X
Lost password?

Don't have an account?
Gain Access Now

X

Receive free daily analysis

NFL
NBA
NHL
NASCAR
CFB
MLB
MMA
PGA
ESPORTS
BETTING

Already have an account? Log In

X

Forgot Password


POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Daily Stats & Leaders
All Pitcher Matchups
Compare Any Players
Compare Any Players
Rookies & Call-Ups
24x7 News and Alerts

Thunder Dan's "My Guys" For 2022 Fantasy Baseball Drafts

Logan Webb - Fantasy Baseball Rankings, Starting Pitchers, Draft Sleepers

Thunder Dan Palyo highlights his five favorite players to draft in 2022 fantasy baseball leagues as breakout candidates and draft targets who could win leagues.

MLB season is almost here and I couldn't be more excited. I am totally copying my buddy Jon Anderson here as he put out his favorite five players last week and had previously brought me and a bunch of other baseball analysts on his fantasy baseball podcast for a special "my guys" episode.

I've been more involved in the MLB preseason content this season than ever before and chatting with so many amazing RotoBaller baseball writers has really rekindled my love of fantasy baseball. If you've followed me for DFS stuff in the past, that's still my forte and what I do most of the time, but I'm really looking forward to this season-long fantasy baseball this year.

So without any further ado, here are my five favorite names to draft for 2022.

Be sure to check all of our fantasy baseball lineup tools and resources:

 

Logan Webb, San Francisco Giants

My love affair with Logan Webb is fairly well-documented. And it all started last year on May 11th. After muddling through his first six starts of the season, Webb struck out 10 Rangers in six innings and allowed only four baserunners in an incredibly efficient outing.

From that point forward, he was simply one of the better pitchers in baseball. In his final 20 starts, he went 10-0 with a 2.40 ERA and 125 strikeouts in 116 innings. He allowed just six homers and walked 22. And he was one of the best-kept secrets in DFS as the field was slow to catch on to just how dominant he was becoming.

It's really fun to see a young pitcher come into his own and figure out how to best use their stuff. As the graphic shows, Webb ditched his four-seamer and cutter almost entirely in favor of his sinker, slider, and change-up. His sinker was one of the best pitches in baseball (in my opinion and the data backs it up) in terms of being both a swing and miss pitch and inducing ground balls. He sat right around 93 to 95 MPH with it and was able to place it pretty much wherever he wanted to with pinpoint control.

25-year-old pitchers with a 60% groundball rate, 26.5% strikeout rate, and 6% walk rate don't exactly grow on trees. And young pitchers with three quality pitches and above-average control are also not easy to find. Some might suggest that Webb could regress this season, but I think the much more likely outcome is another really good, possibly great year with a solid offense for run support and a pitcher-friendly home park. He's not a well-known name among casual baseball fans, but Logan Webb is a stat-loving sabermetrician's (like yours truly) dream pitcher.

 

Matt Olson, Atlanta Braves

My good friend Brian Entrekin (you may know him as "KC Bubba") wrote about Olson's arrival in Atlanta here and I'll save some time here by saying that the general consensus around the industry is that it's a good thing and potentially a nice boost to his home run production.

His massive year in 2021 was due to a huge decrease in his strikeout rate. He cut his K% by a whopping 14.6% - which was the single biggest decrease of any hitter in baseball. He also walked a career-high 13% of the time which boosted his OBP to a whopping .371.

Olson simply did everything well last year, including hit left-handed pitching which I covered in some detail here in my breakdown of hitter splits last week.

I know Freeman has the pedigree and the larger sample size of hitting for both average and power, but Olson is in the prime of his career and couldn't have asked for a betting landing spot for his power than Atlanta. I truly feel like he could crack the top-20 this season and he's still going off the board in the late third round despite everything pointing towards a huge year. I'm all in at this point and there's no going back.

 

Tyler O'Neill, St. Louis Cardinals

Guess who had the second-biggest increase in barrel rate from 2020 to 2021? It would probably be weird if the answer was anyone else than Tyler O'Neill considering you already know who I am talking about in this section, right? Yeah - O'Neill barrelled up 17.9% of balls he hit last year which was a 9.7% increase from 2020 and second only to the AL MVP Shohei Ohtani.

When O'Neill hits the ball, he hits it hard and it usually goes pretty far. His batted ball metrics are tremendous.

But the strikeout rate and lack of contact are the biggest issues for O'Neill right now. He had by far the best season of his career in 2021 when he hit 34 bombs while driving in 80 runs and stealing 15 bases. If he can cut that K rate even by 5-6% this year and make more contact he could hit better than his career average of .260 and put up some awesome power numbers. If he follows the Olson blueprint of making more contact we could see 40+ homers and 100 RBI, I firmly believe it.

Even if we get similar production to 2021, I'd be happy with that from O'Neill if I take him in the 3rd round. 35 homer/15 steal guys don't exactly grow on trees, right? I think we have in O'Neill is a remarkable athlete at the peak of his physical prime with all the tools to be a superstar and now the opportunity to make it happen. I love his lineup spot sandwiched in between Goldy and Arenado and I think despite a slow Spring so far, he's primed for another huge year.

 

Patrick Sandoval, Los Angeles Angels

So this is not the first time I have discussed Sandoval this preseason and my affinity for him goes back to the second half of last season when he was winning us money in DFS. In today's day and age, it's easy to fall in love with hard throwers or guys with crazy big breaking balls. But I'm a sucker for a good changeup and the pitch tunneling that Sandoval has with this fastball/change-up combo is simply amazing. See for yourself.

Sandoval sits around 92-93 MPH with his four-seamer so he's not overpowering hitters. He threw far fewer four-seamers last year than in 2019 and made the changeup his primary offspeed pitch. It was his best pitch with a massive 51.4% whiff rate last year. He also upped his slider usage, which was a good thing as it's his second-best pitch. He throws a curveball, too, and mixed all four pitches effectively at times to the tune of a 15.7% swinging-strike rate and 31.6% CSW.

As I mentioned with Webb, I love guys who can strikeout hitters while also maintaining a solid ground ball rate. While Sandoval's isn't anywhere close to the elite 60% that Webb posted, he's still at a solid 52% which plays quite nicely. Without overpowering stuff, he will have to rely on inducing soft contact, which he did well last year as had the 19th best (lowest) hard contact rate of 21.5% among qualified pitchers.

His walk rate is pushing 10% and he will have to continue to improve his control, but I am enamored with his ability to miss bats when he has his stuff. He's the kind of guy who take a big leap this year and is going far too late in drafts for his potential. He's turning into a pitcher, not just a thrower and I'm ready for the breakout in 2022.

 

Michael Kopech, Chicago White Sox

It's debatable just how important Statcast numbers are for pitchers (there was quite a debate going on Twitter yesterday with Derek Carty and others) but Kopech's slider is impressive anyway. Even if you ignore the expected stats, exit velocity, and hard contact - the K%, Whiff %, fastball velocity and spin were all elite in 2021.

It's been a long road back from injuries that derailed him early in his career, but Kopech was simply outstanding as a reliever last year. His stuff is electric and he was throwing gas right by hitters while racking up strikeouts.

I know there are concerns about his workload as the White Sox transition him into the rotation, but if he can maintain the same effectiveness that he had last year in five to six innings per start this season, we are looking at a huge breakout year. The White Sox passed on resigning Carlos Rodon for several reasons, but one of those reasons had to be that they knew they wanted Kopech in the rotation and expect big things from him.

He has dual eligibility at SP and RP and going in the middle rounds of drafts. I've been scooping him up early as he's simply far more talented than most of the other remaining starters that late in drafts. The kid has Cy Young-winning upside (maybe not this year but at some point).

Good luck in your drafts and thank goodness that baseball is almost back! I can't wait for that first slate of MLB DFS action on Thursday!



Download Our Free News & Alerts Mobile App

Like what you see? Download our updated fantasy baseball app for iPhone and Android with 24x7 player news, injury alerts, sleepers, prospects & more. All free!



More Fantasy Baseball Advice




POPULAR FANTASY TOOLS

Expert Advice
Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Daily Stats & Leaders
All Pitcher Matchups
Compare Any Players
Compare Any Players
Rookies & Call-Ups
24x7 News and Alerts

REAL-TIME FANTASY NEWS

Griffin Conine

To Have Shoulder Surgery On Tuesday
Luke Keaschall

Twins Prospect Luke Keaschall Suffers Broken Forearm
Logan Gilbert

Leaves Friday's Start With Forearm Tightness

Vikings Select Tai Felton To Finish Day 2

Seahawks Select Quarterback Jalen Milroe With The 92nd Pick Overall

Browns Select Dillon Gabriel 94th Overall

Packers Pick Savion Williams At No. 87 overall

Steelers Snag Kaleb Johnson In Round 3

Broncos Select Wide Receiver Pat Bryant With The 74th Overall Pick

Texans Select Jaylin Noel With 79th Pick

Lions Select Wide Receiver Isaac TeSlaa With The 70th Overall Pick
Jack Leiter

To Start On Sunday

Patriots Add Wide Receiver Kyle Williams In Round 3

Browns Draft Harold Fannin Jr. With 67th Pick
Garrett Mitchell

Makes Early Exit
Luke Keaschall

Removed Early On Friday
Blake Snell

Likely Avoids Major Injury
Cole Ragans

Dealing With Mild Groin Strain

Broncos Add RJ Harvey To Backfield With 60th Pick

Raiders Select Jack Bech With 58th Pick

Chargers Add Wide Receiver Tre Harris In Round 2
Detroit Lions

Lions Acquire 57th Pick From Broncos

Seahawks Draft Elijah Arroyo 50th Overall
Carolina Panthers

Panthers Acquire 51st Pick From Broncos
Arizona Cardinals

Cardinals Snag Will Johnson At No. 47

Jets Add A Pass-Catcher With Mason Taylor At No. 42

Rams Select Terrance Ferguson With 46th Pick
Houston Texans

Texans Acquire 48th Pick From Raiders, Draft Aireontae Ersery

Saints Snag Tyler Shough At No. 40
Brenton Doyle

Out For Personal Reasons On Friday
Brandin Podziemski

Not On Injury Report For Game 3
Jimmy Butler III

Warriors Optimistic About Jimmy Butler III Playing Saturday
Jae'Sean Tate

To Remain Out Saturday
Jock Landale

Unavailable For Game 3
Terry Rozier

Out On Saturday
Jrue Holiday

Ruled Out For Friday Night's Game 3 Against Orlando
Kevin Love

To Miss Saturday's Game
Jaylen Brown

Available For Friday Night's Game 3 Against Magic
Gary Payton II

Iffy For Saturday's Action
Jayson Tatum

Officially Available On Friday For Game 3 Against Magic
Will Smith

Back From Injury On Friday
Luke Kennard

Questionable For Game 4 On Saturday
Darius Garland

Listed As Questionable For Game 3
Ja Morant

To Miss Game 4 On Saturday
Rui Hachimura

Available For Game 3 In Minnesota
Aaron Ekblad

Available To Return Saturday
Erik Swanson

Ryan Burr Progressing
Daulton Varsho

To Return On Tuesday At The Latest
Max Scherzer

Takes Positive Step On Friday
Aleksander Barkov

Questionable For Saturday
Gabriel Landeskog

Set For Larger Role In Game 4
Calvin Pickard

To Start Game 3 For Oilers
Randy Arozarena

Resting For First Time This Year
Jonas Siegenthaler

To Play Limited Minutes In Game 3
MLB

Red Sox-Guardians Game Postponed On Friday
Luke Hughes

Remains Out On Friday
MLB

Tigers-Orioles Postponed On Friday
Patrik Laine

A Game-Time Decision Friday
Yainer Diaz

Out On Friday Against Royals
Iván Herrera

Ivan Herrera Hopes To Start Rehab Assignment Next Week
Salvador Perez

Sitting Out For First Time This Season
Jaylen Brown

Questionable For Game 3 On Friday
Brendan Donovan

Back In Action On Friday
Jimmy Butler III

Could Miss Game 3 On Saturday
Coby Mayo

Getting On A Roll At Triple-A
Carlos Prates

Looks To Remain Undefeated In The UFC
Ian Machado Garry

Set For UFC Kansas City Main Event
Cade Cunningham

Collects Double-Double In Loss
Jalen Brunson

Drops 30 Points In Game 3
Karl-Anthony Towns

Leads All Scorers In Game 3 Victory
Zhang Mingyang

Scheduled For Co-Main Event
Anthony Smith

Set For His Final UFC Bout
David Onama

Set For Featherweight Bout
Giga Chikadze

Looks To Bounce Back
Abus Magomedov

Looks For His Third Consecutive Win
Michel Pereira

Returns To Action At UFC Kansas City
Nicolas Dalby

An Underdog At UFC Kansas City
Randy Brown

A Favorite At UFC Kansas City
Andre Muniz

Set To Open Up UFC Kansas City Main Card
Ikram Aliskerov

Looks To Get Back In The Win Column
Sergei Bobrovsky

Shuts Out Lightning In Game 2
Cam Fowler

Finishes Thursday's Win With Five Points
Robert Thomas

Posts Four Assists In Game 3 Win
Pavel Buchnevich

Celebrates Hat Trick During Four-Point Performance
Dylan DeMelo

Battling An Illness
Marcus Johansson

Exits Early Thursday
Aleksander Barkov

Hurt In Game 2
Jrue Holiday

Tagged As Questionable For Friday
Jayson Tatum

Likely Out Again On Friday
Anthony Cirelli

Good To Go Thursday
Andrei Vasilevskiy

Looks To Bounce Back In Game 2
Rasmus Ristolainen

To Miss Training Camp
Jonas Siegenthaler

Returns To Practice
Aliaksei Protas

Traveling With Capitals
Gabriel Vilardi

Still Out On Thursday
Max Pacioretty

Set To Join Maple Leafs Lineup For Game 3
Cam Davis

Looking For Better Fortunes At TPC Louisiana
Adam Svensson

Making Third Apperence At Zurich Classic
Max Greyserman

Aiming For Similar Success At TPC Louisiana
Lee Hodges

A High-Upside Player In New Orleans
PGA

Nico Echavarria Looks To Ride Off Of Elite Putting In New Orleans
Gary Woodland

A Player Worth Watching In New Orleans
Max McGreevy

Returns To The Zurich Classic Of New Orleans
Rasmus Hojgaard

In Search Of Consistency Ahead Of Zurich Classic
Sam Stevens

A Boom-Or-Bust Candidate In New Orleans
Nicolai Hojgaard

Looking To Turn Season Around At Zurich Classic
Christiaan Bezuidenhout

Looks To Sway A Hot Putter In Teams Favor At Zurich Classic
Akshay Bhatia

Looking To Bounce Back At TPC Louisiana
Carson Young

Looks To Turn Things Around At TPC Louisiana
Erik Van Rooyen

Looking For Momentum In Louisiana
Andrew Novak

Making Start At TPC Louisiana After Near Miss At Harbour Town
Ben Griffin

Making Third Career Start At Zurich Classic
Taylor Moore

Competing With A New Teammate In New Orleans
Wyndham Clark

Making Return To New Orleans
Kurt Kitayama

Teeing It Up Again In New Orleans
Collin Morikawa

Back At Zurich Classic For Fifth Time
Thomas Detry

Making Third Appearance At New Orleans Team Event
RANKINGS
C
1B
2B
3B
SS
OF
SP
RP

RANKINGS

QB
RB
WR
TE
K
DEF