welcome back RotoBallers! We are entering week three of Spring Training already, and with that came a lot of things we saw in week two. But of course, my week one review also still has very relevant information as well. Just a reminder, in my Lineup Takeaways series we are focusing 100% on lineups, news and […]

Top 25 Starting Pitchers - Dynasty Prospects Rankings

Pitching is an important element of any successful Major League Baseball team — real or fantasy. Coming off a truncated season in 2020 and facing another unique season ahead, pitching prospects will be more important than ever in 2021. MLB managers will be faced with a full 2021 season and, after throwing reduced innings last […]

2021 Keeper Value Rankings - Second Base

Many many years ago, I noticed the managers in my long-time keeper league were consistently making terrible keeper decisions year after year. Instead of taking their money every year thought I would help them out and find a good set of Keeper League Rankings to share with them. What I found was quite disturbing. There […]

Early Round SP Strategy, Targets and More! - Bases Loaded Podcast

Mike and Jorge get into early round starting pitchers and how to attack the position in the early rounds and more. Subscribe to the Bases Loaded podcast, part of RotoBaller Radio's Podcast Network. Like and Subscribe to the RotoBaller channel on Youtube to get all our latest podcasts and catch us on iTunes and BlogTalkRadio as well! […]

Mookie Betts Not In "Season Shape" Yet

Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Mookie Betts will rightfully be one of the first players off the board in all fantasy drafts this spring. However, according to his teammate Edwin Rios, Betts isn't quite in mid-season form just yet. In a recent interview, Rios had this to say in regard to Betts: "I called him out […]

2021 Outfielder Rankings - 5x5 Mixed Leagues

We now move on to the outfielder position in our mixed-league rankings analysis series. If you missed them, here is our review of Catcher, First Base, Second Base, Third Base and Shortstop. RotoBaller's rankers, JB Branson, Pierre Camus, Nick Mariano, and Ariel Cohen have updated our 2021 Mixed League rankings once more based on early spring training action. […]

Cody Bellinger To Play The Field Next Week

Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said that outfielder Cody Bellinger (shoulder) will play center field in a major league spring training game next Tuesday. Bellinger had offseason surgery on his shoulder and has missed the first half of spring games so far. The Dodgers are mostly being cautious with the 25-year-old former MVP, though, […]

MLB DFS Advice: Picking Pitchers on DraftKings and FanDuel

Welcome back to RotoBaller, where we are taking you through some advanced DFS strategy and advice to prepare you for a full-length MLB season in 2021. Last spring, while baseball was not being played and I did not know what to do with myself, I wrote a big old script to go back and collect […]

Shortstop Rankings, 2nd Year Quarterbacks - The King and Pocket Aces Episode 5

In this episode of The King and Pockets Aces, RotoBaller's Scott "The King" Engel and Anthony "Pocket Aces" Aniano share their highly charged Fantasy insights. They look at the latest and upcoming NFL player moves, the Hot Stove headlines, provide Fantasy Basketball player breakdowns, and ready you for the DFS NASCAR season with strategy tips. […]

Using Sabermetrics for Fantasy Baseball: Pitcher BABIP

While FIP is a useful tool to predict a pitcher's future ERA performance, fantasy managers 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 […]

Justin Turner Goes 1-for-2 Monday

Los Angeles Dodgers third baseman Justin Turner went 1-for-3 with a walk and a run scored in Monday's 8-0 win against the Chicago White Sox. It was nice to see Turner get a hit in this one as he is now just 2-for-10 through his first five Cactus League games. Turner was also batting third, […]

JB's Bullpen Method Redux - Building FrankenAces

Last year, I finally published an article breaking down my favorite fantasy baseball strategy I have been using for years. It's really less of a strategy and more a state of mind. No, the Bullpen Method is a lifestyle. I always speak about the importance of balance on a fantasy team. For your pitching staff, I […]

Top 10 Third Basemen - Dynasty Prospect Rankings

Third base is traditionally a place to find offense. It can be a goldmine for fantasy managers in need of some power. Third basemen are also known for providing strong on-base numbers and, in some cases, batting average. The 2019 season met the offensive expectations with 28 hitters managing a 100 wRC+ or better (350 […]

Joe Kelly Not A Lock To Be Healthy By Opening Day

Los Angeles Dodgers right-handed reliever Joe Kelly (shoulder) remains engaged in a throwing program, but he is reportedly not close to returning to game action, which shrouds his availability for Opening Day in doubt. Kelly battled right shoulder inflammation (which landed him on the IL) last year, although he finished the year with just three […]

Jose Martinez To Miss Four Months

New York Mets utility infielder/outfielder Jose Martinez suffered a torn meniscus in his left knee on Sunday during a defensive play at first base when he ran into an umpire. Martinez is scheduled to have surgery on his knee within the week and should miss up to four months. The injury came at a terrible […]

Gavin Lux Continues Hot Spring

Los Angeles Dodgers second baseman Gavin Lux went 1-for-3 with a double and a run scored in Sunday's 4-3 loss to the Texas Rangers. Lux has now started this spring 5-for-11 with three runs scored and two RBI. Lux has been a highly-touted prospect in the Dodgers' system for a couple of seasons and will […]