The Game
Things we can count on after one week
This week’s ESPN Insider column, appearing every Friday. This is the week for eternal optimism. Clayton Kershaw and Bryce Harper look vintage. Greg Holland and Jeanmar Gomez really did get saves. Khris Davis’ owners are downright giddy over their eighth round bargain. Everyone is still in or near first place. With draft day still fresh…
Read MorePLAYER PREMONITION #170403
Every so often, something about a player will rise to my consciousness. A hidden indicator. A revelation that wakes me up at night. I’ll call these periodic posts Player Premonitions. We’ll open this new feature with a starting pitcher. Seven years ago, this pitcher won 18 games with a 2.97 ERA in nearly 200 innings,…
Read MorePremonitions, and other final brain flakes
At this time of year, everyone is out with their bold predictions. For some writers, it’s an exercise in tossing spaghetti against a wall to see what sticks. At Baseball HQ, I used to conduct what I called a Longshot Caucus, which was a bit more analytically sound, linking together some conditional possibilities. For me,…
Read MoreThe changing game and the 10-day DL
This year, members have access to all the columns I write for ESPN Insider. They appear here every Thursday or Friday. Many will include a BABS-relevant postscript. Enjoy. Over the past three decades, changes in the real game have had slow but subtle effects on the fantasy game. These changes have made fantasy more challenging…
Read MoreNo path to playing time
This year, members have access to all the columns I write for ESPN Insider. They appear here every Friday. Many will include a BABS-relevant postscript. Enjoy. Living in Port St. Lucie, FL, I have been able to follow the career of Michael Conforto since he played for the Class-A St. Lucie Mets. I think he…
Read MoreThe skewed value of sophomores
This year, members have access to all the columns I write for ESPN Insider. They appear here every Thursday or Friday. Many will include a BABS-relevant postscript. Enjoy. Trea Turner posted an amazing set of numbers in just 307 at-bats last summer. He is being selected in the first round of most drafts, usually ahead…
Read MoreDeconstructing the Foundation Rounds
This year, members have access to all the columns I write for ESPN Insider. They will appear here every Thursday or Friday. Many will include a BABS-relevant postscript. Enjoy. The foundation of your fantasy baseball roster starts in the first three rounds, or with players purchased for $20-plus in auction leagues. These should be the…
Read MoreHobbled players offer profit opportunities
Here are some startling stats: In the complete BABS database that contains over 1,300 players, 33 percent of them are currently tagged with some level of elevated injury risk. That’s 32 percent of batters; 36 percent of pitchers. About 18 percent have major risk (INJ), split as 17 percent of batters and 21 percent of…
Read MoreDangers of chasing profit
The latest BABS Master List Update is now online in the Members Only CONTROL CENTER. Our goal in playing this game is to try to find players whose productivity exceeds our investment. Player projections attempt to place a metric on productivity; ADPs and AAVs attempt to show us how others are investing. These two lines…
Read MoreThe Need for Speed
In the upcoming edition of the Baseball Forecaster, you will read about the ever-changing shifts in the statistical landscape. By now, it’s common knowledge that home runs left ballparks at historic rates last year, and stolen bases took the opposite path. If you were to assume that these trends will persist, then there is one…
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