Giants Hunter Strickland: Playoff Waiver Wire Gem

Hunter Strickland looks to be next in line for Save opportunities for the Giants. Can fantasy owners now make him a must add moving forward?

Even though the NFL is now in full swing, there is still unfinished business left in fantasy baseball. This week usually marks the beginning of the fantasy playoffs for owners, so to everyone looking for players to add at this point; well done. One of the more interesting waiver adds for the playoff stretch, is Giants’ fireballer, Hunter Strickland.

Hunter Strickland was an 18th round draft pick in 2007 out of high school in Georgia.  While he could never figure it out as a starter, he has emerged as one of the better relievers the last two seasons with the Giants. He seemingly never gets the appreciation he deserves though, thanks to his playoff collapse against the Nationals, but it does not change the fact that he has back-to-back sub-2.60 ERA campaigns since being placed in the Giants’ pen.

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The Giants are desperately trying to hang on to a playoff spot after their second half collapse, but one thing that has plagued them all season, is the bullpen. Santiago Casilla has eight blown saves this season, and Bruce Bochy mercifully made the move this week, to strip him of the closer role.

There are an assortment of options at Bochy’s disposal, as he has taken advantage of bullpen matchups all season, but something has to be said about Strickland getting the first crack at the job. Strickland came on to close the game on Sept. 11 against Arizona, and made it look easy, striking out two in the process

On the season he sits with a, 2.65 ERA/1.07 WHIP/3 SV/16 HLD/52  line, over 57 innings. He features a fastball that routinely sits in the upper-90s, and a hard breaking slider, that usually serves as his strike out pitch. While the 8.1 SO/9 are a few lower than what owners would  expect from a guy that throws this hard, it is a solid ratio nonetheless.

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Strickland shapes up as a great RP add moving forward, as he has K potential and opportunity to shine for fantasy owners. He serves as the only real power arm out of the Giants’ bullpen, and with every game meaning so much to the Giants, Strickland is the clear-cut option to go take on the role. San Fran has series against the Cardinals, Dodgers, Padres, and Rockies ( at AT&T Park), to finish the season, offering plenty of chances for Saves over the course of the fantasy playoffs.