Dereck Rodriguez Will Be Third Starter In Rotation

San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Dereck Rodriguez will be the third man in the Giants rotation for the 2019 season, joining Madison Bumgarner, Derek Holland, Jeff Samardzija and Drew Pomeranz. This move is a no-brainer for the Giants, as he was a potential NL Rookie of the Year candidate last season, putting up a 6-4 record, […]

Drew Pomeranz Cracks Giants Rotation

San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Drew Pomeranz made the 25-man Opening Day roster and will be the fifth man in the rotation along with Madison Bumgarner, Derek Holland, Dereck Rodriguez and Jeff Samardzija. Pomeranz was absolutely awful last year for Boston, putting up a 2-6 record and a 6.08 ERA in 74 innings pitched. He's shown […]

Tom Murphy Waived By Rockies, Claimed By Giants

The Colorado Rockies waived catcher Tom Murphy on Monday, and he was promptly claimed by the San Francisco Giants. Murphy has been a highly regarded prospect of Colorado's for a few years, but the team decided they would rather stick with better defensive veterans Chris Iannetta and Tony Wolters than deal with Murphy's consistent defensive […]

Angels Trade For Chris Stratton

The Los Angeles Angels acquired pitcher Chris Stratton from the San Francisco Giants on Monday night in exchange for left-hander Williams Jerez. Stratton will prove much-needed rotation depth for the Angels, who won't have Andrew Heaney (elbow) to begin the year. The 28-year-old right-hander went 10-10 with a 5.09 ERA, 1.43 WHIP and 112 strikeouts […]

Updated Shortstop Rankings - H2H Points Leagues

The RotoBaller Head-to-Head rankings review series continues with a view of shortstop through the lens of our three-man expert panel of fantasy accuracy champ Nick Mariano and premier staffers JB Branson and Bill Dubiel. The position is well-stocked with useful starters, but as you get deeper, the H2H negatives will get exposed more. Near the […]

Updated Starting Pitcher Rankings - H2H Points Leagues

We are continuing our updated analysis of points league tiered rankings with a final look at starting pitchers. In H2H points leagues, starting pitchers are the lifeblood of a fantasy team. The more innings and strikeouts a starter can rack up, the further it carries your team toward a championship. There is a solid core […]

Five Starting Pitcher Sleepers: National League

With Opening Day now close enough at hand that we can count the hours instead of the days, weeks, or months, the majority of fantasy baseball drafts have already taken place. Still drafting your teams? This column was meant to be ready a week earlier, but the great and unknowable forces of the universe conspired […]

Where Are The Elite Starters? Looking for 2019’s deGrom

Researching elite starters has taught me a number of things about pitcher development. One of the most valuable has been the reminder that progress is never linear. Blake Snell and Justin Verlander present recent examples of that. Verlander has been in “obvious decline” on two occasions now, and both times he’s bounced back. 2016 Blake […]

Derek Holland Lacks Fantasy Appeal

San Francisco Giants starter Derek Holland has endured a shaky spring, but fantasy owners should pay no attention to that for the beginning of the season. The left-hander enjoyed a bounce back season in 2018, posting a 3.57 ERA over 30 starts. The veteran knows how to pitch and should be in line to eat […]

Jeff Samardzija's Health Bolsters Giants Rotation

San Francisco Giants starter Jeff Samardzija is in line to begin the season healthy and should help solidify the Giants rotation. Samardzija made only 10 starts last season and underwent shoulder surgery in the offseason. Known for taking the ball every fifth day, Samardzija certainly is entering unchartered territory this season. The right-hander posted his […]

Madison Bumgarner Finishes Up Bumpy Spring

San Francisco Giants starter Madison Bumgarner did little to quiet the critics during the spring, allowing 35 hits in only 20 2/3 innings with a 8.27 ERA. Of course, reading too deeply into exhibition numbers for a veteran like Bumgarner could be a fatal fantasy mistake. But the 29-year-old southpaw has made only 38 starts […]

Brandon Crawford Looking To Bounce Back In '19

San Francisco Giants shortstop Brandon Crawford is hitting .205 during exhibition play as spring training winds to a close. The veteran shortstop is coming off a down season in 2018, posting his lowest slugging percentage (.394) since 2014. Crawford 's season capsized in the second half of last season, hitting only .194 while his power […]

Brandon Belt Enjoying A Strong Spring

San Francisco Giants first baseman Brandon Belt is ready to come out of the gate swinging, leading the team in spring training with four home runs while posting a slash line of .405/.479/.738 through 42 at-bats. Buyer beware, however, for fantasy owners. Belt has consistently thrived during spring training, slashing .343/.412/.613 in 10 springs with […]

Can Evan Longoria Return To Form?

San Francisco Giants third baseman Evan Longoria will begin the 12th season of his career with plenty to prove. Longoria battled injuries in 2018 during a season he would like to forget. The 33-year-old drove in only five runs combined in the months of June and July and posted only a .388 slugging percentage in […]

Updated Third Base Rankings - H2H Points Leagues

We are continuing our updated analysis of points league tiered rankings with the hot corner. Third base has a treasure trove of fantasy stars in the making, if things break right of course. If you are relatively new to points leagues, you need to pay close attention to the difference between these rankings and that […]

Updated Outfield Rankings - H2H Points Leagues

As we enter the final stretch for drafting it is time to take a look at the latest iteration of points leagues rankings from our amazing hard working rankings staff. Starting with the outfield is always fun because there is so much depth at the position, especially if you only require three of them, as […]

Giants Acquire Erik Kratz

The San Francisco Giants acquired catcher Erik Kratz from the Milwaukee Brewers on Sunday in exchange for minor league infielder C.J. Hinojosa. The 38-year-old Kratz was third on Milwaukee's catching depth chart in spring training, but he could be the backup to Buster Posey in San Francisco. Hinojosa is a versatile defender with good contact […]

Updated Starting Pitcher Rankings - 5x5 Roto (Mixed Leagues)

We're back up on the bump for this edition of our mixed rankings analysis, and not a moment too soon. The 2019 baseball season is already here! RotoBaller writers Nick Mariano, JB Branson, Bill Dubiel, Pierre Camus, and Scott Engel want to make sure you are prepared for last-minute drafts, so they have given their […]

Updated Second Base Rankings - H2H Points Leagues

Continuing on our points league tiered rankings analysis we move over to the keystone position. Second base has the deepest talent pool that it's seen in recent years as it’s full of elite bats at the top and high-upside youngsters in the lower tiers. With two games in the regular season already in the books, […]

2019 Fantasy Baseball Busts - RotoBaller Staff Picks

As you get ready for last-minute drafts or reflect on recent results, we wanted to give our staff the chance to share their least favorite preseason ADP values. We recently polled some of our fantasy baseball writers to get their take on which hitters and pitchers they are likely to avoid in the early rounds of […]

Heliot Ramos Has Impressive Power/Speed Combo

San Francisco Giants outfielder Heliot Ramos, the team's No. 2 prospect and No. 91 overall per MLB Pipeline, hit .245/.313/.396 in 2018 as the youngest regular (18 years old) in the South Atlantic League (Low A). However, he sports an impressive power/speed combination and showed improvement with making contact. For a rebuilding Giants squad looking […]

Rookie Catchers that Could Help You in 2019

It’s not enough to just be overflowing with talent to have a good rookie season. You also need to have an opportunity. And $1 buys, or late-round selections likely won’t win you a championship on their own but most championship seasons in fantasy baseball need a little luck from those picks or a lucky waiver […]

Updated Shortstop Rankings - 5x5 Roto (Mixed Leagues)

Our updated fantasy baseball tiered rankings analysis rolls on with the shortstop position. With the 2019 MLB season technically underway in Japan, RotoBaller writers Nick Mariano, JB Branson, Bill Dubiel, Pierre Camus, and Scott Engel have given their rankings a final update. Check out our fantasy baseball rankings dashboard for a current list any time. Shortstop […]

Updated Outfielder Rankings - 5x5 Roto (Mixed Leagues)

We continue our fantasy baseball tiered rankings analysis with a look at the star-studded outfield position With the 2019 season beginning in a matter of days, RotoBaller writers Nick Mariano, JB Branson, Bill Dubiel, Pierre Camus, and Scott Engel have given their preseason rankings a final update. Check out our fantasy baseball rankings dashboard for a […]

Updated Third Base Rankings - 5x5 Roto (Mixed Leagues)

We move to the left side on the infield now in our fantasy baseball tiered rankings analysis with the third base position. The 2019 baseball season is already here! RotoBaller writers Nick Mariano, JB Branson, Bill Dubiel, Pierre Camus, and Scott Engel want to make sure you are prepared for last-minute drafts, so they have […]

Will Smith The Leading Candidate For Saves In San Fran

San Francisco Giants relief pitcher Will Smith remains the leading candidate for the majority of save chances in 2019 after holding the closer role for the second half of last season and not allowing a run in three Cactus League innings this spring. Veteran Mark Melancon has shown improved health in camp, but he's also […]

Updated Catcher Rankings - 5x5 Roto (Mixed Leagues)

We continue our fantasy baseball tiered rankings analysis with everyone's favorite - the catcher position. With the 2019 season beginning in a matter of days, RotoBaller writers Nick Mariano, JB Branson, Bill Dubiel, Pierre Camus, and Scott Engel have given their preseason rankings a final update. Check out our fantasy baseball rankings dashboard for a current […]

Updated Second Base Rankings - 5x5 Roto (Mixed Leagues)

We continue our fantasy baseball tiered rankings analysis with the second base position. With the 2019 season kicking off in a matter of days, RotoBaller writers Nick Mariano, JB Branson, Bill Dubiel, Pierre Camus, and Scott Engel have given their preseason rankings a final update. Check out our fantasy baseball rankings dashboard for a current list […]

Updated First Base Rankings - 5x5 Roto (Mixed Leagues)

The clock ticks ever closer to Opening Day and we here at RotoBaller are back to give one final round of position-by-position analysis with a mixed-league, 5x5 framework. We’re going to start at the most glorious position on the field: first base. No, I didn’t play first myself, why do you ask? While there are […]

Buster Posey Plays In Back-to-Back Spring Games

San Francisco Giants catcher Buster Posey was able to play consecutive Cactus League spring games on Sunday against the Kansas City Royals. It was his first time catching in consecutive days this spring. He ended up 1-for-3 with a single to raise his spring average to .217. That's not terribly important, but it is rather […]