Fantasy Baseball 2018 Debate: Chad Green or Chris Devenski?

Middle relief pitchers are becoming more important in both real life and fantasy baseball. Chad Green and Chris Devenski are two of the best today. Which one would you draft?

Relief pitchers, especially closers, have been an important part of fantasy baseball for years. The majority of leagues use saves as a pitching category, which only they can contribute to. They can also add to strikeouts and help lower your ratios.But with more leagues use K/9 or adding holds, middle relievers are

But with more leagues use K/9 or adding holds, middle relievers are becoming more valuable in some leagues. Andrew Miller and Dellin Betances are two of the top names that come to mind. Yet, there are two more that made a name for themselves this year, Chad Green and Chris Devenski. Green finished just 0.15 points behind Devenski on the Player Rater.

When two relief pitchers finish in the top-25 among relievers and recorded a combination of four saves, they are doing something right. With the high strikeout and low walk rates, these two were able to help lower the two main ratios for their owners.

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Most fantasy owners have two to three closers per team, making room to own at least one middle reliever which can benefit your team. So, who should you draft between Green or Devenski?

Chad Green

Green pitched in only his second season with the New York Yankees. He pitched in 45.2 innings in 2016 and posted a 4.73 ERA. This year was a completely different year for Green.

In 69.0 (nice) innings, he threw 103 strikeouts with a 1.83 ERA and 0.739 WHIP. He also had a 2.2 BB/9, 13.4 K/9 and just four home runs allowed.

Green was a part of a special bullpen for the Yankees in the second half. With a group featuring Aroldis Chapman, David Robertson, Tommy Kahnle and Betances, Green stood out because of his ability to pitch in multiple innings.

Chris Devenski

Devenski, like Green, made his debut last year. But, unlike Green, he played a major part in the Houston Astros bullpen. He pitched 108.1 innings with a 2.16 ERA in 2016.

His numbers regressed some this season but some stood out in fewer innings. Devenski pitched 80.2 innings and posted a 2.68 ERA, 0.942 WHIP, 2.9 BB/9 and 11.2 K/9.

As I mentioned in my Ken Giles piece, the Astros bullpen wasn’t the best. There were a couple of relievers that had ERAs close to or over 3.00. Devenski was the most-used pitcher from that bullpen and he made the most of it.

Next: What to expect from Josh Bell in 2018?

If you play in a league with holds, Devenski is the player to draft. He had 25 to Green’s nine. The strikeouts and walks are very similar, 103-17 for Green and 100-26 for Devenski. Both are in crowded bullpens but have their role carved out for them.

If the top set-up men (Miller and Betances) are drafted, the next one I would draft is Devenski. He already posted back-to-back 100-strikeout seasons. If he can increase his innings closer to 100, he would be a top-20 relief pitcher next season.