Archive for Featured

2021 is over and we turn the page to 2022. Here are my current ranks for the first base position for 2022, my second of the offseason. I will post updates as things change with signings, injuries, or news in Major League Baseball.

You can review my ranks for other positions here: https://fantasy.fangraphs.com/category/rankings/
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1/11/22

The latest episode of “The Sleeper and the Bust” is live. Support the show by subscribing to our Patreon!!

Follow us on Twitter

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

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IN FOCUS: Shopping for Bargains

• Catcher: Keibert Ruiz v. Alejandro Kirk (1:44)
• First Base: José Abreu v. Jared Walsh (11:42)
• Second Base: Jake Cronenworth v. Brendan Rodgers (18:18)

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After moving from the happy-fun ball era to the great deadening of 2021, it’s hard to know how bouncy the ball will be in 2022. Particularly after MLB admitted to using two different kinds of balls in 2021 due to production delays. But I’d bet the old, fun times aren’t coming back and consequentially don’t want to depend on finding power just laying around in the back part of drafts.

With that in mind, and using a 200 ADP in recent NFBC drafts as our cutoff, let’s look at a few players who could be valuable wells of power in 2022. Here are a few common terms:

Barrel% (from BaseballSavant): “to be Barrelled, a batted ball requires an exit velocity of at least 98 mph. At that speed, balls struck with a launch angle between 26-30 degrees always garner Barreled classification. For every mph over 98, the range of launch angles expands.”

Air% (average EV): The average exit velocity balls hit in the air (fly balls + line drives)

Air% (100+ mph): Percentage of balls hit in the air with a minimum exit velocity of 100 mph.

Barrel% (100+ mph): Percentage of barrels with a minimum exit velocity of 100 mph. Not all barrels are created equal and while there are many great ways to chop them up, I’m not as bright as Alex so I also check in on this simple distinction.

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The second base position does have some depth to it, it isn’t the shallowest nor the deepest position for fantasy in 2022. There are a lot of interesting names coming into the season especially when it comes to young players like Jonathan India and Jazz Chisholm. Whether you decide to grab one earl or late here are some fun facts and opinions I gathered while preparing for drafts.

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2021 is over and we turn the page to 2022. Here are my current ranks for the first base position for 2022, my second of the offseason. I will post updates as things change with signings, injuries, or news in Major League Baseball.

You can review my ranks for other positions here: https://fantasy.fangraphs.com/category/rankings/
Read the rest of this entry »

The first run of ranking is about to done and then I’ll roll out the update at each position with comments added. I’m still reluctant to do a closer ranking at this point, but I know I have to bite the bullet and give y’all something. It is just such a mess at this point. Anyway, that’s later Paul’s problem. Today, it is time for the outfield. It is a really interesting class of outfielders with some really fun pockets of talent going in the mid-to-late rounds of drafts. If you have been reading my Roster Reviews, you will see some Bold Predictions tied to outfielders as I have definitely started to zero on some key guys in my early drafts.

These are for 5×5 15-teamers with a 20-game eligibility threshold.

Let’s discuss in the comments!

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With drafts beginning to ramp up, it is important to monitor where players are being drafted on a regular basis. Throughout draft season, I will be doing that work for you with regular updates on the Average Draft Position on NFBC up until Opening Day. You can find all the pieces in this series here.

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1/7/22

The latest episode of “The Sleeper and the Bust” is live. Support the show by subscribing to our Patreon!!

Follow us on Twitter

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

PATREON

• Join our Patreon

IN FOCUS: SP Ranking Debates Pt. 2 (Justin Ranks Them Higher)

• Elieser Hernandez J 90, P 130 (3:40)
• Kyle Gibson J 66, P 88 (14:01)
• Danny Duffy J 86, P 158 (20:20)
• Chris Paddack J 83, P 138 (22:00)
  •  Nick Martínez/Mike Clevinger (25:40)
  • Justin Verlander (28:44)

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For this series, I want to focus on pitchers going after pick 300 in the NFBC ADP. It’s just some more grinding away.

Starting and Relievers, Part 1 & 2($$):

• Alzolay, Quantrill, J. Suarez, Thompson, R. Suarez, Thompson, C Hernandez
• Javier, Lamet, Rasmussen, Steele, M. Perez, Cortes, Espino, Stripling, Long, Houck

Deep League Starting Pitchers

• Kaprielian, Taillon, Carrasco, and Ober
• Bauer, Plesac, Kikuchi, Gonsolin, and Greinke
• Matz, Megill, Sanchez, and Walker
• Lauer, Hernandez, Heaney, and Flexen
• Pivetta, Strasburg, Paddack, and Singer
• Patino, Cobb, Luzardo, and Gibson
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Those who have been smart enough to pick up a copy of the 2021 Baseball HQ Forecaster (and likely posted a picture of it to their Twitter) have already read through the “Other Diamonds” portion of the text. It’s my favorite part. In it, there is a section called Paradoxes and Conundrums and it states that a player’s year to year improvements can be labeled as, “a point in a growth trend, an isolated outlier or a complete anomaly…” I loved that line when I read it. But, so much strange happened in 2020 and I think it should have some say. In this post, I’ll go over three pitchers who increased their K% from 2020 to 2021 but whose gains might be skewed by the 2020 season. Two of these pitchers really just rose back up to where they were in 2019. An increase in K% is wonderful but is it a trend, an outlier, or, to incorporate my own twist, to be expected?

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