The Relief Pitcher Episode of the Beat the Shift Podcast – a baseball podcast for fantasy baseball players.

Guest: Alex Fast

LABR Recap

• Reactions to the LABR Mixed Auction League Draft

Strategy Section

• Closers
  • How should we draft closers in 2021?
  • What closer tiers are the best return on investments?
  • Is it better to pick a named closer on a bad team or an uncertain closer on a good team?
• Relievers
  • How should we set ourselves up for in-season play with relief pitchers?
  • How much are reliever ratios a consideration while drafting, as opposed to only considering the closers role (saves)?
  • When should you draft a valuable middle reliever over a named closer?

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Having completed C, the corners, and SP, we move back to the dirt to rank MI, starting with second base today and continuing with shortstop next week. The keystone is strange this year, as I really like a bunch of names at the top, but it falls off rather quickly. That said, you still need to fill out both 2B and MI in your Ottoneu leagues, so you may find yourself diving into the depths, whether you like it or not.
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In order to follow the same preview path as the Ottobot Podcast, we’re gonna pivot off of offensive ranks and jump to SP. I find this to be the most challenging list to create – there are so many relevant players, so many ways to evaluate them, and so little confidence in projections, at least compared to hitters. So in addition to my list, I am going to share a few notes on how to adjust rankings from your favorite pitching analyst.
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The NFBC & Outfielder Episode of the Beat the Shift Podcast – a baseball podcast for fantasy baseball players.

Guest: Matt Modica

Strategy Section

• NFBC
  • Differences between NFBC (High stakes) vs. Home Leagues
  • Standalone Leagues vs. Leagues with an Overall Prize
  • NFBC Specific Rules
    • Limited Bench
    • No Injured List
    • No Trading
    • Semi-Weekly Lineups for Hitters
  • Are Multi-Position Eligible players more valuable?
  • Pitching is greatly pushed up in NFBC leagues
    • Is it warranted?
    • Should you follow the crowd, or alter your strategy to zag?
    • Should a super elite pitcher (deGrom/Cole) be taken #1 overall?
  • NFBC Draft Planning
  • KDS

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We’re onto the third installment in this series, which started with catchers and then 1B. Today, we move across the diamond and look at 3B.

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Outfield is one of those positions that always feels deep just because of the star power at the top, but of course leagues generally require 3-5 starting OFs plus the many multi-positional players plucked from the OF pool to play other positions.

• Justin’s list

I’ll have an update in early March to account for any moves, news, and/or injuries. Let me know what you think in the comments: how are you building your OF plan? do you stack a few early on or play the middle tiers? who is your sleeper at the position?

Other positions:

• 1B
• 2B
• SS
• 3B

Here’s my list.

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We started this series last week with catchers and you can go there to see the basic methodology and some notes on how I am handling these rankings. First base, as always, is a position where there is a ton of production available. In Ottoneu, it is also a position where a lot of players qualify. As a result, the table for 1B is pretty long – 89 players, though the majority aren’t interesting 1B options.

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Drafts are in full swing and now I am 10 drafts into the season, here are my current ranks for the outfield position for 2021. I will post updates every 2-4 weeks as things change with signings, injuries, or news in Major League Baseball. Read the rest of this entry »

I like the hot corner this year. There is a superstar top tier, some up-and-comers, some quality depth, and plenty of deeper league options.

• Justin’s list

I’ll have an update in early March to account for any moves, news, and/or injuries. Let me know what you think in the comments: how are you building your 3B plan? do you want an extra 3B for CI or do you prefer 1B? who is your sleeper at the position?

Here’s my list.

Other positions:

• 1B
• 2B
• SS

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Drafts are in full swing and now I am 10 drafts into the season, here are my current ranks for the third base position for 2021. I will post updates every 2-4 weeks as things change with signings, injuries, or news in Major League Baseball. Read the rest of this entry »