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About Nick Mariano - RotoBaller
Senior MLB/NFL Fantasy Analyst & Editor here at RotoBaller, I've been lucky enough to work here since 2015. Spent two seasons writing for MLB.com as well.
FantasyPros ranked me as 2018's most accurate fantasy baseball draft dude, and I'm a three-time top-12 ranker in their fantasy football weekly accuracy competition as well. I rank the things good, or something.
NY born and raised, but now you can find me in Boston with my awesome Star Baker of a wife. Addicted to apples, peanut butter, learning about cognitive biases, and baseball cards. Lots of baseball cards...
Feel free to reach out on Twitter or ride with me on Peloton: @NMariano53
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Nick Mariano - RotoBaller has written 1887 articles so far, you can find them below.
Keone Kela (RP, TEX) - Week 1 Waiver Wire Pickups
BALLER MOVE: Add in All Saves Leagues OWNED IN: 21% of leagues ANALYSIS: Kela was recently named the closer for the Texas Rangers. He may have previously dug himself into Texas’ doghouse, but he doesn’t deserve to be in fantasy ones too. Ignoring his brief disciplinary stint at Triple-A, the fireballer posted a 2.79 ERA (3.26 FIP)... Read More
Jack Flaherty (SP, STL) - Week 1 Waiver Wire Pickups
BALLER MOVE: Add in Deeper Leagues OWNED IN: 24% of leagues ANALYSIS: Thanks to an Adam Wainwright injury, Flaherty will open the season as the Cardinals’ No. 5 starter and get a chance to show off his fastball, slider, curveball and just maybe the changeup. His brief stint in the Majors (at age 21) didn’t go so... Read More
Marco Estrada (SP, TOR) - Week 1 Waiver Wire Pickups
BALLER MOVE: Add in Deeper Leagues OWNED IN: 29% of leagues ANALYSIS: To most folks, Estrada’s poor 2017 season just confirms the sabermetric counterpunch that had cast its shadow over his successful years. His 3.13 ERA of ‘15 had a 4.40 FIP and 4.93 xFIP behind it, only to produce a 3.48 ERA, 4.15 FIP and 4.64... Read More
Michael Brantley (OF, CLE) - Week 1 Waiver Wire Pickups
BALLER MOVE: Stash in 10+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 42% of leagues ANALYSIS: I know, Brantley is synonymous with injured and he’s starting the year on the DL so why are we discussing this? Well, this injury stint is just due to recovery from offseason ankle surgery and the concerns surrounding dealing with him potentially never coming... Read More
Lewis Brinson (OF, MIA) - Week 1 Waiver Wire Pickups
BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 33% of leagues ANALYSIS: There’s little doubting Brinson is a talented player, but I understand why a 24-year-old that looked over his head during his cup of coffee last year is being shied away from. We can’t ignore that being Miami depresses value as well, but I hold... Read More
Marcus Semien (SS, OAK) - Week 1 Waiver Wire Pickups
BALLER MOVE: Add in 10-12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 40% of leagues ANALYSIS: Semien is poised to split leadoff duties with Matt Joyce for Oakland, with the 27-year-old seeking a rebound to his 600-plus PA seasons in 2018 and challenging for a 100-20-75-15-.250 season. It’s very unlikely his average jumps much past that, but he did pop... Read More
Neil Walker (1B/2B, NYY) - Week 1 Waiver Wire Pickups
BALLER MOVE: Add in Deeper Leagues OWNED IN: 16% of leagues ANALYSIS: We’ll dig a bit deeper here to speak on Walker, who was mercifully plucked from the free-agent pool already by the Yankees. When a guy gets into the Yankees starting lineup, then you probably want to pluck them from the FA pool as well.... Read More
Cesar Hernandez (2B, PHI) - Week 1 Waiver Wire Pickups
BALLER MOVE: Add in Deeper Leagues OWNED IN: 46% of leagues ANALYSIS: Everyone’s over here freaking out about Scott Kingery (which I get) and yet, Hernandez’s moderate yet dependable output is being overlooked in too many leagues. Maybe you feel like he’s been around for too long and just isn’t exciting, but he’s only 27! He’s hit exactly... Read More
Austin Barnes (C/2B, LAD) - Week 1 Waiver Wire Pickups
BALLER MOVE: Add in Deeper Leagues OWNED IN: 36% owned ANALYSIS: Barnes pushed aside Yasmani Grandal for starts down the stretch last year by rocking an .895 OPS with eight homers and four steals in 262 plate appearances, which led to his also starting over Grandal through much of the postseason. Grandal is no slouch, especially defensively,... Read More
Week 1 Waiver Wire: 25-50% Owned Pickups
First, winter was here and the night was truly dark and full of terrors. But now, now it's Opening Day and the ills of the world are all invited to screw off. I love you all, what a great day! In light of this, let's give that free agent pool one last look over before... Read More
Relief Pitcher H2H Points Rankings - March Update
With the regular season, also known as the fantasy season, just a few weeks away, it's time for the RotoBaller staff to update our points rankings one last time. We end our review of the March update with a look at the bullpen for the relief pitcher position. While there is a lot of talent... Read More
Outfield H2H Points Rankings - March Update
Welcome back RotoBallers. With the MLB season just a few days away, it's time to update our rankings and analysis to account for injuries, free agent signings, spring training risers/fallers and more. We continue our updated March rankings today with the outfield position. I, Nick Mariano, will break down each tier and provides analysis for which... Read More
Nick Mariano's 10 Bold Predictions for 2018
As we steamroll toward Opening Day, our experienced writers will be offering their most bold predictions for the 2018 fantasy baseball season. These are always a fun exercise that allows us to really trumpet our more outlandish stances heading into 2017. I promise it comes from an educated place, but these are far from "probable"... Read More
Deeper NL Outfield Sleepers - Undervalued ADPs
We are gathered here today to discuss everyone’s favorite fantasy buzzword, the “sleepers.” Not only that, but we’re tabbing these guys as deeper sleepers with a focus on the outfield position for National League teams. The outfield is always complicated by having so many options that you feel like there's always another guy waiting for you... Read More
Deeper AL Outfield Sleepers - Undervalued ADPs
We are gathered here today to continue our discussion everyone’s favorite fantasy buzzword, the “sleepers.” Not only that, but we’re tabbing these guys as deeper sleepers with a focus on the outfield position for American League teams. The outfield is always complicated by having so many options that you feel like there's always another guy... Read More
Deeper Second Base Sleepers - Undervalued ADPs
We are gathered here today to discuss everyone’s favorite fantasy buzzword, the “sleepers”. Not only that, but we’re tabbing these guys as deeper sleepers with a focus on the second base position. The keystone position is an exciting one these days, and while many folks are scurrying to score Ian Happ, Jonathan Villar or Ian... Read More
Deeper First Base Sleepers - Undervalued ADPs
We are gathered here today to discuss everyone’s favorite fantasy buzzword, the “sleepers”. Not only that, but we’re tabbing these guys as deeper sleepers with a focus on the first base position. That means no Jose Martinez cop-out blurbs because that dude has already woken up and then some! With draft season officially underway, it's... Read More
Updated Shortstop Rankings - 2018 Fantasy Baseball
With the regular season only a few weeks away, the esteemed RotoBaller staff has updated their rankings one last time. We continue our review of the March update with a look at the glorious shortstop position. There's a bevy of talented bats ready to be penciled in at the "6" this season, but the sure things draw... Read More
Trevor Story Rankings Debate - Comparing RotoBaller's Rankers
We continue our series of articles debating the overall ranking of some of the most fantasy-relevant players of the 2018 baseball season with a player who captivated the world with the start of his career in 2016, but now finds himself in need of redemption after a disappointing 2017. Colorado Rockies shortstop Trevor Story is... Read More
Danny Duffy Rankings Debate - Comparing RotoBaller's Rankers
We continue our series of articles debating the overall ranking of some of the most fantasy-relevant players of the 2018 baseball season with a player who broke out in 2016 and showed flashes of brilliance in 2017. Kansas City Royals starting pitcher Danny Duffy is a mid-round pick who has shown incredible upside since joining... Read More
Starling Marte Rankings Debate: Comparing RotoBaller's Rankers
We continue our series of articles debating the overall ranking of some of the most fantasy-relevant players of the 2018 baseball season with a dynamic player who went through a tough 2017. Starling Marte has been a fixture in the early fantasy rounds for several years now, but an 80-game PED suspension derailed his '17... Read More
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,... Read More
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... Read More
Nick Mariano's 2018 Late-Round MLB Fliers (Premium Content)
All other Premium Tools can be accessed on the premium dashboard. Howdy, RotoBallers! I hope you're ready to take chances, make mistakes and get messy. We’re here to dig a little deeper into the draft room and look for players that would be wise to take a flier on in the late rounds. It can... Read More
Giancarlo Stanton Rankings Debate: Comparing RotoBaller's Rankers
We continue our series of articles debating the overall ranking of some of the most fantasy-relevant players of the 2018 baseball season with a player who set the world on fire in 2017. New York Yankees outfielder Giancarlo Stanton is an early pick sure to garner a lot of attention after his N.L. MVP season... Read More
Nick Mariano's 2018 Draft Sleepers List (Premium Content)
All other Premium Tools can be accessed on the premium dashboard. It's everyone's favorite pre-draft word to throw around and likely threatens to take the top spot on some Google Analytics the closer we get to that premier fantasy baseball draft season. Yup, we're talking about sleepers. But let's just get this out of the way:... Read More
Domingo Santana Rankings Debate: Comparing RotoBaller's Rankers
We continue our series of articles debating the overall ranking of some of the most fantasy-relevant players of the 2018 baseball season with a player that may be on the move soon. Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Domingo Santana is an early pick sure to garner a lot of attention after his breakout season. RotoBaller's expert writers... Read More
2018 Outfield - Early Points League Rankings and Tiers
I have the honor of tackling the ever-so-deep class of outfielders for you, the esteemed points-league owner. We realize that many sites tailor their analysis toward the standard rotisserie league, but we love everyone equally. That said, we have to recognize that standard 5x5 categories are also much easier to create white-label rankings that anyone... Read More
2017 RotoBaller Fantasy Football Awards
Welcome to the official 2017 Fantasy Football Awards Show, presented by RotoBaller. I'm no Michael Scott and this won't be The Dundies, but I'll do my best to entertain and educate as we honor some of the fine football players, coaches and teams who have had outstanding (for better or worse) performances in the 2017... Read More
Week 17 Waiver Wire Pickups and Adds
Ho, ho, ho and a Merry Christmas to you all. This piece is for the select few of you who are either in two-week championships or somehow got talked into doing a league where Week 17 is the sole week for determining titles. I'll avoid the soapbox for now, but the playing-time chaos that will... Read More
