RotoAuthority – MLB Trade Rumors

RotoAuthority.com: Our Fantasy Baseball Site Is Back

Tim Dierkes — Thu, 16 Jan 2014 09:40:38 +0000

RotoAuthority was my first website, launched in June 2005. The site was brimming with fantasy baseball analysis, usually off the beaten path. My posts became sporadic as MLBTR grew, so in recent times I've recruited a team to ensure regular, high-quality content. The group includes Alex Steers McCrum, Mark Polishuk, Andrew Gephardt, and Luckey Helms. We'll be covering everything you need to win your mixed league, including sleepers, busts, rankings, average draft position, and projections. Our newest posts:

Giancarlo Stanton or Bryce Harper in the first round? Mark Polishuk tells you which young slugger to take.
Is Michael Wacha the right choice to lead your fantasy team's rotation? I answered that question and took a look at a slew of other phenom starters.
R.A. Dickey, Matt Cain, Tim Lincecum, and Yovani Gallardo disappointed fantasy owners in 2013; Alex Steers McCrum tells you which will bounce back.
Is Brian McCann the third-best catcher in fantasy baseball? Andrew Gephartdt defends his position as part of his market report on backstops.
Give RotoAuthority a follow on Twitter to catch all the latest posts, and Like us on Facebook to join the daily fantasy baseball debates.

Latest At RotoAuthority.com

Tim Dierkes — Wed, 20 Feb 2013 13:52:48 +0000

The outdated $8 magazines are in stores now, which can only mean one thing: fantasy baseball is around the corner. Our crack team at RotoAuthority will guide you to certain victory, with such recent articles as:

Top 61 Outfielders, by Alex Steers McCrum
Alex Rios vs. Hunter Pence, by Mark Polishuk
Finding This Year's Starting Pitching Sleepers, by Tim Dierkes
Ninth Inning Sleepers and Busts, by Steve Adams
NL West Closer Analysis, by Bryan Grosnick

RotoAuthority.com Returns

Tim Dierkes — Thu, 10 Jan 2013 23:16:37 +0000

Did you finish last in your fantasy baseball league last year? Maybe it's because your leaguemates started preparing in January, and you didn't! Redeem yourself by checking out our fantasy baseball site RotoAuthority, which is already up and running with tons of great stuff:

In the new Go Bold or Go Home series, Alex Steers McCrum tells us why you should draft Mike Trout first overall and Stephen Strasburg in the first round.
Mike Axisa tries to find this year's Trout with a look at top prospects who could have an immediate impact.
See which former Twins center fielder is labeled a sleeper in Steve Adams' latest column.
Safe closers are hard to find, but Bryan Grosnick tries to identify five.
You can keep up with all the latest RotoAuthority articles via Twitter.

Latest At RotoAuthority.com

Tim Dierkes — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 09:12:56 +0000

Now is the time for fantasy baseball drafts, and perhaps our fantasy site RotoAuthority.com can you give a few sleeper ideas. Catch the latest articles via Twitter and Facebook; here are a few examples:

Here are nine players Edwin Van Bibber-Orr would rather not draft.
Dan Mennella looks at the ramifications of Ryan Madson's unfortunate season-ending injury.
Mark Polishuk analyzes the Royals' closer situation.
Tom Warman has pitching sleepers for Yahoo and ESPN leagues, and Alex Steers McCrum has late-round pitchers to target.
Last week Steve Adams conducted an online chat at RotoAuthority and appeared on The Fantasy Fix podcast with Brett Talley.

Latest At RotoAuthority

Tim Dierkes — Tue, 28 Feb 2012 13:02:58 +0000

It's time to start preparing for fantasy baseball drafts, at the expense of your friends and loved ones. Instead of throwing down $8 on a magazine that was written in December, why not check out the latest at our sister site RotoAuthority?

Fantasy baseball's most disappointing players from 2011 offer all kinds of bargains this year. Check out my list of unpopular names you should consider.
Ryan Braun is a first-round pick again, writes Alex Steers McCrum.
I explain that if you're thinking about drafting Elvis Andrus, consider Derek Jeter instead.
Matt Kemp, Justin Upton, and Jose Bautista top Mike Axisa's outfielder rankings.
My wife will tell you that the only thing nerdier than a fantasy draft is a practice fantasy draft. Nonetheless, much of the RotoAuthority crew participated in a mock draft last week, and here is Dan Mennella's analysis.

Latest At RotoAuthority.com

Tim Dierkes — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 09:36:14 +0000

Our newly-relaunched fantasy baseball website RotoAuthority is always fresh and free. The latest:

Edwin Van Bibber-Orr lets us in on the best-kept fantasy baseball secret of 2012.
If you like Buster Posey, try drafting Miguel Montero as your catcher instead, I explain.
Robinson Cano, Dustin Pedroia, and Ian Kinsler top Mike Axisa's second baseman rankings.
Frank Francisco is a sleeper and Alex Gordon might be overvalued, writes Dan Mennella.
Mike Napoli, Mark Teixeira, Dustin Ackley, Derek Jeter, David Freese, and Michael Bourn are overrated in fantasy drafts this year, declares Tom Warman.
Alex Steers McCrum analyzes the recent Edwin Jackson and Casey Kotchman signings.
Mark Polishuk looks at the battle for the Reds' left field job.
Steve Adams answered fantasy questions in a live chat; check out the transcript.

Latest At RotoAuthority.com

Tim Dierkes — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 13:58:17 +0000

The already-outdated fantasy baseball magazines are hitting shelves at $8 a pop, but the newly-relaunched RotoAuthority is fresh and free. The latest:

Albert Pujols takes the #3 spot in Mike Axisa's first baseman rankings.
Mike also analyzes the fantasy baseball impact of the Tigers signing Prince Fielder.
Tom Warman brings us a bunch of underrated starting pitchers.
Mark Polishuk looks at the Cubs' first base situation.
Alex Steers McCrum examines the signings of Juan Pierre, Brad Lidge, and Jeff Francis.
Here's a transcript of Thursday's chat with Steve Adams.

Odds & Ends: Duncan, Mets, Dodgers, Baylor

Tim Dierkes — Mon, 25 Oct 2010 20:46:00 +0000

Four years ago today, the Cubs signed Starlin Castro as an amateur free agent out of the Dominican Republic. He became the team's starting shortstop in May at the age of 20, debuting with a .300/.347/.408 performance. Links for Monday:

Dave Duncan's new deal with the Cards will make him the game's highest paid pitching coach, tweets Joe Strauss of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
ESPN's Keith Law (via Twitter) believes that Sandy Alderson would be a better choice for Mets GM than Josh Byrnes. Roughly 78% of MLBTR readers feel the same way.
After being bumped from consideration for the Brewers' managerial vacancy, Tim Wallach will almost certainly become the Dodgers' third-base coach, according to Tony Jackson of ESPNLosAngeles.com.
Rick Honeycutt has agreed to stay on with the Dodgers as pitching coach, tweets Ken Davidoff of Newsday.
For you fantasy baseball junkies, I took a look at Brandon Morrow at RotoAuthority.
Don Baylor will receive a two-year deal to be the Diamondbacks' new hitting coach, reports Troy E. Renck of the Denver Post. Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic adds that former Indians hurler Charles Nagy is the leading candidate to become the team's new pitching coach.
Geoff Baker of the Seattle Times reveals quotes from Mariners president Chuck Armstrong from six weeks after the Cliff Lee trade. Armstrong said that when talks with the Yankees stalled, the White Sox, Twins, and Rangers were among the teams to get involved.
Yahoo's Tim Brown previews the hot stove season with ten names to watch.

Odds & Ends: Mets, Reds, Nationals, Cardinals

Tim Dierkes — Mon, 18 Oct 2010 15:52:00 +0000

Links for Monday, as impending free agent lefties Cliff Lee and Andy Pettitte prepare to duel in New York…

Jon Heyman of SI (via Twitter) doesn't think that Dana Brown, an "[Omar] Minaya disciple", has a good chance of landing the Mets GM job. Brown will reportedly meet with the club on Wednesday.
RotoAuthority attempts to find the next Carlos Gonzalez for fantasy players.
Cody Ross is expected to be tendered a contract this winter by the Giants, and he told John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle, "I'd like to stay for my career." Ross also revealed that he's been pushing former teammate Dan Uggla to sign with the Giants after next season.
Forget about the Reds signing Carl Crawford, suggests MLB.com's Mark Sheldon. Sheldon sees the Reds attempting to find a more affordable leadoff hitter.
Patrick Newman of FanGraphs looks at the repertoire of starter Hisashi Iwakuma, who will be posted by the Rakuten Golden Eagles. The righty, 30 in April, excels at limiting home runs. Newman estimates a posting fee in the $10MM range plus a contract of four years and $20MM.
Mark Zuckerman of Nats Insider examines Washington's 2011 payroll commitments and finds that they will have less than $50MM committed. He doesn't know if they'll bump payroll to the $80MM range, but if so they could be big offseason spenders. For MLBTR's look at the Nationals' twelve arbitration eligible players, click here.
MLB.com's Matthew Leach spoke to Jake Westbrook about the future, shortly before the season ended.
Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch outlines the battle for Cardinals 40-man roster spots.
The Yankees' Jesus Montero is the best hitting prospect left in the minors, writes Baseball America's Jim Callis.

Experts Predict Jose Bautista’s 2011 Home Run Total

Tim Dierkes — Thu, 14 Oct 2010 12:56:02 +0000

Ben Nicholson-Smith wrote a compelling piece yesterday for MLBTR examining Jose Bautista's upcoming arbitration case. Today at RotoAuthority.com, we attempt to predict Bautista's 2011 home run total through the wisdom of ten top baseball writers, including Peter Gammons, Ken Rosenthal, Jon Heyman, and Buster Olney. Click here to see their predictions.

Odds & Ends: Hahn, Daniels, Edmonds

Tim Dierkes — Wed, 13 Oct 2010 16:23:14 +0000

Links for Wednesday, in the lull before the Yankees and Rangers face off in Texas on Friday…

White Sox assistant GM Rick Hahn interviewed for the Mets GM position yesterday, and Kenny Williams told Dan Martin of the New York Post, "I know I'm gonna lose him, and it's gonna be a heavy blow." Williams explained that Hahn has been picky with previous opportunities. Josh Byrnes was scheduled to interview for the Mets job today.
The Mets won't be plucking Jon Daniels from the Rangers. Owner Chuck Greenberg told Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports, "He's not going anywhere" (Twitter links). Greenberg also spoke to ESPN's Richard Durrett about his desire to retain Cliff Lee, after the lefty's dominant start last night gave the Rangers their first playoff series win.
Jim Edmonds told Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, "I'm kind of in wait-and-see mode right now" in terms of playing next year. Edmonds expressed his desire to land a backup first baseman gig for 2011.
Talking about his next contract, Jose Bautista told Morgan Campbell of the Toronto Star, "The differences of $50,000 or $100,000 may not seem huge but it’s actually really stressful when you’re about to commit." For much more on Bautista's arbitration case, check out Ben Nicholson-Smith's article from earlier today.
RotoAuthority explains why Homer Bailey is a fantasy baseball sleeper for next year.

Odds & Ends: Nakajima, Butler, Managers

Tim Dierkes — Tue, 12 Oct 2010 15:03:11 +0000

On this date six years ago, the Dodgers released a 20-year-old righty named Joakim Soria, who was recovering from Tommy John surgery. Soria was later signed by the Padres out of the Mexican League and then snagged by the Royals in the 2006 Rule 5 draft. He's now one of the game's best closers. On to today's links…

The Astros signed Dominican righty Luis Abad for a low six figures bonus, tweets SI's Melissa Segura. Back in May, Blake Bentley ranked the new Dominican prospects for MLBTR, placing Abad in a tenth-place tie and calling him "one of the most projectable pitchers you'll see."
I took a look at Neil Walker's fantasy baseball prospects for 2011 over at RotoAuthority.
The Mariners are interested in Japanese middle infielder Hiroyuki Nakajima, says U.S.S. Mariner's Dave Cameron. Nakajima may be posted by the Seibu Lions and could be a bargain this winter. Patrick Newman of FanGraphs has more on Nakajima.
Royals first baseman Billy Butler changed agents, going from Doug Rogalski to Greg Genske of Legacy Sports, tweets ESPN's Jerry Crasnick. Rogalski has to feel burned, as Butler is heading to arbitration for the first time this winter.
Cubs chairman Tom Ricketts interviewed Eric Wedge for the team's managerial opening yesterday, reports ESPN's Bruce Levine. Larry Stone of the Seattle Times reports that the Mariners interviewed Bobby Valentine yesterday and have Lloyd McClendon on the docket this week.
Billy Wagner talked to MLB.com's Mark Bowman about his retirement.

Odds & Ends: Draft, Pirates, Betemit

Tim Dierkes — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 12:44:59 +0000

Links for Monday, as the Yankees' Ivan Nova prepares for his first big league start in Toronto…

RotoAuthority looks at the five first basemen who returned good value in fantasy baseball mixed leagues this year.
The Dodgers led baseball by spending 224% of their estimated slot on the draft, according to Baseball America. Most clubs spent more than MLB suggested, but only eight exceeded 150% of MLB's preferred budget.
BA's Jim Callis creates a fresh Pirates top ten prospects list, given all the new talent entering the system recently.
U.S.S. Mariner's Dave Cameron would like to see the Mariners acquire recently-designated Matt Downs from the Giants.
In a FanGraphs article, Cameron examines the Royals' situation with Wilson Betemit's last arbitration year coming up.

Odds & Ends: Aramis, Kemp, K-Rod

Tim Dierkes — Tue, 17 Aug 2010 13:48:22 +0000

August 17th was a busy transaction day one year ago, as the Tigers acquired Aubrey Huff and the Rangers and Red Sox released Vicente Padilla and John Smoltz, respectively. Both pitchers performed well for their new teams; who will follow that script this year? While you ponder the question, here are today's links…

Baseball fans are mourning the passing of Bobby Thomson, famous for his "shot heard 'round the world" with the New York Giants.
MLB.com's Mark Bowman and the AJC's David O'Brien have contrasting reports on whether the Braves explored acquiring Aramis Ramirez from the Cubs. Both seem to agree that it's not happening.
RotoAuthority looks at five catchers who were undervalued in fantasy baseball drafts before the season.
Agent Dave Stewart nearly lost Matt Kemp to Scott Boras during the offseason, reports Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports. In January, Kemp signed a two-year deal covering his first two arbitration years.
Neither Rosenthal nor Joel Sherman of the New York Post think the Mets can get Francisco Rodriguez's entire contract voided, but Sherman thinks they might win a case aiming to get out of the salary he has coming for the rest of the season.
Agent Gregg Clifton left Gaylord Sports, tweets ESPN's Jerry Crasnick. Clifton represented players such as Kris Benson and Mark Mulder and the now-retired Tom Glavine, Luis Gonzalez, and David Wells. In another tweet Crasnick says Clifton joined Jackson Lewis LLP as a partner and will be part of their Sports Industry Practice Group.

Odds & Ends: Scott, Valentine, Manny

Tim Dierkes — Mon, 16 Aug 2010 13:48:17 +0000

Four years ago today, the Yankees released first baseman Carlos Pena. He signed a minor league deal with the Rays in January of '07 and went on to have a monster season. On to today's non-draft links…

Luke Scott was claimed on waivers this month and pulled back, reports Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports. Not a big surprise, but now we know Scott won't be traded in August.
Ichiro Suzuki has talked to Mariners ownership about hiring Bobby Valentine to manage, tweets MLB Network's Peter Gammons. However, Larry Stone of the Seattle Times hears that Ichiro has not approached the Mariners about Valentine.
The possibility of Manny Ramirez being claimed or traded is examined in columns by Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports and Buster Olney of ESPN.
RotoAuthority explores whether Jordan Zimmermann is worth stashing in fantasy leagues.