RADIO
Kelvin Herrera Is Not Elite
7 years agoKelvin Herrera had a 2017 that he’ll want to forget. Herrera was slated to be KC’s closer after his third straight dominant season, but he flubbed the job bad enough that he was eventually replaced with a committee. Herrera’s 4.25 ERA and 1.35 WHIP were career worsts by a substantial margin, and his K/9 dropped back down to 8.49, a number that’s more in line with how he pitched in 2014 and 2015. Moving forward, Herrera should bounce back a bit, but don’t expect him to go back to his 2016 form. Herrera’s 2017 strikeout and walk rates were considerably worse than in 2016, but they were more in line with his career numbers. Unfortunately, his HR/FB rate skyrocketed and his strand rate plummeted. Both of those seem to be anomalies at this point, so owners should plan on them recovering to some extent. That said, between his forearm soreness and the return to his former self, owners should not pay an elite price for Herrera in 2018.
