On this season's final episode of the Yahoo Fantasy Baseball Podcast, The Athletic's Derek VanRiper joins Scott Pianowski to look back at the 2020 MLB Season and the big questions we have heading into next season. We lead off with a look back at the 2020 season and how the Universal DH changed fantasy baseball strategy going into the season. Will the bullpen breakout of 2020 remain here in baseball for good? Scott and Derek share their thoughts on drafting relievers next year. We look at some of...
Sep 30, 2020•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 59
On this episode of the Yahoo Fantasy Baseball Podcast, USA Today's Steve Gardner joins Scott Pianowski to look back at the 2020 MLB Season and discuss where baseball goes from here. We're not the first people to notice that the 2020 MLB Season was unlike any other as the regular season winds to a close. But that got us wondering, what will the 2021 baseball season look like? Will we see the return of the traditional 8-team playoff format, designated hitters who live only in the AL and starting p...
Sep 22, 2020•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 58
On this episode of the Yahoo Fantasy Baseball Podcast, Yahoo's Fred Zinkie joins Scott Pianowski to talk playoff strategy, pickups and our favorite no-hitters in history. [Create or Join a 2020 Yahoo Fantasy Baseball League for free today!] Congrats to those of you who made your head-to-head playoffs! Fred and Scott get you prepped for the next two weeks with ideas for pickups and schedules to exploit (the Cardinals play *TEN* times this week), end-of-season strategy for roto leagues, tips for t...
Sep 15, 2020•58 min•Ep. 57
On this episode of the Yahoo Fantasy Baseball Podcast, Rotowire's Jeff Erickson joins Scott Pianowski to discuss the fallout from MLB's trade deadline, keys to make trades in your own fantasy league and their favorite San Diego Padres of all time! [ Create or join a 2020 Yahoo Fantasy Football League for free today ] With 2020's MLB Trade Deadline behind us, Scott and Jeff look at the winners (Mike Clevinger, Bobby Dalbec) and losers (Francisco Mejia, pretty much every fringe Rockies hitter) fro...
Sep 01, 2020•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 56
On this episode of the Yahoo Fantasy Baseball Podcast, Yahoo's Scott Pianowski and Dalton Del Don discuss how they're handling free-agent pickups, why the struggle for saves is even more difficult this year and their favorite Radiohead songs in our silly draft. [ Create or join a 2020 Yahoo Fantasy Football League for free today ] Scott and Dalton look at the FAB waiver period that typically goes through Sunday night in their leagues to see if they should shift their strategy to deal with the sh...
Aug 25, 2020•1 hr•Ep. 55
On this episode of the Yahoo Fantasy Baseball Podcast, Yahoo's Scott Pianowski chats with Paul Sporer of Fangraphs about the renewed sense of optimism surrounding baseball completing a season, players you should consider cutting and why we missed some of the biggest breakouts in 2020. [ Create or join a 2020 Yahoo Fantasy Football League for free today ] If you're debating whether or not you should hold onto players that have been lackluster so far in 2020 like Andrew Benintendi or Khris Davis, ...
Aug 18, 2020•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 54
On this episode of the Yahoo Fantasy Baseball Podcast, Yahoo's Fred Zinkie joins Scott Pianowski to discuss the hot starts and strategy changes that have jumped out in the early part of the 2020 MLB season. [Create or Join a 2020 Yahoo Fantasy Baseball League for free today!] The early few weeks of the 2020 MLB season has brought us 7-inning doubleheaders, middle relievers stealing wins from starters, dwindling steals and relievers splitting up the saves. Scott and Fred discuss how to adapt your...
Aug 11, 2020•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 53
Hello and welcome to the Yahoo Fantasy Baseball Podcast! Yahoo's Scott Pianowski and fantasy baseball pioneer Ron Shandler discuss what to focus on and what to ignore when it comes to stats in a short season, what predictions get wrong and their favorite out of nowhere fantasy seasons.. [Create or Join a 2020 Yahoo Fantasy Baseball League for free today!] Since the season is 60% shorter, it's tough to ignore early slumps when it comes to players. Scott and Ron discuss what to focus on and what t...
Aug 04, 2020•1 hr 5 min•Ep. 52
Hello and welcome to the Yahoo Fantasy Baseball Podcast! Yahoo's Scott Pianowski and baseball writer Joe Sheehan from Sports Illustrated and Baseball America discuss the first (only?) week of the 2020 MLB Season, what the Miami Marlins situation could mean for the rest of baseball, what teams stand out early and whether the closer role is slowly going away for good. [Create or Join a 2020 Yahoo Fantasy Baseball League for free today!] Is it over before it began? With the Miami Marlins facing an ...
Jul 29, 2020•1 hr 14 min•Ep. 51
On this episode of the Yahoo Fantasy Baseball Podcast, Yahoo's Scott Pianowski and Dalton Del Don take a trip around the horn to preview every single team in Major League Baseball for opening week. [Create or Join a 2020 Yahoo Fantasy Baseball League for free today!] NL East, are we undervaluing the defending champions in Washington? (02:10) NL Central, Ryan Braun is not the only sleeper hitter in Milwaukee. (10:00) NL West, even in a short season, the Dodgers look like a lock for another playof...
Jul 21, 2020•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 50
On this episode of the Yahoo Fantasy Baseball Podcast, Yahoo's Fred Zinkie joins Scott Pianowski as we make our way toward opening day of the 2020 MLB Season to talk rule changes they're implementing in a short season, why the recent focus on starting pitching early in drafts might be wrong and how they'll handle players who are recently injured. [Create or Join a 2020 Yahoo Fantasy Baseball League for free today!] To re-draft or not re-draft your leagues, that is the question. Scott and Fred di...
Jul 14, 2020•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 49
On this week's episode of the Yahoo Fantasy Baseball Podast, Yahoo’s Andy Behrens sits in for Scott PIanowski and is joined by Razzball's B_Don to discuss what to do about Mike Trout in the rankings, league rules to consider changing during a shortened season, why relievers might be more valuable in 2020 and a few bold predictions. [Create or Join a 2020 Yahoo Fantasy Baseball League for free today!] With the news that perennial MVP candidate Mike Trout could miss at least a portion of a shorten...
Jul 07, 2020•55 min•Ep. 48
On this week's episode of the Yahoo Fantasy Baseball Podcast, Yahoo’s Scott Pianowski and Mike Oz , Yahoo Baseball Writer and proud Fresno resident, discuss the winners and losers from a proposed short baseball season, how they're shuffling the top of their starting pitching rankings, Mike's Old Baseball Card series, and more. And with a nod to Mike Oz's radio show, we’ll wrap up the show with a draft of our favorite rap artists in history. Please remember to rate, review and subscribe on your p...
Jun 30, 2020•59 min•Ep. 47
On this week's episode of the Yahoo Fantasy Baseball Podcast, Scott Pianowski and Yahoo's national baseball writer Hannah Keyser discuss the long and winding road to the 2020 MLB season, whether the increased focus on home runs is ruining the sport, why starting extra innings with a runner on second base is a terrible idea and how Sex and the City exemplifies our relationship with baseball And we’ll wrap up the show with a draft of our favorite condiments. Do not be fooled by ketchup's ubiquity,...
Jun 23, 2020•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 46
On this week's episode of the Yahoo Fantasy Baseball Podcast, Yahoo’s Scott Pianowski and D.B. Firstman , author of Hall of Name , discuss how they got started in their writing careers and broke into writing about baseball, fantasy baseball alternatives like scoresheet, how baseball can be more inclusive toward people of all genders and whether or not we'll see baseball before the year 2022 at this point. And we’ll wrap up the show with a draft of our favorite letters. We promise it'll be more f...
Jun 16, 2020•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 45
On this week's episode of the Yahoo Fantasy Baseball Podcast, Yahoo’s Scott Pianowski and Dalton Del Don have a few debates around the (hopefully upcoming) 2020 MLB season. First up, Dalton and Scott discuss the elephant in the room, what's our confidence level on Major League Baseball settling its labor dispute and starting a season this year? (03:00) And, should we worry about the randomness and small sample size a shorter season will bring? (06:00) Should we focus on pitching or hitting in up...
Jun 08, 2020•47 min•Ep. 44
On this episode of the Yahoo Fantasy Baseball Podcast, Fred Zinkie stops by to discuss baseball's ongoing labor dispute and what they've learned about fantasy baseball strategy from their recent retro season fantasy drafts. Scott and Fred also talk in depth about the current state of affairs and standoff between MLB and its players. Will we have an MLB season? And if so, with a likely season being shortened in some form or fashion, what are some strategies fantasy players can implement? And how ...
Jun 02, 2020•50 min•Ep. 43
As Major League Baseball inches closer to a return to the field , we're taking a quick break from our usual focus on fantasy baseball for a class on sports films and baseball history. Yahoo's Scott Pianowski and Andy Behrens recently watched Moneyball, the Michael Lewis book turned Aaron Sorkin film about the 2002 Oakland Athletics and its General Manager, Billy Beane. It's worth your time if you haven't seen it, but there is a lot the book and film get wrong about the team and the time in baseb...
May 19, 2020•57 min•Ep. 42
We got a bit of a throwback episode for you baseball history buffs, Yahoo’s Andy Behrens joins Scott Pianowski to talk about their draft with our friends over at Rotoworld for ‘The Greatest League.’ If you haven’t heard about the concept already, the basic idea is that you can draft the best individual seasons of any baseball player since 1980. Any player, any season, but a player can only be drafted once. Once rosters are set, Rotoworld plans on simulating an entire season on WhatIfSports . (02...
May 14, 2020•1 hr•Ep. 41
Yahoo’s Scott Pianowski chats with Elite Fantasy’s Vlad Sedler about the growing optimism around a 2020 MLB season, how rumors of a universal DH could impact the fantasy landscape, and some of the big picture fantasy baseball strategies they’ve relied on over the years. Leading off, Scott and Vlad look at some of the players they might bump up their draft boards if the National League adopts a designated hitter — either for the 2020 season or permanently. (01:17) If baseball adopts a one, two, o...
May 05, 2020•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 40
Rotowire's Scott Jenstad joins Scott Pianowski to talk over how a baseball season in flux is changing his draft rankings, some of the guys he likes and doesn't like at their current price tags, and debates who are the best coaches in sports since 1990 — apologies to Red Auerbach fans. Scott's standouts include a trifecta of mid-tier third basemen: Matt Chapman, Josh Donaldson and Mike Moustakas (8:00), podcast fav Cavan Biggio (13:10), former fantasy first-rounder Javier Baez (27:39), and of the...
Apr 28, 2020•59 min•Ep. 39
Last week, we told you about the players to eschew at each position in your upcoming baseball drafts. This week, Yahoo's Scott Pianowski and Fangraphs Editor (+ avid Twitch streamer ) Paul Sporer discuss the best values on the draft board at each position. We know we don't need to tell you that Mike Trout is worth drafting, this episode is all about the mid-to-late round guys that have a chance to provide a healthy ROI on your draft pick. First Basemen (04:47) Second Basemen (09:20) Shortstops (...
Apr 20, 2020•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 38
Scott Pianowski is joined this week by Yahoo's fantasy expert (and resident TV and film critic) Dalton Del Don to talk about players at every position you should consider not drafting at their current ADPs in fantasy drafts. Apologies in advance to Houston Astros fans. Starting Pitchers (02:55) First Basemen (11:31) Second Basemen (15:18) Shortstops (18:36) Third Basemen (20:56) Catchers (25:10) Closers (28:47) Outfield (33:57) The guys close out the show by drafting their favorite endings to fi...
Apr 13, 2020•55 min•Ep. 37
Scott Pianowski is joined this week by friend of the pod Fred Zinkie to talk about shifting strategy in a likely shortened baseball season, a quandry most fantasy owners are facing, and Fred's recent Tout Wars and Yahoo Friends and Family drafts. The guys discuss how a shorter season could put pressure on older players who might get off to a slow start. (2:30) Fred recently wrapped up an NL-only auction draft for Tout Wars and went heavy on shortstops, drafting Trevor Story, Fernando Tatis, Jr.,...
Apr 06, 2020•58 min•Ep. 36
Yahoo's very own Andy Behrens joins Scott Pianowski to talk over their recent Tout Wars auction draft, how to approach prospects with the possibility of a shorter season, and why Scooby Doo would make an excellent companion during isolation. The guys first talk about Andy's recent Tout Wars auction draft , a 12-team points league. Even though Andy isn't the biggest fan of points leagues, he shares why he targeted premium corner infielders like Freddie Freeman and Kris Bryant going into the draft...
Mar 31, 2020•52 min•Ep. 35
On this episode, Gene McCaffrey from The Athletic joins our own Scott Pianowski to break down their recent Tout Wars auction draft, how to approach advanced stats and the increase in power, the Colorado Rockies latest attempt to soothe their Coors hangover on the road, and more. The guys begin with breaking down the results of their recent Tout Wars auction, a 15-team mixed league draft. Gene made a big move early taking Mets pitcher Jacob DeGrom for $50. That was $10 more than fellow ace Gerrit...
Mar 23, 2020•50 min•Ep. 34
On this episode, Alex Fast of PitcherList.com joins our own Scott Pianowski to break down all things pitchers. The guys begin with their draft strategy with a delayed and truncated season and how it affects the player pool. Which guys should rise up your draft board and benefit from the delay? (3:35) Alex and Scott move to the mound and ask what is their pitcher type in fantasy? (7:50) Also, what is the best stat to evaluate pitchers and how has CSW rate changed the analytics game? (14:43) From ...
Mar 17, 2020•58 min•Ep. 33
In a Yahoo Fantasy Baseball Podcast first, Scott Pianowski enlists Dalton Del Don to take a brief detour from their regularly scheduled fantasy advice into the world of betting and MLB futures – just in time for the 2020 regular season. The guys go division-by-division, breaking down each team's over/under win totals as put out by our partners at BetMGM . Mixing in some fantasy advice with some betting prognostication, they give their thoughts on which teams are likely to beat those win totals o...
Mar 09, 2020•48 min•Ep. 32
Fantasy Baseball draft season continues and Scott Pianowski is joined this week by Rotoworld's D.J. Short to talk about a conundrum many fantasy owners are facing in the first round of their drafts: should Jacob DeGrom or Gerrit Cole be the first starting pitcher off the board? The guys discuss the case for each of the two New York pitchers and the other starters you may consider in the first round (1:45). The conversation naturally turns to the other star Mets pitcher, Noah Syndergaard. What do...
Mar 03, 2020•53 min•Ep. 31
Spring training play has begun in Florida and Arizona and Scott Pianowski is joined by Fred Zinkie to kick off fantasy baseball season by checking in on a disastrous offseason for the Houston Astros and Major League Baseball. Before they dive into the 2020 season in earnest, Scott & Fred discuss a change in the winds of fantasy baseball: how more and more leagues are ditching the classic rotisserie scoring and adopting head-to-head rules. Should you give a head-to-head league a try? (1:20) T...
Feb 24, 2020•52 min•Ep. 30
