Dellin Betances

Betances entered 2019 with a lot on the table given it was his final year before free agency. He has been one of the more dominant relievers in all of baseball the past five seasons, teasing fantasy owners with saves here and there, and often finishing the season with more roto value than many starters on the roster. His 2019 spring training began with a tired shoulder and his velocity below 90 mph. A bone spur was eventually found in the shoulder. That issue was corrected, and Betances made it back to the majors Sept. 15, facing two batters before tearing his Achilles' tendon. Betances for his career has struck out 40% of hitters and held them to a .168 average. The full-time closer role evaded him in the Bronx for a few reasons, and he will likely begin his time in Queens setting up for Edwin Diaz after signing a one-year deal with the Mets. With better health, Betances could eventually take the job.

Betances eclipsed the 100-strikeout mark for the fifth straight season -- the only reliever to do so. He rebounded from an uncharacteristically subpar 2017, lowering his walk rate from 16.9% two years ago to 9.6%, in line with 2016's level. Of slight concern is a dropping groundball rate, which contributed to Betances surrendering a career-high seven homers in a modest 66.2 frames. Betances recorded a 20-hold season for the fourth time in five years after missing by one in 2017. However, he failed to post at least nine saves for the first time since 2014 as the Yankees' bullpen was loaded and he was rarely called upon to work the ninth inning. With David Robertson and Zack Britton hitting free agency, Betances is left as Aroldis Chapman's primary setup man and the clear next-in-line for saves. Regardless of his role, Betances is a fantasy asset for ratio protection with a ton of whiffs.

Along with elite ratio help, Betances also provided double-digit saves for a second straight season as he served as the Yankees' closer last summer while Aroldis Chapman worked through physical and mechanical issues. Not a bad backup plan. Over the last three seasons, the 6-foot-8, 265-pounder has saved 31 games and has led relievers with a combined 14.8 K/9. Unfortunately, the converted starter's jagged delivery, which pulls him to the first-base side on nearly every offering, often corrupts his control. His 6.6 BB/9 was a glaring weakness hidden by that 2.87 ERA -- he benefited from another left-on-base percentage above 80. Relief pitchers work around such issues in small sample sizes, but huge dips in swinging-strike rate (15.4 to 12.7) and first-strike percentage (60.9 to 51.3) hint that the two-pitch hurler is becoming too predictable. It may only take tiny tweaks to correct those issues, however.

Relegated to seventh-inning duty early on, Betances eventually took over the closer role after Andrew Miller and Aroldis Chapman were dealt at the trade deadline. Betances cruised through the first half, posting a 2.66 ERA and ridiculous 16.0 K/9, but fatigue seemed to catch up to the 28-year-old during the final month. Betances, who has made 217 total appearances over the last three seasons, stumbled to a 9.64 ERA with eight walks in 9.1 innings after the start of September. Still, the skills seem to be holding steady and after a full offseason of rest, the righty figures to enter 2017 once again as one of the game's best relievers. He'll return to a setup role with the Yankees re-signing Chapman.

Building on his breakout campaign as a rookie in 2014, Betances pitched just as well, if not better, in 2015. Pitching out of the eighth inning after losing out on the closer job to Andrew Miller in spring training, the 27-year-old did not allow an earned run until June. Using his overpowering fastball and filthy knuckle-curve, Betances led all relievers with 131 strikeouts, finishing the year with just a 1.50 ERA and a great 14.0 K/9. There is some concern with the tall righty though, as he's thrown 174 innings the past two season — with his 84 frames being the most among full-time relievers in 2015 — and he showed some signs of fatigue toward the end of the year. Still, Betances should still be among the game's elite out of the bullpen once again in 2016, though he will likely continue to be mostly a strikeout and ratios contributor in a setup role with the addition of Aroldis Chapman.

Now you understand why Betances was such a heralded prospect coming up through the system even though he consistently had no earthly idea where the ball was going. It had just become crystal clear that it wasn't going to work in the starting role so he shifted to the bullpen full-time in 2013 and took off at Triple-A with a 2.68 ERA and 1.12 WHIP. He was still walking too many batters, which left him with a small margin for error. In 2014, command and control of both his fastball and slider seemed to emerge overnight, especially for the latter and all of a sudden he was one of the most devastating forces in the game. He fanned at least two batters in 49 of his 70 total appearances, pacing the league by 10 (Wade Davis was next best). His 35 appearances of more than an inning were also baseball’s best. The Yankees used their stud brilliantly and it paid substantial fantasy dividends even though he wasn't closing games. A ninth-inning role would likely make him the top reliever off the board as he already offers elite strikeout totals and ratios from the bullpen.

It was a tale of two seasons for Betances in 2013. The 25-year-old was terrible as a starter with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre early in the year, giving up 16 earned runs in his first 19 innings before transitioning to the bullpen. It was there that Betances got significantly better, getting scored upon just once in his last 23 Triple-A appearances. He didn't look great in a cup of coffee with the Yankees, but Betances' big fastball and shaky control play significantly better in relief. He could have a shot to make the bullpen out of spring training, or at least see time with the big club later in the year.

Betances is three years older, nine inches taller and 100 pounds heavier than fellow Yankees prospect Manny Banuelos, but the two share both excellent stuff and frustrating inconsistency.  Betances sits consistently in the high-90s with his fastball and has an outstanding power curve as well.  His secondary stuff needs work, which has some scouts beginning to profile him as a reliever, but 142 strikeouts in 126.1 innings in 2011 shows how dominant he can be, and if he can improve his command (he walked 70 last season), he may beat Banuelos to the Yankees rotation after starting 2012 at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

Betances spent the bulk of the year at High-A Tampa, holding opposing hitters to a woeful .169 average while racking up 88 strikeouts and just 19 walks in 71 innings (14 starts). Most impressively, he did it all in his first year back from Tommy John surgery (August 2009) and restored himself as one of the Yankees' best pitching prospects. At 6-foot-8, 245, Betances is a huge right-hander with a cannon arm, a fastball that hovers at 93-94 mph and a plus curveball. He'll likely start the year at Double-A Trenton, where he finished last season, and is unlikely to see any big league action until at least 2012.

Betances has the pitching arsenal and the stuff to develop into a front-of-the-rotation starter, but injuries threaten to derail the promising 21-year-old�s career. He�s dealt with forearm soreness in the past, and Tommy John surgery last August could keep him out for all of 2010. On the plus side, he�s young enough to recover, but it will likely have to wait until early 2011.

Betances flashed his potential at Low-A Charleston during his first complete season of professional ball in 2008, finishing among the South Atlantic League leaders in strikeouts by fanning 135 in just 115.1 innings. His walk rate needs to improve (4.61 BB/9IP) if he's going to make the move to the fast track, while his 6'8" frame has made repeating his mechanics an issue, and thereby results in spotty command. There are also concerns about injuries, after Betances was hampered by forearm tightness in the past. He'll begin 2009 as a 21-year-old at High-A Tampa, but some scouts believe he's got the stuff to be a No. 1 or No. 2 starter in the big leagues down the road, if his command develops enough for him to harness an arsenal boasting a mid-90's fastball and plus curveball.