The Blue Jays Episode of the Beat the Shift Podcast – a baseball podcast for fantasy baseball players.

Guest: Rob Silver

LABR Mixed Auction League Update

Ariel’s Softball League Update

Rob’s Personal History in Fantasy Baseball

All-Star Trivia

Strategy Section

• Waiver Wire
  • Was bidding for Alek Manoah too high?
  • Does standing position matter when making bids?
  • Bidding on a dropped top-50 player.
  • Dropping closers late in-season to burn others’ FAAB.
• Middle Relievers
  • Using middle relievers over 6th/7th starting pitchers in fantasy lineups.
  • Streaming middle relievers
• Richard Rodriguez
  • Is there any action that fatnasy owners should take in the next week?
  • What is the probability that he will accumulate meaningful saves for the rest of the season?
• Bench Slots
  • How to balance your roster with injuries vs. potential closer gambles vs. player streaming.

Toronto Blue Jays

• Closer Situation
  • Julian Merryweather update
• Deadline Trades – Team Needs
  • 3B/OF
• Randal Grichuk
  • Rankings Game – versus:
    • Bryan Reynolds
    • Hunter Renfroe
    • Andrew McCutchen
    • Max Kepler
    • Lourdes Gurriel Jr.
• Catcher Situation

Read the rest of this entry »

Podcast (beat-the-shift): Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

The All-Star Break isn’t officially a milestone in the Ottoneu season – it doesn’t represent the mid-point, it doesn’t start the playoffs, it doesn’t line up with the trade deadline – but it is a moment to stop, reflect, and figure out where you stand as we head into the home stretch. For me, it’s always a time to think about the upcoming trade deadline (August 31) and get myself and my team’s ready for a flood of trade offers, both incoming and outgoing.

Read the rest of this entry »

The latest episode of the Beat the Shift Podcast – a baseball podcast for fantasy baseball players.

Guest: Devin Mesoraco, Former Major League Catcher

Interview

• Life after baseball
• Breakthrough moment of career
• Game planning
• The best pitchers Devin ever caught
• Analytics rise over the past few seasons
• Analytics at the college level
• Innings per start trends in the MLB
• Sticky Substances
  • How long has this gone on in baseball?
  • Should MLB have cracked down mid-season?
  • Is it about the grip or about the spin rates?
  • Aroldis Chapman
  • Do catchers use sticky substances?
• Coaches
  • The impact of pitching coaches
  • Dusty Baker
• Idolizing Derek Jeter
• Devin’s closest friends from the MLB
• The impact of fans on players

Read the rest of this entry »

Podcast (beat-the-shift): Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

The Fantasy All-Stars Roundtable Episode of the Beat the Shift Podcast – a baseball podcast for fantasy baseball players.

Guests: Paul Sporer & Justin Mason (The Sleeper & The Bust)

Injury Guru Trivia of the Week

1st Half Fantasy MVP – Hitters

• Shohei Ohtani
• Cedric Mullins
• Kyle Schwarber
• Jared Walsh

Read the rest of this entry »

Podcast (beat-the-shift): Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

A starting pitcher going three times through the order has been one of those analytically driven game tactics that have had an effect on the game-by-game innings accumulation of starting pitchers. Fantasy managers playing in standard 5×5 roto-leagues know that the only way to decrease a ratio statistic like WHIP ((BB + H) / IP), is to add more numbers into the denominator (IP) while keeping the numerator (BB + H) the same. A pitcher who goes three times through the order is also likely to accumulate a lot of innings. The more quality innings accumulated, the better off your ratios will be. If a starting pitcher faces the lineup a third time and it’s only the fourth inning, chances are they are not going back out for the fifth. So, if we find pitchers who consistently face the order in its entirety a third time, we can generally assume it’s because they are pitching well.

Read the rest of this entry »

The Lone Star State Episode of the Beat the Shift Podcast – a baseball podcast for fantasy baseball players.

Guest: Kevin Goldstein

Personal history in the business

Texas Rangers

• Potential Trade Candidates
  • Ian Kennedy
• Closer Situation should Kennedy be traded
  • Joely Rodriguez
  • Taylor Hearn
  • Josh Sborz
• Adolis Garcia
  • Where does he rank amongst outfielders in 5×5 roto?
  • Rankings Game
• Dane Dunning
  • Possible innings limit in 2021?
• Rangers Prospects
  • Josh Jung
  • Cole Winn
  • Davis Wendzel

Read the rest of this entry »

Podcast (beat-the-shift): Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Hi. My name is Dave McDonald. Some of you may know me from Twitter (@RunDMcD), others by my team name and Twitter display name (Less than Dave), and maybe even some will be familiar with my work in Michael (@SPStreamer) Simione’s Draft Guide where I wrote a very in-depth strategy section. Many of you won’t know me at all yet – and that’s fine too. I’m a high stakes fantasy baseball player – specifically the 5×5 standard rotisserie (roto) game.

How do you define “high stakes” you ask? No one really knows. My friend John Laghezza (@MLBMovingAvg) attempted to find out the answer to this question awhile back.

How do you define a high stakes fantasy league?

— John Laghezza MLB / NFL Moving Averages (@JohnLaghezza) March 13, 2021

The poll was decidedly undecided on the topic. Also, John’s poll didn’t include higher options above a $1,000 entry fee. I know some people would classify high stakes as $2,500+ (which is actually how NFBC defines it as their “high stakes” leagues are $2,500-$15,000 entry fee leagues). So while I don’t exactly know how to define “high stakes,” I can say with certainty that I am a high stakes player.

Read the rest of this entry »

The DC Area Episode of the Beat the Shift Podcast – a baseball podcast for fantasy baseball players.

Guest: Britt Ghiroli

Personal history in the business

Strategy Section

• 2021 Doubleheaders – Setting fantasy lineups

Sticky Substances

Washington Nationals

• Will the Nationals be buyers or sellers?
  • Potential Trade Candidates
• Closer Situation
• Josh Bell
• Updates on Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg
• Nationals Prospects
  • Cade Cavalli
  • Jackson Rutledge

Read the rest of this entry »

Podcast (beat-the-shift): Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

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

Guest: Jeff Fletcher, Orange County Register

Personal history in the business

Los Angeles Angels

• Who is the Angels MVP to date?
• Can Shohei Ohtani be the American League MVP?
• Jared Walsh
• One Up, One Down
  • Alex Cobb’s resurgence
  • Dylan Bundy’s regression
• Will the Angels be buyers or sellers at the trade deadline?
  • Trade deadline needs
• Mike Trout injury update
• Jo Adell
• Other Angels Prospects
  • Brandon Marsh
  • Reid Detmers

Read the rest of this entry »

Podcast (beat-the-shift): Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Having officially gotten more regular-season baseball than we got in 2020, let’s check in on some team offensive trends. At least those trending poorly. Because while it’s still less than three months of baseball, it’s enough to start getting a handle on which teams you should exploit for streaming gains, and who you should avoid.

Matchups are obviously king in streaming but not all bad teams are the same. At least, not in terms of how they fare against each hand, both in general performance and strikeout tendencies. The Baltimore Orioles have the worst record in baseball, as well as the worst run value (per 100 pitches) against right-handed pitchers. However, you play a dangerous game when streaming a leftie against the Orioles, as their 1.29 RV/100 and .353 wOBA vs LHP are the highest in baseball, while their 20.4% K% is beaten only by the 16.8% K% of Houston.

Using Run Value (per 100 pitches), wOBA, xwOBA, and K%, we’ll see which teams currently look like the juiciest targets when considering a stream and then take a look at some of their matchups with starters who are currently rostered less than 50% in Yahoo leagues. Read the rest of this entry »