This post will provide updated information on the upcoming draft weekend. I’ll update as I find relevant news over the weekend.

• A notice to those owners setting their Sunday waiver claims: I will be hosting a RotoGraphs chat every Sunday during the season from 8:00 pm EST for an hour or so starting this weekend. It will run every Sunday during the season. I may not host it every week but someone will fill in.

Friday Afternoon Update

• Erick Aybar has opted out of his Twins contract meaning Eduardo Escobar will be the Twins the second baseman until Jorge Polanco returns from this 80-game suspension. As a replacement, owners could do worse than Escobar as a replacement. He’s projected for home runs in the high teens with a few steals.

• Albert Almora Jr. seems to be batting 8th quite a bit. His value swings a ton depending if he is leading off or in the 8th spot (fewer AB and SB).

• Here are the spring training team stolen base totals with the new managers in yellow.

• The Mariners are running which is good for Dee Gordon.
• Of the teams with new managers, the Phillies and the Yankees have been the most aggressive.
• I’m worried about Mookie Betts with the Red Sox near the bottom. Several people on Twitter have pointed out that the Red Sox plan on running more this year. Since spring training stolen base rates weakly correlate to in-season rates, I don’t believe the Red Sox will steal more this year.

Read the rest of this entry »

I always enjoy when the Bold Predictions series rolls out here. It’s fun seeing my colleagues go out on a limb, and it’s even more fun tossing my hat in the ring with bold predictions of my own. Below, you’ll find five bold hitting predictions. Initially, this piece was set to include all of my bold predictions. However, it began getting lengthy quickly, so I’ve opted to split up my hitter predictions and pitcher predictions. Read the rest of this entry »

The American League Central doesn’t feature the strongest minor league systems but there are some interesting prospects littered throughout the teams.

Previous Reviews:
AL West Top 10s
NL West Top 10s

The Indians always find a way to develop players in house — and the current system has some interesting players — but it lacks depth overall.

2018 Arrivals:
1. Triston McKenzie | SP | 2018 Level: AA
2. Francisco Mejia | C/3B | 2018 Level: AAA
5. Bobby Bradley | 1B | 2018 Level: AAA
9. Eric Haase | C | 2018 Level: AAA

2019 Arrivals:
6. Shane Bieber | SP | 2018 Level: AA
7. Willi Castro | MIF | 2018 Level: AA

2020 and Beyond:
3. Nolan Jones | 3B | 2018 Level: A
4. Will Benson | CF | 2018 Level: A
8. Tyler Freeman | MIF | 2018 Level: A-
10. Johnathan Rodriguez | RF | 2018 Level: A-

Other Names to Know:
Sleeper: Sam Hentges, SP
Beyond the Top 10 Help in 2018: Greg Allen, OF

Read the rest of this entry »

It’s the last weekend of draft season before the official games begin! Good Luck and Cheers!

Cheers! #NationalDrinkWineDay pic.twitter.com/h7lAw2A7Ko

— MLB GIFS (@MLBGIFs) February 18, 2018

Read the rest of this entry »

It’s Bold Prediction time!! After a 2-for-10 performance last year (and even that took some favorable grading), I’m ready to go off this year and bat at least .500! The funny thing is I’d love to repeat some of mine last year despite missing on them in 2017. Delino DeShields made mine last year and now he’s a draft darling surging up the board. I like Blake Treinen to be a strong closer and could still see that Carlos Martinez sub-2.50 ERA season! But don’t worry, I have 10 fresh Bold Predictions ready for you – five hitters and five pitchers.

Let’s do this! You’ll never guess who’s leading off?

Read the rest of this entry »

3/22/18

The latest episode of “The Sleeper and the Bust” is brought to you by Out of the Park Baseball 19, the best baseball strategy game ever made – available NOW on PC, Mac, and Linux platforms! Go to ootpdevelopments.com to order now and save 10% with the code SLEEPER19!

Follow us on Twitter

• @sporer – Host
• @justinmasonfwfb – Producer/Co-Host
• @jasoncollette – Co-Host

Notable Transactions/Rumors/Articles/Game Play

• Alex Cobb to BAL (25:42)
• Steven Souza Jr. hurt shoulder (36:42)
• Ronald Acuna sent down (41:41)

Read the rest of this entry »

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

In a small subset of leagues, relievers who have starting pitcher eligibility are gold. If an owner hasn’t been in such a league, the following information is useless and confusing. The specific league requirements which boost these pitcher values are (Note: normally seen in Yahoo leagues):

• Daily lineup changes
• Starting and relief pitcher slots
• Inning limits

I used to be in such a league and I would scavenge the waiver wire looking for any of these pitchers. They allow an owner to accumulate great rate stats when their starter isn’t starting. Two or three can just sit permanently in the starting slots. And every year, it seems like one guy ends up getting a few Saves.

Read the rest of this entry »

Today, I’ve prepared for you a fantasy roster served two ways. The first is a reduction of ottoneu with a head-to-head sauce. For the second, I took advantage of the manager’s special on expiring meats to plate a premium meal on a budget. Enjoy.

Read the rest of this entry »

According to the novelist Rick Moody, the purpose of literature is “to cast in language the nature of being.” And sure enough, that’s the Birchwood Brothers’ purpose, too–well, that and to recommend underpriced starting pitchers for your Fantasy Baseball draft or auction. To that end, we hereby cast in language the 2018 Trinity and Quadrinity, Starting Pitcher Edition. Read the rest of this entry »

Yesterday, I listed and discussed nine hitters who I ranked significantly higher than the rest of my fellow RotoGraphers. Today, I move on to starting pitchers. I limited this list to those in my top 60 and also did a bit of cherry picking. Why? Because of this comment I added to the starting pitcher composite rankings post:

Before I get a million questions, remember these are projected end of season rankings based on dollar values earned. It’s absolutely not exactly how I would draft these pitchers, as I will always prefer a lower IP guy with better ratio projections than a higher IP guy with worse ratios, but more wins and Ks to boost his dollar value. That preference is not reflected in the ranking above, as it’s a strategic choice, not a mathematical one.

So I excluded guys like Rick Porcello, Julio Teheran, and Cole Hamels, whose betters rankings are likely due to differences in how we ranked players. All get most of their value from volume, rather than strong ratios. It’s more valuable to discuss players I ranked better due to a more bullish projection.

Read the rest of this entry »