Scott Kazmir: 3 Best Fantasy Free Agent Landing Spots
By Brad Kelly
Scott Kazmir has been one of the most fascinating stories in baseball over the last three seasons. He went from being an ace with Tampa, to completely out of the league and in independent ball in a flash, to now once again being one of the better pitchers in the game.
Kazmir’s 2015 season should really be looked at in two parts: before and after being traded to the Astros. In the first half of 2015 with the A’s, Kazmir was phenomenal posting a 2.38 ERA and 8.3 SO/9 over his 18 starts. When he was traded to the Astros, it looked as though he was poised to lead him home town team to the playoffs.
Unfortunately, that was not the case as his ERA with Houston rose to 4.17 and his 6.6 SO/9 was a pretty big drop-off over the last 13 starts of the season. Even though he struggled down the stretch, he will have a lot of suitors as he has shown that he can be truly effective again in the league.
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Here are the three best potential landing spots for Kazmir in 2016.
San Francisco Giants
With prime target, Jordan Zimmermann, coming off the market the Giants are still going to be in search of a starter. Kazmir has the stuff to fill in nicely behind Madison Bumgarner in the rotation and as we saw in Oakland he can thrive in huge ballpark.
Kazmir has never pitched in the NL, so his value would certainly jump if he could wind up in San Fran. The Giants could use a stabilizer in the rotation as they have huge question marks in the rotation, so his average 31 starts per season would be a welcome addition. If he can land with the Giants, rank him right around a SP3 and solid mid round pick in 2016.
San Diego Padres
The Padres may seem as a weird fit as they appear to be in more of a sell mode, rather than bringing in free agents again like in 2014. The Padres have freed up money by dealing Craig Kimbrel and Joaquin Benoit, so the budget is open enough to bring in Kazmir.
While on paper James Shields, Tyson Ross, and Andrew Cashner should be an effective top of the rotation, the Padres still lack depth and there are some questions that linger around that trio. Shields and Cashner struggled mightily, and Ross may be on his way out the door as well as trade bait.
Thus leaving Kazmir as a safe and quality stop-gap they could acquire. If he can land in San Diego, target him the same as if he was still in Oakland as he could be able to take full advantage of the huge ball park and weaker lineups.
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim
Like with the Padres, the Angels have “names” in their rotation, but a majority of those starters come with question marks as well. C.J. Wilson is terrible, Jered Weaver is steadily declining, and Matt Shoemaker took a big step back last season. While Garrett Richards and Andrew Heaney are certainly building blocks, the Angels could be encouraged to bring in a steadier option.
Kazmir would be a welcome addition to the Angels and would offer them a solid top of the rotation piece that would go well in Anaheim with Mike Trout tracking down balls in center for him. If he can land here rank him right along a SP3 and higher end SP4, target him again in 2016.