Dan Fappiano Articles - Page 39

With the New York Mets in turmoil, the future of star first baseman Pete Alonso is uncertain. If the Mets were to put Alonso on the trade block, the Seattle Mariners would be poised to make a run at him. At least Vegas thinks so, as the Mariners are the favorites (+300) to be Alonso’s […]

Since May 12, 2022, Texas Rangers second baseman Marcus Semien has never missed a regular season game. But as the Rangers prepare to take on the Arizona Diamondbacks on Wednesday, Semien’s streak will be coming to an end. The infielder is out of the lineup on Wednesday as he has been played a bit, “banged […]

Running back Tarik Cohen hasn’t played a down in the NFL since 2020. But now with the New York Jets, Cohen is looking for one more opportunity. New York signed the running back to a one-year contract, via Adam Schefter of ESPN. As the Jets get Cohen acclimated to the offense, head coach Robert Saleh […]

The New York Mets have struggled to stay afloat in the NL East, already trailing the first-place Philadelphia Phillies by 15 games. But perhaps the return of catcher Francisco Alvarez is the exact spark the Mets need for a turnaround. Alvarez is set to begin a rehab assignment with Double-A Binghamton on Thursday. He is […]

The Atlanta Braves have been dealt a devastating blown with Ronald Acuna Jr. suffering a season-ending ACL injury. But in the middle of a playoff chose, rival executives don’t expect the Braves to go down quietly. As the trade deadline approaches, many are expecting Atlanta to be involved. However those executives don’t necessarily envision general […]

Creeping up back towards .500, the St. Louis Cardinals are trying to work their way back towards contention. But if the Cardinals want to have any shot of making the playoffs, they need Nolan Arenado at the top of his game. On Tuesday, Arenado showed a glimmer of promise towards a turnaround. In a 7-1 […]

The New York Mets saw their disappointing season trudge along with a doubleheader loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers. Jeff McNeil tried to stay positive after the recent losses, but it’s clear neither he nor the Mets have been able to find their stride. New York fell 5-2 in Game 1 before being shutout in […]

With Pete Alonso set to become a free agent after the 2024 season, the star first baseman has been involved in countless trade rumors. But with the trade deadline in the distant future, Alonso is trying to block out the noise. New York has been unable to come to terms with Alonso on a contract […]

The Atlanta Braves were hit with devastating injury news when Ronald Acuna Jr. suffered a season-ending torn ACL. While the Braves won’t be able to make up his production, Atlanta does have some powerful reinforcements on the way. The Braves have activated catcher Sean Murphy off of the injured list, via Justin Toscano of the […]

While he didn’t start for the San Diego Padres on Sunday, right-hander Jeremiah Estrada made a significant impact on the mound. In helping the Padres take down the Yankees 5-2, Estrada made an even bigger fan out of Padres teammate Fernando Tatis Jr. In just 1.2 innings, Estrada struck out five Yankees and became the […]

After spending the first four years of his NFL career with the Baltimore Ravens, linebacker Patrick Queen switched allegiances and joined the Pittsburgh Steelers in free agency. As he prepares for his Steelers debut, Queen is looking to bet on himself during the 2024 campaign. Pittsburgh signed the linebacker to a three-year, $41 million contract. […]

In an interleague battle, the New York Yankees came up just short against the San Diego Padres, losing 5-2 on Sunday. While a loss is never good, Gleyber Torres felt his effort at second base played a direct role in the Yankees taking a loss. Up 1-0 heading into the bottom of the sixth inning, […]

At 15-38, the Chicago White Sox are having a season to forget. But while the White Sox are poised to be sellers at the MLB trade deadline, Chicago isn’t too keen to deal outfielder Luis Robert Jr. Robert is only 26-years-old and is under team control through 2027. Despite being deemed their best trade asset, […]

The Cleveland Guardians have been impressive in 2024, leading the NL Central with a 35-17 record. Their success has come with the help of some unexpected reinforcements. Those players have become key fantasy baseball waiver wire pickups entering Week 10. But the Guardians aren’t the only team rostering fantasy baseball value. Through the ebbs and […]

Thursday’s matchup between the Chicago White Sox and Baltimore Orioles ended in controversial fashion. While the outcome will remain the same, MLB admitted that they made a mistake. The Orioles came away with an 8-6 victory after Chicago slugger Andrew Vaughn was called for interference, making him the final out of the game. On Friday, […]

With the Denver Broncos moving on from Russell Wilson, quarterback Bo Nix was the team’s first-round selection in the 2024 NFL Draft. But just because the Broncos have a shiny new rookie doesn’t mean he will be automatically guaranteed the starting spot. Especially if Jarrett Stidham has anything to say about it. Entering his second […]

Once of the franchise’s all-time greats, Jerome Bettis certainly knows what it takes for the Pittsburgh Steelers to be successful. As the Steelers start over in the quarterback room, Bettis is excited to see how the battle unfolded. With Kenny Pickett falling out of favor – and eventually being dealt to the Philadelphia Eagles – […]

The Chicago White Sox are already having a season to forget. Alongside some poor play on the diamond, the White Sox have been bitten badly by the injury bug. Outfielders Eloy Jimenez and Luis Robert ‘s absences in particular have held Chicago’s offense back. Jimenez is dealing with a hamstring injury while Robert is working […]

In the weeks leading up to the 2024 NFL Draft, the New York Giants were deemed a candidate to trade up for top quarterback prospect Drake Maye. While that plan didn’t come to fruition, fellow quarterback Daniel Jones is well aware of the implications. The Giants ended up staying put at No. 6 and taking […]

The Las Vegas Raiders lucked into landing tight end Brock Bowers in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft. Now, the Raiders must focus on figuring out the best way to implement Bowers into their offense. Not many NFL Draft pundits expected Bowers to be available at Las Vegas’ No. 13 selection. But when […]

When the San Francisco 49ers opened OTAs, many of their top players weren’t in attendance. That included star wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk, whose contract situation has led to plenty of offseason trade rumors. However, head coach Kyle Shanahan seemed to disregard any concerns about Aiyuk’s whereabouts. While he would rather have is receiver on the […]

While George Pickens has had an impressive NFL career with the Pittsburgh Steelers, the star wide receiver knows he can be even better. But a lot of Pickens’ growth will come from who is playing quarterback for the Steelers. As he prepares for year three in Pittsburgh, Pickens will be catching passes from either Russell […]

If the San Francisco 49ers want to avenge their Super Bowl loss, they’ll need Christian McCaffrey producing out of the backfield. But at the start of OTAs, McCaffrey was nowhere to be found. Head coach Kyle Shanahan isn’t too concerned, though. OTAs are voluntary with McCaffrey being the one to determine his attendance. While the […]

As the New Orleans Saints went through the early offseason, star cornerback Marshon Lattimore found himself shrouded in trade speculation. But it appears as if those clouds are fading with Lattimore and the Saints beginning to see eye-to-eye. Head coach Dennis Allen reportedly had a ‘positive conversation,’ with Lattimore amidst the rumors. He stated that […]

You never know which player will become valuable through the fantasy baseball waiver wire. A change of scenery, opportunity or overall plans can take a player from an afterthought to a key contributor. It’s hard to find those kinds of players on draft day. While predictions are one thing, fantasy baseball owners won’t know how […]

In a little under two years, Cincinnati Reds superstar Elly De La Cruz has become one of the most recognizable names in all of MLB. While he has given the Reds a new breathe of life, a new contract extension for De La Cruz doesn’t seem to be coming into play immediately. Past April, extension […]

With a new general manager, head coach and new quarterback, the Washington Commanders have fully hit the reset button heading into the 2024 campaign. NFL Hall of Famer Peyton Manning has taken notice and has admired Washington’s offseason strategy. The Commanders landed their quarterback of the future when they drafted Jayden Daniels with the No. […]

With a record of 19-23, the Toronto Blue Jays find themselves at the bottom of the AL East. While there’s still time to turn things around, the Blue Jays could head in a different direction if the losses keep piling up. If Toronto were to become sellers by the MLB trade deadline, Kevin Gausman would […]

If the Boston Red Sox want to get into postseason contention, Triston Casas and Garrett Whitlock returning would be powerful replacements. While in much different stages in their recovery, both Casas and Whitlock are getting closer to their Red Sox return. Casas remains on the 60-day injured list with a rib injury. He won’t be […]

By signing Shohei Ohtani, the Los Angeles Dodgers wanted to continue staking their claim as kings of the NL West. For Ohtani and company to achieve that goal, they must take down the San Francisco Giants and any NL West competitor in their way. On Tuesday, the Dodgers achieved that goal by defeating the Giants […]

While the New York Yankees lead the AL East, the team is only poised to get stronger. Both DJ LeMahieu and Gerrit Cole are getting closer to making their eventual returns to the Yankees. LeMahieu is set to begin a rehab assignment at the Double-A level on either Thursday or Friday, via Greg Joyce of […]

The Atlanta Falcons seemed to find their quarterback of the present and near future when they signed Kirk Cousins to a four-year, $180 million contract. However, the Falcons muddied the waters when they then used the No. 8 pick in the 2024 NFL Draft on fellow quarterback Michael Penix. Adding a quarterback in the first […]

After making numerous additions and with the looming return of quarterback Aaron Rodgers, the New York Jets are expecting massive growth from their offense next time they take the field. But for all the changes New York endured, offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett will still be the one calling the shots. But as the Jets thought […]

The Houston Astros have massively underperformed in Joe Espada’s first year as manager. Behind the scene, some Astros are beginning to believe his tenure shouldn’t continue beyond the 2024 season. Two ‘prominent’ members of Houston’s club have ‘quietly expressed’ complaints over Espada’s communication skills, via Bob Nightengale of USA Today. There’s no word on if […]

While the great MLB franchises are filled with superstars, fantasy baseball success is not directly correlated to winning percentage. Sometimes players on bad teams provide the biggest fantasy baseball value. There’s always a reason why a team has a poor record. Perhaps a player or numerous have struggled to find their footing. In that case, […]

The St. Louis Cardinals’ struggles from 2023 have carried over into 2024 as they find themselves in the NL Central’s cellar. As the Cardinals dropped another game against the Milwaukee Brewers, Nolan Arenado was quick to put the blame on himself. St. Louis fell to Milwaukee 7-1 on Thursday, dropping their record to 15-22. With […]

In July of 2023, the Pittsburgh Pirates made Paul Skenes the No. 1 overall pick in that year’s draft. Just one season later, Skenes is now ready to make his major league debut. Pittsburgh is calling up their top prospect with Skenes slated to start on Saturday against the Chicago Cubs. Watching the Pirates pitching […]

Nothing has seemed to go right for the Houston Astros, who find themselves at the bottom of the AL West, early on in the 2024 MLB season. However, things might be coming back around Houston’s way as the Astros are nearing the return of two key difference makers. Both Jose Urquidy and and Chas McCormick […]

The Chicago Bears found their quarterback of the present and future when they selected Caleb Williams with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. Head coach Matt Eberflus didn’t want to waste any time in handing Williams the keys to Chicago’s castle. Eberflus has named Williams the Bears’ starting quarterback, via Adam […]