Greg Holland

After appearing to be hanging on by a thread, Holland logged his best season since 2014, finishing as the Royals' closer, though he missed the final three games with an oblique injury. Strikeouts were never Holland's issue during his decline; it was an increasing walk rate resulting in deteriorating ratios. However, last season Holland notched a career-best 6.3 BB% after sporting levels north of 15% the prior two campaigns. Holland's resurgence earned a 2021 deal to return to Kansas City where he'll be the incumbent closer, but the pressure will be on and Holland will need to perform to fend off the likes of Josh Staumont and Scott Barlow. There's a good chance Holland's drop in free passes was not derived from better control as he threw the same high percentage of balls as he's done the past couple of seasons. If the control issues resurface, he may not be long for the job.

Proving some MLB managers still believe in guile, Holland logged at least 16 saves for the sixth time in the last seven seasons. Despite a fastball in the high 80s and allowing five runs in three Cactus League innings, Holland began the season as Arizona's closer. The decision appeared to be genius. On June 12, Holland was sporting a 1.99 ERA and 0.97 WHIP with 10 saves and 29 punchouts in 22.2 stanzas. That was the high-water mark as things went south quickly and Holland posted a 9.00 ERA and 2.08 WHIP over his next 17 appearances, fanning just 12 with 14 walks in those 13 frames. Holland was released by the Diamondbacks on August 5. He signed a minor-league deal with the Nationals but wasn't called up. While Holland's days of closing should be history, you never know, especially after signing with the Royals. He'll hope the skipper favors guile. Don't make the same mistake.

When the Cardinals gave Holland $15 million on a one-year deal, it was the most recent test of the "there is no such thing as a bad one-year deal" rule. There were enough statistical warning flags that should have scared off most teams, but the Cardinals found themselves backed into a corner and needing the ever-dreaded "proven closer." The experience went as poorly as statistically predicted. Holland has a 5.23 ERA and 1.52 WHIP since the 2017 All-Star break, and has yet somehow compiled 16 saves. Couple his recent numbers with his decreased velocity and spotty command and you have a recipe for disaster should another team fall for the veteran closer trap in 2019. There are many more relievers with better skills that should get a chance before another team allows this reputation another shot at the closer role. Game over, man. Game over.

The Rockies took a chance on Holland as a free agent following a 2016 campaign that he lost due to recovery from Tommy John surgery. During the first half, he looked like one of the game's elite closers again, fanning batters at a 33.3 percent clip and posting a 1.64 ERA while holding opposing hitters to a meager .159/.264/.259 line. Holland went through a stretch in August where he was hammered by the opposition, posting a 13.50 ERA in 9.1 innings while his strikeout rate plummeted (16.3 percent) and he had issues with walks (12.5 percent) and home runs (3.86 HR/9). He recovered in September (32.4 percent K%) despite a slight drop in velocity. Holland proved capable of pitching half of his games at Coors Field, carrying a 3.34 ERA at home compared to a 3.90 mark on the road. Overall, his return was a success as he pitched well enough to trigger the vesting option in his contract, but Holland opted for free agency in hopes of landing a multi-year deal this winter.

While Holland has 319.2 innings and 145 saves under his belt, he's an unknown commodity at this time. We haven't seen the 31-year-old in well over a year, since he underwent Tommy John surgery in October of 2015. What we do know second-hand is that Holland was sitting between 88-91 mph with his fastball during a recent showcase -- significantly lower than his 95.5 mph career average -- but most scouts emerged feeling confident about his health. The general expectation is that Holland will be ready for spring training, but after signing with the Rockies on a one-year pact, he'll likely have to settle for a setup role to begin the season. Holland's experience in the ninth inning should lead itself to future save opportunities if he returns to something close to his old self, but until he can supplant Adam Ottavino for save opportunities, he'll make for a risky investment.

After back-to-back All-Star appearances and 45-plus save seasons, Holland had a down year in 2015 by his standards, likely tied to injury issues. His season ended on Sept. 22 when the team shut him down and he eventually decided to have Tommy John surgery in early October. This will likely keep the All-Star closer out for a majority of the 2016 season.

Holland was one of the elite fantasy baseball closers for the second season in a row, as the right-hander collected 46 saves in 2014, which was second to only Fernando Rodney's mark of 48 in the American League. He also provided support in other categories, striking out 90 batters to go along with a 1.44 ERA and 0.91 WHIP. Even though the Royals have several options in their bullpen that would make exceptional closers, Holland is their guy, and there's little reason to think otherwise heading into 2015. He's still on the better side of 30 years old, and his 2014 average fastball velocity of 95.8 mph was an exact match with his career average. Holland also possesses a devastating slider that he deploys frequently, and although he used a split-fingered fastball on just 2.3% of his pitches last season, it remains a weapon in his arsenal that can catch hitters off guard. He's one of the safest ninth-inning options in AL-only formats, and is arguably a top-five closer in mixed leagues.

While Holland looked impressive during the latter half of the 2012 season after finally being handed the closer's job, his 2013 campaign looked even better. The season opened a bit on the rocky side, but after the first few weeks, he settled down and proceeded to dominate hitters in outstanding fashion. His 47 saves ranked second in the majors and his 13.8 K/9 and 103 strikeouts over 70.1 innings each ranked second among qualified relievers. Add in a 5.72 K/BB and you certainly have all the ammunition needed to claim that Holland was indeed the best closer in baseball last year. Armed with a mid-90s fastball and a high-80s slider, Holland will continue to close for the Royals in 2014 and should be one of the first relievers off the board in most drafts.

With Joakim Soria out for the season, Holland was prepared to open the year competing for the team's vacant closer role. After a shaky start, Holland was diagnosed with a rib stress fracture and landed on the DL for a month towards the end of April. His return was impressive as he went on to post a 2.16 ERA with 46 strikeouts over 33.1 innings, earning him the closer job after the July 31 trade deadline. He continued to dominate out of the bullpen and by the end of the year, was 7-4 with 16 saves, a 2.96 ERA and 91 strikeouts over 67 innings. Even more impressive was the uptick in velocity he saw as his fastball was regularly clocked at 96 mph. He will open the 2013 season as the Royals' closer and should prove to be a valuable fantasy asset.

Holland was arguably the best pitcher on the Royals' roster in 2011 and has shown the potential to be a closer at some point down the road. Perhaps most impressive, in his 46 appearances last season, he only had one outing where he allowed two runs or more and even then, he struck out four of the nine batters he faced. A large part of his success is due to his slider, which graded out as the best in the game last season among all relievers by some metrics. With Jonathan Broxton now in the mix, it will be tougher for Holland to factor into late-game situations, but his stuff is good enough to make him relevant no matter what his role in 2012.

The obvious contribution Holland makes is in the strikeout department. He has posted a career 9.6 K/9IP mark in more than 200 career minor league innings and whiffed 11 batters per nine during his brief major league debut last season. Those strikeouts are nice, but a high walk rate does a lot to negate its influence. Look for Holland to see action in low-leverage situations, at least initially, if he makes the Opening Day roster.