2021 Razzball Videos
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Ortega Shells Nats With Threw Tacos

August 2, 2021 | Fantasy Baseball Daily Notes | 40 Comments

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I’m still spent from Friday’s trade deadline. It. Dot dot dot. Was. Dot dot dot. Awesome. MLB should have a trade deadline every month. Like musical chairs with walk-up music. “Okay, we have 450 chairs, and when Whomp There It Is stops, you have to be in a chair, ready?” Whomp, and the music stops and everyone sits down, except Trevor Story, who simply just walks off into the sunset. In the distance, we hear Trevor Story cursing out the Rockies. Bud Black smiles, “He loves this organization so much,” Bud calling off, “You’re our forever Rockie!” So, the Cubs sent everyone away, except Rafael Ortega. Smart move or the Ricketts getting lucky while being cheap SOBs? Like a teamster, I’m gonna lean on the latter. Coincidence that Ricketts sounds like a disease you get from a lack of nutrition or no? Any hoo! Rafael Ortega (4-for-4, 5 RBIs) hit three ding-dongs (4, 5, 6), after homering on Saturday. Ortega is 30 years old and has bounced around the minors since 2008, while stealing nearly 40 bags some years, so he has speed too. I’m inclined to say unlikely to continue, but grab while hot. Anyway, here’s what else I saw this weekend in fantasy baseball:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

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Richie Tauriello

2021 Fantasy Baseball: Two Start Pitchers Week 19 (8/2-8/8)

August 1, 2021 | Fantasy Baseball Two Start Pitchers, Two Start Starters | 7 Comments

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Greetings sports fans, what a week we just had! This was no ordinary week in the baseball world. We saw the Cubs trade-off their World Series-winning core (somehow Kyle Hendricks stayed put). The Nationals traded Mad Max to the still prospect-rich Dodgers. But wait, that’s not all the Dodgers did bolster their rotation, too. They also traded for Danny Duffy who’s been hurt, but is also enjoying a career year. The Twins traded Jose Berrios to the Blue Jays, making that rotation a top rotation in baseball now. Also, we saw Kyle Gibson get traded too the Phillies for top prospect Spencer Howard. On the lower end of the starting pitcher spectrum, we saw Trevor Williams go to the Mets, J.A. Happ and Jon Lester to the Cardinals and Andrew Heaney went coast to coast landing in the Bronx.

Moving onto the injury news. Big names, big news. Tyler Glasnow will indeed be getting Tommy John Surgery. deGrom is shut down for 2 weeks, something in my gut tells me all these injuries are leading somewhere bad but I shall not jinx it. Chris Sale went 5 innings in a rehab start and is almost ready for his return. Chris Paddack has an oblique strain and has hit the IL. Alex Cobb hit the IL with a wrist injury. Clayton Kershaw threw a simulated game. Rookie, James Kaprielian landed on the IL with a shoulder injury. Lastly, both Jack Flaherty and Brady Singer both began their rehab Assignments. There is a lot of good names this week so without further adieu… let’s get to them!

Please, blog, may I have some more?
 
Jakkers

Top 25 Fantasy Shortstops for 2021 – Week 18

August 1, 2021 | Fantasy Baseball Rankings, Top 25 Shortstops | 4 Comments

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The trade deadline is history, and what a trade deadline it was as one All-Star after another All-Star changed teams.

Two of the big names on the move were shortstops – Javier Baez and Trea Turner. Baez is now a member of the New York Mets while Turner moved west and is now with the Dodgers. How do the two trades affect fantasy owners?

Statistically, I think the move will benefit both players. Baez was already playing well over the last month. But now that he is in a race for a division title, look for him to continue his hot streak and become even more productive. This is a player who has shown in the past that he can rise to the occasion.

As for Turner, he is now in a lineup that will be loaded with players who get on base or can drive him in. When he returns from the COVID list, he will likely slot into the top of the lineup and score a ton of runs while also using his speed to steal bases to get into scoring position. But the bottom of the Los Angeles lineup gets on so much that Turner won’t suffer a drop in RBI.

Positionally, both players are going to add to their versatility, especially for next season. That will help dynasty owners. With Francisco Lindor on the shelf for possibly another month, Baez will slot in a shortstop before moving to second when Lindor gets back.

But if that return is near the end of August and closes in on the start of fantasy league playoffs, Baez may not get a lot of starts at second to help fantasy owners who could use him at second base. Turner, however, will be starting at second base as soon as he returns as Corey Seager has returned from the IL. So within a week or two, Turner will have that second position to be able to play.

Have the trades of Baez and Turner changed where they are ranked among the shortstops? Let’s find out.

Please, blog, may I have some more?
 
The Real Joey Bart

Fantasy Baseball Streamers, Week 18: Ride the Wave

August 1, 2021 | Fantasy Baseball Streamers, Fantasy Baseball Two Start Pitchers | Leave a comment

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To say that trade deadline day was chaotic would be a drastic understatement. It’s easy to get lost in the moment when you’re in the midst of it, but that was one of the most impactful deadlines I’ve ever witnessed. While it definitely altered bullpens and lineups much more than rotations, it still left us with a lot of work to do, and it saw two of our recommendations from last week as some of those trade victims. The good news is that many great streamers opened up this week, and it has me ready to have another great week here. With that in mind, let’s talk about those guys!

Please, blog, may I have some more?
 
everywhereblair

Fanduel: Wisdom and Soler

August 1, 2021 | DFS, Fanduel | 6 Comments

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What’s this? A double duel of EverywhereBlair this weekend? That’s right! While Truss is traveling these great states of the united, I’m stepping in on Sunday to make your DFS days right. Just like yesterday, rosters will probably be a bit funky throughout the slate due to the trade deadline and IL moves. So, if you’re playing an all-day slate, stay need your preferred DFS device to flip lineups as they come in. Otherwise, if you’re kinda lazy like me, pick the smaller slates and be a big fish in those.

New to FanDuel? Scared of feeling like a small fish in a big pond? Well, be sure to read our content and subscribe to the DFSBot for your daily baseball plays. Just remember to sign up through us before jumping into the fray. It’s how we know you care!

Please, blog, may I have some more?
 
The Itch

Detmers and the Deadline, Opportunity Knocks for Lucky Fantasy Stocks

August 1, 2021 | Fantasy Baseball Prospects | 35 Comments

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A lot of the MLB trade deadline coverage I’ve seen has been comprehensive, or given the old college try at such, but I will do neither. 

Instead, I will zero in on the things I’ve taken away for fantasy function. Even so, I will miss things and obscure the reality of a player’s potential at times for the sake of finishing a sentence. Baseball is so limitless it’s really all we prospect few ever really do: obscure reality’s unknowable potential so we can take our snapshots and hit our deadlines. In accepting and embracing this chaos, I hope to stay a step ahead of the competition, and I hope you’ll join me like two wild runners in Pamplona gambling with their blood. 

Please, blog, may I have some more?
 
Jeremy Brewer

Top 100 Hitters: Trading Frenzy

July 31, 2021 | Top 100 Hitters | 24 Comments

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The top 100 hitters for the rest of the fantasy baseball season returns this week as the baseball world enjoyed a spirited trade deadline.  Seriously, I can not remember a more entertaining few hours as big names in the majors and minors were flying off the board.  This will take some time to digest, but that was potentially a historic 48 hours.  As well, it is an exciting time in our fantasy game as values quickly change and fantasy writers like me tell our editors that being wrong this time really is not our fault!  I simply guarantee these rankings for the next 17 minutes!  Time to break down the big moves from Anthony Rizzo to Joey Gallo to Starling Marte to Kris Bryant to Trea Turner and so much more!  Check your tray tables and buckle up for another rousing rendition of the top 100 hitters for the rest of the 2021 fantasy baseball season.

Please, blog, may I have some more?
 
Butters

Points Leagues: Votto Takes Flight

July 31, 2021 | Points Leagues | 4 Comments

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Deadline day is upon us and the baseball world could look very different this time tomorrow. However, that hasn’t stopped the games from being played. Joey Votto (60) is on some kind of tear right now. He’s here to chew bubble gum and hit dingers and apparently he’s all out of bubble gum. That’s a bomb in six straight games and thanks to a couple of multi homer efforts he has 8 over that span. Votto has long been the type of guy who gets a boost to his value in points leagues. It’s likely that he’s already on a roster in your league, but he’s not universally rostered so I would take a peek at the wire.

 

Please, blog, may I have some more?
 
everywhereblair

Fanduel: Who’s on First Edition

July 31, 2021 | DFS, Fanduel | 8 Comments

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Welcome, welcome! Are you all as terribly confused about who plays for whom in MLB today? As a member of the Twins fandom (and I can’t say I carry that card with me…even in the house when nothing else is on TV) I saw our team act like a mattress fundraiser over this past week. The Twins jettisoned most everything (and by everything I mean “the franchise” Jose Berrios) and got some prospects in return, but if you know me, I want my players at the table and my dice loaded instead of sleeping in hotel lobbies on foldout chairs. ENYWHEY! Rosters are a freaking mess at the time of writing, and your due diligence should be to check, check, check who is playing today. That’s three checks. You know what makes this job *super* easy? Rudy’s DFSBot. I know, you might be looking at the price of the DFSBot and saying, “it’s so late in the season, I’ll wait.” But wait! Grab yourself a Roto Deluxe subscription for $26 (that’s like $2/week ROS) or $35 to turn off the ads (trust me, it’s great when they’re off). You don’t get the optimizer, but you do get automatically updated lineups and some of the best projections out there, and you can home brew your own Google Sheets dashboard as a lineup optimizer. Plus, it keeps the pantry full of Pop Tarts for all of us. OK, done with the sales pitch (and I really, truly use Rudy’s stuff every day).

New to FanDuel? Scared of feeling like a small fish in a big pond? Well, be sure to read our content and subscribe to the DFSBot for your daily baseball plays. Just remember to sign up through us before jumping into the fray. It’s how we know you care!

Please, blog, may I have some more?
 
Dan Pants

Baez and Bryant Go Coast to Coast and Atlanta Buys an Outfield

July 31, 2021 | Daily Notes, July's Daily Notes | 37 Comments

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The Trade Deadline Spectacular! Lot’s to unpack here, where do I begin? First, the Chicago Cubs continued to clean house Friday night sending their remaining superstars to opposite coasts. Kris Bryant is headed to San Francisco in exchange for Alexander Canario and Caleb Killian, and Javier Baez was sent to Queens to play shortstop for the Mets. The Mets will send outfielder Pete Crow-Armstrong back to Chicago. Look, I’m not going to pretend to know who any of these prospects are, I will leave it to The Itch’s Top 100 Prospects for 2021 Fantasy Baseball to tell you which of these kids are worthy of your 2021 consideration, but I will confirm that Pete Crow-Armstrong is an awesome name, so he must be very good. Anyway, Bryant should gel nicely with this Giants team and they get a “true star” to keep up with the big boys in the NL West. Javier Baez will keep doing the Javier Baez thing he does, now in NYC City, and it should be fun to watch a Javy/Lindo infield combo when Lindor returns in a few weeks. Meanwhile down South, the Braves were so distraught about Acuña (same, Braves, same), they traded for an entirely new outfield. Retail therapy! I get it! Altana acquired Eddie Rosario, Jorge Soler and Adam Duvall all from different teams, all within about an hour of each other, and all of whom are basically the same player. But for real though, how insane was this deadline? Quality and quantity. Twitter Friday afternoon was probably more exciting than most of the MLB games I’ve watched this season. Blockbuster deals! Twists and turns! 10 all-stars traded! Headlines that would make Suni Lee say, “oh, wow that’s a pretty intriguing story.” And she’s not even talking about Trevor Story! For me, it was an exciting, drama-filled 48 hours in sports and I’d love to go on about how fun it is to watch athletes displaced from their homes but there is too much to cover today so will get right to it.

Here’s what else happened in fantasy baseball Friday night:

Please, blog, may I have some more?