Brad Brach

Brach emerged to take on the ninth-inning vacancy in Baltimore while Zach Britton was on the shelf with a forearm injury. Throughout his previous three seasons with the Orioles, Brach was a steady late-inning reliever seemingly in the running to step in for save chances if they ever came available. Brach once again maintained a strikeout rate around 25 percent, but did see a 4.1 percent drop in that mark from 2016. His walk rate went in the wrong direction as well, but he managed to keep the ball in the yard often enough to avoid frequent blow-ups. All in all, he finished 18-for-24 in save chances while posting acceptable ratios for a closer. Like Britton, Brach is under control with the Orioles for one more season. With Britton expected to miss the first few months with an Achilles injury, Brach appears likely to step back into the closer role to begin 2018.

Brach's ascent towards bullpen stardom took another major leap forward in 2016. Coming off a stellar 2015 season in which he posted a 2.72 ERA, the veteran reliever went on to significantly lower his ERA, WHIP and walk rate, while increasing his already impressive strikeout rate in 2016. He finished the season with a 2.05 ERA, 1.04 WHIP, 8.0 percent walk rate and 29.6 percent strikeout rate. With the team's primary setup man, Darren O'Day, missing a number of games due to injury, Brach was able to record a career-high 24 holds. His superb season earned him his first All-Star Game appearance, which is fairly rare for a reliever who does not operate in the closer role. For the 2017 season, he will again be utilized in high-leverage situations and may be a Zach Britton injury away from seeing save chances.

Brach is a big reason the Orioles have been regarded as having one of the best bullpens in MLB over the last couple of seasons. With Zach Britton and Darren O'Day gathering all the headlines as the closer and setup man, Brach has been an additional luxury, tallying 12 wins over the last two seasons. That shows the Orioles like the ball to be in his hands in tight games. Brach dialed his fastball velocity up to 94 mph and increased his K/9 from 7.8 in 2014 to 10.1 in 2015. He also had an 82.2 percent strand rate, which is part of the reason why his ERA has been a half a run less than his FIP each of the last two seasons. The Orioles re-signed Darren O'Day in the offseason, meaning Brach's path to fantasy-relevant counting stats remains blocked, but he's one injury away from being next in line. Brach is probably flying under most radars, so it would be a good idea to check in on Baltimore's bullpen situation during spring training.

Brach was the victim of a deep Baltimore bullpen, which led him to make 17 appearances at Triple-A Norfolk in addition to the 46 games he appeared in for the Orioles last season. Walks have been his biggest flaw as a big leaguer, but Brach made strides in that department and posted a career-best 3.6 BB/9 (9.8% BB%) in 2014. In addition to getting better results with his slider, Brach's fastball velocity jumped from 92.0 mph to 93.4, while the improvement with those offerings led to a 12.3% swinging-strike rate. Typical of a right-handed reliever, Brach's splits are better against right-handed hitters, but he's rarely used in games close and late. The Orioles seem to value his versatility, as Brach was used for multiple innings in 26 of his 46 appearances for Baltimore last season. Look for him to spend another season in middle relief in 2015.

Brach's second MLB season was spent shuttling between San Diego and Triple-A Tucson, resulting in an equal number of outings (33) at the two locales. Although he shored up his control concerns -- he allowed 1.49 HR/9 in 2012, versus 0.87 last year -- he was still designated for assignment in the offseason in order to protect younger bodies on the 40-man roster. If he lands a spot in Baltimore's bullpen, following his trade to the Orioles in late November, expect Brach's initial appearances to be in low-leverage situations.

Brach battled issues with his control in 2012 and while those issues did not get the better of him, they did put a damper on what could have been a more successful rookie season in the majors. On the bright side, he managed to strike out nearly 27 percent of the batters he faced, flexing a fastball/slider combination that made him very successful while he was in the minors. Still, he had trouble keeping the ball in the yard, which complicated things further. Brach never battled issues with either his control or the long ball in the minors, so there's good reason to believe he can turn things around in 2013 and become a productive member of their bullpen, perhaps just not yet in the high-leverage situations that some had hoped for when he first came up.

With the departure of Heath Bell, the door has opened for relievers in the San Diego bullpen and with a strong spring, Brach could make himself a part of the team's late-inning plans. With an 11.04 K/9IP and an outstanding 7.25 K/BB over three years and 223 innings in the minors, Brach is certainly in line for a bigger test than just the September callup he received last year. He regularly hits 93 mph on the gun with his fastball and uses a nasty 84 mph slider to keep hitters fishing outside the strike zone. He should prove to be a valuable setup man in 2012 and could even be a dark horse for some save work this season should anything happen to Huston Street.