The Cut List: Week 3 - Time to Let Go?
Welcome to the Cut List. This is our weekly article looking at players who fantasy managers should consider cutting from their teams. We'll look at players who are worthy of a drop, worth monitoring for replacing and someone on the hot seat but worth holding on to... for now. Moving forward, we'll also revisit the previous... Read More
Which Pitchers With New Pitches Should We Care About? Part Three
Throughout all Spring Training, we hear about pitching adding new pitches, or making major changes to their pitch usage. We even get to see those new pitches in action and dream about their potential impact. I even covered some of those potential changes here and here. However, when the regular season starts, sometimes those changes... Read More
Top Hitter Streamers and Starts for Week 2
Welcome to the top hitter streamers column for Week 2 of the MLB season (4/5 through 4/11). This weekly piece should be helpful for anyone looking to gain an edge in their league. If you need a fill-in for an injured player or want to exploit some plus matchups to gain an edge on your... Read More
Which Pitchers With New Pitches Should We Care About? Part Two
Spring Training is coming to a close, and we're inching closer to getting to the "real thing." That means an opportunity to see which players' offseason changes can lead to true breakouts or perhaps which guys will fall back on old habits. As the games have been going on, I've been keeping track of pitchers... Read More
RotoSurgeon's Bold Predictions for 2021
For more than one reason, 2020 sucked. Obvious reasons come to mind but specifically, for the fantasy sports world, there were dozens of random occurrences that could not have been predicted whatsoever due to COVID being so fresh and protocols so flimsy. Guys like Austin Meadows and Eduardo Rodriguez lost a potentially very good season... Read More
KC Bubba's 10 Bold Predictions for 2021
The 2021 season is so close to starting, which means it is time for some bold predictions. It appears the season will still be a complete 162 games, with no NL DH and a standard playoff format. The bouncy ball will supposedly be replaced with a ball designed to limit power, fun times like usual from... Read More
Using Sabermetrics for Fantasy Baseball: Barrels
We've previously looked at how exit velocity (or EV) is only one piece of the fantasy analysis puzzle. Baseball broadcasts will commonly cite Launch Angle (LA) to complement their EV figures, but it is given in terms of degrees. Am I evaluating a baseball player or trying to find the hypotenuse of an isosceles triangle?... Read More
2021 Keeper Value Rankings - Shortstop
Many many years ago, I noticed the managers in my long-time keeper league were consistently making terrible keeper decisions year after year. Instead of taking their money every year thought I would help them out and find a good set of Keeper League Rankings to share with them. What I found was quite disturbing. There... Read More
Late-Round Fliers for RBI Production
RBI production is a valuable stat in all fantasy baseball formats, but it is not always an easy stat to predict. Locating solid RBI production late in drafts becomes even more difficult. Ideally, you want players who will hit in the middle of lineups, which are expected to score plenty of runs. Now, this may... Read More
Multi-Position Assets For All Fantasy Leagues
With such a short season in 2020, many starting pitchers weren't able to throw more than 60 innings, so it's unlikely that they take the massive jump this season that would allow them to get to the 170-180 innings we usually expect. To work around this, many teams have discussed implementing six-man rotations and even... Read More
Post-Hype Pitchers Set To Break Out
What is a post-hype sleeper? If you ask 10 fantasy analysts you'll probably get 10 different answers but it boils down to players that have fallen off the fantasy radar after garnering quite a bit of buzz in prior seasons. It's a lot like shopping in an outlet store. You've got all kinds of name-brand... Read More
2021 Relievers To Target For Holds
As evidenced by the success of the 2015 Kansas City Royals and 2020 Tampa Bay Rays, we have seen a much greater focus placed on strengthening middle-relief in MLB bullpens over the past decade. Additionally, in recent seasons we have seen a shift toward teams utilizing their best reliever in the most crucial innings and... Read More
Five Players Set to Break Out at Second Base
When defining a breakout, I look at it as players that can take a step forward to a level they never reached before. This leaves most of the top targets at the position unavailable for this discussion. Today, we bring you five players at the second base position that can take that next step and... Read More
Diamonds in the Pen - Deep Reliever Draft Targets
When it comes to building a pitching staff in fantasy, most managers focus solely on starting pitchers and closers. And that makes sense. In standard scoring, those pitchers are the ones who are going to make the greatest contributions to wins, strikeouts and saves. A guy that comes in and tosses a scoreless frame in... Read More
Power Sleepers - Noteworthy 2020 Barrel Leaders
As we've continued to progress in the MLB offseason, I've been looking at barrel rates from 2020 in the hopes of finding players whose breakouts during the shortened season were real or those who may still have breakouts looming. As I've mentioned previously, I'm a firm believer that finding the barrel regularly is an incredibly... Read More
Catcher Draft Targets for All Leagues
Enough with the catcher slander! As fantasy baseball drafts heat up, all I keep reading about is how we're "forced" to draft catchers and how they can tank your roster. Catchers are people too! I could use thousands of words writing about the value of catchers and how the grind of their defensive job and... Read More
Hitter Targets Under $10 - Salary Cap League Values
Snake drafts are the more common method, but salary cap leagues offer a more complex flavor to your draft day. That's not for everyone, and that's fine; part of the beauty of fantasy baseball lies in its high degree of customizability. Salary cap drafts take longer, and they're much less straightforward than snakes, but for... Read More
2021 Keeper Value Rankings - Third Base
Many many years ago, I noticed the managers in my long-time keeper league were consistently making terrible keeper decisions year after year. Instead of taking their money every year thought I would help them out and find a good set of Keeper League Rankings to share with them. What I found was quite disturbing. There... Read More
2021 Keeper Value Rankings - Second Base
Many many years ago, I noticed the managers in my long-time keeper league were consistently making terrible keeper decisions year after year. Instead of taking their money every year thought I would help them out and find a good set of Keeper League Rankings to share with them. What I found was quite disturbing. There... Read More
Best-Ball Late-Round Values - Infield
Fantasy Baseball draft season is in full swing, and that goes for more than just redraft leagues; we are talking best-ball formats. Best-ball leagues have been gaining traction in recent years and for good reason. Drafts start almost immediately after the previous season ends for those looking for an offseason fantasy fix. Best-ball drafts are... Read More
Top 10 Shortstops - Dynasty Prospects Rankings
The shortstop position is a bountiful one for fantasy players. In a 12-team league, most fantasy managers should have the opportunity to be happy with their starter at the position thanks to the depth and variety of skills available. In 2019, 16 shortstops that had at least 350 plate appearances produced a 100 wRC+ or... Read More
Finding Over/Undervalued Shortstops Using Expected Draft Values
Welcome to the FSWA-nominated Expected Draft Values series, where we look at historical data to identify both overvalued and undervalued players of all types. Whether you're targeting power, speed, power+speed, batting average+power, and so on, we've got you covered. We'll start at first base and make our way around the diamond to begin the 2021... Read More
Jon Anderson's Outfield Tiered Rankings and Projections
I continue to press forward on my own personal rankings series. Today we tackle the beast that is the outfield. Check out the rest of the series at the links below if you haven't already! First Base Second Base Shortstop Third Base Starting at the top, here's that juicy tier one full of first-round talent.Featured... Read More
2021 Keeper Value Rankings - First Base
Many many years ago, I noticed the managers in my long-time keeper league were consistently making terrible keeper decisions year after year. Instead of taking their money every year thought I would help them out and find a good set of Keeper League Rankings to share with them. What I found was quite disturbing. There... Read More
Roster Construction Strategies from the Middle
Drafting a great roster is the vital base for a successful fantasy baseball season. In order to do that, you'll need to find an optimal draft position. All draft spots are not created equal. Finding the right spot for you is your first task. Everyone has their own preference on the best spot to start... Read More
Using Sabermetrics for Fantasy Baseball: HR/FB
Using BABIP to predict a player's batting average is great. Batting average is a category in many league formats, and every hit is an opportunity to steal a base or score a run. But most fantasy managers find the long ball sexier. Every HR comes with a guaranteed run scored and at least one RBI.... Read More
Outfield Dynasty Rankings for Fantasy Baseball
We've already gone around the infield with a look at first base, second base, third base, and shortstop. Let's head to the outfield now to break down the long list of outfielders that have fantasy relevance in 2021 and beyond. All of the players listed have outfield eligibility, although several will be used at shallower... Read More
Rough Times in the Rockies: Examining Prospects from the Arenado Trade
With the Nolan Arenado trade finalized, we now know who Colorado will be receiving from St. Louis. Here's how that trade breaks down: St. Louis receives: 3B Nolan Arenado Colorado receives: LHP Austin Gomber, SS Mateo Gil, 3B Elehuris Montero, RHP Tony Locey, RHP Jake Sommers I already wrote about what to expect from Arenado in... Read More
Drew Smyly (SP, ATL) - 2021 Fantasy Baseball Draft Sleepers
Finding strong starting pitching that does not have a hefty price tag can be really tough. A lot of leagues are won by the team that had the most success with their later-round starting pitcher selections. Blake Snell, Shane Bieber, and Dinelson Lamet are three names of the last handful of years that went in... Read More