Free Anonymous Reliever!
Scott Linebrink was acquired by the Brewers this week for a trio of minor league pitchers. None are considered exceptional prospects, but it's still seems like a good return for a reliever who hasn't been pitching well lately.
Linebrink has pitched 45 innings this year, has a 106 ERA+, and a 25/14 K/BB ratio. He's allowed 1 HR every 5 innings. Even last year he wasn't that great putting up an ERA+ of 118, although his K/BB ratio in 76 innings was 68/22 and he gave up just 1 HR every 8 innings or so. Linebrink is 30 and a free agent after the season.
Anonymous Reliever is 29 and has an ERA+ of 108 last year and this year and a career ERA+ of 120. He strikes out a batter an inning, has a K/BB in excess of 2:1, and has given up just 3 HRs in 38.1 innings this year. He has two arbitration years remaining before becoming a free agent.
If Linebrink has that kind of value a week before the deadline wouldn't you think that Anonymous Reliever would have similar value now? I would think so, but their perceived value is probably a lot different.
Well, Anonymous Reliever is sitting in the Jays bullpen rotting away. Jason Frasor is pitching once/week these days, usually in mop up duty. If the Jays don't have a need for him I wonder if there's a team out there that recognizes that he's a pretty good and pretty consistent pitcher?
Another move that I wouldn't mind is picking up Russ Branyan. The Padres released him yesterday. His BA is .197 which looks pretty bad, but his OPS+ is just north of 100. I'm not sure if he's a butcher in the field or not, but he's played in the OF, 3B, and 1B and would be a nice LH power option off the bench. Branyan's isolated slugging % is almost better than Howie Clark's slugging %.
https://www.battersbox.ca/article.php?story=20070727174143981