H2H Category Streamers - Week 4 Waiver Wire
There are plenty of strategies that fantasy managers explore in hopes to get an advantage over their opponent. Heavy lineup, heavy starting pitchers, no catcher, all (or mostly) reliever staff, no reliever staff, etc. Even if you play a balanced lineup, injuries can cause holes. A few weeks without a key player won’t kill a […]
Diego Castillo (RP/SP, TB) - Week 4 Waiver Wire Pickups
BALLER MOVE: Add in 14+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 34% of Leagues ANALYSIS: Diego Castillo has emerged as a terrific late-inning arm for the Tampa Bay Rays this season. Gaining a promotion after being used as an opener in 2018, the right-hander has flourished in his new end-game role and has earned two saves and […]
FanDuel MLB DFS Lineup Picks (4/20/19): Daily Fantasy Baseball Advice
In today's slate, we need to focus on the weather, as we had two postponements on Friday. The good news is that we don't have as much rain in the forecast for Saturday but we still have games with questionable forecasts. Those include the ATL-CLE, KAN-NYY and CWS-DET matchups. Keep an eye on all of […]
Shortstop - The Under-Appreciated Glamour Boys of '19
Shortstop has long been a position comprised of the nobles and the bastards. People would flock towards the highborn and turn a frigidly cold shoulder to anyone else. Fantasy managers were basically elitists in the purest definition of the word in regard to shortstops. It is time to start spreading the love and realize that […]
Closers and Saves Report - Week 3 Waiver Wire
Only Week 3 and we're already looking at a pretty wild season, bullpen-wise at least. We have our first "out for the season" injury for a team's closer, and we have a legitimate top closer back on the mound after coming off the injured list. And also: Craig Kimbrel. Week 3 brought bat flips, petulant […]
A's Give Khris Davis Two-Year Extension
The Oakland Athletics agreed to a two-year contract extension with outfielder Khris Davis on Thursday, keeping him around through the 2021 season. Financial terms of the extension weren't disclosed. Davis has certainly earned this, as he's become the gold standard for power hitting in the major leagues. The 31-year-old has hit exactly .247 the last […]
Matt Chapman Becoming Elite With Bat
Oakland Athletics third baseman Matt Chapman has been one of the league's best hitters for more than half a season; he has slashed .309/.371/.591 with a home run every 17 at-bats since last year's All-Star game. He has a 162 wRC+ (weighted runs created plus), which ranks eighth over that span. Chapman is also 10th […]
Contact Rate Risers and Fallers for Week 3 - Buy or Sell?
Welcome to Contact Rate Risers and Fallers for Week 3! Our premium tools allow us to get out ahead of trends in player performance, including contact rate. Every Thursday, we'll be looking at some players that have seen an increase in contact rate and some that have seen it decline. Contact rate can foretell a […]
Deeper AL-Only Waiver Wire Sleepers for Week 3
Every week in baseball, a significant player will hit the disabled list, slip into a slump, or get traded out of a good spot. How fantasy owners adapt to these situations can make or break the season as a whole. One lousy add might not hurt the long-term standing of a team, but failing to […]
Marco Estrada Lands On Injured List
The Oakland Athletics announced Wednesday that starting pitcher Marco Estrada (back) was placed on the 10-day injured list with a lumbar strain. The former Blue Jay was skipped in the rotation last weekend, as his scheduled game was postponed due to rain. Estrada, 35, has made five starts with Oakland this year, going 0-2 with a […]
Power Hitting Risers and Fallers for Week 3 - Buy or Sell?
Welcome to a new edition of Power Hitting Risers & Fallers. This week, all stats are full season through Monday, April 15th (unless otherwise noted). This is to maximize the sample, but the risers and fallers were selected based on their performance from April 9-15. Such a narrow time frame won't be used going forward, […]
Top 20 Prospects for 2020 Dynasty Leagues (Week 3 Update)
Welcome back to our updated list of the Top 20 impact prospects for 2020. Most minor league teams have now completed a dozen games or so (depending on weather cancellations), so we're starting to see some trends with players off to hot or cold starts. I expect a lot of movement on this list as […]
DraftKings Daily Fantasy Baseball Picks (4/17/19): MLB DFS Lineups
This is a bit of an odd slate, as there are two slates with four and seven games, but the "all day" slate features 14 games. DraftKings loves leaving off 6 PM EST games, and that's the case again tonight. Regardless, this article will discuss the all day slate, making sure we can cover as […]
FanDuel MLB DFS Lineup Picks (4/17/19): Daily Fantasy Baseball Advice
We have 14 games on tap today but we will be focusing on the 10 game main slate starting at 6:35 pm. In this article, I will be providing you with my daily fantasy baseball lineup picks for FanDuel on 4/17/2019. The lineup picks will range from some of the elite players to mid-priced options and value plays. […]
Matt Olson Swings Fungo Bat
Oakland Athletics first baseman Matt Olson (hand) swung a fungo bat for the first time on Tuesday. Next up for him will be to hold a bat and then to hit off a tee. Olson needed surgery for a fractured hamate bone in his hand and won't return until next month. The left-handed hitter has […]
Catcher Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 3
The catching position in fantasy baseball has become a dried-up talent pool in recent seasons. The 2019 season has pumped a few gallons of skill and fantasy competence back into the tank as we are entering some better weather here in mid-April. With early injuries at the position and some underperforming bats not impressing owners, […]
1B and 3B Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 3
Two weeks down, 24 to go. As we'll continue to remind you in our early-season coverage, the fantasy baseball season is long. The most likely outcome of drastic decisions at this point in the year is regret. That doesn't mean you can't look for ways to improve your roster at this juncture. The good news […]
2B and SS Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 3
The 2019 MLB campaign has reached Week 3, and as typically comes with the first month of the season, we find ourselves both befuddled by the surprising starts of some players and desperately awaiting the acceleration of others. With still a limited sample size of AB under each player's belt, it could cause any human […]
Starting Pitcher Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 3
As tempting as it may be if your squad is off to a slow start, resist the urge to make an overabundance of drastic roster decisions. Remember - the fantasy baseball season is a marathon, not a sprint. That doesn't mean you can't tinker on the edges, which is precisely what this column is designed […]
Outfield Waiver Wire Pickups for Week 3
Managers continue to slide through the waiver wire at alarming rates. Try not to overreact and make rash decisions. Let the underperforming stars get into a groove. Their numbers will normalize. Some outfielders would be better suited to stream for a hot bat. Others need to be replaced just because they are no longer on […]
The Cut List (Week 3) - Time to Let Go?
We're now midway through April, and your trigger finger may be getting a bit itchy. The baseball season is only a couple weeks old, however, and with more than 90% of the season to go it is still really early. Most teams had played about eight games through last weekend, and now that number is […]
Josh Phegley Has Hits In Nine Consecutive Games
Oakland Athletics catcher Josh Phegley went 1-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI in Sunday's game against the Texas Rangers, hitting in his ninth consecutive game. It wasn't all great, as he also struck out three times. Phegley continues to hit out of the ninth spot for manager Bob Melvin, slashing .325/.341/.600, including 13-for-32 […]
Bullpen Spoils Quality Start For Brett Anderson
Oakland Athletics starting pitcher Brian Anderson allowed three runs - two earned - and two hits with two walks and three strikeouts over six innings in a no-decision on Sunday in Texas. He threw 59 of his 93 pitches for strikes in the quality start, but normally reliable J.B. Wendelken allowed a solo homer in […]
Marcus Semien Posts Three More Hits On Sunday
Oakland Athletics shortstop Marcus Semien collected two singles, a double, two runs scored and two RBI in Sunday's 8-7 road loss against the Texas Rangers to bump his average up to .338. Semien and leadoff hitter Robbie Grossman did a good job setting the table, each posting at least two hits. Semien has now hit […]
Robbie Grossman Sets Table Nicely On Sunday
Oakland Athletics outfielder Robbie Grossman ended up 2-for-4 with a walk, a run scored and an RBI in Sunday's 8-7 road loss against the Texas Rangers. Grossman has hit safely in six of the past seven games to bump his average from .185 to .265 just since April 5. He has been the best option […]
Rowdy Tellez (1B, TOR) - Week 3 Waiver Wire Pickups
BALLER MOVE: Add in 14+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 5% of Leagues ANALYSIS: Since the Toronto Blue Jays dealt away Kendrys Morales to the Athletics, the door opened for Rowdy Tellez to solidify himself as a big leaguer. In the early going of 2019, the left-handed slugger has shown glimpses of a potential top-tier power […]
Jesus Luzardo Feeling Great
Oakland Athletics manager Bob Melvin said that starting pitcher Jesus Luzardo (shoulder) is feeling great but still isn't throwing yet. Luzardo, the team's top prospect and No. 12 overall, is recovering from a strained left shoulder. The left-hander has a ton of upside in Oakland's starting rotation and was excellent in spring training before his […]
Week 3 Starts & Sits - All Starting Pitcher Matchups
Mid-April means trends are rounding into form and you can start to believe in stats, aren't you excited? Welcome back everyone to our starts/sits column for Week 3. We here at RotoBaller set out to ease your decision-making with our weekly starting pitcher matchups and recommendations. In case you missed it, this is our sixth year now […]
Marco Estrada Won't Pitch Sunday
Oakland Athletics starting pitcher Marco Estrada, who was scheduled to start on Saturday against Texas before it was postponed, will be skipped in the rotation. Brett Anderson will stay on turn and go Sunday against the Rangers. Estrada had an ERA over 5.00 in Toronto last year and the hope was that he'd be much […]
Chad Pinder (2B/3B/OF, OAK) - Week 3 Waiver Wire Pickups
BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ team leagues OWNED IN: 27% of leagues ANALYSIS: A lot of people probably didn't even know who Pinder was before this year, even though he hit a combined 28 home runs with the A's in 2017-18 in 197 games. But he's also never hit more than 16 homers in a season. His […]