2019 MLB Season: Six Relievers to Believe in
By TC Zencka
2019 MLB Season: Six Relievers to Believe in
Tommy Kahnle and Zack Britton, New York Yankees
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Shredder has the street cred. He’s the Big Bad the Ninja Turtles know to fear. The Foot Clan won’t win any awards for their execution of a gameplan, but there are plenty of other villains before Hamato Yoshi’s nemesis to demand the Turtles’ attention – and earn it once they do.
Aroldis Chapman is the Big Bad at the end of the Yankees games. There’s not a game that goes by when – much like Shredder – Chapman’s name isn’t whispered somewhere in the ballpark with fearful deference. But as with Shredder, he’s not the only one out to get our heroes.
Meet the Bebop and Rocksteady of the Yankees bullpen, Tommy Kahnle, and Zack Britton.
Britton you know, both from his years of locking down wins for Baltimore’s more recent winner, but also for the year and a half he spent in trade rumors before the Yankees eventually made their move. After re-signing this offseason, Britton has slid under the radar amidst a barrage of Yankee home runs – but he is a weapon in pinstripes.
2.17 ERA/4.13 FIP in 53 games while generating groundballs at a higher rate (79.4 GB%) than any other pitcher in the major leagues. He’s essentially a supercharged Aaron Bummer, a guy who’s been there before, closed big games, and with 25 holds and 3 saves, he is still capable of locking down the biggest moments of the game.
As Britton is to Chapman, Kahnle is to Adam Ottavino – he’s not the one you know, he’s the other guy. With a 2.92 ERA/3.36 FIP, the 29-year-old righty gives the Yankees bullpen the kind of length unheard of outside of New York. He has 21 holds while pitching more often than not in the 7th inning, which is – good thing – where he excells: 1.73 ERA across 26 total innings in the 7th frame this year. Oh, and his primary pitch is, counterintuitively, a changeup?
Next. Is Joe Ross the next Jake Arrieta?. dark
There are only three acceptable answers to the question of who the best team in baseball is in 2019: the Astros, Dodgers, and Yankees. The Yankees lineup is right there with the Astros and Dodgers, and while their rotation remains a mess, their postseason future will fall to this bullpen. There’s no Foot Clan in New York. Only a bullpen that’s as [bebop and] rock steady as they come.