Boston Red Sox potential pitching FA bargains
By Rick McNair
Sep 23, 2015; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Cleveland Indians relief pitcher Ryan Webb (54) pitches to the Minnesota Twins at Target Field. The Twins win 4-2. Mandatory Credit: Bruce Kluckhohn-USA TODAY Sports
Ryan Webb: 2015 stats: 1-0 W/L, 40 G, 50.2 IP, 46 H, 12 BB, 31 K, 3.20 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, 3.17 FIP
Webb pitched for the Indians in 2015 – signing a minor league contract with Cleveland after being released by the Dodgers in April. Webb reported to Columbus for a handful of games before being promoted to the parent club.
Webb, who will be 30-years-old in February, is a tall (6’6”) right-hander who is a sinkerball specialist. That is demonstrated in his HR/9 figure that is 0.5 in 376 innings pitched in a seven-year career with four teams. Webb is also the son of former MLB player Hank Webb, so there is a baseball pedigree.
Webb has functioned exclusively out of the bullpen in his MLB career with 357 games in relief. Of note is despite that number Webb has never notched a save. Webb’s pitch selection is heavily based on his sinker (60.9%), a slider (21.1%) and a change (15.2%). The sinker is usually in the 92-93 MPH range with the secondary pitches dipping 8-10 MPH lower.
The key with Webb is his ground ball percentage that was 59.2 for the season. This is the ideal pitcher to look at for a situation that has a stamp of “DP Necessary” on it. So, just maybe, Webb could be the Burke Badenhop of 2016?