In this episode of OttoGraphs, Tom, and Trey continue last week’s discussion about Ottoneu All Stars, this time hitting some of the first half’s most valuable pitchers, including Drew Pomeranz, Rich Hill, Tanner Roark, and elite setup man Dellin Betances. Plus, we make a quick pitch for the new Ottoneu Community, recently debuted by Ottoneu creator Niv Shah – check it out and let us know what you think!

As a reminder, OttoGraphs is now available on iTunes! Subscribe using this link or the one below, and if you like what you hear, we’d happily accept ratings or reviews to help us reach new listeners, and potentially recruit some new Ottoneu players! Feel free as always to comment with any questions or suggestions you may have about this episode or future topics. We can be reached individually on Twitter:

@OttoneuTrades

@JustinVibber

@TomHasOpinions

@Fazeorange

Lastly, special thanks to Treemen who provided our intro and outro music. If you like what you hear, please check out their other work at http://treemen.bandcamp.com/

Podcast (ottoneu-podcast): Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Everybody’s doing it, so I’ll go ahead and get this out of the way.  However, I will admit I’m now quite embarrassed by these laughably bad predictions.  They are so bad that forcing you to read them again might be considered insulting.  You deserve more, so the least I can do is leave you with some classic real insults (courtesy of the interwebs) for your own repertoire.  Here goes:

Read the rest of this entry »

Almost three years ago, Ryan Braun was suspended and he got cut in a number of ottoneu leagues. I wrote about the chain reaction that occurs when a guy like Braun becomes a free agent.

Just this week, an arguably more interesting scenario played out in the FanGraphs Staff League Two, when a $62 Giancarlo Stanton was kicked to the curb, and a there are a number of lessons to learn from it.
Read the rest of this entry »

As I sit watching some of the game’s best players battle between commercials in the one July game that really “counts” I’m reminded that the All-Star break is the natural rest period set aside to catch up on the baseball stats and facts that I’ve otherwise overlooked all season.  For instance:

Did you know that Ian Desmond entered the break as both a top five fantasy shortstop (#2) and top five outfielder (#5)?

Did you know that Dellin Betances has a lower xFIP (1.15) than FIP (1.20), and that if you added his xFIP to that of his lanky teammate Andrew Miller (1.09), you’d only find five other relievers in MLB with a better xFIP (one of which is also a teammate) than their combined 2.24?

Did you know there is a backstop on the Angels named Jett Bandy?

Did you know that the Diamondback’s new road gray uniform includes a snake biting a baseball on the sleeve?

Read the rest of this entry »

In this episode of OttoGraphs, Tom, Justin, and Trey chat about some hitters who have represented the best values in Ottoneu over the first half of the season, including underpaid superstars like Mookie Betts and Jose Altuve, and surprising studs including Ian Desmond, Wil Myers, and Michael Saunders. We’ll reconvene next week to discuss the corresponding all stars on the pitching side!

As a reminder, OttoGraphs is now available on iTunes! Subscribe using this link or the one below, and if you like what you hear, we’d happily accept ratings or reviews to help us reach new listeners, and potentially recruit some new ottoneu players! Feel free as always to comment with any questions or suggestions you may have about this episode or future topics. We can be reached individually on Twitter:

@OttoneuTrades

@JustinVibber

@TomHasOpinions

@Fazeorange

Lastly, special thanks to Treemen who provided our intro and outro music. If you like what you hear, please check out their other work at http://treemen.bandcamp.com/

Podcast (ottoneu-podcast): Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

My how time flies! We are already at the halfway point of the season, and the league races and overall power rankings are really starting to take shape. Here are links to the  April and May power rankings where I gave the history of these rankings and explained the methodology.

Read the rest of this entry »

The halfway point of the season is upon us, so I thought it would be fun to take a look at the ottoneu All Stars through the first half of 2016. I didn’t want to make things messy with calculated dollar values or points over replacement, so I’ve simply taken the player with the most points (FGpts) at each position in the ottoneu starting lineup. There are some surprising names on these lists, so let’s jump right in with the hitters:

Read the rest of this entry »

Ottoneu 101:

Ottoneu 101: The Cap(ps) Space Dilema

Ottoneu 101: Ready, Fire, Aim

Ottoneu 101: How Loans Work in Ottoneu

Over the course of 2014, I became infatuated with two Boston prospects, Manny Margot and Rafael Devers. Margot was in A ball and Devers in Rookie ball at the time, and I wanted to add them to my Ottoneu team. However, I was faced with a dilemma. Was owning Margot or Devers for $1-$2 in 2014 worth the roster spot and cap space I would commit to these players over the next 3-5 seasons? I knew Devers/Margot existed and were talented (probably before my league-mates) but felt the rules were constructed in such a way that it made committing roster spots to Rookie and A ball prospects a poor use of resources. Per Ottoneu rules:

b. Owners shall be permitted to retain any of their players at a salary which is increased based on their previous year salary.  Rules for salary increases are as follows: 

i. Players who have no major league service time (as defined by being placed on an active MLB roster at some point in the past 2 full seasons) will have their salary increase by $1.

So in the case of owning Devers for $1 in 2014, I would likely be looking at a $4 – $8 player by the time he debuts (depending on arbitration) along with committing a roster spot to him for 3-5 seasons. I personally don’t know if that’s a worthwhile trade off, but It’s these types of observations that led me to adding one of my favorite “unofficial” wrinkles to Ottoneu – the 5MILB system. With the help of Trey Baughn, we developed this system to allow prospects outside the scope of the top 50-100 (or in the low levels of the minors) to be owned off roster – where keeping a player for 3-5 seasons can put a real tax on your team. Here are the rules we came up with:

Read the rest of this entry »

Whit Merrifield, Brandon Nimmo, Zach Davies, Steven Moya… These are 4 baseball players. Three are outfielders. One is a pitcher. All are from the United States (or a US territory in Moya’s case). I’m sure there are other common facts about these players (most of us are pretty similar). However, perhaps the most interesting commonality between these 4 players is that all have seen their Ottoneu ownership increase by 10% over the past week. Let’s look at which of these players I would actually consider owning.

Owned in nearly 50% of Ottoneu leagues, Merrifield has burst on to the scene over the past month, posting 5.47 P/G since early May with 2B and OF eligibility. However, his rest of season numbers look far less optimistic. The depth charts here have him posting 3.83 P/G and a .291 wOBA over the rest of the season. This level of production is very near replacement level at 2B. Considering how shallow MI can be, I can see the case for rostering Merrifield, however I do not see much in his skillset to inspire confidence. He appears to be a product of a .389 babip, which has provided some nice production. However, without good plate discipline or power, his production will likely subpar in FGpts leagues. He’s a replacement level player at present. If you need to fill middle infield games he could be worth a roster spot, but I wouldn’t be bidding more than $1-$3 for him in leagues without SBs. While his FGpt outlook isn’t great, Merrifield has exhibited good speed in the minors (32 SBs in AAA last year) and could provide some solid value in 5×5 leagues where owners are in need of steals.

Read the rest of this entry »

I have posted two articles earlier this season on the hitters with the largest changes to their Depth Charts rest of season projections versus the preseason, and today I’m going to take a look at the pitchers.

Read the rest of this entry »