Tigers: Believing in Shane Greene as a fantasy add?
By Brad Kelly
Shane Greene is the Tigers’ new closer, and so far, things have gone great. But, can he be trusted as a waiver wire add?
The closer role for the Tigers’ has been one of the more tumultuous bullpen spots in the league over the last few seasons. This season, after more turnover at the spot, it seemed as though Justin Wilson would be the man to right the ship. But, he soon found himself in a Cubs uniform.
Opening the door for, Shane Greene.
Shane Greene came over to the Tigers in the three-way deal that saw Robbie Ray go to the D’Backs and Didi Gregorius to the Yankees. The former Yankees’ farm hand showed some flashes as a starter in the Bronx, but since going to the Tigers, he struggled to post a sub-5.00 ERA as a starter.
More from Fantasy Baseball
- 5 fantasy baseball waiver wire pivots to replace Triston McKenzie
- Fantasy baseball mock draft 2023, 12-team: Aaron Judge over Trea Turner?
- 3 fantasy baseball sleepers being drafted too late
- NBA DFS picks December 25: Merry Bucking Christmas
- Fantasy Baseball: Hot pitchers worthy of starting this weekend
The Tigers’ shifted him to the bullpen this season and the results are positive. He has appeared in a league high 53 games this season while posting a 2.54 ERA and notching 53 K.
After eventually sliding into eighth inning duties for the team, Brad Ausmus decided he would be the next man up to close out games.
So far, things could not have gone any better. Greene is three for three in SV chances while striking out three. His last three clean outings extends his scoreless streak dating back to June 24, giving him over a month of shut out relief work. Which can be further evidenced by his 83% Strand rate this season.
He has the arsenal to excel in the bullpen, his fastball sits in the upper-90s mph and his slider/cutter hybrid has generated over a 15% Whiff rate. His command can be problematic, he does have 27 BB compared to his 53 K, but over his last five outings, he has only walked two.
Next: Fantasy Baseball: August 6th Streaming Options
Shane Greene’s days as a starter may be over, but he has shown that he can find success out of the bullpen. The arsenal is there and he has never thrown the better in his career. The Tigers may not win a ton of games the rest of the way, but Greene shapes up to be a waiver wire add worth gambling on.