Top 10 non-closing RP beasts

[The Dane]

IMO Jordan Hicks will be closing in ST L in 2019. Unbelievable stuff...

I have him in all of my leagues, acquired through various means. I got him in the last round of the minor league draft in RJEL. The most I paid for him at auction was $3, in my deepest league. One other owner was high on him, tossed him at $2 when I was the only one who could go to $3, and I did. He was peeved, but if he hadn't tossed him out, than I would have and still would have had to go to $3.

I'm not convinced he's a closer just yet. I think they're still holding out hope that he can start, and I think the jury is still out there. So, while he's a dynamite arm, and a great one to take a flier on, I wouldn't be too surprised to see him spend most of 2018 fine-tuning his starting pitching in AAA.

[hacko]

mmmmmm... that sounds like music to my ears as I FAAB'd him for 9 bucks.

I pick up hicks in Pony league plus Strickland!!!!!!

[onejayhawk]

I can really speak with any authority about the NL. Here were my middle relief targets for this season:

ARI
Obvious: ABradley
Less obvious: AChafin
Future: JSherfy

ATL:
Obvious: AMinter
Less obvious: DWinkler. He's a Rule 5, so he'll be active all season. He was sterling before he was injured.
Future: Maybe one of the starters languishing in the minors, like Fried, Wisler, Sims or Blair. Look elsewhere.

CHI:
Obvious: CEdwards, SCishek
Less obvious: None. Is there any obscure player on this team?
Future: None.

CIN:
Obvious: MLorenzen, JHughes
Less obvious: AGarrett
Future: RStephenson. I feel strongly that his stuff will play up in the pen and when they abandon all hope of his starting, he'll be great in the pen. Of course, along with Amir Garrett, they have a ton of starters with this profile.

COL:
Obvious: JMcGee
Less obvious: AOttavino. Don't sleep on him. If he's healthy, he's non-pareil.
Future: JDiaz. Coming off injury, but for those of us in deeper leagues, he's one to watch from afar.

LA:
Obvious: SAlexander
Less obvious: TCingrani, JChagois
Future: WFont. Keep an eye on this guy.
LA is so deep with pitchers. They have several arms (starters mostly) in the high minors that could contribute to a dynamite pen immediately.

MIA
Obvious: KBarraclough, DSteckenrider. I think the latter is the better arm and the better bet to get more career saves, but I still think they give Barraclough first crack upon Ziegler's descent.
Less obvious: At least one of their current young SPs will fall to the pen and be good there. Watch DPeters, TRichards, CSmith. They have little value as starters, but they don't have anything really to replace them with.
Future: SAlcantara. I am having doubts he ever gets consistent enough to start, but in small bursts, he could be electric.

MIL:
Obvious: JJeffress, JBarnes
Less obvious: BWoodruff, MAlbers
Future: None.
This is a pretty interesting pen with a lot of moving parts. I wouldn't get too comfortable with any one pitcher outside of maybe Knebel.

NY:
Obvious: ARamos, ASwarzak
Less obvious: None. It's a weak pen.
Future: None. It's a weak system for pitchers. It's possible that Wheeler comes back as a reliever with a smattering of upside, but don't hold your breath.

PHI:
Obvious: ERamos, LGarcia
Less obvious: AMorgan. If you can't tell already, I like speculating on converted starters.
Future: VArano
Lots of guys to speculate on here because Kapler insists he's going with no set closer, so the value could be well spread out. A good place to mine cheaply.

PIT:
Obvious: MFeliz
Less obvious: DNeverauskas
Future: KCrick

SD:
Obvious: KYates
Less obvious: None. It's a crapshoot after Yates.
Future: PMaton. This is a good name to know. Similar to Sherfy in ARI, I think his is an elite relief arm that could step into lots of value the minute he's back in the majors.

SF:
Obvious: SDyson, TWatson
Less obvious: RMoronta. I wouldn't buy on him just yet, but he's certainly one to watch.
Future: DLaw. I'm sour on Law, but I don't think the team is. I bet he gets another chance.

StL:
Obvious: DLeone, TLyons
Less obvious: STuivailala, JBrebbia
Future: JHicks. I'm not convinced they're done thinking of him as a starter, so even while he's up now, I could easily see them send him back down to get/keep him stretched out. This kid hasn't shown he can put it all together as starter, and so there are tons of ways this can play out: 1) He's a #1, flat-out balls-nasty ace that terrifies hitters and leaves the women and children of visiting teams weeping for their manfolk. 2) He never quite harnesses his stuff and ends up a volatile #4 or #5 that always teases for more and always disappoints. 3) He's a reliever in the ranks of Jansen, Kimbrel, and Chapman. He's interesting, if nothing else.
I really love St. Louis pitching. It's nearly impossible to predict where saves will be from one year to the next because they have so many viable in-house options.

WAS:
Obvious: RMadson
Less obvious: SKelley. He was the hot ticket a year and then fell on hard times. If he's back, he could be a beast.
Future: None.

Damn Skippy.

Nice piece there Dane. You should do this every February. It would have been really handy in the later part of my drafts.

J

[Ryno84MVP]

CHI:
Obvious: CEdwards, SCishek
Less obvious: None. Is there any obscure player on this team?
Future: None.

Don't forget about Justin Wilson...

[joncarlos]

I'm not convinced that every AL team has a really good, usable setup man.

BAL: MIchael Givens is near-elite and could be in the mix for saves. Stick with the tried and true Darren O'Day if you need a $1 guy with great numbers.

BOS: I like Tyler Thornburg if I'm liking anyone. You may be a Joe Kelly fan but I am not. Carson Smith could be the best bet if he shows he's healthy but I don't trust him yet.

NYY: All of 'em. As I said above, buying Robertson and Green, fading Betances, neutral on Kahnle. Down the road I really like whichever of Heller and Holder isn't hurt, but they'd be 7 guys away from saves right now.

TB: Sergio Romo looks like the guy but won't get you all that many innings. Chaz Roe could be a guy if he keeps the control in check. I'm still ride or die for Ryan Stanek but I may be the only one left on the train.

TOR: Ryan Tepera looks like a higher-innings guy. Seung-Hwan Oh had shoulder questions and couldn't pass the Rangers' phyiscal but he looks damn good to me.

CLE: Duh. Other than Andrew Miller, I like Matt Belisle. Dan Otero doesn't get a lot of Ks but is a good pitcher.

CHW: Nate Jones is sharing the closer role, so he's too obvious. Give me Thyago Vieira who is not a GoT character but a dude who throws 100.

DET: No thanks. Joe Jimenez has walked 9 guys since I started this post. Why can't Drew VerHagen throw harder? I kinda hate all of these guys. Even most of their prospect SPs are more pitchability than stuff. If I must pick someone for the future I think I go Matt Manning.

KC: I'm really intrigued by Justin Grimm. I suppose Brandon Maurer as a setup guy should be interesting too. I really want Kyle Zimmer to be a guy here but I'm not convinced he can even make it as a reliever. I still believe that he will be a good one some day, but I won't ask anyone to come along with me.

MIN: Addison Reed the obvious (and good) choice, though Rodney may hold onto the job longer than you think. Hildenberger is a sidearmer who may end up ROOGY-ish but posts great numbers (can he be the new O'Day?). Tyler Duffey or Trevor May could end up here if they're ever healthy enough.

HOU: All of them I guess? I think Joe Smith has the best blend of price and talent. Smith or Will Harris are the guys I'd want. Devenski is good but overhyped. I love Peacock as a 100+ inning guy if he's somehow available. I'm not sure I trust Rondon.

LAA: Throw a dart? I like Blake Parker's stuff. If he was a setup guy I'd be all over him. I'm not sure I trust Scoscia to let him close, so he might be overpriced. I think Scoscia wants Cam Bedrosian to happen. In that park, with that defense, Jim Johnson can give you good innings.

OAK: Emilio Pagan. Stop reading and get him if he's available. You want a guy who can be on the Miller/Robertson level? He could be it. Oh, and Yusmeiro Petit could ALSO be on that level, though not if you need K/9. I still like Liam Hendricks a lot too.

SEA: Nicasio, though it's obvious. Nick Vincent seems good too. If James Pazos wasn't 27, he'd be more interesting, as he needs time to improve his control. Then again, 27 is young for a Mariner.

TEX: I guess Kela is closing and Kevin f'ing Jepsen is the 8th inning guy? Blech. Alex Claudio could give you 80 innings since that's what the Rangers seem to want him to do. I like Chris Martin a lot as a safe middle reliever. A healthy Jake Diekman is intriguing too.

[SlideRule]

BAL: MIchael Givens is near-elite and could be in the mix for saves. Stick with the tried and true Darren O'Day if you need a $1 guy with great numbers.

Sure has kind of looked like dog-poo rather than near-elite thus far... so much for my sneaky $1 AL only pickup. Booo.