MLB

News broke Friday afternoon that the Pittsburgh Pirates have removed Jason Grilli from the closer’s role, according to Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reporter Rob Biertempfel.

Mike Trout's year just keeps getting better.

Before this season began, the Los Angeles Angels star received a monster contract extension. Now, he has his own Nike cleat: the Nike Lunar Vapor Trout.

A shoe made for Trout needs to represent the player well. It should be quick, stylish and a little bit flashy. Most importantly, it should produce great results.

Back in October 2012, teenage phenom Shohei Otani had the baseball world buzzing with excitement after he expressed a desire to sign with an MLB team out high school in Japan rather than begin his career in Nippon Professional Baseball.

Like all fantasy sports, the key to success in fantasy baseball is understanding value. Failure to understand value can lead an owner to mislabel a player as a disappointment, while understanding value can give an owner a late-round steal.

To determine value, you must consider what you gave up when you selected a certain player in the draft. Did you grab an elite catcher early because of the scarcity of that position? Or did you simply draft the best players, regardless of position? 

Brandon Phillips loves messing with fans, so when the Cincinnati Reds are in an opponent's ballpark, he steps up his game.

The Reds visited PNC Park to take on the Pittsburgh Pirates in a three-game series this week. Throughout Thursday's afternoon game, one fan was reportedly heckling Reds first baseman Joey Votto.

The Tampa Bays Rays' Matt Joyce did something you may never see again, no matter how many baseball games you go to.

During batting practice before Thursday's game against the Houston Astros, Joyce hit a ball off the top of the cage. Somehow, the ball landed in the pitching machine and came right back to the batter:

Due to the amount of attention paid to each organization's top prospects and early-round draft picks, many of the game's underrated prospects are perpetually obscured. Most of the time, these prospects are younger players housed in the low minors who still require considerable physical projection and time to develop. At the same time, there are countless prospects on the older side of the age curve that have dipped off the radar due to injury.

The 2014 MLB season has been nothing short of spectacular.

Sure, there have been an inordinate amount of season-ending injuries to pitchers and position players alike, but this year has been fantastic for the game.

We have witnessed record-setting pitching performances. International rookies are finding tremendous success on the mound and at the plate. And don’t forget about the arrival of heralded prospects in each league that have dominated the national conversation.

The MLB international signing period begins on July 2, and the Braves could make a splash by signing some high-dollar talent. This, despite being constrained by MLB regarding how much they can spend.

What good is talent to a fantasy owner who lacks timing?

Fantasy baseball—just like the real thing—is a game of skill, luck and timing. That last trait, in particular, comes in handy with regard to getting value in the trading game.

Knowing which player(s) to trade away and which to deal for—and knowing just the right time to do so—can make all the difference.