Roadmap as Fantasy Baseball Heads into Summer

For the last month-plus, I’ve been patiently waiting. And waiting. And waiting some more. I’ve tried what feels like everything. I’ve injected new blood into my lineups via the waiver wire. I’ve remained patient with some underperforming assets. I’ve even tried to switch up the mojo by not watching at-bats from certain players.

As we all know, fantasy baseball managers think they can control the outcomes on the field. Have you ever caught yourself tracking one of your pitchers on MLB At Bat as they cough up baserunner after baserunner? Eventually you get tired of seeing “In Play, No Out” or “In Play, Runs” and decide to take matters into your own hands.

All right, time to stop the bleeding. I’m turning the game on. 

Suddenly your pitcher halts the rally and you come to the conclusion that you helped salvage a potential blow-up outing. Sometimes one of your hitters is 0 for their last 20. Every time you watch them, they are flailing at pitches outside the zone or making weak contact that barely leaves the infield. So you throw your hands up and stop watching them. Within a few days, that player breaks out of the slump and hits a couple of home runs. Rinse and repeat.

It doesn’t always work this way, but this season I’ve found myself frustrated at the outcomes more often than not with my fantasy baseball teams. I’m not saying I’m out of it, but it’s been a trying first few months. I’m sure many of you feel the same way. This month’s edition of Small Ball will recap what we’ve seen so far, how we should adjust (if at all) and how to make the most of your fantasy baseball rosters moving forward. That way, we won’t have to deploy these tricks that absolutely have no impact on the successes (or failures) of your fantasy baseball teams.

Case in point, as I write this, Griffin Canning is having an awful outing against the White Sox. Canning is someone who’s clearly outperformed this season on the mound. How many of his starts have I watched, do you ask? Zero. I won’t make the mistake of watching Canning pitch the rest of the way.

Maybe your fantasy season is off to a flying start. No worries, there will still be some actionable takeaways below. But first, let’s recap the last article – Panic or Patience.