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Trade rumors swirl around evolving Davis
- Updated: July 28, 2016
If the latest rumors are to be believed — and you should always believe everything you hear in the final days before the non-waiver Trade Deadline, which is 4 p.m. ET on Monday — the Royals are at least taking calls on All-Star closer Wade Davis.
That’s not the same thing as saying they’ll actually end up moving him, of course. But listening makes sense, because the 49-51 Royals are behind seven teams in the American League Wild Card race, and because recent trades involving Aroldis Chapman, Craig Kimbrel and Ken Giles proved that teams willing to deal top-end relievers can really cash in, big time. If that also means the Royals can move the remaining $62.5 million due Ian Kennedy, who has allowed the most home runs in baseball, in addition to acquiring young talent, all the better.
Obviously, any team looking to make a big splash by going after Davis is going to do their due diligence, so we should as well. What kind of pitcher is he right now? Here are three things you need to know about the 2016 version of Davis.
1. He’s still elite at run prevention If all you care about is keeping runs off the board, then yes, Davis is still one of the game’s best. This is his third season in Kansas City’s bullpen, and he’s allowed 21 earned runs in 173 innings, good for a 1.09 ERA. That’s the best of the 262 pitchers with 150 or more innings in that span, and it’s not particularly close — the runner-up is the Orioles’ Zach Britton at 1.51. Even this year, Davis’ 1.61 ERA is the 11th best of 340 pitchers with 30 or more innings pitched.
There are lots of reasons why — strikeouts, great Royals defense, etc. — but perhaps chief among them is that in those three years, Davis has allowed three home runs. All came last season, which means that none have been surrendered this season. From a pure run-prevention sense, it’s difficult to argue that Davis isn’t still among baseball’s top bullpen arms, to the point that the controversial 2012 deal that brought him from Tampa Bay is no longer “The James Shields Trade” or “The Wil Myers Trade.” It’s “The Wade Davis Trade.”
2. The underlying stats show some cause for concern Despite the success, that doesn’t mean that everything is the same. When a …
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