2018 Second Basemen - Dynasty Tiered Rankings

We continue our fantasy baseball dynasty rankings analysis with the second base position. Second base is a very intriguing position for dynasty leagues, as there is a changing of the guard that could come as soon as a year or two. Out will be the mainstay names of Robinson Cano, Brian Dozier, and Daniel Murphy, […]

The Big Winner Of Tampa Bay's Flurry Of Moves Is Mallex Smith

Tampa Bay Rays outfielder Mallex Smith has not been mentioned as much as other names that departed the team this week. However, he emerges as a big winner due to the number of his competitions leaving the roster. The signing of Carlos Gomez creates a possible concern, as there are now four outfielders for three […]

Pirates Acquire Corey Dickerson From Rays

After being curiously designated for assignment by the Tampa Bay Rays over the weekend, outfielder Corey Dickerson has found a new home. The Pittsburgh Pirates acquired Dickerson on Tuesday in exchange for reliever Daniel Hudson and infield prospect Tristan Gray. What was supposed to be an interesting position battle for the Pirates is no more, […]

Champ or Chump - Jake Odorizzi and Eric Hosmer

It took the better part of four months, but baseball's offseason is finally starting! Eric Hosmer signed a massive contract to vacation play baseball in San Diego, while Jake Odorizzi was traded to the Minnesota Twins for a ham sandwich and a few extra baseballs. One of these players is capable of turning a substantial […]

2018 Catchers - Dynasty Tiered Rankings

As we move closer to the 2018 baseball season, we at RotoBaller have released our Dynasty Rankings. We have been dissecting the tiers of each position, showing fantasy owners where to find value in their draft. At the catcher position, we have a total of 41 players ranked across eight tiers. When looking at dynasty leagues, […]

Blake Snell And Yonny Chirinos Impress Tuesday

Tampa Bay Rays manager Kevin Cash praised how starting pitcher Blake Snell and prospect Yonny Chirinos looked on Tuesday. Snell just recently turned 25 years old, but already has 218 1/3 innings pitched in the majors. The most obvious strength of Snell's young career is his 217 strikeouts, showing that he is a power pitcher […]

Corey Dickerson's Situation With Rays Likely Resolved By Thursday

The Tampa Bay Rays should know by Thursday whether anyone is willing to trade for outfielder Corey Dickerson. If no one does, he'll go on waivers after being designated for assignment. The odds are that he will clear waivers and be released over the weekend. The Rays would then be left with paying just $1 […]

Nick Mariano's 2018 Dynasty Sleepers List (Premium Content)

All other Premium Tools can be accessed on the premium dashboard. The term "sleeper" remains a volatile one, but when you add the dynasty-league wrinkle to it then you really open yourself up to a can of worms. Some people are in 12-team dynasties with a rather healthy stable of prospects available for the picking, […]

ADP Sleepers and Busts - Third Basemen

Take a quick look at the NFBC ADPs of third basemen. What do you notice? Is Manny Machado going too high? Is Joey Gallo the boom-or-bust pick of the year? Is Josh Donaldson the best early-round value pick? Third base might just be the deepest infield position in fantasy this year, so it's important to […]

Willy Adames Joins Jumble At Second Base

The Tampa Bay Rays will give at least five players time at second base in spring training. Manager Kevin Cash named Micah Johnson, Daniel Robertson, Ryan Schimpf and Joey Wendle as players who will see time at second base when he was asked. Later, he said that Willy Adames will mostly see time at shortstop but […]

Brad Miller Looked Good Monday

Tampa Bay Rays first baseman Brad Miller was praised by manager Kevin Cash Monday. Cash said that the best part of spring training Monday was "seeing a healthy Brad Miller take BP and hit with power." Miller shocked everyone by slugging 30 homers in 2016, but he was a massive fantasy disappointment last season and […]

Rays To Open Season With Four-Man Rotation

Tampa Bay Rays manager Kevin Cash said the team will open the year with a four-man rotation that will last until mid-May, which means starting pitcher Matt Andriese will work out of the bullpen in a mult-inning role to begin the season. This isn't good for Andriese to begin the year, but the trade of […]

Nick Mariano's 2018 Early-Round Overvalued List (Premium Content)

All other Premium Tools can be accessed on the premium dashboard. Fantasy baseball drafts (and their articles) are almost all about finding the next superstar and unearthing talent late, but we can't forget that surrendering value by over-drafting can be just as crucial. In order to evaluate overvalued players here, we're going to utilize Average […]

Jake Faria And Matt Andriese In Position To Benefit From Jake Odorizzi Trade

Tampa Bay Rays starting pitchers Jake Faria and Matt Andriese are set to benefit from the trade of Jake Odorizzi to the Twins. It had appeared that they would battle for the fifth spot in the rotation but now there is possibly room for both of them. They will be chased by prospects, which will […]

Nathan Eovaldi Appears To Be In Good Spot To Make Rotation

Tampa Bay Rays starting pitcher Nathan Eovaldi missed all of the 2017 major league season after Tommy John surgery. He has talent but has been erratic so far in his career. In 2014, he gave up a league-high 223 hits but only walked 43 batters in 199 2/3 innings with a record of 6-14. In […]

C.J. Cron Traded To Tampa Bay, Rays Designate Corey Dickerson For Assignment

The Los Angeles Angels traded first baseman C.J. Cron to Tampa Bay for a minor leaguer to be named later. Cron hit .248 with a career-high matching 16 homers, 56 RBI and a .742 OPS in 100 games last season. The Rays also designated All-Star outfielder Corey Dickerson for assignment in a corresponding move. Dickerson started off […]

Jake Odorizzi Traded To Minnesota For Minor Leaguer

The Tampa Bay Rays traded starting pitcher Jake Odorizzi to Minnesota for a Single-A shortstop by the name of Jermaine Palacios. Odorizzi was the Rays No. 2 starter who went 10-8 with a 4.14 ERA in 28 starts with the Rays last year. He punched out 127 batters in 143 1/3 innings. Minnesota also represents a […]

Is Ronald Acuna Being Overdrafted?

With the recent glut of top prospect reports emerging from Keith Law to Baseball America, opinions on the future stars of baseball are myriad and loud. We all look longingly at the next generation and dreams of pennants dance in our heads. Of course, each pundit brings their own flavor to the conversation, and each […]

Three Up, Three Down - 2018 Shortstop Prospects

Much like the wave of third basemen to sweep the league, we’ve had an equally impressive push of young shortstops. Trea Turner, Carlos Correa, Francisco Lindor, and Corey Seager are all 24-years-old, or younger, and are in the Top 30 in fantasy baseball rankings. Who will be part of the next breath of fresh air […]

Matt Duffy Looks To Finally Deliver For Rays Fans

Tampa Bay Rays third baseman Matt Duffy missed all of 2017 due to injury. He has been battling problems and had setbacks since he joined the Rays and admits that he would be skeptical at this point if he was in the shoes of the fans. He was able to fully test his repairs during […]

Brad Miller In The Running At Both First and Second Base

Tampa Bay Rays infielder Brad Miller could be in the running at either first base or second base. The general manager of the Rays went on the radio that they had an "open mind" when figuring out the right side of the infield. It was also noted that Miller would be in the running at either first […]

Brad Miller Expected To Play First Base

Tampa Bay Rays manager Kevin Cash said the plan for now is for infielder Brad Miller to play first base, with Micah Johnson, Daniel Robertson, Ryan Schimpf and Joey Wendle battling for the second base duties. Miller is also a candidate to start at the keystone if the Rays add a first baseman before the […]

Denard Span (OF, TB) - 2018 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers & Draft Values

BALLER MOVE: Target ~400 CURRENT ADP: 442 ANALYSIS: Denard Span did a little of everything without excelling at anything in 2017, slashing .272/.329/.427 with 12 homers and 12 swipes (seven CS). That makes him a boring fantasy selection, but he's useful roster glue in short bursts or deeper formats. Span's home park really seemed to hurt him last year, […]

Christian Arroyo (SS/3B, TB) - 2018 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers & Draft Values

BALLER MOVE: Target ~400 CURRENT ADP: 527 ANALYSIS: Christian Arroyo was dreadful in 135 MLB PAs last season, slashing .192/.244/.304 with three dingers. He was too good at Triple-A before his debut, slashing .396/.461/.604 with four big flies over 102 PAs on the back of a .427 BABIP. His full season Double-A statistics in 2016 (.274/.316/.373, three […]

Brent Honeywell (SP, TB) - 2018 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers & Draft Values

BALLER MOVE: Target ~260 CURRENT ADP: 276 ANALYSIS: Brent Honeywell took the minor leagues by storm in 2015 by posting a 3.18 ERA, 1.051 WHIP, 8.9 K/9, and 4.78 K/BB between Low-A and High-A. He entered the MLB Pipeline Top 100 (checking in at #43) prior to the 2016 season and hasn't stopped producing since. Many expected Honeywell to […]

Chris Archer Doesn't Expect To Be Traded

Tampa Bay Rays starting pitcher Chris Archer feels confident that he won't be traded before the start of the season. “I’ve talked to (GM) Erik (Neander) a lot and he’s made me feel pretty good about being with the Rays in 2018," Archer said. Archer has mostly been linked to the Cardinals this offseason, but […]

Willie Calhoun is Coming...

Last season, the Rangers surprised the baseball world by trading superstar Yu Darvish to the Los Angeles Dodgers for a return that, at the time, was deemed pretty sparse. The centerpiece was a little known, and maybe lesser-appreciated infielder named Willie Calhoun. Drafted in the fourth round of the 2015 MLB draft, Calhoun started his […]

Steven Souza Jr. Avoids Arbitration

Tampa Bay Rays outfielder Steven Souza Jr. avoided salary arbitration by agreeing to a one-year, $3.55 million deal, according to a source. Although his batting average remained low (.239) due to inconsistent contact, Souza otherwise had a career year, hitting 30 home runs and driving in 78 runs in 148 games. Despite the lack of […]

Alex Colome Avoids Arbitration

Tampa Bay Rays closer Alex Colome avoided salary arbitration by agreeing to a one-year, $5.3 million deal, according to a source. While Colome recorded an MLB-leading 47 saves in 2017, his overall numbers elsewhere weren't as impressive as his 2016 campaign. His strikeout and walk rates both went in the wrong direction, and his ERA […]

Rays, Corey Dickerson Avoid Arbitration

Tampa Bay Rays outfielder Corey Dickerson avoided salary arbitration by agreeing to a one-year, $5.95 million deal. Dickerson made some gains against left-handed pitchers in 2017, which is encouraging, but he remains a power stick that is BABIP-dependent. However, he'll be valuable for fantasy owners across all leagues with a full-time outfield role for Tampa […]