The star of yesterday’s Rays-Red Sox day game was Hanley Ramirez, whose fifth-inning grand slam erased a three-run deficit en route to an 8-6 victory for the Red Sox. Batting ninth in the order, Jackie Bradley was out of the spotlight, but his performance was likely more important to the team’s playoff aspirations given his recent struggles and history of streakiness. Bradley was on third base for Ramirez’s grand slam following a leadoff hit in the fifth inning. He added his own home run to extend the team’s lead to 6-4 in the sixth inning. And he added the team’s final run with a double to right field in the eighth inning. It was Bradley’s first three-hit game since July.

Read the rest of this entry »

Once again, I present to you my monthly update of the AL Outfield Tiers. As always, these are my rest of the season ranks for the position. There is a month to in the regular season and as the clock runs out for the regular season it becomes harder and harder to do these ranks. Value at this point depends on what you need in your league. A player like Jarrod Dyson may not be as valuable as Ian Desmond all things being equal, but if you are searching for speed then he may be to you. So, keeping this in mind I have done my best to give ranks that best reflect my value while giving a boost within tiers to players like Dyson that may offer elite production in singular categories for those needing to make up last minute points in roto formats. Read the rest of this entry »

With only about a month left in the season, it’s probably much easier to make up ground in the counting stats than in the ratios. So let’s see what hidden gems get unearthed today.

Read the rest of this entry »

Today’s Roto Riteup is brought to you by Tebow Time!

I’m stashing Tebow in all dynasty baseball leagues that have 6 points for rushing and passing TDs. Downgrade in ppr

— Justin Mason (@JustinMasonFWFB) August 30, 2016 Read the rest of this entry »

Back in mid-June, I discussed a handful of hitters who had hit a shocking number of home runs at that point in the season. Since it was fun, and you no doubt enjoyed it, let’s do it again. Obviously, there are more surprises than just this short list, so feel free to use the comments to, ya know, comment on such lads.

Here are five of the biggest surprises, all of whom I chose for different reasons. I included some relevant metrics from 2016 and compared them to their 2015 rates so we have a better idea of what’s fueling the home run surge.

Read the rest of this entry »

Shockingly, it has been nearly 100 plate appearances since Gary Sanchez was recalled by the Yankees for a full-time role and this is his first dedicated RotoGraphs post. Of course, in itself, not talking about a recently recalled prospect 24 games into his career isn’t noteworthy. Except, when that career begins the way Sanchez’s has.

Read the rest of this entry »

Today’s Roto Riteup is dedicated to my daughter, who turned six yesterday and is a huge San Francisco Giants fan because she has awesome parents. Read the rest of this entry »

I’m going to do something a little different today and step away from fantasy analysis and try to leave you with something that is simple, very practical, and hopefully helpful.  With a shout out to my fellow commissioners out there, I’d like to give you a template for creating a fantasy league charter.

I’ve been playing fantasy baseball for 20 years now and I’ve had the honor of commissioning for most of that time too.  It can be a fun job but for those that have done it you know that it can also be a little rough sometimes.  No one enjoys stepping into the middle of heated league debates, trade meltdowns, or finding replacement owners, but if you’ve commissioned a league in the past odds are you’ve dealt with a few issues here and there.  While there’s no way to foresee or avoid every issue that can derail a fantasy league (and since there’s no substitute for having great owners as your foundation), a rock solid league charter can go a long way in setting both the tone and direction of your league long term.  In my opinion, it’s a must-have.

Read the rest of this entry »

It’s not an outlandish question to ask. Over the last 30 days, which spans five starts and 32.1 innings, Marcus Stroman has posted the third highest strikeout rate in baseball and the lowest SIERA. Five starts is a tiny sample size, of course, but you can’t fake a high strikeout rate. Let’s go back a little further. Since my cherry-picked date of June 14, he has made 12 starts and has posted a strong 25.2% strikeout rate, low 4.2% walk rate, elite 61.5% GB%, and impressive 2.82 SIERA. You know who else has combined that type of strikeout ability, pinpoint control, and serious ability to induce grounders? Nobody.

Read the rest of this entry »

“The trade deadline is fast approaching.” – Hard to believe that time is here.  This season has flown by, hasn’t it? With just one week before rosters solidify for the final stretch, now is as good a time as ever to ensure new Ottoneu owners are fully prepared for the future, which is now fast becoming the off-season.  Joe recently outlined the mindset that’s needed to approach the trade deadline strategically, depending on your place in the standings, but since it’s also my job to cover Ottoneu on these pages, I’ll take a more mechanical look at what happens at this critical point in the season.

Read the rest of this entry »