OBP Leagues, Week 2: You Say Jaso, I Say Jaso

April 9, 2016 | Uncategorized | 21 Comments

I first wanted to take this opening line to tell you all that I TOLD YOU SO on Eugenio Suarez and Trevor Story! And to those who read my release last Sunday, you are super welcome! (Wait, is this a**hole seriously gonna take that credit but fail to mention that he recommended to start Jose Peraza who is in AAA?!) Why yes, those were my exact plans to be honest.

Any-who, if you missed my last post and are clueless on what I will be doing, here you go…

Each week, I plan to give you an idea of which teams have the most favorable and least favorable match-ups by looking at their opposing scheduled starters for the week. I do this by taking each opposing pitchers’ stats and giving you an idea of which teams should expect to score the most (and least) Rs, HRs, RBIs, SBs, and highest/lowest OBP for the week. I will then give you some suggested spot starts for the week based on the categories (players owned in less than 50% of leagues).

For the first full month of April, I will strictly be using starting pitcher statistics from last season to project out the week. However, as we move forward throughout the season, I will transition to the starters’ 2016 statistics so that I can give you the most accurate and relative numbers to help you win your roto league!

So sit back, take a deep breath, and say “Week Two is gonna be my bee-yachts!”

(Keep in mind, the categories analyzed are for a 5×5 OBP format.)

Please, blog, may I have some more?

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#	MLB Starting Lineups For Mon 8/4
	ARI \| ATL \| BAL \| BOS \| CHC \| CIN \| CLE \| COL \| DET \| HOU \| KC \| LAA \| LAD \| MIA \| MIL \| MIN \| NYM \| NYY \| PHI \| PIT \| SD \| SF \| STL \| TB \| TEX \| TOR \| ATH \| CHW \| OAK \| SEA \| WSH

Tyler White Power Don’t Discriminate

April 9, 2016 | Fantasy Baseball Daily Notes | 53 Comments

by: Dan Pants

The Tyler White hot fire stayed lit last night with his third multi-hit game in a row, going 3-for-4 with 2-run home run. His second jack this year and brings his average to .692 with 7 RBI. Who is Tyler White, you ask? And why should you care, you say? Why am I talking about an Astros rookie first baseman not named A.J. Reed? Geez, bruh, what’s with the attitude, this is my first week back and I’m just trying to help. The 33rd round pick slashed a real nice .325/.442/.496 with 25 doubles, 14 homers and 99 RBI between AA and AAA in 2015. Ty also slashed .366/.460/.585 with 2 homers this spring. So none of this is completely out of no where. And it’s not like we’re talking about Trevor Story here. Now that I think of it, I probably should have written this blurb about him. What a Story! Oh man, perfect headline, too. Think of the all the delicious clicks I’d get. Oh well, Tyler White Hawt will surely cool down but until that time let’s have some fun with early season stats. Doode is slugging 1.308, with a .875 BABIP and a 2.022 OPS! Uh, that will help your fantasy team! Inflated saber metrics aside, White’s available in about 80% of ESPN leagues, Grey told you to BUY and he’s certainly worth a look while he’s hitting all the baseballs.

Here’s what else I saw in fantasy baseball Friday night:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

DraftKings: Weather?!?! I Hardly Know Her!!!

April 9, 2016 | DraftKings | 21 Comments

by: Zach

Hello everyone, and welcome to the weekend! You made it! After a week of working where it seemed as if the clock was moving in hours instead of minutes, sit back, relax, and let’s enjoy America’s Pastime.

For those of you who don’t know me, I am Razzball’s Daily Fantasy Football guy along with Matt Hayes, where I usually break down the entire slate of games from Weeks 1-16. I had lots of fun this season, and much to my delight, some success as well. I write articles that are mostly stats-driven, and while they can be long, I want to not only give you the plays of the day, but “argue” with you, and prove why these guys should find your lineups in Tournaments, H2H’s, 50/50s, or Double-Ups.

Over the course of the past few months or so I have learned a lot about Daily Fantasy Baseball, as I don’t come from a Season-Long Fantasy Baseball background. I listened, I read, and I read some more. Throughout this process, there is one crucial element of Daily Fantasy Baseball that I have learned.

In order to be successful you have to understand which Pitchers to attack for the day, and use Game Theory. What do I mean? A great example came from this past Monday, April 4th, where most of the players out there had one mindset: “Attack Wily Peralta, attack Wily Peralta!” Sure, and it did work out fine, as most of the field was correct with a lot of the Giants batters highly owned on the night. However, what about the sneaky options, the Pitchers who are just as bad, and yet go under the radar? Well what about the Cubbies bats? What about the Dodgers bats? Each team completely destroyed the opposing pitcher, yet you heard nothing about these certain pitchers, it was all Wily Peralta, Wily Peralta, Wily Peralta. Game theory could indicate that the better option was to select the Dodgers, batting behind Clayton Kershaw on the mound (gave up 1 hit).

Sometimes, looking can make the biggest difference.

New to DraftKings? Scared of feeling like a small fish in a big pond? Well try out this 10 teamer of Razzball writers and friends to wet your DK whistle. Just remember to sign up through us before you do. It’s how we know you care! If you still feel helpless and lonely, be sure to subscribe to the DFSBot for your daily baseball plays.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Two-Start Pitchers, Week 2: A New Hope Awakens

April 9, 2016 | Fantasy Baseball Two Start Pitchers | 47 Comments

by: M@

As other sports seasons are starting to die down, baseball mirrors the seasons and begins its bloom at the start of spring. The leaves are budding, the flowers blooming, the pollen wreaking its damn havoc, and hope springs eternal in the hearts of fantasy baseball players everywhere as the weather turns warmer. Well, unless you’re in the northeast. Freakin’ El Nino! We’re officially out of draft season, and baseball is here in full force. And that force is starting to awaken (wait for it…).

It’s a good time of year. Not only do we have the promise of summer on the horizon, but every one of you feel the promise of potential for your fantasy rosters. No one’s dead in the water yet, chances are plentiful, everyone has hope. Except for those A.J. Pollock owners out there (ahem, this guy…), but we’re not focusing on the hitting side today. No sir. Before all those summer bats awaken we’ve gotta get an advantage with the pitchers! It’s Week 2 of the fantasy baseball season and I’m about to tickle your fancy with some Two-Start Pitchers! You can also be hopeful that I’ll never promise to tickle you ever again. That’s strange. I already feel weird. Like Elmo.

For those of you that love a good statistical tickle, though, the Two-Start Pitcher game is perfect for you. Let’s call it what it is: you’re the nerds of fantasy baseball. To go in depth with the plethora of stats available in finding the best two-start options, you gotta nerd out a little bit. So, let’s go all out! In honor of Star Wars: The Force Awakens release to Blu-Ray this week (because who watches DVDs anymore?), we’ll categorize the tiers and rankings of the Week 2 Two-Start Pitchers through the vein of the franchise’s films. And like the Primer’s ability to draw ire from my thoughts on BvP (I get it! The sabermetric baseball world hates the stat!), I’m hopeful this one sparks some controversy on the tiering that’s about to occur. Leh’go!

In the Two-Start Pitcher Primer we discussed the strategy to finding the best two-start options. Being early in the year it’s difficult to pull statistical data on the opposing team’s lineups, so these rankings will revert to Park Factor (pitching at Coors Field is worse than pitching at Turner Field) and some 2015 stats for the pitchers. Pitchers are listed in order by rank.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Purchasido Domingo

April 8, 2016 | Fantasy Baseball Buy/Sell | 678 Comments

by: Grey

Moogly-boogly! It’s been a long winter. The Buy/Sell Column’s back asking, “Did you miss me?!” During the offseason, while you were diddling and thinking about how your middle school nickname was Bracecrotch, I, The Buy/Sell Column was re-reenacting scenes from The Act of Killing with puppets in a staged production on the western tip of Alaska because I’M HARDCORE! You want some Rip Taylor-wannabe, throwing confetti at your feet or you want a Buy/Sell Column that be cutting puppets’ necks with chicken wire while bundled up in fur coats because it was frickin’ cold in Alaska during the winter!? Like Jose Altuve trying to get the Cocoa Puffs, you want the latter! I’m eating puppet stuffing like I’m George “The Animal” Steele just to prove how crazy I am! Okay, enough of the hubbub on the tomfoolery, I’m in on Domingo Santana. Like all the way in. Like Michael, Sonny, Tom Hagen and Vito — all the way in. Like an Asian man wearing dark sunglasses indoors, pushing his chips into the middle of a table — all the way in! Like Gilligan in quicksand — all the way in! The Brewers are awful, this is not a lie. But — and this is a J. Lo-sized but — Miller Park is a great park to hit in. The Brewers offense is not entirely as bad as their pitching. Domingo is a 25 HR, 10 SB guy. Let’s see, that’s better than Hunter Pence. Better than Kole Calhoun. Shoot, that’s better than Matt Kemp. Does Domingo have more risk than those guys? Yeah, word, you betcha. He also has more upside. Right now, Domingo is owned in 33% of ESPN leagues, that’s goofy. Don’t want my word for it? Then stare into Grey’s eyes on his little avatar photo until you see yourself. Now ask yourself if there’s a reason you haven’t picked up Domingo yet, and if there’s no answer, then grab him! Anyway, here’s some more players to Buy or Sell this week in fantasy baseball:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Closer Report, Week 1

April 8, 2016 | Closers, Middle Relievers | 42 Comments

by: Smokey

A week into the season and everyone has basically contracted closer asthma. Breathe… I know it’s tough from time to time to fathom that the fantasy kingdom that you drafted two weeks ago is coming crumbling down because Shawn Tolleson just wet the bed and is shaking the Walker Texas Rangers bullpen. He has guys behind him that have been gone over, which in most leagues that count pitchers who throw the bal,l should have been rostered. Namely Kela and Dyson. So what is all this bad karma at the beginning of the season good for, besides chasing saves? It is good for people who panic and drop the top set-up guys too early. Dellin Betances was dropped four times more then he was added this week. That is a coup for you, don’t run to that, hop on a tricycle and find a hill to roll down as fast as possible. Early season turnover and panic buttons are what make your team weak in one department now, and especially strong in the next several weeks by “calculated” guessing. So with that, here is the first installment of the 2016 Closer Report with the changes and job winners from Spring Training newly nestled into their respective spots. I will tackle Holds and the set-up crews next week when we start seeing usage and match-up based stuff.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Points Leagues: Nostradumba**

April 8, 2016 | Fantasy Baseball Points Leagues | 16 Comments

by: malamoney

I’ve begun working on a program that aims to harness the collective super powers of some of the greatest minds in the last five hundred years. Think of it as a digital hybrid of Nate Silver, Tom Tango, Billy Beane, Kenny Powers and Nostradamus. The beta version, however, was just Powers and Nostradamus. I called it Nostradumbass. According to its calculations I was supposed to draft Adam LaRoche, Torii Hunter and Reggie Jackson. Now call me old fashioned, but if I’m going to get screwed, I’d at least like to get dinner out of the deal. The only guaranteed prediction you can make from those suggestions is that my team is going to suck. If something is a “guaranteed” prediction, is it really a prediction? The aforementioned players project to zero fantasy points for the remainder of the season.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

DraftKings: Making a Blash at Coors

April 8, 2016 | DraftKings, Fantasy Baseball DFS | 14 Comments

by: MattTruss

It feels so good to be back in the DFS saddle, does it not? I don’t know about you, but I’ve been taking it easy this first week. This week has been full of weird start times, random lineup decisions and even a snow out for Pete’s sake! SNOW! With a near full slate today, though, it’s a fine time to jump on in. It’s appropriate there’s a game at Coors today too, since I’m a big Coors stacker. Today will be no different and for those choosing to play the all day or 4 o’clock start time I would like to turn your attention to Jabari Blash. Blash was in the Mariners system for some time and was left exposed to the Rule 5 draft after bashing 32 HRs across two minor league levels last year. The A’s snagged him, traded him to San Diego and now here we are. You may not have heard of Blash, so here’s the 3 second scouting report. Blash can mash. Need more? Well, he doesn’t hit for average and he strikes out a lot, but that power! A little deeper dive shows us a .305 ISO last year in the minors, part of that was in the PCL, but still, the power is legit. Do you know what scores a lot of points in DraftKings games? Home runs, that’s what. Do you know what doesn’t count against batters in the DraftKings games? Strikeouts. Blash in Coors, even for the elevated price tag of $4,000 is worth a shot. Check the lineup and if he’s in, jump all over the somewhat unknown masher and reap the rewards. Let’s see what other picks we can unearth for the Friday slate.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Schwarber Hurts Ankle In Impromptu Audition For DH Job

April 8, 2016 | Fantasy Baseball Daily Notes | 443 Comments

by: Grey

My schmohawk posts are like the fantasy equivalent of Final Destination. First, A.J. Pollock loses his season, then Kyle Schwarber is carted off the field after running into Fowler. If I were Miguel Sano, I’d look both ways while carefully crossing to the plate to strikeout. And Tulo, well, I would just stay in the hyperbaric chamber that you sleep in for your hamstrings. I’m not sure if it was the writing of the posts, publishing of the posts or simply thinking about writing the posts that jinxed these players. Where does my kavorka start and end? Is it okay for me to think bad thoughts about Trevor Story? How serious are my premonitions? Oh, and one side note, you never want to see anyone get hurt, but how on earth did Schwarber get hurt and Fowler was fine? Schwarber’s got like 200 pounds on him. Damn, Dexter Fowler is one strong bean. So, Schwarber has a sprained ankle and is headed for an MRI today. He could be gone for a while, which could help Jorge Soler see some light, though I’m not sure this won’t just mean more playing time for Matt Szczur, Javier Baez (when he returns) or Kris Bryant into the outfield. I’m not even joking; Maddon’s playbook is written in hieroglyphics and the Rosetta Stone didn’t make it through baggage claim. Anyway, here’s what else I saw yesterday in fantasy baseball:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Bear or Bull: Kris Bryant

April 7, 2016 | 2023 Fantasy Baseball | 60 Comments

by: Big Magoo

Does anyone else have the feeling that we’ve done this before? A bit of a case of déjà vu perhaps? Don’t worry. I’m sure there’s a nice snug jacket and a comfy padded room somewhere nearby with your name on it. Hey, get away from that bouncy castle! That’s not what I meant. If you have that feeling, it’s because we have done this before. I wrote about Cubs rookie sensation Kris Bryant in this very column at practically the same exact time of year last season. The hype train gained steam during spring training and pushed his preseason ADP up into the 5th/6th round area, or essentially where Miguel Sano has been coming off of most draft boards this season. I was bullish on Bryant last year and he ended up finishing as the #30 overall player on the 2015 player rater after producing a 87/26/99/13/.275 batting line in 151 games (650 PA). Quite an impressive showing for a rookie, or a player of any experience level for that matter.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

2016 REL Dynasty League Update: Week 1

April 7, 2016 | Razzball Elite League | 4 Comments

by: JB Gilpin

The season is here! The quest for deep dynasty league immortality is abreast, which is a word that is not used nearly enough…

If you missed the league launch giving in slight detail what the league is all about, you can check it out here, plus read our draft recaps in one of the sparsest talent pools you could ever draft in an inaugural league’s draft. Max bid on Pedro Alvarez!

We’ll be checking in every week with updates from our 30 REL GMs, but I know what you’re thinking, “what’s the intrinsic value of looking into your deep league, JB?!” Sorry, that commenter sounded too much like Frasier. The comment would usually be, “BORING!” Well, I think there’s a big value here – seeing pickups on FAAB in a 30er could give you some ideas for guys to watch on your wires in deep leagues as well. Plus this is a Razzball Community league, and giving another outlet for readers to be on the site I think is awesome. We don’t do enough of it. You hear that Grey?! We need to have a “be Grey for a day!” contest and have someone be you and write the daily notes! Man I’d have fun with that… “I interviewed Delino DeShields last night from my Motel 6 bed, and he said he’s gonna have a great year!” Here’s how things are going through the first few games in the 2016 REL League (with pickups stretching more like 2 weeks since the draft for this edition, but ya know, schwatev):

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Razzball Guide to MLB DFS Twitter

April 7, 2016 | Fantasy Baseball DFS | 23 Comments

by: MattTruss

You guys and five girls are what makes the Razzball community great. Case in point, I’ve gotten countless ideas for articles based on feedback, comments, questions and general conversation with you all. It really is my favorite part of this site. One such idea came up when a commenter got a hold of me and asked me who they should be following on Twitter. Let’s take a quick step back, you should absolutely use Twitter to enhance your DFS game. Heck, if you’re a fan of baseball and have a smartphone, there’s no reason to not follow most of this list below. That goes for DFS players and non DFS players alike. There is no faster news source for lineups, weather, late scratches or other breaking stories out there. I love what Twitter has done for the game, it’s an ideal pairing I think. I almost always have my laptop open with Twitter up while I’m watching games.

The thing with Twitter though is you have to be following the right people to make it worth your while. I gave the commenter a blanket statement on who to follow, but it gave me an idea to just write an article on the subject. So, here we have the MattTruss guide to DFS Twitter. I’ve broken this up into different categories, so pick and chose, or follow them all, it’s your choice. I hope this helps, I know it’s been an invaluable tool for me. If nothing else, maybe it’ll save you an hour or so of Googling. Also, if there is someone I missed that you enjoy following, please add them in the comments. Sharing is caring and, back to come full circle, is what makes @Razzball awesome!

Please, blog, may I have some more?