RADIO
Are You For Real? Surprising MLB Pitcher Starts from Week 23
Luis Cessa Optioned To Triple-A
The battle for bullpen spots on the New York Yankees lost a competitor today after the club optioned Luis Cessa to the Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders. The 25-year-old has made multiple appearances for the club the past two seasons, both as starter and reliever. This spring he made four appearances, posting a 2-0 record with a... Read More
Yairo Munoz Makes the Opening Day Roster
St. Louis Cardinals utility player Yairo Munoz has made the Opening Day roster. Munoz beat out Harrison Bader and Luke Voit for the last spot on the roster. He hit three home runs and slashed a strong .376/.423/.625 in Grapefruit League play. Acquired in the Stephen Piscotty trade, Munoz can play in the infield and... Read More
Jason Vargas To Throw Again On Friday
New York Mets starting pitcher Jason Vargas has maintained the position that he won’t miss much time, if any, after undergoing surgery on his non-throwing hand on Tuesday. He continues to back up statement; Vargas is set to throw again on Friday after doing so on Thursday. Assuming that goes well, it seems as though... Read More
Harrison Bader and Luke Voit Optioned to Triple-A
The St. Louis Cardinals optioned first baseman Luke Voit and outfielder Harrison Bader to Triple-A Memphis on Friday. Bader had a chance to make the team, but he would have served as a reserve outfielder at the big league level and the team would prefer to have him get consistent at bats instead. Both Bader... Read More
Mike Napoli to Decide on a Minor League Deal on Friday
The Cleveland Indians released first baseman/designated hitter Mike Napoli on Thursday, and he will decide to day if he will accept a minor league contract to return to the organization. He was told by the club upon his official release that he would be welcomed back on a minor league contract if he was willing... Read More
Tim Beckham Tweaks Groin But Hopes To Miss Little Time
Baltimore Orioles third baseman Tim Beckham tweaked his groin before Thursday's game. He told the media that he first felt it when he was doing his pre-game stretching and then exacerbated it when making a play in the second inning. He joked that he was glad he homered in his at-bat so that he didn't... Read More
Second Basemen Set to Breakout in 2018
Second base is one of the thinnest positions in fantasy baseball, but also one with a ton of promise. Whether it’s speed, power or both, the keystone is in a tremendously interesting state heading into 2018. Today I take a look at three second basemen who I expect to have strong seasons for fantasy baseball owners.... Read More
Top Fantasy Baseball Prospects - NL East
Continuing our look at prospects by division, let's take a look at the NL East. In this division more than others it's a case of the Haves vs the Have Nots when it comes to prospects. You have the Braves with an absolutely loaded minor league system, the Marlins making trades left and right to start... Read More
Updated Starting Pitcher Rankings - 2018 Fantasy Baseball
We are just days away from the regular season, so the crack staff at RotoBaller has updated their rankings one last time. We continue our review of the March update with a look at the starting pitcher ranks. Aces are drawing early attention, while numerous values still remain toward the end of fantasy drafts. Whether you... Read More
Tim Lincecum Scratched With Finger Blister
The Texas Rangers have scratched reliever Tim Lincecum from his outing tomorrow due to a blister forming on the pitcher's middle finger. There was little hope that the former Freak would be ready for Opening Day, and the emergence of this pesky blister only casts more doubt. With all of the interest in Lincecum's comeback... Read More
Kevin Jepsen Likely to Make Opening Day Roster
The Texas Rangers' manager Jeff Banister told reporters that pitcher Tony Barnette is not likely to be ready to start the season, opening a roster spot for reliever Kevin Jepsen. The 33-year-old Jepsen has been a pleasant surprise, giving up just one run and four hits over 9 1/3 innings this spring training. After what... Read More
Rick Lucks's 10 Bold Predictions for 2018
Several of my colleagues have already announced their Bold Predictions for the 2018 fantasy baseball season, and now it's my turn. This is my third year participating in this exercise. The first one was great, as I correctly predicted Steven Wright would matter in 2016 fantasy leagues. The second one wasn't, as I had a... Read More
2018 Fantasy Baseball Draft Values - AL Starting Pitchers
I've said it before, and I'll say it again - I'm not big on the term "sleeper." When anybody with a computer and a working Internet connection can drill down deep into any player's performance with a few keystrokes and a couple of clicks, the odds of you catching any of your rivals truly sleeping... Read More
Jesse Chavez To Work From the Bullpen
The Texas Rangers have informed pitcher Jesse Chavez that he will not start the season as a full-time starter. This is not terribly surprising, as the 34-year old has worked as both a starter and reliever during spring training, and the results were not terribly inspiring. Expect Chavez to be deployed as a long reliever... Read More
Trevor Plouffe Told He Will Not Make Opening Day Roster
The Athletic's Levi Weaver reports that the Texas Rangers have told third baseman Trevor Plouffe that he will not make the Opening Day roster and will be designated for assignment. The veteran said when he signed that he was not expecting to accept a minor league assignment, but it is unclear if he has changed... Read More
Tim Lincecum Unlikely to Be Ready for Opening Day
As the Texas Rangers prep Tim Lincecum for a return to the majors, they are not expecting him to be available for Opening Day. The former Cy Young winner is attempting a comeback by joining the Rangers' bullpen, but what role he will eventually occupy is unclear until the team can get comfortable with his... Read More
Mallex Smith Has Another Spring Training Shining Moment
Tampa Bay Rays outfielder Mallex Smith sent another strong message to both his current owners and those looking at drafting him. In the fifth inning of a spring training game Thursday, he bunted down the first base line for a single. He then stole second base. Finally, on a chopper to third base, he got... Read More
Curt Casali Signs With Tampa Bay
The Tampa Bay Rays have signed catcher Curt Casali to a minor league contract and invited him to spring training. He is a possibility for being part of the backup plan if Wilson Ramos gets hurt again. Casali is a one-category player as he does have a little bit of power. Casali only had nine... Read More
Boog Powell Might Have Inside Track On Center Field Spot
Updating a previous report on the Oakland Athletics center field competition, all indications are moving towards Dustin Fowler being the odd man out and starting the year in the minors. According to Jane Lee of MLB.com, manager Bob Melvin said, "We’re comfortable with Smolinski and Powell." This would indicate that Boog Powell might be getting... Read More
Paul Blackburn Out With Forearm Strain
Updating a previous report, Oakland Athletics starting pitcher Paul Blackburn has a forearm strain, according to Jane Lee of MLB.com. Lee also noted the MRI showed no structural damage. Manager Bob Melvin estimated Blackburn would be shut down for 10 days. With an already thin rotation, the starters are identified by their health. The starting... Read More
Hisashi Iwakuma Begins To Throw Off Mound
Seattle Mariners pitcher Hisashi Iwakuma has begun to throw some pitches off the mound, per MLB.com. Manager Scott Servais hopes to have the starter back at some point this season, but Iwakuma is a long way from returning from shoulder surgery. For now, any news is good news for the right-hander who struggled with shoulder... Read More
Wade Miley Out 2-4 Weeks, Will Not Opt Out Of Contract
Milwaukee Brewers starting pitcher Wade Miley has officially been given a timetable of two-to-four weeks and has also announced that he will not opt out of his contract, meaning he will remain with the Brewers. This means that the opt-out date for the contract will be extended due to the unfortunate timing of his injury and... Read More
Steven Souza Likely To Start Season On Disabled List
Updating previous reports, the MRI performed on Diamondbacks outfielder Steven Souza has confirmed that he suffered a right pectoral strain while diving for a ball during Wednesday's cactus league game. Manager Torey Lovullo says Souza is likely to begin the year on the DL. No information was given about the length of the DL stint.... Read More
David Peralta (OF, ARI) - 2018 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers & Draft Values
BALLER MOVE: Target ~215 CURRENT ADP: 249 ANALYSIS: Arizona Diamondbacks outfielder David Peralta had a better 2017 than 2016 and it started with his health. He was able to stay on the field for 577 plate appearances. Peralta’s last successful season was in 2015 and he did his best impersonation of those stats during 2017. He had... Read More
Yonder Alonso (1B, CLE) - 2018 Fantasy Baseball Sleepers & Draft Values
BALLER MOVE: Target ~240 CURRENT ADP: 296 ANALYSIS: Yonder Alonso raked in Oakland, which only has a 0.88 HR park factor for left-handed batters per Swish Analytics, and he now gets to play in Cleveland, which holds a 1.24 HR park factor for LHB. Regression is a logical reason that his stock is so low, but... Read More
Jefry Marte Likely to Make Angels Roster
The Los Angeles Angels have reassigned infielders Kaleb Cowart and David Fletcher to minor league camp, which makes it appear that 1B/3B Jefry Marte has made the big league roster. Marte hit .173 with four home runs and one steal last season, and will hold a bench role behind Luis Valbuena, Zack Cozart, Albert Pujols... Read More
Reds Finalize Starting Rotation
The Cincinnati Reds have finalized their starting rotation coming out of Spring Training. The team will go with Homer Bailey, Luis Castillo, Tyler Mahle, and Sal Romano with either Amir Garrett or Brandon Finnegan waiting in the wings as the fifth starter. Cincinnati isn't expected to need a fifth starter at least until April 11.... Read More
Parker Bridwell, Nick Tropeano Sent to Triple-A
The Los Angeles Angels reassigned starting pitchers Parker Bridwell and Nick Tropeano to Triple-A. That leaves Garrett Richards, Shoehi Ohtani, Matt Shoemaker, Tyler Skaggs, JC Ramirez and Andrew Heaney as LA's presumptive six-man rotation. Heaney has been battling an injury, but it sounds like the team either expects him to be fine by the start... Read More
Franchy Cordero Has Slight Chance Of Making Opening Day Roster
San Diego Padres outfielder Franchy Cordero may be returning to the field this weekend after missing time due to groin tightness. The injury has impacted his fight to remain on the big league roster as a backup outfielder, with manager Andy Green saying Cordero returning to game action is, "one of the things we'll factor... Read More
Wade Miley And Brewers Working On Contract
Milwaukee Brewers starting pitcher Wade Miley and GM David Stearn are currently working on a contract that will bring Miley to the Brewers for the 2018 season at minimum. Stearn is quoted saying right now that they are "optimistic" at the odds that a contract will be worked out, but that "nothing" has been done... Read More
