How to Play Fantasy Baseball for Beginners: Leagues, Scoring, & Drafts

MLB Opening Day is near, which means it’s officially fantasy baseball season. If you’re new to the world of fantasy baseball have no fear — we’re here to help. Fantasy baseball is the oldest fantasy sport, and while it has evolved over the years, its core remains the same: build a team, track player stats, and compete for the best results.

Below, we’ll explain how to play fantasy baseball for beginners, including the types of leagues, drafts, scoring formats, and more. No matter how you play fantasy baseball, one thing is for sure: it changes the way you watch the game.

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Below, we will break down traditional fantasy baseball and how to play it, along with how it compares to PrizePicks fantasy baseball, so you can decide the best way to play this season.

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How to Play Fantasy Baseball?

Fantasy baseball is an interactive game where fantasy managers draft and manage a team of their choosing over the course of an entire MLB season. Typically, you will draft pitchers and hitters to fill your team, position by position, though every league can be different.

Each week, managers set their starting lineups with the goal of accumulating the best stats and outperforming their opponents. At the end of each week, whoever has the most points is declared the winner for the week.

Once the season ends, the players within the league are seeded for playoffs, where the same process is repeated until there is a champion before the MLB season ends.

There are many variations of fantasy baseball, including different league formats, drafts or scoring systems. Each individual has their own specific preference, so below we will break down the different types.

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What Type of Fantasy Baseball Leagues are there?

There are many different types of leagues within fantasy baseball. However the main two types of leagues that most participants play are called “Redraft” and “Dynasty” leagues. The names of the leagues are simple to understand. 

Redraft Leagues

Redraft is when every year, players draft a brand new team for the season, and keep the team for one season only. Once the season is over, that team is disbanded. Players then draft a new team the following year and repeatedly do this each season. 

Dynasty Leagues

Dynasty leagues (sometimes called Keeper leagues depending on format) allow managers to keep their rosters together for multiple seasons after a single inaugural draft. Instead of drafting a new team each year, managers build long-term strategies, trade for future assets, and develop prospects.

The teams never disband but in some “Keeper” leagues, the manager must designate a select group of players to release to re-enter the draft in the next year. 

Fantasy Baseball Scoring Explained

Within these leagues, you can win in different ways, depending on league structure. There are roto, points leagues, head-to-head leagues, and more. It can get quite complicated to distinguish every way to play fantasy, but all have the same sentiment: more stats compiled by players on your team is the way to win.

Here’s how each type of fantasy baseball league works.

• Points Leagues — Players earn points based on their in-game performance (such as hits or strikeouts). Each stat has a predefined point value, and teams accumulate points throughout the season. The team with the most points wins the league (or, in a weekly league, the team with the most wins wins the league).
• Roto Leagues — The original way to play fantasy. Teams compete across multiple predetermined statistical categories (i.e. batting average, home runs, ERA, etc). The player of the teams compile these stats through the season. At the end of the season, teams are ranked in each category, and cumulative rankings determine the winner.
• Head-to-Head (H2H) Leagues — Managers face off weekly. Matchups can be decided by two formats: Points or Stats Categories (similar to Roto).

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What Type of Fantasy Baseball Drafts are there?

Along with different types of leagues, there are also different versions of drafts that each fantasy baseball league participates in. The two types of drafts are known as Snake and Auction drafts. While both drafts require skill and strategy, the Snake draft is a little bit more luck based, as the positioning of picks are randomized before each manager drafts their team.

Snake Drafts

In a Snake draft, managers select players one by one in the order in which they are assigned. Once each player has chosen, the order is then reversed and this process is repeated until everyone’s roster is full. 

Auction Draft

In an auction draft, managers “bid” on whoever they want, whenever they want. 

Every manager starts with a set number of funds to spend in the auction draft and players go up for one-by-one. If they hypothetically wanted Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani and spent a huge portion of their allotted funds on them, they potentially could. However, their team would struggle in other areas.

The Snake draft is used to ensure some amount of fairness within the drafting system, while the Auction is more strategic and based on managers’ preferences.

MLB DFS vs. Season-Long Fantasy Baseball?

Fantasy baseball is classic, and it never goes out of style. But sometimes,  it’s time to switch it up. You can avoid the constant management, waiver pick ups, and draft strategies with MLB DFS on PrizePicks.

If you want to keep the excitement without the hassle, MLB on PrizePicks is for you. PrizePicks offers the simplest version of fantasy baseball where you can win real money — available to play in 45 states and Canada. 

Here’s four reasons to play MLB fantasy on PrizePicks:

• No Drafts, No Trades, Just Flexibility — Pick your favorite MLB players, every day of the MLB season. No waiting for a player in the draft or the waiver wire.
• No Stress, Just Ws — No more managing a roster every day of the MLB season. With MLBSZN, you can set your Lineup and forget it. With PrizePicks MLB, you can just play when you’re able to, and you can win real cash every day when you do! No stress.
• Injuries? No Worries — If a player gets injured, PrizePicks’ reboot policy covers that, and you could still win. 
• More Freedom — Just simply pick more or less on any player’s stats, either for the season on MLBSZN, or just for one game with MLB.
• Win Real Money, Instantly! — Cash in on PrizePicks instantly when your picks hit, with quick withdrawals right back to your bank account.

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Win Real Money on MLB with PrizePicks

Get in on the real money action this MLB season with PrizePicks. With a variety of options for players and stat types, you can build your ideal season-long Lineup with MLBSZN and win real money all season long with our daily fantasy game.

Even if you’ve already drafted your fantasy baseball team, PrizePicks keeps the MLB fresh all season long, with new player projections to pick More or Less on every day. 

Whether it is PrizePicks’ season-long fantasy or the single game MLB selections, PrizePicks is the easiest way to win while also watching your favorite team this season. You can place a Lineup any time, just pick More or Less on two or more players, even ones from different sports, and relax.