Please see our player page for Anthony Swarzak to see projections for today, the next 7 days and rest of season as well as stats and gamelogs designed with the fantasy baseball player in mind.

Bullpen Report, Week 12: May In June

June 13, 2019 | 2019 Fantasy Baseball, Closers, Middle Relievers | 21 Comments

by: Roto-Wan

It’s June, in case you don’t own a calendar or Mayan solar stone. Fantasy owners can no longer afford to hold their breath in any given category. Now is the time to take your shots on middle relievers and hope they earn you a save or two. It’s nice if they can give you strikeouts or stellar ratios in the meantime. Check your wire for the names below.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Texas Takes A Leake On The M’s

May 21, 2019 | Fantasy Baseball Daily Notes | 598 Comments

by: Grey

To the Muppet Show theme song, “It’s time to face the music! It’s time to say Asdrubal Cabrera is all right! It’s time to meet the Rangers on the Rangers show tonight!” Asdrubal Cabrera went 2-for-4 and his 8th and 9th homer, hitting .222. Guess you can say that was an Asdouble homer night! Give me some skin up in the air! No? Okay. Asdrubal went cold the past three weeks after having a hot two weeks prior, and it sounds like I’m writing his autobiography. So, finally he said to his 4th grade gym teacher, “I will be someone one day,” and that teacher was Hunter Pence, who also hit a home run, his 9th as he hits .307. Pence aka The Gangly Manbird aka the Zombino aka the inflatable wavy guy outside of a used car lot has six homers in the past 11 games. He sure doesn’t stink, but you know who does? Rougned Odor (1-for-4, 3 RBIs, hitting .169) hit his 7th homer. Odor…Odor…Odor…Odor…*my back is pressed against a giant gym sock*…Odor! Seriously, you know when 25 homers is not feasible? When it comes with a .170 average. Pick up the pace, Odor, you odorous piece of pond scum! All of this offense was plenty for Mike Minor (6 IP, 1 ER, 7 baserunners, 11 Ks, ERA at 2.51). Nope, he’s not pitching as well as his ERA indicates, but at a certain point you have to say to yourself, “Do I want some flashy FIP, which I don’t even fully understand, or do I want to win my league?” But those runs were only barely enough for Clocks singer, Chris Martin (1 IP, 3 ER, ERA at 4.66). Bring back the South African dictator, Leclerc, which I say quietly to myself, so no one gets the wrong impression. Anyway, here’s what else I saw yesterday in fantasy baseball:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Closer Rankings, Week 7: Sick As A Seattle RP

May 9, 2019 | 2019 Fantasy Baseball, Closers | 32 Comments

by: Roto-Wan

Roto-Wan is recovering from the toddler flu. I’m his semi-conscious fantasy lobe here to deliver you the best closer rankings I can with the limited blood sugar I’ve been able to hoard. Tiers will be sick day daytime TV-themed.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

You Couldn’t Hit Michael Fiers If You Were F****** Michael Fiers

May 8, 2019 | Fantasy Baseball Daily Notes | 595 Comments

by: Grey

No ham sad-wiches at this Fiers fest! Mike Fiers pitching a no-hitter with 6 Ks, ERA down to 5.48, and he only needed 131 pitches. Previously, he threw a no-hitter in 2015 when he threw 135 pitches. Man, pitchers really threw a whole lot more pitches back then in the mid-twenty-teens. Way back when we still thought Game of Thrones was a good show and not a shill for Starbucks. Way back in 2015 when we all got along outwardly and just simmered under the surface with our political differences. What a time! Of course, Mike Fiers was facing the Reds, and Fiers is red and *insert Spider-man pointing at himself jpg* and Ramon Laureano needed to rob Joey Votto of a home run, but…piece of cake. As we knew all along, there’s nothing to Fiers except Fiers himself. He was a streamer I strongly considered yesterday, because Fiers is the epitome of a Medi-OAKer pitcher, and he was at home facing a terrible team. Sadly, the one thing that puts out Fiers is when you put your stream on him. Anyway, here’s what else I saw yesterday in fantasy baseball:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Michael Chavis Suave As F

May 4, 2019 | 2019 Fantasy Baseball, Fantasy Baseball Daily Notes | 47 Comments

by: Dan Pants

Michael Chavis continued to do nothing but hit Friday night going 2-for-4 with his fourth home run, a 459 foot 2-run shot (woh) off Reynaldo Lopez. Someone put a distress beacon on that ball so maybe Captain Marvel can find it in space!? Chavis is now slashing a real pretty .310/.442/.619 with four homers and two steals in just 42 at bats (13 games). Extrapolate that! If he started the season with the team he’d be the their home leader! I’m trying to figure out why he’s not owned in more leagues. Is it because he doesn’t have a sexy name like Skye Bolt or Carter Kieboom. Or maybe we haven’t done our due diligence as irritating members of Red Sox Nation to over hype this guy until you’re sick of hearing about him. Well, get ready to hear me gush about my newest BoSox heart throb because Chavis has done everything since arriving with Boston including five multi-hit games in his past 10. He’s famous around the clubhouse for the studious notes he takes after every at bat. Whaddaya think you’re some kinda smaht guy Hahvad boy? How do you like dem apples! Err, ok, wrong school but the reference still works. Did I mention the kid bats in the middle of a lineup that features Xander, JD and Mookie. Those are very good players we all know and love on a first name basis. Any hesitation most likely stems from the inevitable return of Eduardo Nunez and Dustin Pedroia (L out L) stealing his playing time, but I trust Alex Cora to play the young guys when the time comes. He was a BUY and needs to be owned wherever he’s available, Dustin and Eduardo don’t hit moon shots like that, folks. It’s time to join the Michael Chavis fan club.

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

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Lyles Got Styles You Don’t Wanna Passover

April 20, 2019 | 2019 Fantasy Baseball, Fantasy Baseball Daily Notes | 65 Comments

by: Dan Pants

Jordan Lyles was exceptional Friday night capturing his second win of the year going six strong innings allowing just four hits, a walk and striking out six. He now leads the league with a 0.53 ERA. Mazel tov, Jordan, and happy Pesach! Well, someone clearly did not observe the High Sabbath last night. He had better things to do, busy mowing down the San Francisco hitters. So is the Bucs pitching coach Ray Searage is a miracle worker or a Three Eyed Raven or some kind of warg magic man?? The Pirates pitching staff now boasts a league best 2.54 ERA. But back to Jordan. Lyles has now struck out 16 over his past two starts and holds some real pretty ratios like that league leading 0.53 ERA and a 0.88 WHIP with an 19/5 K/BB. Yes, more please. Put that on your seder plate. After the all star break last year, Lyles started relying more on a combination of his curve ball and 4-seam fastball and benefited from this greatly posting a 3.00 ERA with hitters batting just .213 against him. His curve ball, in particular, can be pretty nasty when its on and when he’s mixing in the 4-seamer effectively Jordan has looked like a dominant pitcher. Seems like he’s brought this strategy with him to Pittsburgh and things with Searage have clicked. He had his outing shortened Friday after taking a line drive off the hand but the injury does not appear to be serious and he is expected to make his next start Wednesday versus Arizona. Lyles is available in over 75% of fantasy leagues and worth your streaming consideration at the very least. He’s starting to look like a steal for Pittsburgh, and he seems like a real mensch you may not want to Pass over!

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

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Circle, Circle, Dot, Dot, Cody With Another Shot

April 19, 2019 | Fantasy Baseball Daily Notes | 510 Comments

by: Grey

Due to the light schedule, let’s drill down on Cody Bellinger (2-for-4 and his 10th homer, hitting .432). If man love bothers you, perhaps you should shield your eyes. This could become naughty, and, yes, I need to remove my pants to write the rest of this. Cody is 2 1/2 home runs from being halfway to last year’s homer total. How does one hit a 1/2 of a home run? You hit it out of the park, then pimp with a bat flip so long you get tackled rounding 2nd. Right now, Bellinger’s HR/FB% is absurd. He’s not even hitting that many fly balls. It’s just everything he touches goes bim-bam-zoom to the moon. Can that continue, you ask with your doe eyes and soft lips. You drafted Goodrum on too many teams, because you sound drunk. Of course, it won’t continue. His launch angle last year, when he hit 25 homers, was 16 degrees. This year it’s 13. He is hitting the ball damn hard, though. He’s third in the majors with 96 MPH average exit velocity. I’d be shocked if he hits less than 35 homers, but I also don’t think he’s going to hit more than his career high of 39 homers, if his fly ball rate holds. His strikeout rate has absolutely cratered, in a good way, but, of course, when a guy is hitting well, he’s not striking out. He will go cold, turkey, and cold turkey on power at some point. It’s early, yadda-blabbity-bloo, so don’t panic sell. He’s now a legit top 15 bat vs. the top 40 one we thought he might be in the preseason. Now, I will put back on my linen Tommy Bahama pants and continue. Anyway, here’s what else I saw yesterday in fantasy baseball:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Go Buy The Clint For Play And Do Something Frazier For Once

April 12, 2019 | Fantasy Baseball Buy/Sell | 475 Comments

by: Grey

I’m going to share a Missed Connection posting with you that I’ve been working on; let me know if there’s anything you’d change. “Hello, Ginger. I saw you at a Wetzel’s Pretzels in Roosevelt Field on Saturday. I don’t know if Ginger is your name, but your hair was the color of a carrot. Not a carrot’s top, that’s green. I don’t know why people say that’s orange. You looked off the scale on the crazy/hot ratio. Your arm freckles looked like God spilled Sunny D on you. One blonde child turned the corner, saw you and immediately started crying. Does any of this ring a bell? At one point, you stepped into a sliver of sunlight and starting screaming, ‘I’m burning!’ You were wearing a New York Yankees jersey with the name Frazier on the back. If this sounds like you, please contact me. I need an outfielder.” How’s that? Do you think I could get myself a 5th outfielder with that? So, Clint Frazier finds himself in an everyday job with the Yankees. How long he lasts is up to Giancarlo, Hicks and Gardner’s health, but I’d own Frazier everywhere to see if he can finally tap that speed/power combo. Speaking of which, he kinda looks like Pizza Combos. Anyway, here’s some more players to Buy or Sell this week in fantasy baseball:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Closer Rankings, Week 3: Masters Baited

April 12, 2019 | 2019 Fantasy Baseball, Closers, SAGNOF | 13 Comments

by: Roto-Wan

It’s Masters Week! Let’s enjoy some Augusta themed tiers (hold the bigotry). First some (mostly bad) closer news.

Jose Leclerc blew a save and couldn’t get more than one out with a four-run lead. He’s earned some leash, but we’ve seen ineffective periods from him before. Expensive salads don’t melt down. He’s downgraded for a spell.
The Mariners can’t seem to get their bullpen sorted. Anthony Swarzak is their best arm but that means coming in when it’s the seventh or eighth. He should still see more saves than any other reliever for them.
Hate to say I told you so on Trevor May, but also I told you so on Trevor May. When in doubt back greed. His deployment is very characteristic of a team looking to save in arbitration. Not that he won’t see any save opps, they’ll just be too unpredictable for most of our leagues. Blake Parker gets most of the looks with Taylor Rogers matching up with lefties on occasion.
Raisel Iglesias got through a clean ninth inning for a save finally. That’s encouraging but between his struggles and being used in other innings I’m dropping him all the way to the bottom rung until we can feel comfortable in his stuff and role.

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Fantasy Baseball Podcast: Week Two FOMO

April 9, 2019 | All Podcasts, Razzball Podcast | 4 Comments

by: Geoff

With the season in full swing and fantasy baseball well underway, Grey and I are feeling the early season blues. An off-season of hope and promise has turned into a week of despair. Instead of wallowing in self-pity like a Morrissey song, we hit the wavier wire and talk about some of top adds you should be scooping. Then we let out all the feels as we talk about our FOMO players for the upcoming season. It’s the latest episode of the Razzball Baseball Podcast!

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Buy Bull Thumping In The Desert

April 5, 2019 | Fantasy Baseball Buy/Sell | 436 Comments

by: Grey

Today we have a very special Game of Thrones edition with your host, Ball-less Greyjoy. Or, I guess since it’s a Buy, as in pick up off waivers, it’s a Game of Thrones addition. To prep for the Game of Thrones finale, I pushed a kid out a window. As I get into bed with Cougs, I yell, “The one-eyed raven is here and winter is coming!” This show better not end as a Bob Newhart dream or in a snow globe of an autistic boy. As Daenerys would say, “I just flew to King’s Landing and boy are my armies tired.” I wonder if Daenerys used to be Daenery but added the S on the end like Kendrys. Speaking of which, Kendrys Targaryen has no position flexibility, and is just rigid, due to the 75 years he’s been guarding a freakin’ wall. Why does he guard the wall? Because of the dreaded White Walkers. The Night King, head White Walker, is Christian Walker. Since Kendrys Targaryen unleashed his dragon and it ate a Lamb (then burped fire), Christian Walker could see more time on the other side of the dugout wall. He’s shown good pop (who doesn’t sleep with mom who is his sister) and I’m adding him in all leagues. He hit 30+ homers in Triple-A, during his last full season there. Hopefully, George RR Martin doesn’t stop doing his bend the knee burpees at a Westeros Fitness and kill him off. Spoiler Alert! Game of Thrones ends with Fonzie jumping over a dragon. Anyway, here’s some more players to Buy or Sell this week in fantasy baseball:

Please, blog, may I have some more?

Turner Hand Hooched

April 3, 2019 | Fantasy Baseball Daily Notes | 588 Comments

by: Grey

Trea Turner broke his finger when he squared around to bunt. He hit two homers in his last game, including a walk-off homer, so of course he’s bunting. I mean, OF COURSE. Why wouldn’t he be bunting? You gonna let (fill-in name) just be the best bunter in Major League history? (Fill-in name of a bunter that no one’s ever heard of because no one cares about bunting) is not gonna go down in history as the greatest bunter without a freakin’ fight from Trea Turner? Is he? I mean, IS HE?! What in the holy eff bombs!? Don’t bunt! Turner will likely be out for a month and everything that is wonderful can’t be mine. Anyway, here’s what else I saw yesterday in fantasy baseball:

Please, blog, may I have some more?