TOUT WARS!

Asking the Touts to put their pitching evaluation chops on display is always a recipe for success, and the did not disappoint.

Which surprising arm has the greatest likelihood of maintaining success and which is slated for the biggest fall among Matthew Boyd, Danny Duffy, Taijuan Walker, Huascar Ynoa and Kyle Gibson?

Matt Williams (NBC Sports Edge, @MattWi77iams): Taijuan Walker has seen a bump in velocity over the offseason that has paid dividends so far this year, however he has been getting into (and escaping trouble) after getting to the fifth and sixth innings, in addition to handing out too many free passes. This is something he will need to overcome in order to maintain his early season success. I believe there is true improvement here, but I believe we are likely to see a backslide for Walker leaving him closer to the 3.75-4.00 ERA mark than his current 2.20. On the other hand, Kyle Gibson looks like he may be able to maintain his current level of production. He is tossing his new cut fastball 14 percent of the time with 38.5 percent whiff rate that is making his slider all the more effective (51.3 percent whiff rate). Gibson uses his sinker to keep hitters honest and he seems to have a recipe for success that could sustain to a degree, but still expect regression to mid-3’s at minimum.

Alex Fast (Pitcher List, @AlexFast8): I’m a simple man. I see Matthew Boyd in the prompt, I’m going to go ahead and write about him. What made Boyd stick out a few years ago was …well the HR’s he gave up but also the incredible amount of swing and miss that came with his slider. Here we are now in ’21, the HR issue has largely been abated but the swing and miss is largely gone thanks to a change in approach (no pun intended). If Boyd can utilize that SL the way that he has in years past while maintaining the gains he’s made with the CH, I think he could not only maintain the success he’s currently having but actually build on the pitch. In terms of who is slated for the biggest fall, I think you could theoretically say Boyd as well! If the SL doesn’t return to form and the CH starts to get barreled up a bit more, goodness knows that defense isn’t going to help him, the fall from grace could be quick. If I can’t choose the same guy twice, I think I’ll go ahead and say Kyle Gibson. There’s a bizarre irony to the fact that the new pitch, the cutter; arguably responsible for a lot of his success, is by many metrics his worst pitch. I think pitching in TEX is certainly going to help him mitigate the long ball but a sinker led arsenal like his can always regress quick.

Doug Dennis (BaseballHQ, @dougdennis41): xERA to date: Ynoa 3.23; Gibson 3.82; Duffy 4.01; Walker 4.20; Boyd 4.56. xERA projection for balance of the season: Gibson 3.97; Walker 4.20; Boyd 4.27; Ynoa 4.38; Duffy 4.53. Back of the envelope, this narrows it to Gibson and Ynoa. Gibson has had little room for error over his career and seems less than likely to me to maintain at anything under a 4.00. Ynoa–you have to like that 3.23 so far, but it isn’t really enough innings just yet. The 4.38 projection gives me pause, but it has been coming down from a hideous number at the start of the year. And if we really want to look at a longer track history, well, the others on this list have that and it is not all that pretty. I expect all of this list to have a 4.20+ xERA for the balance of the year, except Ynoa. I have no idea if Ynoa can sustain it, but right now, Ynoa has it all going on, and it isn’t the smoke/mirrors of the other pitchers on this list. So until proven otherwise, put me in the Ynoa camp.

Brad Johnson (Patreon/BaseballATeam, @BaseballATeam): This is a meaty prompt. I think we all could burn 1500 words easily on this topic so I’ll try to keep it very basic. I have Duffy projected to be the best of this bunch so long as he maintains his velocity – a 3.85 ERA and 9.50 K/9. Boyd projects the worst – a 4.90 ERA and 8.25 K/9. The cratered whiff rate is both incredibly worrisome and also a potential source for positive regression that I’ve not accounted for in my projection. Gibby is next worst – a 4.65 ERA and 7.9 K/9. Walker is the hardest to eval because his success these past partial seasons has been tied to a very low BABIP. His peripherals are those of a high BABIP pitcher. I think he’ll collapse entirely (sell, sell, sell), but my projection splits the difference at a 3.65 ERA and 8.5 K/9. Ynoa, with his lack of track record, could fall anywhere. The K’s appear to be real. I worry about walks and workload.

Patrick Davitt (BaseballHQ, @patrickdavitt): I’ll take Ynoa, but with an ERA nearer 3.50 than 2.50, as it is now; too much luck there. There are reasons to like Boyd in this crew, as you’ll see in many of the other comments, but he’s burned me too many times for me to recommend him. That will probably mean a Cy Young this season. Duffy is much the same for me. I had him on a couple of rosters back in 2014 and hung on too long. Gibson seems much the most likely to crater—meaning an ERA over 4 and a WHIP in the mid-1.20s to low 1.30s..

Jeff Zimmerman (Fangraphs, The Process, @jeffwzimmerman): My projections have them graded on an ERA equivalent talent as Duffy (3.41 ERA), Ynoa (3.44 ERA), Gibson (3.75 ERA), Boyd (3.81 ERA), and Walker (3.95 ERA). With Ynoa and Duffy so close, I’ll go Duffy based on I think he could throw more innings.

Jim Bowden (Fantasy Alarm, @JimBowdenGM): Fall goes to Kyle Gibson and Mattew Boyd for me

Phil Hertz (BaseballHQ, @prhz50): I’ll go with Ynoa. Unlike the others, he’s the new kid on the block, and the bumps are going to come as the scouting reports grow.

Anthony Perri (Fantistics, @Anthony_Perri): Huascar Ynoa is going to regress as his 2.09 ERA is not sustainable with his .221 BABIP against and 91% LOB%. His xFIP of 3.07, is more sustainable. Love the almost 10% K/9 rates which we saw from him in the minors, the plus has been his ability to pound the strike zone with a BB/9 rate that has dropped from the low 4s to only 2.01 this season.

Ariel Cohen (CBS Sports, @ATCNY): Taijuan Walker will be the most likely to maintain it. He’s enjoying the best strikeout rate of his career at 24%, with an uptick in CSW and SwStr% even from last year’s excellent rates. His fastball velo is up a MPH from last year too. Those skeptics will point to his not as good 11% walk rate, but 6 of 18 walks thrown this year came from a single start in Chicago with cold weather, so I’ll give him a pass. Kyle Gibson to me is most likely to regress. His SIERA is above 4, HR/FB% looks really lucky at 7%, and he has pitched to a .244 BABIP. I smell blow-up.

Anthony Aniano (Rotoballer, @AAnianoFantasy): Taijuan Walker is the pitcher with the best chance of maintaining his success. After struggling with injury and inconsistency he has maintained his strikeout and walk numbers from last seasons mini-breakout while greatly reducing his HR rate (from 1.35 HR/9 to a miniscule 0.22). His fastball velocity is up slightly from years past and his slider has remained a consistent pitch for him. However his success over the last 2 seasons does coincide with his development of a split finger fastball which he uses almost 14% of the time. The addition of that 3rd pitch bodes well for his maintained success. Kyle Gibson is the most likely to regress. He is 33 years old with a lifetime 4.48 ERA and 4.10 XFIP. Currently his ERA sits at 2.28 with a XFIP of 3.80. However keep in mind his BABIP is currently a career low of .244. When that number starts to approach his norm (career BABIP is over .300) Gibson numbers will begin to falter.

Jon Hegglund (Baseball Prospectus, @JonHegglund): I don’t think Gibson will continue his current dominance, but I do think he’s made some meaningful and sustainable changes to his arsenal–namely, the addition of a cutter as a primary pitch. He’s also coming off a healthy offseason after several years of battling with ulcerative colitis–a disease that completely sap one’s energy for weeks at a time and make it difficult to keep up levels of fitness and strength required for major-league pitching. I can see him finishing with an ERA in the high 3s and a WHIP around 1.25. On the flip side, it’s hard for me to see Ynoa keeping this success up once the book gets out on him. It could be a legit breakout, but I’m not buying in just yet.

Mike Podhorzer (Fangraphs, @MikePodhorzer): It’s as simple as looking at the gaps between ERA and SIERA. Mathew Boyd’s is the largest gap, suggesting he’s due for the most significant regression. His strikeouts have disappeared, so if he’s not preventing runs, he’s doing absolutely nothing positive for fantasy teams. Deadened ball or not, no one could maintain a 1.9% HR/FB rate. Huascar Ynoa is the only pitcher of the five whose success is (mostly) legit, as his ERA-SIERA gap is by far the smallest, while his skills are strong. As a two-pitch pitcher, there’s clearly risk here, but he hasn’t had to ride as much of a luck wave so far as the other four.

Frank Stampfl (Fantasy Pros, @Roto_Frank): I know he’s had a few bumps recently but I’m going to with Danny Duffy as the most likely to maintain success. His fastball is averaging 93.7 MPH this season, which is his highest since 2016 when he pitched to a 3.51 ERA. Also, we’ll probably see some regression here but Duffy’s 14.2% swinging strike rate is tied for 14th among qualified starting pitchers. I really like what I’ve seen in his resurgence. I’ll take Taijuan Walker as slated for the biggest fall. He saw a nice velo bump early in the season but that’s come back down plus he still walks too many and doesn’t generate enough whiffs to mitigate that. Walker has also only allowed one home run this season, which will change as the weather heats up across baseball.

Shelly Verougstraete (Dynasty Guru, @ShellyV_643): As much fun as it has been to see Ynoa pitch (and hit) this year, he easily is the guy most likely to fall the farthest. He is a two-pitch pitcher (four-seam/slider) and has one of the largest discrepancies between his ERA and FIP. Also, facing the Phillies, Nationals (without Soto), and the Cubbies really helped out at the beginning of the season. I think Duffy has the chance to keep up (or at least very close) his current pace. The bump up in velocity added to the fact he gets to face the AL Central regularly seals the deal for me.

Chris Liss (Rotowire, @Chris_Liss): Boyd was good in 2019, pitched hurt last year. I see him keeping it up, but the Tigers won’t offer much support. Walker was a good prospect, finally healthy, added velo. Probably take him. Ynoa has less track record, and the two older vets are more likely to regress closer to career norms IMO.

Scott Wilderman (OnRoto, @): The first thing I look at is BABIP, then HR/FB, then other ratio stats – K/9, BB/9. Boyd and Walker are going to plummet — both have unsustainable BABIP and HR/FB. Boyd doesn’t strike out enough batters to weather those indicators reverting to mean, and Walker walks too many. Gibson is just a little behind them — his WHIP is on it’s way up and his K-rate is a little low for today’s game. Duffy’s HR/FB is going to jump, so I would expect his ERA to rise, but he’ll be serviceable. Ynoa is the most likely to maintain decent numbers. One caveat, though: for any individual pitcher, there is a sample size problem with BABIP and HR/FB. Some pitchers will post unfathomable BABIP or HR/FB numbers over a full season. We just don’t know which ones.

Rob Leibowitz (Rotoheaven, @rob_leibowitz): Some common themes abound with all the pitchers. High left-on-base rates, suppressed BABIP, extreme lower HR/FB percentages for most of them and for the veterans of the group with the exception of perhaps Duffy, not seeing any changes in pitch quality. Gibson, Boyd, and Walker are all sell high types who are bound to regress and we may have already seen their best. I agree that Boyd, the fly-baller who doesn’t miss bats who has had HR/FB rates closer to 20% for the past two seasons is likely to be the hardest hit. Ynoa, the youngster of the group, is throwing strikes for the first time since A-ball. I think we’re seeing “first-time-through-the-league” success with him and already giving up home runs with great frequency. Duffy is the one intriguing pitcher to me. He has shown skills in the past to keep his walk rates solid and is doing that now. Whenever he has accomplished that, he’s managed ERAs under 4.00, but that was 2016-2017. I’m also seeing slight upticks in velocity of his pitches across the board. Yes, we’ve likely seen his best too, but it might be an overall solid season. Of course, one can’t ever trust him to stay healthy, so there’s that too.

Toby Guevin (BatFlipCrazy Podcast, @batflipcrazy): I think Ynoa and Duffy have the best chance of sustaining, since they’ve both experienced fairly dramatic increases in their fastball velocity which has resulted in pronounced changes to their underlying skills. Ynoa is due some BABIP regression but should still maintain a good ERA. Control has been his major issue in the past, but he’s generating more chases outside the zone, which will help limit the walks. Duffy probably looks the most sustainable with very strong skills across the board (o-swing, SwStr, z-contact) stemming from his velocity increase. Gibson is probably next, since his cutter has helped improve a major weakness (contact in the zone and reliance on hitters chasing), though he’s due some HR/FB regression. Both Walker and Boyd are the least likely to sustain, I think, since they’re benefiting from some luck (BABIP, HR/FB) that should regress as the season continues. Walker also has control issues and they’re both below average across K% metrics.

Michael Rathburn (Rotowire, @FantasyRath): Taijuan Walker has been extremely lucky this year. His low k rate, high b rate, and low hr rate all point towards a pitcher looking at serious regression. Also his XERA and XFIP differentials are one of the highest for all qualified starting pitchers. I like Duffy to keep it going. His high k rate, low bb rate and high BABIP suggest he will maintain success.

Peter Kreutzer (Ask Rotoman, Fantasy Baseball Guide, @kroyte): The question is based on the idea that all these guys are over their heads right now, and they are, but some are more over than others. We don’t know about Ynoa’s head, where it’s at, because his track record is short, but we know he’s allowing homers and he’s only got two pitches, so at some point he’s going to break. We also know that Matthew Boyd is striking out fewer and walking fewer without a noticeable change in velocity, a low HR rate and a low BABIP rate. He’s my pick to fail most, when the hits start falling. Danny Duffy, on the other hand, is striking out more and walking fewer while allowing fewer homers. Gotta like that. The velo is up a little over last year, but not over his career norms, so this seems more like an change in approach that’s working. Or a soft schedule. Walker and Gibson will come back to earth, but shouldn’t be a disaster.

Tristan H. Cockcroft (ESPN, @SultanofStat): The toughest part of this question is that it seems a rest-of-year query, but making the decision based on the short term — especially in mixed leagues — might be wisest. Ynoa’s skill set has its limits and his expected stats are way off of reality, but his 96-97 mph fastball/slider mix is getting the job done today, and there’s merit to the “juice-the-orange” angle when gauging similar examples like these. At the same time, he’s probably also the one with the lowest floor when hitters eventually figure him out. Full year, I’m going gut feel: Walker keeps it up, and Boyd, whose stat line is littered with warning signs, collapses.

Charlie Wiegert (CDM Sports, @GFFantasySports): Staying healthy, which has been difficult for these guys, is the big question when talking about the rest of the season. But I think the biggest upside would be Walker. He has the stuff to put up good numbers in strike outs, ERA and Whip, and the Mets should give him the run support to get 10-15 wins.

Scott Swanay (FantasyBaseballSherpa, @fantasy_sherpa): The main criteria I’d suggest for a comparison like this: (1) age/track record (i.e. – how familiar are hitters with them), (2) whether they’re recovering from an injury, (3) whether they’ve added a new pitch or made a significant change to their pitch distribution that hitters may not yet have adjusted to, (4) whether they’ve added velocity, and (5) how much “luck” (as defined by the difference between their actual stats and their expected stats) has had to do with their early-season success. Given that, for this group I think Boyd and Duffy are most likely to maintain their early-season success, followed by Gibson, with Walker and Ynoa least likely to do so.

Vlad Sedler (Fantasy Guru, @rotogut): Don’t believe any of these pitchers fall completely out of the realm of fantasy relevancy but I do think it’s highly likely that Matt Boyd will have some rough stretches forthcoming. A guy with a career ERA of nearly 5.00 sitting below 2.00 along with a 4.90 xFIP and a career-low strikeout rate (17.9%) is bound for some trouble. It doesn’t help that he plays for one of baseball’s worst offenses who rarely provide their starters with ample run support. Though Danny Duffy has a similar career profile, his success will likely be sustained. Velocity back up to his heyday, lowest barrel rate in years and just fantastic control overall. He’s the one from this group I have the most confidence in going forward.

Todd Zola (Mastersball, @toddzola): Gratuitous plug alert: I dissected each hurler in my latest Z Files and concluded Duffy’s velo bump bodes well for continued success while I’m cautiously optmistic Taijuan Walker is still getting better post TJS since last season was only two months of action. On the other end, despite an increase in strikeouts compared to last season, I’m most concerned about Kyle Gibson.

It’s the second week of the second period of Tout Daily. Here are some of the picks in quest of the next three Golden Tickets.

Jeff Boggis (Fantasy Football Empire, @JeffBoggis)

Pitcher: Dylan Cease – Dylan Cease – $7,000 – Trying to save some salary cap money with starting Dylan Cease tonight at home against the Minnesota Twins. He has 40 strikeouts through 30 1/3 innings pitched. He’s averaged 10 strikeouts per game over his past 2 outings. He’s sporting a solid 2.37 ERA heading into tonight’s contest.

Hitter: Luke Voit – Luke Voit – $3,700 – Luke Voit was activated for tonight’s game and will make his 2021 major league debut at Tampa Bay. It’s go time. I’ll take the off of the DL discount for tonight’s contest.

Howard Bender (Fantasy Alarm, @RotobuzzGuy)

Pitcher: Brady Singer – At $5,700 and facing the worst offensive team with the highest strikeout rate in the league, Singer is a HUGE bargain. He faced them in late April when the Tigers weren’t completely dead and limited them to one run on three hits with eight strikeouts over seven innings. We don’t even need hoim to do that at this price, but we’ll certainly take it again!

Hitter: Matt Adams – Listen — anytime you can get a power-hitter in Coors Field for $2,600 on DK, you have to give it a go. The lefty-swinging Adams gets to take center stage with CJ Cron on the IL and he’ll take on right-handed Dinelson Lamet. Not an ideal match-up, but for this price, he doesn’t need to do much to return a 3x value. And if he can gt a hold of just one and park it over the fence? Oh baby!

Todd Zola (Mastersball, @toddzola)

Pitcher: Walker Buehler – Top projected points and I can make the salaries fit

Hitter: Josh Bell – Avoiding stacks, but LHB vs. Chase Anderson calls for a couple Nats

Brian Entrekin (Benched with Bubba, @bdentrek)

Pitcher: Shohei Ohtani – We are getting an ACE tonight at $7400. The pitch count, walks, blisters, many things have prevented Ohtani from going deep in games. Regardless of distance in the game, Ohtani has been a beast. He has a strikeout rate through the roof, which is what we want for DK point production. The Astros don’t strike out a ton but they also haven’t faced many like Ohtani. Take the discount while you can tonight as a great SP2 in tournaments.

Hitter: Hunter Dozier – Dozier has gone hitless in his last 4 games but has been on a tear otherwise. Dozier has 7 XBH over the last 8 games. The quality of contact (barrels/HH) have been through the roof. The Royals are one of my top stacks tonight versus Boyd, starting with Whit & Dozier. They both have had amazing career success versus Boyd and look for that to continue tonight. Dozier goes yard, book it.

Shelly Verougstraete (Dynasty Guru, @ShellyV_643)

Pitcher: Brady Singer – Take advantage of a cheaper option going up against the Tigers and use those savings to load up on hitting.

Hitter: Alex Verdugo – Verdugo has been hitting well lately and going up against Chris Bassett in Fenway seems like a pretty cheap option.

Phil Hertz (BaseballHQ, @prhz50)

Pitcher: Madison Bumgarner – He’s been pitching well and his ‘injury’ was to his non-pitching hand.

Hitter: Matt Olson – Price is right and Eovaldi has been struggling of late.

MIke Gianella (Baseball Prospectus, @MikeGianella)

Pitcher: Matthew Boyd – Strikeouts have been low but he has pitched well this year and faces an opponent that has been in the bottom five this year against LHP by wOBA.

Hitter: Mookie Betts – He’s quietly starting to heat up in May and is as good a place as any to put my Boyd dividend (cheap pitcher) against a LHP in Kikuchi.

Steve Gardner (USAToday Fantasy Sports, @SteveAGardner)

Pitcher: Brady Singer – I’m targeting the Tigers with this pick and it’s supposed to be in the low 50s at Comerica Park.

Hitter: Luke Voit – Let’s get last year’s home run champ back into our lineups! He hit three homers in five rehab games and he’s only $3700.

Zach Steinhorn (CreativeSports2, @zachsteinhorn)

Pitcher: Brady Singer – Singer seems to be a popular pick here, and for good reason. His first full season in the majors has gone rather smoothly so far as he sports a 3.41 ERA, a 1.17 WHIP and a 29/11 K/BB through 29 innings. Oh, and the Tigers rank last in the AL in both runs scored and OPS. But most importantly, he’s massively underpriced.

Hitter: Jean Segura – He’s 8-for-13 with a homer, three RBIs and three runs scored over his last three games and Erick Fedde is a pitcher worth picking on.

Jeff Erickson (Rotowire, @Jeff_Erickson)

Pitcher: Marcus Stroman – I expect more people to be on the other side of this pitching matchup, but pivoting to Stroman (and Dylan Cease) gives me the means to afford my Jays stack against Bryse Wilson.

Hitter: Bo Bichette – I have five Jays hitters going tonight, paying up for Bichette and Vladito among others.

Charlie Wiegert (CDM Sports, @GFFantasySports)

Pitcher: Pedro Lopez, – Great for K’s and great match up, hopefully a win is in the Cards also.

Hitter: Jared Walsh –

With Minor League baseball back, it’s time for the Touts to do some prospecting.

What prospects are you following closely? Is there an under the radar minor leaguer we should track?

Chris Liss (Rotowire, @Chris_Liss): Bobby Witt because I over drafted him in a few leagues. Think Josh Lowe might get a shot once injuries strike in Tampa too.

Scott Pianowski (Yahoo! Fantasy Sports, @Scott_Pianowski): I almost never pick wait-for-them rookies in non-keeper leagues, but I couldn’t help myself with Jarred Kelenic (call me crazy, but I think his floor is Kyle Tucker). I’m hoping the Mariners feel more pressure than usual to get their best team on the field, and maybe that means Julio Rodriguez comes up this year, too. As for pitchers, I’m expecting MacKenzie Gore to get a chance in San Diego this year and be a contributor, either as a rotation guy or a wipeout, fire-breathing reliever. Fantasy baseball has never been more reliever-friendly – as the wins keep moving away from starters – so it won’t bother me if Gore isn’t starting right away.

Nando Di Fino (The Athletic, @nandodifino): I’m still hooked on Rylan Bannon — .280 avg and .375 OBP in 292 career games; he hit 22 HRs in 2018 (and 10 in 40 games in 2017, then dropped off a little in 2019) and Baltimore’s current second basemen are both hitting below .165.

Jock Thompson (Baseball HQ, @JOCKatHQ): My top under-the-radar guy is no more; happy to say I was able to pick up Shane McClanahan in one of my keeper/dynasty leagues. Right now given what’s happening to BAs, look for hit tools. On that note, I’m also high on Tyler Soderstrom (OAK catcher), at least for dynasty play (obviously he won’t show in OAK this year). Hit tool and power, potential fast-tracker.

Tim McLeod (Prospect361.com, @RunTMcP361 ): Pedro Leon. Carlos Correa appears to be heading into Free Agency after turning down a six-year $120 mill offer. Leon will be playing the bulk of his time at SS this year as he attempts to knock the rust off after coming over from Cuba. Keep your eyes on this kid as the power/speed combination and fast-tracking by the Astros, could make him a very alluring pickup in Keeper leagues for 2022.

Peter Kreutzer (Ask Rotoman, Fantasy Baseball Guide, @kroyte): For selfish reasons (I took them on reserve in my AL only league) I’m tracking Brandon Marsh, Vidal Brujan, and Trevor Larnach, looking forward to minor league games, expecting new news to topple expectations both for the good and the bad. Marsh is coming back from injury, Brujan is wicked fast, and Larnach is young, but all will be fantasy valuable sometime (though not necessarily this year).

Brian Walton (CreativeSports2, @B_Walton): As I specialize in the St. Louis Cardinals, I will comment on them here. Left-handers Zack Thompson and Matthew Liberatore jumped over Double-A and are in a race to be first to be called up later this summer, though likely in a relief role before competing for the 2022 rotation. At Double-A, watch catcher Ivan Herrera and power threat Nolan Gorman, who is learning 2B to go with 3B. Both are potential 2022 contributors but will move up as quickly as they show they are ready.

Rob Leibowitz (Rotoheaven, @rob_leibowitz): I’m going to keep an eye on Kyle Isbel. He won the starting job out of spring training only to play sporadically and get sent back down after an out of character high strikeout rate. He only has the platoon of Dyson/Taylor in front of him. Potential 20/20 talent with on-base skills. They pushed him to the Majors aggressively, but am interested to see if he can stabilize and get some reps in AAA to get him comfortable again.

Todd Zola (Mastersball, @toddzola): I’ll let those better versed in the minors share their names (of which I am very much interested). As a guy who tries to keep updated rest-of-season projections (where the playing time is far more important than the numbers), I really missed knowing how each team’s organizational depth was playing. You know, either Quad-A guys or journeyman signed to minor league deals. As an example, Josh Reddick was signed by Arizona and with all their outfield injuries, he could get a shot, but I have no idea how he’s performing at the alternate training site.

James Anderson (Rotowire, @RealJRAnderson): Jarred Kelenic, Logan Gilbert, Jo Adell, Bobby Bradley, Wander Franco are some obvious ones. Obviously pitching prospects are volatile for health and performance, but Matt Manning, Jackson Kowar and Alek Manoah are some great pitching prospects who are at Triple-A and could be up in a month or two. Josh Lowe and Travis Swaggerty are some under-the-radar power/speed guys on the hitting side.

Doug Dennis (BaseballHQ, @dougdennis41): I don’t typically care for re-draft leagues, but for dynasty (XFL) I care a great deal and try to monitor everything I can get my hands on. I really look at shortstops (who often end up playing other positions anyway) and look for bat to ball skills and at least some pop. I’ll be interested in where this year’s July draft class goes. The youngest player I am tracking right now is Jadyn Fielder who is a 16 yo HS junior (son of Prince, grandson of Cecil).

Ryan Bloomfield (BaseballHQ, @RyanBHQ): To be brutally honest, the prospect game is my “know your limitations” blind spot for fantasy. I don’t pretend to know and track prospects, so I lean on the great work of three sites: BaseballHQ (all scouting reports geared towards fantasy), RotoWire (for lists and evals; James Anderson does a great job), and Prospects Live (for in-person video/reports). Putting the time in to read these three outlets is a much better use of my time than trying to couch/stat-scout on my own.

Ray Flowers (Fantasy Guru, @BaseballGuys): I’m really not a big prospecting guy. With the need for production acute with all the injuries and in and out of the lineup stuff we gotta face, I infrequently invest in minor leaguers in re-draft leagues. That said, Vidal Brujan for his speed piece could be very interesting, but it might be Logan Gilbert who I’m most attracted to. Everyone talks about M. Gore, but what about Gilbert in 2021?

Brent Hershey (Baseball HQ, @BrentHQ): Jarren Duran (OF, BOS) was a slap-hitting speedster who looked like he hit his ceiling at Double-A in 2019 (28 SB, but hit .250/.300/.325 in 320 AB). But he spent 2020 at the alternate site reworking his swing to add some loft and power, and if you were a spring training highlights watcher, you saw some of the results, where 10 of his 16 hits went for extra bases (including 3 HR), and the Sox played him a lot (47 spring ABs). He’s now a power + speed guy who could play his way onto the Boston squad sometime this year, and given his SB ability, could make a difference in fantasy leagues.

Anthony Perri (Fantistics, @Anthony_Perri): Like most others I follow the top prospects, in redraft leagues, specifically those that can come in and have an immediate impact. I tend to focus on high k/9 pitchers or guys that steal bases. One under the radar guy that is starting to get a lot of buzz is CUBS OF prospect Brennen Davis. He’s going to be a 20-20 guy out of the gate, but you’ll probably have to wait until 2022 for that.

Jason Collette (Rotowire, @jasoncollette): Joe Ryan — could have the same type of impact in-season that Colin Poche had when he came up with TB. Ryan led the minor leagues with a 34% K-BB in 2019 across three levels. 183 strikeouts in 127.2 IP!

Matt Williams (NBC Sports Edge, @MattWi77iams): Josh Lowe (OF, Rays) is someone I am very interested in tracking. In 2019 the first baseman hit .252 with 18 home runs and 30 stolen bases in Double-A. There are strikeout issues, but Lowe has shown strong on-base skills that should alleviate some concern. Very athletic outfielder than has an exciting ceiling for fantasy.

Eric Karabell (ESPN, @karabelleric): Certainly the top of the Worcester lineup could find its way in Boston soon because the big league lineup has holes. Jarren Duran is stronger now and hitting for power and Jeter Downs is clearly going to hit and get on base enough. Watch Triston Casas, too I don’t know if he can make enough contact, but it’s not like Bobby Dalbec is, either

Grey Albright (RazzBall, @razzball): I just ask Itch from our site or Geoff from Prospects Live. That’s my advice. Find prospects guys you trust vs. trying to learn everyone. With that said, can Jarren Duran and Jarred Kelenic come up already? Just want to walk around like Chingy singing, “Right Jarr…Right Jarr…”

Alex Chamberlain (Rotographs, @DolphHauldhagen): Not even sure they count as prospects but I’m eager to continue monitoring Denyi Reyes (BOS) and Eli Morgan (CLE), both fringy command-first guys who seem like they could make an impact if they develop/refine legit secondaries. Morgan appears to come from a long line of pitchers in Cleveland (whether drafted or by trade) who did exactly that (Kluber, Bieber, Plesac, Civale), but he lacks velocity, which means he could end up more like the failure among this group (Tomlin). We’ll see!

Mike Gianella (Baseball Prospectus, @MikeGianella): Mostly prospects on my various teams so Triston Casas, Bobby Witt Jr., and C.J. Abrhams. There really isn’t anyone specific “under the radar” I’m looking at, but I tend to focus on AA and AAA rosters of bad teams in redraft leagues to see if someone like the 2019 iteration of Josh Rojas is lurking.

Mike Podhorzer (Fangraphs, @MikePodhorzer): I rarely follow prospects, as it’s easier to check the minor league leaderboards and dive deeper into who’s actually performing well and deserving of a call-up, rather than follow specific top prospects to see if they are performing well.

Anthony Aniano (Rotoballer, @AAnianoFantasy): Bobby Witt is the prospect I am monitoring. What position is he playing? Has he cut down on his strikeouts? With KC overachieving he can have impact if recalled. An under the radar prospect is Ronny Mauricio of the Mets. He’s now blocked at SS by Lindor but can be a nice trade chip and walk into playing time if the Mets move him during the year.

Perry Van Hook (Mastersball, @): Most of you know how extensive my prospect lists are on Mastersball. BUT in redraft leagues we are only concerned with those who will definitely help this year. Gore, Padres pitcher is the highest rated of the ml pitchers and should have some time this year (especially if Lamet goes back on the IL). One ranked lower but who almost started for Oakland in April is Daulton Jefferies but he starts the minor league season on the IL with bicep tendonitis but should be pitching by late this month or early June. The key with many prospects is how their ML teams handle them so as good as Wander Franco is, will Tampa Bay call him up before September? If there is an injury at SS or 2B, maybe. Those far more likely to see time by next month would be Kelenic in Seattle or Witt in KC – and Witt is playing both 2B and OF in the minors to increase his chances IF the Royals can stay in contention in the AL Central.

Scott Swanay (FantasyBaseballSherpa, @fantasy_sherpa): Jarren Duran is probably the minor leaguer I’m most interested in following this year (well, it’s actually Jasson Dominguez, but he’s not going to help anyone’s fantasy teams this season). Also rooting for a local kid, Chris McMahon who had the misfortune of being drafted as a pitcher by the Colorado Rockies last year – his best hope for a fruitful major league career is to be traded to another organization as part of a bigger deal.

Shelly Verougstraete (Dynasty Guru, @ShellyV_643): Outside of the names already mentioned, I’d add Edward Olivares, Jesus Sanchez, Lewin Diaz, and JJ Bleday. As for pitchers, Jackson Kowar, Matt Manning, and Corbin Martin.

Glenn Colton (Fantasy Alarm, @GlennColton1): Logan Gilbert on the pitching side and Jarren Duran on the hitting side. After all, even before Paxton got hurt, the Mariners needed Gilbert and do we really think Franchy is going to not only get out of this horrific slump but also stay healthy too? Nah

Greg Jewett (Fantasy Alarm, @gjewett9): Tracking closely resembles many on this list: Bobby Witt Jr., Logan Gilbert, Jarren Duran (speed) and Wander Franco. An under the radar player of interest, Josiah Gray. Los Angeles refutes they will promote him for the fifth spot in the rotation, right now. However, this organization plugs holes well with a next man up modus operandi. Gray could join the team early June in a Dustin May like role from last season as a spot starter, long reliever. A chance at vulture wins with strikeouts makes him someone worth tracking early on in his Triple-A outings.

Jeff Boggis (Fantasy Football Empire, @JeffBoggis): The domino effect of the release of Albert Pujols may make room for top under the radar prospects Jo Adell or Brandon Marsh to get an earlier call up. With Pujols no longer with the Angels, Jared Walsh will move to first base. This opens up right field for either Adell or Marsh. Brandon Marsh is coming off a shoulder issue, so let’s hope this is not a lingering injury.

Bret Sayre (Baseball Prospectus, @BretSayreBP): At the outset of the season, I’m going to be watching closely a bunch of players who don’t have a pro ball track record to see how quickly they acclimate to the climate. On the hitting side, I’ve got a close eye on Austin Martin and Nick Gonzales as potentially fast movers who are looking to make good on big-time amateur promise. On the pitching side, well, as many names as I can. So much can change with pitchers in 20 months and that’s exactly how long it’s been since we’ve seen any of them in games. As for an under-the-radar prospect, I still absolutely love the skill set Keoni Cavaco brings to the table and the potential five-category contributor is getting his first taste of full-season ball this year.

Mike Sheets (ESPN, @MikeASheets): Some of the guys I’m most excited about are players on my dynasty team (go figure), so I have a vested interest in guys like Noelvi Marte, Triston Casas, Jarren Duran, and Michael Harris. Harris might be the name that’s most intriguing right now. There’s so much hype in the Braves organization that he’s starting to quickly ascend prospect lists. I’m excited to see whether he can live up to that hype.

Zach Steinhorn (CreativeSports2, @zachsteinhorn): I drafted Logan Gilbert in the reserve rounds in Tout Wars, so for selfish reasons, I’ll be closely monitoring his progress. Heading into the season, Gilbert was viewed as arguably the most big-league ready starting pitching prospect, but it sounds like the Mariners will be taking a cautious approach, preferring to call him up later in the season and have him close out the year in the bigs as opposed to shutting him down early due to innings restrictions. Gilbert will be making his Triple-A debut on Friday night, so hopefully he will pitch so well in the coming weeks that the Mariners will have little choice but to promote him sooner rather than later.

Vlad Sedler (Fantasy Guru, @rotogut): Many of the usual suspects but specifically tracking four guys I’ve invested in who I’m hoping can help some of my fantasy squads this season: Kelenic, Witt Jr., Duran and Gilbert.

With COVID-19 still affecting MLB, along with other non-pandemic issues, we asked the Touts:

Are there any circumstances to trigger a rules change after the draft? If yes, what is the best process by which to enact the change?

Patrick Davitt (BaseballHQ, @patrickdavitt): I think there must be, but they’d have to be circumstances so dire that the potential outcomes of the season would be affected in a way that reasonable people recognize as unfair. I can’t think of an example. Maybe if some kind of disaster wiped out several MLB teams all at once. Even at that, if a workaround could be figured out by the combined effort of the team managers, that would be preferable. As for approving any change, my inclination would be to exclude the team managers, especially if the disaster gave some teams an unearned advantage. In an ideal world, all the owners would vote the best interests of the league. But experience suggests that team managers will vote often team interests first.

Matt Williams (NBC Sports Edge, @MattWi77iams): Only if there was a tangible change in which the game or schedule is played. Covid related IL last season was a good example. This season it seemed like a leagues innings minimum may have been something that could have required a rule change due to the pitching landscape. But overall it’s hard to imagine a rule change taking place. Either way I would say unanimous league vote would be required to change any setting.

Chris Liss (Rotowire, @Chris_Liss): There is one: Unanimous consent of the owners. Otherwise, I wouldn’t change mid-stream.

Derek Carty (RotoGrinders, @DerekCarty): The circumstances would have to be extreme, or else (and probably regardless) you would need to have unanimous consent of all owners. Ideally, you would have mechanisms in place in the league constitution for how to handle situations like this so that everybody goes into the league aware of the possibility. But there is so much strategy that goes into drafting and managing a fantasy baseball team that changing the rules mid-way through the year without everyone being on board can unfairly alter the playing field and is not an approach I’d generally advise.

Ariel Cohen (CBS Sports, @ATCNY): The first item to note, as Chris Liss did – is that any change after the league has started (after the draft) … has to be approved by anyone. Not just a simple majority, or super majority – it should be unanimous. But as far as circumstances … this is the COVID era … a rule change can result from literally anything. To give two real life examples that happened to me: 1) Last year, I was involved in a league with weekly transactions and no lineup changes. With COVID cancelling weeks worth of games at a time, the request was to amend the rules to allow midweek IL replacements. All teams agreed. Unfortunately, the stats provider was not able to alter the format for us after the season began – but we would have accepted it. 2) In one league, after the normal trade deadline expired, a few teams asked the commish to allow an extra week of trading. The commish put it to a majority vote, and not a unanimous one. I voted against it, being in first place by a wide margin. Long story short … the commish opened up the trading. The 2nd place team made a large trade with the last place team, meanwhile I attempted a similar trade, which was vetoed. I ended losing the league on the last day of the season. In my opinion, the league acted unfairly. If everyone would have agreed to extend the deadline – then I would have no problem with it.

Perry Van Hook (Mastersball, @): After the draft? In general a hard NO… but if your league does not have unlimited IR slots, this is the year to adjust to current conditions and expand or introduce IR slots. There are many players in all these types of leagues who reserve lists are filled with injured players and it detracts from the operation of the league as well as the enjoyment of individual owners to have to cut a player they drafted to add a replacement.

Grey Albright (RazzBall, @razzball): Agree with Chris Liss — need unanimous consent. Otherwise it’s Mickey Mouse rules, and the Mickey Mouse season was last year.

Michael Florio (NFL Network, @MichaelFFlorio): Typically, I do not believe that there should be any rule changes made in season. But I am okay changing it if somethings unprecedented happens like Covid-19, which is why in both baseball and football home leagues we allowed a one time “replacement option” where you could tell the commissioner a player you would substitute in your lineup if someone missed time due to covid. This was a little easier to implement in football though. However, for any change, there should 100% be a league vote. There should have to be at the least a majority, if not a unanimous vote to change any rules in season.

Greg Ambrosius (NFBC, @GregAmbrosius): As a pay-to-play fantasy games operator, it’s absolutely a NO. Legally you can’t change the rules after the contest has begun. And trust me, with hundreds or thousands of people competing for prize money, you’d never get a consensus on a rules change. Definitely a NO after drafts begin.

Ryan Bloomfield (BaseballHQ, @RyanBHQ): I’m a “never say never” type, so yes, I’d leave open the possibilities to an in-season change if something is drastically wrong. Two caveats: 1) to Greg’s point, he’s contractually obligated to maintain the same rules given the stakes/money involved, so that makes sense, and 2) to Chris’ point, it must be a unanimous vote by ALL league members in order to enact the change.

Brian Walton (CreativeSports2, @B_Walton): To echo the others, “almost never” should be the answer. And even then, only if every league participant agrees. This will be very, very difficult to achieve once the season is underway since every owner has a vested position. And if you are in the minority and feel pressured to vote for a change you don’t agree with, it may be time to change leagues.

Toby Guevin (BatFlipCrazy Podcast, @batflipcrazy): Generally, no, since people drafted and have made moves with particular settings or rules in mind. That said, if the entire league agrees and the rule change is approved unanimously then sure.

Jim Bowden (Fantasy Alarm, @JimBowdenGM): No in my opinion once the draft is completed rules should not be subjected to change unless the owners vote unanimously

Brad Johnson (Patreon/BaseballATeam, @BaseballATeam): The old adage “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” seemingly applies. It’s important to have a high standard when determining if something is broken. A lopsided trade, for example, might highlight an issue that needs to be addressed after the season. Most issues you encounter will fall in this basket. An obvious example of a potential post-draft change from 2020-2021 might be to institute an auxiliary COVID-IL or simply increase IL slots by some number. Even that strikes me as an optional adjustment. I can imagine a few scenarios with leagues using custom rules where unintended consequences wreck the game and require immediate remedy. Going against the grain, I don’t believe unanimous consent should be required. A super majority will do.

Tim McCullough (Baseball Prospectus, @TimsTenz): I agree with the general consensus here that it would be no. However, if by some miracle MLB and the Player’s association were to a agree on a change to the rules of the game that would drastically influence the fairness of the fantasy baseball game, then it might be necessary to make a change. In that extreme circumstance, the entire league would have to agree to such a change, especially if there was money on the line.

Lou Blasi (Fantistics, @LouBlasi): In my eyes, it depends. Leagues involving money and payouts to me are contracts and present a set conditions under which the leagues were conducted during the draft and the early season. No one should involuntarily be subjected to a change that sets them at a disadvantage because they planned for the original rules. Now, if a rule change is necessary that everyone agrees upon, then have at it. If everyone agrees that the change makes the experience better and doesn’t negatively affect them, there’s no reason not to make the changes … In leagues where money isn’t a factor, the standard for an in-season rule change is lower. Unless the considered change completely dismantles a team’s draft strategy (or multiple teams) because it fundamentally changes the game, it should be considered if it makes the league better. In general, dealing with COVID and the increase in injuries means commissioners have to walk a fine line between deep enough rosters to deal with these issues and deep enough waiver pools to deal with these issues. I feel it means expanded injury rosters, but strict reactivation of players once they are no longer injured. The real problem to avoid is the stockpiling of players on rosters while other teams need warm bodies.

Dr. Roto (FullTime Fantasy, @DrRoto): This is a very slippery slope. There are many times when a rule change midseason makes total sense. However, players agreed to play by a certain set of rules and to change them midseason seems incredibly unfair. I would agree with all here who said that unanimous is the only way to change them–and even then I am not sure I feel great about it.

Ray Flowers (Fantasy Guru, @BaseballGuys): If a change is to be made after the draft, I agree with others, has to be unanimous. Other than an obvious – we forget to note what time the lineups need to be set each week kinda thing, I’m honestly not up for changing the rules once games start. Everyone could agree that we should add IL spots now with everyone being hurt, but it is too late for that. Even though I would vote “yes” in theory that we should have had more IL spots, wiser heads would need to just say no. Everyone could read the rules before the season started. Most folks don’t, and then they are surprised when things get missed. Too bad. Changes… they gotta wait til next year.

Jeff Zimmerman (Fangraphs, The Process, @jeffwzimmerman): The only time in my opinion should be if MLB changes the game like a longer or shorter schedule. Sometimes innings and at limits are in place based on a certain season length. Now, if MLB changes course, and only then, a 75% vote is needed to put in the changes. I’m not for 100% because there is likely an owner or two who could benefit from the unforeseen change, be an ass, and not vote for the change.

Phil Hertz (BaseballHQ, @prhz50): Only in the rarest of circumstances like a pandemic and even then only minor changes and only if there’s close to unanimity. For example, very early in the season, my “home” league added one IL slot after it became apparent that there would be extra players headed there due to COVID. Even then, the league is going to review the modification around June 1 to see if it’s still needed. Generally rule changes should be for succeeding seasons.

Todd Zola (Mastersball, @toddzola): Here is my issue with unanimous. I’ll admit this is a personal thing, your mileage may vary, but I feel league votes should be for the good of the league and not for the benefit of my team. Sure, it can happen, but the chances of 100% in favor, without someone feeling the change hurts their team is remote. Well, maybe not remote, but it lessens the chance. That said, I’m adamant any rule which would have caused something different in the draft or even choice of keepers should not even be considered.

Doug Dennis (BaseballHQ, @dougdennis41): I cannot see all scenarios, so I would want to judge each situation on its own merits. I am not one to believe that you need unanimous for a rule change. Obviously there are some formats where a rules change is impossible, like NFBC. But there are other formats.

Todd Zola (Mastersball, @toddzola): As for the question itself, once again I am selfishly calling upon the collective wisdom of the Touts to help steer me in the right direction as there is a real-life impetus for the query, and it isn’t related to a COVID-19 influenced scenario. Rather, something came up in a private league which was an unintended repercussion of a rule changed installed to begin the season. The suggested change would not have influenced the draft or keepers, but it is obviously anti to the rules as written. Those in favor of the change are using rules interpretation as the basis (and the league is largely lawyers, yay) but they’re wrong about that. Still, I have no problem with the change, but I do have an issue opening Pandora’s Box, for if we take a vote on this and it is changed, we’re essentially paving the way for future changes after the season begins which may have influenced the draft, but if you ever tried using logic when debating with lawyers, you know it isn’t a very successful tact. My reply to the league was I have no issue with the proposal, just think about what could ensue if we set precedent.

Frank Stampfl (Fantasy Pros, @Roto_Frank): Normally I’m big on “rules are rules” but unprecedented times call for flexibility, as long as it is UNANIMOUS within the league. I can completely understand why just one Fantasy manager might have issue with changing or setting new rules once the draft is over and if that happens, then I wouldn’t try to change anything.

Charlie Wiegert (CDM Sports, @GFFantasySports): Generally I’m against rule changes after the season starts because the basis for drafting your team was made using the rules. But a situation has occurred this year with the Covid-19 DL that needs clarification. It seems a team will place a player on the Covid-19 DL if he has come into contact with someone who has come into contact with someone who tested positive for Covid. The team makes him quarantine and get tested. After 72 hours if his tests are negative, he is removed from the DL and back on the yeam roster. In a cae of a pitcher, he might not even miss a start. What some of my leagues have done is adopted a rule that you can pick up a player for the covid -19 player put on the dl,, but if the players stay on the Covid -19 dl is less than 4 games, you do not get the stats from the replacement player, and the replacement player is automatically reinstated in your lineup.

Jeff Boggis (Fantasy Football Empire, @JeffBoggis): I am against any rule changes once the season starts because everyone’s draft strategy may involve specific league settings. In leagues that I play in where I am the Commish, anyone throughout the season or off season is permitted to submit a rule change. Any rule changes are voted upon each weekend, but must be unanimously accepted. One rule that was recently passed in my league was that we had 2 DL slots and we updated the slots for 2 DL slots and 2 Covid-specific slots. All things being equal, unless there is a pandemic going on, keep the rule changes for the off season.

Greg Jewett (Fantasy Alarm, @gjewett9): With the current landscape of players landing on the COVID-IL due to testing positive or side effects from vaccinations, it’s another headache for fantasy players. However, daily moves may need to become the norm in situations like this. For instance, in our H2H league, lost a close match-up due to a player locking on Friday then his games being cancelled on Saturday and Sunday due to COVID protocols. A replacement pitcher could have replaced him on Sunday changing my contest outcome. While it’s understandable league formats align with past practice, active and willing participants would adjust rosters daily. Just be sure pickups remain once a week to avoid streaming. With limited bench space, being able to replace a player lost to COVID without an injury list designation makes sense. In-season rules changes come with apprehension, but in these challenging environments, it’s applicable. In a home league, it can be put to a vote or enacted by a commissioner but take a pulse of the league participants to ensure equitable circumstances.

Glenn Colton (Fantasy Alarm, @GlennColton1): Rules changes AFTER the draft? Only in two circumstances: Unanimous agreement of the league without any pressure or a totally unforeseeable major change in the world or the sport (like when the leagues shut down after many fantasy baseball drafts last year)

Dan Strafford (FNTSY Radio, @DanStrafford): There is a very clear scenario where your league should adjust. It’s when Major League Baseball changes something leading into a season. Over the past two years, we’ve been subjected to a revolving down of potential changes to the CBA, season, and more. If MLB changes something after your draft, then by all means you should look to adjust. Beyond that, everyone drafted with the same set of variables in front of the, so nothing should change until next year’s constitution/rules are drawn up.

Shelly Verougstraete (Dynasty Guru, @ShellyV_643): Changing the rules after the draft has a begun is a big NO for me unless there is a unanimous opinion within the league. Sure, you might think that it is not a big deal to change this or that but it could be a big change in how another manager would approach the draft and player analysis.

Michael A. Stein (Fantasy Judgment, @FantasyJudgment): This is a common question I have received at Fantasy Judgment and the answer is really quite simple. The only circumstance where I would endorse changing a league’s rules after the draft is completed is if there is some material change in Major League Baseball (i.e., rules, schedule, statistics, etc.) or the world that has a significant, comprehensive effect on the entire league. If that happened, then a league could amend its rules with 100% participation and 100% agreement in a league-wide vote. A perfect example is last year’s truncated season where many leagues did add IL slots to accommodate players testing positive for COVID-19. Absent some monumental or catastrophic circumstance where the entire landscape of the league is affected, there should not be any changes to a league’s rules once the draft is complete.

Michael Beller (The Athletic, @MBeller): It’s already been said a few times, but I can add another voice to the chorus. If there’s a major change in MLB during the season, and/or if the managers in the league unanimously agree to a rule change. If that’s the case, no problem with a rules change. If it isn’t, you have to save the change for the following season.

Jock Thompson (Baseball HQ, @JOCKatHQ): There can absolutely be in-season rule changes, as long as the changes don’t impact roster structures or fantasy managers’ ability to play in the current season. The most obvious of these occurs when an owner finds a loophole and/or uses certain conditions to game the system. Consent isn’t difficult, usually done with input from all owners at the site or via e-mail; formal vote not necessary.

Ron Shandler (RonShandler.com, @RonShandler): Generally no, but it depends upon the league and the people in it. I have yet to find a league constitution that is an air-tight document and can account for every possible eventuality. So there may be circumstances when an in-season change could be even necessary. Take the unfortunate situation where a player dies in-season and a constitution that stipulates that players can only be replaced if placed on the IL or demoted. You can make an exception in that case, but it might be better to broaden the verbiage in the rule. Obviously, that an extreme case, but I can’t say that there aren’t other loopholes that might need to be addressed in-season. And yes, unanimous vote is a must.

Chris Welsh (Sportsgrid, @IsItTheWelsh): Before 2020, I would have answered this as a big, fat no. 2020 presented so many out-of-our-hand situations that I think it opened up eyes to the possibility of in-season rule changes. Now, I don’t believe just because of 2020, we should present changes left and right, but I think we have to ride the waves of alt-sites or expanded rosters or COVID like additions for IL usage. This CANNOT though be done solely by a manager. This has to be put to league vote. unanimous passing is probably the only way to do it. If you allow wiggle room for a 51/49 passage, it will lead to hurt feelings and people threatening to leave. Fantasy is supposed to be fun, so we should be open to expanding on our enjoyment, even at the cost of a change in-season.

Andy Behrens (Yahoo! Fantasy Sports, @andybehrens): If a commissioner is considering a change that might reasonably have impacted draft strategies, then of course they shouldn’t do it. Not only does it make for a terrible game experience, it’s also an awful precedent. But if a league unanimously agrees to, say, bump back the trade deadline by a week or add an IL slot in a COVID season, I think that’s perfectly fine. I’ve also heard of private leagues that mistakenly renewed with last season’s games and innings limits; in a situation like that, the commish obviously has to make adjustments.

Adam Ronis (Fantasy Alarm, @AdamRonis): Usually, the answer is an emphatic no. With COVID-19 I can see a change being made due to circumstances we haven’t seen in fantasy before. The change has to be agreed upon by the entire league. I did this before the year by adding IL spots. I haven’t come across anything so far to provide an example, but we need to at least be open to a potential change if we all agree it’s rational and makes sense to keep the game fun.

Scott Wilderman (OnRoto, @): We do see some league tweak rules during the season, but the changes are usually minor — transaction deadlines, or perhaps change the day for free agent pick ups. Beyond that, I think it does depend upon the league. No way in a big money league. I play in a pretty loose and laid back league, and injuries (non-covid) have been so pervasive this year that I’m going to propose we adopt some facility for mid-week replacements. I’ll see if I can get it passed for this year — that will be a data point.