Fantasy Impact Of Bronson Arroyo Signing With Arizona Diamondbacks

Bronson Arroyo - 2014 Fantasy Baseball Impact

After spending most of his offseason trying to find a home for 2014, 13-year veteran pitcher Bronson Arroyo finally signed with the Arizona Diamondbacks for two years and $23.5M. Though probably less than what he wanted as far as dollars and length of term, the 36-year-old workhorse Arroyo is now a part of a team and pitching staff that is intriguing, to say the least. While never an ace or fantasy stud, Arroyo does bring depth to a very young, mostly unproven staff looking for immediate results in a very thin NL West.

Landing in Arizona is great for Arroyo's value. For those looking at him as an option for their fantasy squads, it was nice to see that he signed with a team that looks to be a contender right now. The offseason additions to the lineup will add more runs and more wins for the one-time All Star and Gold Glove winner. Looking at his main competition in the NL West is also a fairly pleasant sight.  Forgetting the Dodgers for the moment, the Giants have done little to improve their 2013 last-place lineup, the Rockies are thin outside of the Tulo-Cargo combination, and the Padres are, well, the Padres. While there will obviously be ventures outside the division, the view is much better for Arroyo than it was from his seat in the NL Central.

The Arizona Effect

He has had great numbers at Chase Field, where he will be pitching most of his games over the next couple of seasons.  At Chase Field, as a road pitcher, Arroyo has a record of 4-1 with a 3.20 ERA and a 24/6 K/BB ratio over 39.1 innings. He also has a career .500 record (19-19) against the rest of the NL West.

Perhaps the most substantial impact of this this will be on the other pitchers in the Diamondbacks system. Arroyo is now the sixth starter signed to the major league roster, and will likely push Randall Delgado out to the bullpen. A bittersweet development comes with this deal, as it will likely delay the debut of top pitching prospect Archie Bradley. Bradley, who will be at Spring Training with the D-Backs, was hoping to find a spot in the rotation early on in the year to make an impact on the team and help them to a playoff berth. Now, though, there would have to be quite a few hiccups within the starting rotation in order for that to scenario to come to fruition.

Overall, Bronson Arroyo’s fantasy value for 2014 is slightly better than it was going into 2013.  Arroyo's individual performance should be fairly consistent considering his reputation as a workhorse and an innings eater. In a standard draft, I would be looking at about round 21-22, or the first picks of the average team’s bench.

2014 Fantasy Projection: 200 IP, 120 K, 3.9 ERA, 1.23 WHIP, 12 W

That’s it for now. Check back in soon, as I will analyze the fantasy impact of the A.J. Burnett to Philadelphia deal, and stay tuned when the remaining big name free agents start to come off the board. Make sure to follow me on Twitter @JustBerglund and @Rotoballer for all the breaking news from around the league.