Fernando Salas

Fernando Salas

39-Year-Old PitcherP
 Free Agent  
2024 Fantasy Outlook
There was no outlook written for Fernando Salas in 2024. Check out the latest news below for more on his current fantasy value.
$Signed a one-year, minor-league contract with the Braves in July of 2018.
Designated for assignment
PPhiladelphia Phillies  
July 21, 2019
Salas was designated for assignment Sunday, Meghan Montemurro of The Athletic reports.
ANALYSIS
Salas was added to the 40-man roster Thursday, but his time in Philadelphia was short-lived. He made two appearances in his most recent stint with the club, allowing one earned run and five hits across 1.2 innings of work.
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Recent RotoWire Articles Featuring Fernando Salas See More
Mound Musings: Bullpen Check in – NL
April 20, 2017
Brad Johnson examines closer situations in the National League, including St. Louis where a battle between Seung Hwan Oh and Trevor Rosenthal could be on the horizon.
NL FAAB Factor: Waiver Pickups of the Week
September 4, 2016
Jan Levine explores his free agent waiver pickup options of the week in the National League with around a month left in the 2016 campaign.
AL FAAB Factor: Waiver Pickups of the Week
September 4, 2016
Erik Siegrist sorts through this year's wave of September call-ups and DL activations and recommends bidding big on Yoan Moncada as your last chance to add a potential impact bat.
Mound Musings: See You in September?
September 1, 2016
Brad Johnson examines pitchers who might be worth a look for your fantasy team during the season’s final month, including Texas Ranger Derek Holland, who came back from injury in late August.
Mound Musings: Targeting 2017 – American League
August 25, 2016
This week, Brad Johnson focuses on pitchers in the American League who will be in demand next year, like Yu Darvish, so if you’re out of the title hunt this year, it's a great time to do your homework for next season.
Past Fantasy Outlooks
2018
2017
2016
2015
2014
2013
2012
2011
2009
Salas will contend for a role in the later innings after signing with the Angels, but the 32-year-old could quickly fall down the bullpen pecking order if he's unable to curb his issues with the long ball. Salas served up seven home runs across 58.2 innings with the Mets and Angels in 2017.
It was essentially a tale of two seasons for Salas, as he was able to turn a brutal first half of the year into a fairly impressive finish. He carried a 5.05 ERA with eight home runs allowed into the halfway point but followed that up with a 2.48 mark with 34 strikeouts in 32.2 innings in the back half. Though he started getting some save opportunities with the Angels once he started turning it around, Salas was dealt to the Mets at the end of August. The 31-year-old was especially effective with his new club over the final month, working to a 2.08 ERA and 9.9 K/9 while not issuing a single walk in 17 appearances. The six saves he recorded in 2016 were his first since closing with the Cardinals in 2011, and though his HR/9 spiked to a career-worst 1.5, his strong finish to the season will likely allow him to find his way into high-leverage situations again with the Mets in 2017.
Salas' ERA jumped back over 4.00 in 2015, but his strikeout and walk rates improved dramatically, as his 10.5 K/9 and 1.7 BB/9 both represented career-best marks. He induced more groundballs than he did in 2014, but his HR/FB rate jumped to a career-high of 10.8%. This could help to explain the spike in ERA, as his xFIPs from the two seasons (3.23 and 3.21) are practically identical. Salas relied on what Pitch F/X refers to as a knuckle curve heavily last season, throwing it more than a quarter of the time, and while it was merely an average pitch in his repertoire, it led to fewer changeups. The changeup was his worst pitch last year. Heading into 2016, Salas could be on the verge of big production if his home run rate can stabilize, though he remains behind Huston Street and Joe Smith in the pecking order for saves.
Salas was acquired by the Angels as a secondary piece in the trade to acquire David Freese from the Cardinals in November of 2013, after he posted an ERA above 4.00 in two consecutive seasons with St. Louis. Initially expected to serve as depth, Salas immediately made an impact in the Halos' bullpen, notching a 3.38 ERA in 58.2 innings. For the first time since his breakout season in 2011, Salas combined a high strikeout rate (25.5%) with a low walk rate (5.9%). He may have also been aided by a return of some velocity, as his average fastball rose to 91.2 mph after being clocked at 90.4 in 2013. Heading into 2015, Salas looks primed to reprise his role in the middle innings, but may not be a good source of holds, as he collected just eight while notching five wins last season.
Salas had another down year in 2013 and even found himself in Triple-A for part of the summer. Most of his advanced numbers do little to explain his season, as he displayed a solid walk rate (1.9 BB/9), and was mostly able to avoid the long ball, giving up just three. Perhaps the biggest cause for concern with Salas was diminished velocity on his fastball, as he lost a full mph from his previous season. Salas was traded to the Angels in the David Freese deal, and he will serve as bullpen depth again in 2014. He's unlikely to provide much value in most leagues, although being in a weaker bullpen with Anaheim offers a clearer path to saves than he had in St. Louis.
After saving 24 games in 2011 and pitching well enough to earn a significant role in the bullpen last season, things didn't go so well for Salas in the early going. On July 1 his ERA stood at 6.04 and he'd already had a brief stint with Triple-A Memphis. Salas righted the ship in the second half, including a nice July/August run of 24.2 IP, 13 H, 26:6 K:BB, and a 1.46 ERA. So who is the real Fernando Salas? The one in 2011 and those two months of 2012, or the one who struggled the rest of the season? The answer will likely determine what his role is this year, but he should get the ball a lot regardless.
Of all the closers the Cardinals tried out last year, Salas held the job the longest. Unfortunately for him, though, he didn't have the job at the end of the year, and he won't have it at the start of 2012 either. It certainly wasn't his overall numbers that got him the boot, but more likely the two blown saves in August combined with the emergence of Jason Motte. Still, with a 75:21 K:BB, 0.947 WHIP and 2.28 ERA, Salas, who closed for Triple-A Memphis in 2010, will be an important part of the St. Louis bullpen again this year.
Salas was up and down so many times last season that it was hard to keep track of his whereabouts. He had a major league ERA of 1.66 as late as Sept. 8, but after giving up eight runs in his last nine innings of the season it was clear he ran out of gas. He showed some promise as the Triple-A closer, most notably in his 44:9 K:BB ratio in just 35.2 innings, but the 25-year-old was already in his second year in Memphis, and Triple-A closers don't necessarily profile to become major league closers. He'll be up and down again in 2011.
In only his second year in the minors, the Mexican-born Salas showed phenomenal improvement for Double-A Springfield. The 100:16 K:BB ratio in 74 innings is not a misprint, but the 12 home runs given up shows he still has some work to do. He might need another year or two, but we could be hearing rumblings of Salas as the Cardinals closer by 2010.
More Fantasy News
Added to 40-man, active rosters
PPhiladelphia Phillies  
July 18, 2019
The Phillies selected Salas' contract from Triple-A Lehigh Valley ahead of Thursday's game against the Dodgers.
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Outrighted to Triple-A
PPhiladelphia Phillies  
June 30, 2019
The Phillies outrighted Salas to Triple-A Lehigh Valley on Sunday, Meghan Montemurro of The Athletic reports.
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DFA'd by Philly
PPhiladelphia Phillies  
June 28, 2019
Salas was designated for assignment by the Phillies on Friday.
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Contract selected by Phillies
PPhiladelphia Phillies  
June 24, 2019
Salas' contract was selected by the Phillies on Monday.
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Let go by Braves
PFree Agent  
August 13, 2018
Salas was released by Atlanta on Monday.
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