Joel Colomby
LATEST STORIES BY JOEL COLOMBY
FANTASY FARE: Some random trade-season thoughts
We’re getting into trade season for both Major League Baseball and fantasy leagues, which means most teams, real or otherwise, will either be making that final push for glory or retooling for next year. The MLB swap deadline arrives July 31 and that provides fantasy owners with another two weeks to assess the impact on your team, reconfigure trade targets and check out the fresh batch of waiver wire possibilities of players who have switched leagues.

FANTASY FARE: Odds and ends after a too-long break from boxscores
When setting your daily lineup, checking the waiver wire and exploring trades becomes as part of your morning routine as that first cup of java or bowl of cereal, the all-star break can seem like an interminably long time. That’s four days of staring at the same numbers from the same lineups.

FANTASY FARE: Rangers rockin' our mid-season fantasy studs and duds
A week late but, what the heck, here is our annual rundown of fantasy baseball’s mid-season studs and duds. Again, these are the best and worst performers relative to their pre-season ranking. Rookie callups are not included and neither are relievers or players who’ve spent significant time on the injured list.

FANTASY FARE: Gurriel Jr. mirroring last year's mid-season madness
That stint in triple-A last month, when he was converted into an OF, has done wonders for Blue Jays’ Lourdes Gurriel Jr., and his bat. A struggling .175-hitting infielder to open the season, Gurriel returned to the Jays five weeks later for a late-May series against the Padres, smacked HRs in each of the three weekend games and hasn’t cooled off.

FANTASY FARE: Syndergaard's lost confidence in his best pitch is holding him back
By all accounts, Noah Syndergaard appears to be turning things around. His 6.35 ERA in April was reduced to a more palatable 3.70 in May. He should be back to his usual dominant self sooner rather than later, right? Not so fast.

FANTASY FARE: Consistency in the box the key to Josh Bell's emergence
Josh Bell’s hot April turned into a blistering May — .390 with 12 HRs and 31 RBIs in just 118 ABs — as the Pirates young first baseman has evolved into one of the majors’ truly elite hitters through the first months of 2019.

FANTASY FARE: Joey Gallo's better-than-average batting average
Known chiefly for his high home run and strikeout totals, Joey Gallo’s .285 AVG so far this season has been a revelation for his fantasy owners. This from a guy who came into this season with a .203 career mark and, somewhat laughably, has produced more homers than singles each of the past two years.
