5 MLB Pitchers Who Have Taken a Huge Step Forward in 2017
Roberto Osuna, RP, Toronto Blue Jays
Without looking, can you guess which relief pitcher is currently the closest to Craig Kimbrel and Kenley Jansen in fWAR? If you said Roberto Osuna -- and I really hope you did -- you'd be right.
Kimbrel and Jansen have been doing nasty things to hitters all year, and each have produced 3.0 fWAR at the moment. But right behind them is Osuna of the Toronto Blue Jays, who currently stands at 2.7, with Corey Knebel right behind him at 2.6.
We talked about how Osuna's dominance needed more attention earlier this season, and that still holds true. While his 3.52 ERA stands out as awfully high compared to the rest of baseball's elite relievers -- and worse than his own 2.68 mark from 2016 -- everything else is eye-popping in the best way possible.
The young right-hander has posted a 2.18 SIERA, 34.3% strikeout rate, and 3.3% walk rate, which are all on pace to easily be career highs. However, his ERA seems to be so high because of 61.4% strand rate. His .302 BABIP allowed is on pace to be a career worst, but it doesn't make sense when looking at his batted-ball profile since debuting in 2015.
| Year | LD% | GB% | FB% | Hard% | BABIP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 19.7% | 34.3% | 46.1% | 25.7% | .238 |
| 2016 | 19.8% | 33.2% | 47.1% | 37.0% | .256 |
| 2017 | 19.8% | 44.4% | 35.7% | 27.3% | .302 |
So outside of his ERA jumping up into rare territory when looking at his two-plus years in the majors, his production has skyrocketed in just about every other area.
