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Are You For Real? Surprising MLB Pitcher Starts from Week 23
2020 Rookie Breakouts - September Surgers
Prior to the 2020 rule change that limits September rosters to just 28 players, it was the time of the year where there would be a lot of rookies making their debuts, getting their feet wet, and experiencing Major League pitching for the first time. Whatever you may have thought about this rule, it was... Read More
Does James Paxton's Spin-Rate Adjustment Matter?
Players frequently enter spring training in, "the best shape of their lives," but offseason programs rarely seem to pay significant dividends. The extended offseason may have provided some players with the opportunity to make unusually significant adjustments this year, though. One example of such an adjustment is Yankees starting pitcher James Paxton, who recently announced that... Read More
Fantasy Baseball Insider Report: Shortened Season Alters Strategies
The award-winning Fantasy Baseball Insider Series continues on RotoBaller, this time with in-depth takes on the shortened season from a former MLB executive and current broadcaster. Every year, Scott Engel talks to prime MLB sources to get exclusive nuggets of information. On the condition of anonymity, former and current players, executives, scouts, media members and... Read More
How to Approach MLB Rookies in 2020 Re-draft Leagues
While the players and owners continue to trade demands for getting the 2020 season on its feet, we're going to turn our attention to fantasy. This article will specifically look at players who have yet to make their major league debut (or come up for more than the proverbial cup of coffee) and how fantasy... Read More
Four Things I Wish I Knew Before My First "Only" Draft
If you're looking to liven up your fantasy experience, trying your hand at an Only league could be a great way to bring a fresh perspective to one of your favorite pastimes. While standard mixed leagues are largely a race to accumulate as many elite performers as possible, Only leagues allow owners to demonstrate their... Read More
Making Sense of ADP
ADP, or Average Draft Position, is one of the most commonly cited statistics in fantasy baseball discourse. It allows owners to look at a single number and quickly determine a player's market value, making it easier to identify potential value picks in a draft. Furthermore, fantasy analysts can use it to determine how a particular... Read More
Cleveland Indians: Top 10 Dynasty Prospects
We continue our look of the best prospects in each MLB team's farm system with the Cleveland Indians. Once the 2020 MLB season begins, it may turn out that Minor League systems will be more important than usual. Franchises are losing money during the pandemic layoff, so many teams will be looking for sources of... Read More
Outfielder Busts Who’ll Keep Junking It Up In 2020
The term “bust” in fantasy baseball has a number of different incarnations. In some instances, a bust is someone who adds no value to a roster whatsoever. He does nothing more than take up a roster spot, adds little-to-no counting stats, and hurts ratios such as batting average and on-base percentage. He is a net-negative... Read More
Explaining the Struggles of Andrew Benintendi
I, along with many others, was greatly disappointed with Andrew Benintendi in 2019. Last year he was supposed to take a step forward. Unfortunately, he instead took a giant step backward. What happened exactly? Is this what to expect from Benintendi going forward? These are the type of answers I seek to provide answers to.... Read More
Chicago Cubs: Top 10 Dynasty Prospects
Once the 2020 MLB season begins, it may turn out that minor league systems will be more important than usual. Franchises are losing money during the pandemic layoff, so many teams will be looking for sources of cheap production. It might also take older players longer to rebound from a long layoff meaning we could... Read More
Detroit Tigers: Top 10 Dynasty Prospects
Major League Baseball will return. When it does, minor league systems may be more important than ever. With all teams losing money during the pandemic layoff, teams will be looking for sources of cheap production. It might also take older players longer to rebound from a long layoff meaning we could see more injuries and... Read More
Drafting First Overall In Rotisserie Formats
I really do believe there’s no such thing as too much draft strategy. There are a lot of factors that play into draft selections. I will be discussing topics ranging from positional scarcity to team construction and many things in between. The idea is to go into my strategy and targets through the first 10... Read More
Third Base ADP Reflections
Third base is arguably the deepest position in fantasy this year, with plenty of highly productive options outside of the first 20 third basemen being drafted. The position is so deep that if a player isn’t a lock for an OPS above .900, doesn’t have positional versatility, or doesn’t offer stolen bases, then they may... Read More
Infielder Busts Set to Bounce Back in 2020
Fantasy baseball owners tend to put too much emphasis on the previous season when it comes to valuing players. There is a reason projection systems use three years of data, because while last year's numbers are typically the most important thing to consider, what a player has done in the past matters as well. Each... Read More
NL Players Who Could Benefit From Extended Rosters
Although we still don't have baseball, we're starting to get a lot of proposals on how we COULD have baseball this summer. The plans may wind up just being a fantasy, but, hey, this is a fantasy site, so it makes sense for us to take a look at it. One of the facets of... Read More
Deeper Draft Sleepers - NL Outfielders
We’re confident there will be a 2020 baseball season, but the game might look a little different. For instance, we may not see a 162 game season and the first several weeks may be played in empty baseball stadiums. The game may also feature a universal designated hitter. In attempting to identify deep outfield NL... Read More
Electronic Strike Zone: Who Benefits and Who Doesn't
Among the more high-profile MLB rule changes expected to take effect over the next few years is the usage of an electronic strike zone. The electronic strike zone was used in the Atlantic League in 2019, and the MLB Umpires Association has cleared the way for its introduction to the major leagues at some point... Read More
How a Revamped MLB Season will Impact Fantasy Baseball
No matter how this MLB season plays out it will look like something we have never seen before. Not only is the start of the season already delayed, but there is no definitive end in sight. If we do see baseball this season, the game is going to look very different. First, there will be... Read More
Outfielder Busts Set to Bounce Back in 2020
Recency bias plays a large role in player valuation for many fantasy baseball owners and probably more than it should. Consequentially, a player's price will drop the following a down year, often creates a buying opportunity. As is the case with some of the names below, sometimes injuries are to blame for a decrease in... Read More
Starting Pitcher Busts Due to Bounce Back In 2020
Starting pitching busts are the worst types because they usually show severe decline in production. At least when your hitter busts, it’s a minor decline in career norms - but with pitchers, we sometimes see them completely fall-off in their bust seasons. These two pitchers are former aces for the Cleveland Indians. Both of them... Read More
Deeper AL Outfield Sleepers for 2020
As usual, the outfield position is deep in 2020. You can draft the position early or late and still find plenty of value to fill your roster. Finding the right guys is not always easy, but we are here to help. The players mentioned in this article have ADP's somewhere in the 240-300 range. These... Read More
Sizing Up The New York Mets Rotation
Even before New York Mets starting pitcher Noah Syndergaard suffered a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow, the Mets were looking at fielding a much different starting rotation in 2020. Zack Wheeler departed for the Phillies as a free agent in the off-season. The Mets brought Marcus Stroman in from the Blue Jays... Read More
AL Players Who Could Benefit From Expanded Rosters
Although we still don't have baseball, we're starting to get a lot of proposals on how we COULD have baseball this summer. The plans may wind up just being a fantasy, but, hey, this is a fantasy site, so it makes sense for us to take a look at it. One of the facets of... Read More
Man vs. Machine: Nick Mariano and ATC's Over/Undervalued Players
Welcome to Round 2 of Man vs. Machine, where one fantasy analyst goes toe-to-toe with one projection system for ranking supremacy. We here at RotoBaller are fortunate enough to have FantasyPros’ Most Accurate Fantasy Baseball Draft Ranker from both 2018 and 2019 on our roster in Nick Mariano and Ariel Cohen, respectively. Ariel also created... Read More
JB's Bullpen Method - Building Aces out of Relief Pitchers
If you read my Top 10 Draft Tips piece, you got a preview of the method I have been using for many years in fantasy baseball. It's really less of a method or strategy, and more a state of mind. The Bullpen Method is a lifestyle! I always speak about the importance of balance on... Read More
Engel's Angles: Ways To Keep Fantasy Fires Burning During Sports Outages
We love fantasy sports for many reasons. Among the prime factors is that it fuels our competitive fires, the ones that still rage when we are not playing actual sports themselves. Maybe we can’t make the Major Leagues, but we can certainly strive to be one of the best in fantasy baseball. Or even if... Read More
Three AL Outfielders Set To Bust In 2020
The American League has fallen significantly behind the National League in terms of quality fantasy outfielders. Of the top-10 outfielders by ADP, only three (Mike Trout, J.D. Martinez, and Austin Meadows) represent the American League. The relative lack of elite talent makes avoiding busts especially crucial in AL-only leagues, as a couple of early-round misses... Read More
Biggest Outfield Risers/Fallers of 2020
I hope everyone is enjoying the holiday season as well as the beginning of Fantasy Baseball Prep season! It may seem like the 2020 fantasy baseball season just ended, but the 2021 season will be here before we know it. Now is as good a time as ever to start thinking about your new draft... Read More
