[ad_1]
Last winter, the player closest to the free agent market and one of the best lifters in the history of baseball finally has a new team. According to Ken Rosenthal of Athletic, the Chicago Cubs and Craig Kimbrel have accepted a contract. The team has not confirmed the signature yet.
Kimbrel turned 31 last month, and while there are warning flagshe remains on the short list of the best players of the match. He went 42 times with 47 opportunities to save with the Red Sox last season, hitting 96 hitters with a 2.74 ERA in 62 1/3 inning. The opponents hit .146 / .260 / .305 against him with nearly three strikeouts for two baserunners.
The 2019 amateur project took place earlier this weekwhich means that Kimbrel (and Dallas Keuchel) is no longer tied to the repechage selection. The Cubs will not make a choice to sign and the Red Sox will receive no choice to lose it. Clearing the draft would have been one of the reasons why Kimbrel did not sign, thinking that all candidates could use it.
The Chicago market had a tough time this year, the team's bullpen teamed up for a 4.02 ERA and a 1.43 WHIP in 197 innings. Their ratio 1.88 K / BB is also a bit painful. As Kimbrel is likely to be closer, director Joe Maddon's numbers will give the following impression:
Brandon Morrow, who had signed to be closest to last year, has not launched since July 15 due to injuries. It is possible that he may return at some point to reinforce Chicago's power, although Morrow's return is not imminent.
Kimbrel himself would have thrown balls in recent weeks and months, but it is likely that he will have to play some minor league matches before joining the Cubs. His arm is in shape and that's half the battle. He has yet to get ready and face the heavy hitters of the league. It could take a week or two until it is available.
The Cubs enter Wednesday's game with a record of 33-26 that allowed them to earn percentage points ahead of the NL Central Brewers. It had already been reported that Ben Zobrist's passage to the family on the shortlist could free up enough money – players are not paid when they are on the shortlist – to sign Kimbrel, and this seems to be exactly what happened.
Here's what SportsLine says about Kimbrel's impact on Cubs:
|
without Kimbrel |
93.1 |
57.5% |
88.3% |
52.4% |
19.9% |
9.4% |
|
with Kimbrel |
93.5 |
57.7% |
88.5% |
55.6% |
21.3% |
10.3% |
|
Change |
0.4 |
+ 0.2% |
+ 0.2% |
+ 3.2% |
+ 1.4% |
+ 0.9% |
With 333 career saves, Kimbrel currently ranks 14th in all-time saves and, even after the first weeks of 2019, he has a chance to climb into the top 10 of the standings at the end of the season. . Kimbrel's 333 career stops are the most important for a pitcher in his 30-year season. Here is the ranking:
- Craig Kimbrel: 333 backups
- Francisco Rodriguez: 294 backups
- Huston Street: 275 backups
- Kenley Jansen: 268 backups
- Rod Beck: 260 backups
Mariano Rivera, the king of all time with 652 savers, has accumulated only 165 spared during his 30-year season. Kimbrel is well ahead of this pace. That said, Rivera has reached an extremely high level until age 43, which is not easy to do. Nevertheless, Kimbrel has a chance to break Rivera's all-time record as long as he stays healthy.
[ad_2]
Source link