Recent Articles from this Column
June 15, 2013
Charging the Mound: Literally Charging
Jeff and Chris review the week's events, including the brawl between the Diamondbacks and Dodgers sparked by the plunking of Yasiel Puig.
June 8, 2013
Charging the Mound: The Biogenesis Edition
Chris Liss and Jeff Erickson discuss the gap between bid and ask on Ryan Braun and the other players listed on the Biogenesis ledgers. (WITH VIDEO)
June 1, 2013
Charging the Mound: Exorcism By Trade
Jeff Erickson finally had enough of B.J. Upton, and traded him at $.75 on the dollar. Was that the right price? Or is he really a buy lowest candidate?
May 26, 2013
Charging the Mound: Smorgasbord Week
Jeff Erickson and Derek VanRiper pick a number of items from the buffet this week, including Kevin Gausman's debut for the Orioles.
May 16, 2013
Charging the Mound: Breaking the Needle
Jean Segura has been a top-five offensive fantasy player this season. Has he broken the needle? How do we value him going forward? (WITH VIDEO)
May 11, 2013
Charging the Mound: Evaluating In the Moment
Matt Harvey has forced us to evaluate whether he belongs in the top tier of pitchers perhaps before we have enough of a sample size to properly make that evaluation. (WITH VIDEO)
May 3, 2013
Charging the Mound: When Disaster Strikes
Jason Heyward is one of many injured players for Chris Liss's faltering Y! F&F squad. What do you do when your team is in shambles early in the season?
April 26, 2013
Charging the Mound: How to Rank Injured Players and Prospects - With Video
When is a top prospect like Will Myers not worth the roster spot?
April 12, 2013
Charging the Mound: Sell Low, Buy Lowest - With Video
Jeff Erickson struggles to move Roy Halladay for 35 cents on the dollar.
April 4, 2013
Charging the Mound: What to Make of a Diminished Thing (With Video)
How worried should we be about players like Roy Halladay, Tim Lincecum and CC Sabathia?
March 28, 2013
Charging the Mound: The Ones That Got Away
Chris Liss and Jeff Erickson take stock of their portfolios and discuss the players on whom they regret missing out.
August 30, 2012
Charging the Mound: Regrets and Ranks
Where do you slot Giancarlo Stanton for 2013?
August 23, 2012
Charging the Mound: Where Are the Bags?
Stolen bases are down in baseball this year, particularly among the elite stolen base guys like Michael Bourn.
August 16, 2012
Charging the Mound: Keeper League Thoughts
Mike Napoli's injury triggered a selling opportunity for Chris Liss in a keeper league.
August 9, 2012
Charging the Mound: Next Year's Rankings Today
Where does Mike Trout rate next year?
August 2, 2012
Charging the Mound: What Didn't Happen At the Trade Deadline
The Twins were mostly inactive at the trade deadline, holding onto Justin Morneau among others.
July 25, 2012
Charging the Mound: How Do We Know When a Breakout Portends Long-Term Stardom?
Grantland.com's Jonah Keri guest-writes and breaks down Chris Sale (pictured), Mark Trumbo and others
July 19, 2012
Charging the Mound: Labels
Is Pedro Alvarez truly a streaky player? How exactly do we measure a player's streakiness, and how do we profit from it?
July 12, 2012
Charging the Mound: Vegas Version
How much will you pay on the dollar to get Evan Longoria?
July 5, 2012
Charging the Mound: What's Wrong With ...
We start off discussing some of the disappointing players of the season, then discuss midseason rankings.
June 27, 2012
Charging the Mound: Praise for Dwayne Murphy
Jose Bautista is at it again, and there's many other Jays on fire too. Should hitting coach Dwayne Murphy be feted on the same level of the elite pitching coaches?
June 21, 2012
Charging the Mound: Jonah Keri Makes a Guest Appearance
Trading early can net you a big profit. Also, we talk about some of the early surprises, plus the Rockies' four-man rotation plan.
June 14, 2012
Charging the Mound: Advanced Stats Outliers
Scott Pianowski stars in a guest role in this week's Charging the Mound. Among the players discussed include Matt Cain and how his overall results fly in the face of advance metrics.
June 7, 2012
Charging the Mound: Panic Time on Upton?
Is now the time to trade for Justin Upton?
June 1, 2012
Charging the Mound: Do We Still Trust Starting Pitching?
Has Roy Halladay's injury shaken your faith in starting pitching?
May 24, 2012
Charging the Mound: Most Valuable Keeper Commodities
Mike Trout is up to stay with the Angels and performing great.
May 17, 2012
Charging the Mound: Player Envy
Which players create envy in you for not owning them? For a while, Chris Liss was envious of those who had a shot to own Matt Kemp, but he's moved on from that.
May 10, 2012
Charging the Mound: Sliding Away, Hamilton's Night
Josh Hamilton and Miggy Cabrera are discussing just how high Hamilton's four-homer game ranks among the all-time great nights in fantasy baseball history.
May 3, 2012
Charging the Mound: The Value of Clairvoyance
How much of an advantage would you have to know the results of the first month of the season, and avoid major injuries like that to Jacoby Ellsbury?
April 26, 2012
Charging the Mound: Trouble Spots
Gordon Beckham is off to yet another rough start.
April 19, 2012
Charging the Mound: Level of Dominance
Matt Kemp couldn't have gotten off to a better start. Is he the special type of player that can transcend the game?
April 11, 2012
Charging the Mound: At What Point Does a Hot Streak Become a Breakout?
Many hesitated before buying into Jose Bautista two years ago, feeling certain he would come back to earth. How do we get in early the next time around?
April 4, 2012
Charging the Mound: Liss and Erickson Talk Baseball
Are some players particularly injury prone, or is it just bad luck?
March 28, 2012
Charging the Mound: Erickson and Liss Talk Baseball
Both Liss and Erickson regret not having Yu Darvish on a single roster
March 21, 2012
Charging the Mound: Liss and Erickson Talk Baseball
Clayton Kershaw might be the No. 1 fantasy player this year, but a soft market for pitching drops him to Round 2
March 14, 2012
Charging the Mound: Tough Keeper Decisions
What do you do with Domonic Brown who might not even begin the year on the major-league roster?
March 7, 2012
Charging the Mound: Liss and Erickson Talk AL LABR
Liss threw out Justin Morneau with the opening bid for $7 and (purposely) got crickets.
September 8, 2011
Charging the Mound: Erickson and Liss Talk Baseball
Joe Mauer was a bust this year - where does he slot among catchers for 2012?
September 1, 2011
Charging the Mound: Overcoming Platoon Splits
Curtis Granderson's remarkable season has been fueled by a breakout against left-handed pitchers.
August 24, 2011
Charging the Mound: Late Bloomers
John Mayberry Jr. and Javy Guerra are two players that have provided NL owners value despite entering the season with a very low profile.
August 18, 2011
Charging the Mound: Liss and Erickson Talk Baseball
Trading away Mike Stanton has cost Chris Liss in one of his expert leagues.
August 10, 2011
Charging the Mound: Angels Flying High
Ervin Santana has spurred the Angels to stick around in the AL West.
August 4, 2011
Charging the Mound: Very Little Closer Chaos
Heath Bell was one of the many potential trade targets not dealt at the deadline, leaving him free to exchange more awkward high-fives with his Padre teammates.
July 27, 2011
Charging the Mound: Half Measures
Bryce Harper is the best prospect in the game still in the minors. But is there a scenario when you should trade him?
July 21, 2011
Charging the Mound: Liss Gets Hosed By Posey, Twice
Buster Posey found a way to hurt Chris Liss twice in NL Tout Wars.
July 7, 2011
Charging the Mound: Robot Umpires
Jonah Keri fills in for Chris Liss this week and talks about trading for Dan Uggla and the need for robot umpires in baseball.
June 29, 2011
Charging the Mound: Who Should Sell?
Joakim Soria recovered in June after a miserable May. Should the Royals trade him now while they can?
June 22, 2011
Charging the Mound: The Case For Fewer Strikes
Could Ricky Nolasco benefit from throwing fewer strikes?
June 15, 2011
Charging the Mound: Cistulli and Liss Talk Baseball
Prospecting for under-the-radar help
June 9, 2011
Charging the Mound: Wrong at 30,000 Feet
Albert Pujols has eased his fantasy owners' fears in the last 10 days, so those that have preached patience might have been right about him. But when is the macro view wrong?
June 2, 2011
Charging the Mound: Trading Season
Justin Upton and the Diamondbacks are in first place in the NL West. What should they trade for, and how soon?
May 26, 2011
Charging the Mound: Setting the Narrative
Is Joakim Soria in trouble?
May 18, 2011
Charging the Mound: Erickson and Liss Talk Baseball
Roy Halladay is an ace now, but there once was a time when he was dishing out Mazzaro-like beatings to his fantasy owners.
May 12, 2011
Charging the Mound: Pianowski and Erickson Talk Baseball
Chances are Matt Holliday got a hit from this swing.
May 5, 2011
Charging the Mound: Can You Sell Liriano Now?
What can you get if you're a Francisco Liriano owner trying to peddle him after his no-hitter?
April 28, 2011
Charging the Mound: When Does It Make Sense To Cut Losses?
Hanley Ramirez doesn't have a homer yet. Does it make sense to trade him or other elite slow starters now?
April 21, 2011
Charging the Mound: Erickson and Liss Talk Baseball
Jose Tabata is off to a fantastic start. Is it possible to sell-high on him and other fast starters?
April 13, 2011
Charging the Mound: Liss and Erickson Talk Baseball
Josh Beckett is back among the AL's second tier starters again
April 6, 2011
Charging the Mound: Erickson and Liss Talk Baseball
The Royals are running wild early on, something that could benefit players like Alcides Escobar, Melky Cabrera and Alex Gordon (above)
March 30, 2011
Charging the Mound: Players We Loaded Up On
Liss has Trevor Cahill on a couple of his mixed league teams
March 23, 2011
Charging the Mound: Erickson and Liss Talk Baseball
When it's perfectly okay to reach for a player like Drew Stubbs
March 16, 2011
Charging the Mound: Which Players' Breakout Potential Isn't Already Priced In?
Matt Wieters is a good breakout candidate this year, but he's not going that cheap
March 9, 2011
Charging the Mound: Erickson and Liss Talk Baseball
Liss let one of his perennial staples, Mariano Rivera, go for $22 in AL LABR and left the auction without a closer
March 2, 2011
Charging the Mound: Liss and Erickson Talk Baseball
High strikeout pitchers like Yovani Gallardo deserve an upgrade in an innings-cap league.
February 23, 2011
Charging the Mound: Erickson and Liss Talk Baseball
Even if Jose Bautista returns to earth, the Blue Jays should hit plenty of home runs
February 16, 2011
Charging the Mound: Liss and Erickson Talk Baseball
Both expect Cubs catcher Geovany Soto to thrive this year
August 26, 2010
Charging the Mound: Endgame Strategies
What should you be thinking about when planning your stretch run? Will the Padres give Adrian Gonzalez or any of their other starters more rest in September?
August 19, 2010
Charging the Mound: Next Year's Breakout Players
Chris and Jeff discuss who some of 2011's breakout players might be.
August 12, 2010
Charging the Mound: Next Year's Cheat Sheet
A Quick Look at Next Year's Top 30 - Where Should Carlos Gonzalez Rank?
August 4, 2010
Charging the Mound: After the Deadline
Could Manny Ramirez and others be moved after passing through waivers?
July 22, 2010
Charging the Mound: The Middleman's Cut
Making the extra phone call or e-mail can pay big dividends on the trade market.
July 15, 2010
Charging the Mound: Players to Watch in the Second Half
Could Alex Gordon be a factor once he gets the call?
July 8, 2010
Charging the Mound: Bust Squad
Derek VanRiper and Jeff Erickson talk about their busts. Adam Lind captains the outfielders.
July 1, 2010
Charging the Mound: The Padres' Next Moves
The surprising San Diego Padres remain atop the NL West, and the NL generally. What moves should they make going forward?
June 16, 2010
Charging the Mound: Why Won't Teams Do the Right Thing?
The Royals have every incentive to call up Alex Gordon, but for some reason are holding off
June 10, 2010
Charging the Mound: What to Make of the Jays
Liss returns this week and asks what to make of Vernon Wells and the Toronto Blue Jays.
