Launch Angle

Greg Ambrosius joins the boys to talk the NFBC and more importantly the recently departed Meat Loaf (RIP). Van, Rob, and Jeff get the scoop right from Greg for a bit and then the trio discusses Fangraphs' decision to implement a universal DH in their STEAMER projections. They also talk shifting in the middle of a draft when it gets crazy, and talk Eugenio Suarez, AJ Pollock, Frank Schwindel and more in the ADP segment

Today's show has Van, Rob, and Jeff answering a listener's question about automating the fantasy baseball process and maybe some things you can do to make your life easier as fantasy players. The guys also go down the list of ADP looking at some standout performers in the early 200s, and some maybe not so standout performers (looking at you Lucas Sims!)

Rob's out but Dan is in this week as Jeff and Van talk to the creator of ZiPS about his projection system, what goes into it, and why we should trust it. The guys also talk some players in ADP including Brandon Crawford, Mitch Garver, Patrick Sandoval, and more!

Rob and Jeff wanted to find out what you've got on your minds so Van put out a call to the listeners and they answered! Fans of the show sent in their fantasy baseball questions asking things about weighing injury versus platoon roles in projections, closer drafting strategies, and even starting pitchers INSIDE of the top 20

It's a new year and the gentlemen of the Launch Angle Podcast are back and stronger than ever! Rob, Jeff, and Van continue discussing ADP into the 180s with a good discussion about a potentially underrated Kolten Wong, Joey Gallo and whether he's worthy of this pick, and of course our very favorite 40 year old masher Nelson Cruz and whether or not this is a risky pick for the masher without a team

Jeff's internet is out thanks to recent storms but fret not because Derek Rhoads (@drhoa3) is here to fill the void! Rob and Van welcome Derek to the show and they discuss Derek's hard work including his tireless effort documenting player injuries. They then continue into the 170s in ADP and look at players like Nicky Lopez, Ryan McMahon, Blake Treinen, Ian Happ, and more

Time Stamps:

Note: Some platforms incorporate ads into the timestamps, some don’t. So if the time doesn’t quite match up skip ahead 60 seconds if it is before the 31:13 mark, or 180 seconds if after

2:19 Introducing Rob and Derek
6:45 Best Ball Tips and Differences
12:59 Alex Kiriloff
19:40 Nicky Lopez
25:58 Ryan McMahon
31:14 Michael Conforto
36:35 Joe Ryan
42:00 Blake Treinen
45:27 Tanner Houck
51:08 Joe Barlow
54:37 Ian Happ
59:16 Mike Clevinger

Jeff recently underwent a draft and some interesting questions cropped up in his mind so Van and Rob join him in attempting to answer them! They discuss Fernando Tatis' odds of missing half a season, Mookie Betts' stolen base total for 2022, and Franmil Reyes' potential outfield eligibility. They continue down the ADP list as well covering the rest of the 160s with more to come

Time Stamps:

Note: Some platforms incorporate ads into the timestamps, some don’t. So if the time doesn’t quite match up skip ahead 60 seconds if it is before the 27:00 mark, or 120 seconds if after

1:41 Introducing Rob and Jeff
2:58 Percentage chance Fernando Tatis plays 81 games
7:08 Mookie Betts over/under 10.5 stolen bases
14:21 Odds of Seiya Suzuki playing in the Majors
19:41 Will Franmil Reyes get OF eligibility?
23:48 Michael Kopech
30:17 Keibert Ruiz and Tyler Stephenson
34:54 Eddie Rosario
38:58 Robbie Grossman
42:37 Alex Kiriloff
45:25 Gregory Soto and David Bednar
50:39 Luis Urias
54:55 Avisail Garcia
57:21 Tarik Skubal

Tanner Bell, co-author of The Process alongside Jeff joins Van, Jeff, and Rob in the studio today to discuss the book as well as continue down the ADP list looking at players in the 150s. They'll discuss Alex Verdugo and whether he's a plus buy, Brendan Rodgers and how terrible the Rockies are, Amed Rosario's season with Cleveland, and plenty more

Time Stamps

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1:07 Introducing Tanner Bell
7:04 Alex Verdugo
13:28 Chris Taylor
16:51 Rhys Hoskins
19:53 Akil Baddoo
27:01 Gleyber Torres
31:52 Camilo Doval
36:47 Brendan Rodgers
42:44 Marcus Stroman
48:15 Amed Rosario
51:24 Clayton Kershaw
53:54 Anthony Rizzo
57:58 Justin Turner

Sure there isn't much as far as news goes but that isn't going to stop Van, Rob, and Jeff from putting out shows! Today the guys continue with their ADP Analysis looking into the 140-150 range and discussing players like Dylan Carlson, Willy Adames, Luis Garcia, Josh Bell, and many more

Time Stamps

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:51 Introducing Rob, Jeff, and the Hawk
3:05 Ranger Suarez
5:56 Willy Adames
9:26 Dylan Carlson
13:38 Lourdes Gurriel Jr.
17:20 Ke’Bryan Hayes
27:02 Adolis Garcia
32:17 Ty France
37:05 Adam Wainwright
43:27 Justin Verlander
46:26 Josh Bell
51:00 Luis Garcia
55:16 Yoan Moncada

With our bonus episode this week Van and Jeff bring on special guest host Joe Sheehan! Joe talks to the guys about the other free agent signings that happened at the last minute including Marcus Stroman, Corey Seager, Raisel Iglesias, and more. Of course they also continue down the ADP list into the 130s with a bunch of pitchers including Sean Manaea, Zac Gallen, Ranger Suarez, and maybe a hitter or two

Time Stamps

Note: Some platforms incorporate ads into the timestamps, some don’t. So if the time doesn’t quite match up skip ahead 60 seconds if it is before the 42:00 mark, or 120 seconds if after

00:54 Introducing Jeff and talking The Process
10:33 Introducing Joe Sheehan
12:26 Corey Seager
16:39 Kole Calhoun
18:54 Josh Jung
21:39 Marcus Stroman
24:38 Relievers: Corey Knebel, Mark Melancon, and Raisel Iglesias
28:37 Alex Wood
32:25 Javier Baez
36:43 Hunter Renfroe and Jackie Bradley Jr.
41:50 Blake Snell
44:26 Myles Straw
49:25 Framber Valdez
52:02 Franmil Reyes
58:17 Sean Manaea
1:02:31 Zac Gallen
1:05:04 Luis Severino
1:08:24 Ranger Suarez