Rays: Tommy Hunter a good source for low ratios and holds

The Rays have had a lot of good relievers over the last few years. With some good relievers on the current roster, Tommy Hunter is a huge standout.

The Tampa Bay Rays have had many fantasy baseball relevant pitchers over the years. From Rafael Soriano to Fernando Rodney and now Alex Colome, the Rays do a good job developing a solid bullpen. That trend continues with setup man Tommy Hunter.

The trade deadline was full of relievers switching teams. The Rays added two more arms to the bullpen in Sergio Romo, Dan Jennings and Steve Cishek. However, outside of Colome, Hunter has been the most value relief pitcher.

In 36.0 innings, Hunter has a 1.75 ERA, 0.972 WHIP, 9.8 K/9, 2.5 BB/9, one save and 14 holds. With a lot of valuable relievers leaving the American League, those in AL-only leagues are looking for replacements.

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There are some pitchers that now gain more value by taking over their respective team’s closer role.

However, those pitchers may not have the skill to be successful and are just the next guy in line (look at Tony Watson’s time as the Pirates’ closer).

Pitchers like Matt Belisle, Mychal Givens and Hunter are worth picking up for their low ratio stats and holds potential. They could even pick up a save or two during any given week.

At 30 years old, this is clearly his best year to date. He spent the first couple of years of his career as a starter but was moved to the bullpen in 2013.

The pool of serviceable relief pitchers, especially in ESPN leagues is pretty deep. Along with the pitchers I mentioned, Brad Hand and Trevor Rosenthal are gaining traction by taking over the closer role.

Though, Hunter has just two home runs allowed along with 10 walks and 39 strikeouts. He has a 45.6 ground ball rate, 24.4 line drive rate and 30.0 fly ball rate. Though, opposing batters aren’t making good contact with the ball, 26.4 hard hit rate.

He is also getting a lot of swinging strikes, especially on pitches out of the zone. In the power-heavy American League, throwing pitches by batters is pretty important.

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Hunter is pitching behind Colome in the Rays bullpen. He is owned in just 3.4 percent of leagues. So, if you are looking for holds or need to lower your ratios, Hunter is worth the add.