Introducing Expanded Ottoneu Coverage

The first Ottoneu content appeared on RotoGraphs early in 2011, at the same time the at-the-time-new-to-the-world fantasy game lauched. That September, I became the first RotoGraphs writer dedicated to covering Ottoneu on a regular basis. Over the years, a number of writers have weighed in on Ottoneu strategy and a smaller number have regularly contributed Ottoneu content.

But we’ve never had a dedicated Ottoneu team – until this week.

If you frequent these pages regularly, you may have noticed that on Monday Lucas Kelly (who goes by the wonderful alias Dr. Eephus on Twitter) wrote about prospect valuation in Ottoneu. Then, on Tuesday, Jake Mailhot (whose Twitter naming creativity matches mine) offered up the first in a series on going through a rebuild in Ottoneu. This is in addition to my recent Ottoneu positional rankings posts.

This isn’t just a coincidental influx of Ottoneu content on RotoGraphs, but the first step in our effort to provide more content and coverage to the best fantasy baseball game out there. What do you need to know? Let’s do a quick FAQ:

Who will be covering Ottoneu? Lucas, Jake and I will be the Ottoneu team, and you will see consistent content from all three of us dedicated to Ottoneu.

Does this mean only the three of you will write about Ottoneu? No, not necessarily. There are many other FanGraphs writers who play Ottoneu and any of them may choose to write about Ottoneu at any time. The goal is not to make Ottoneu our exclusive domain but to make sure there is a baseline of Ottoneu content available.

Why are you doing this now? The answer to “why” is that Ottoneu has a large and growing audience that is hungry for more content. My Ottoneu articles often result in comments or Tweets or messages on Slack or Discord from Ottoneu players saying how much they appreciate Ottoneu-specific content and that they would love to see more of it. Ottoneu content also tends to be useful for those playing other keeper or dynasty leagues, making these articles useful even for those who have yet to discover the joy that is Ottoneu.

The answer to “why now” is, honestly, that this is long overdue.

What should we expect? We are still figuring out the details, but expect an immediate increase in the amount of Ottoneu content on RotoGraphs starting this week. Between now and Opening Day, we’ll be figuring out our plans in more detail, but when the season starts, you should expect to see something Ottoneu-related on RotoGraphs every day of the week, Monday through Friday.

What will the content look like? That is a great question – and I want to turn it back to you. Over in the Ottoneu forums I created a topic to gather input from Ottoneu players (current and potential!) on what they would like to see. We have some ideas, but we want to make sure we are delivering content that is helpful and interesting. Check out that forum discussion and weigh in!

Will there be chats? Funny you should ask. Yes, we do plan to have chats. The exact cadence and schedule is still TBD, but we will try to time them to key dates on the Ottoneu calendar, when possible. For example, I expect to have a “cut deadline” day chat next Tuesday, in the hours before cuts have to be finalized. If there is interest, we could set up chats on a regular basis.

What should I do to take advantage of this? You don’t need to do much. First and foremost, make sure you are playing Ottoneu. Even if you hate our content, you’ll love the game. Following Lucas, Jake and I on Twitter, if you are on Twitter, is a good idea. As is following RotoGraphs, since all articles are pushed out on that feed. Make sure to read RotoGraphs. And visit the Ottoneu forums to let us know what kind of content you want to see.

What if I have questions you didn’t answer? Find me on Twitter, leave a comment here, or you can message me on any Slack or Discord we happen to both be on (I always just use my name as my display name). Happy to answer any Ottoneu questions you might have!