RADIO
Robbie Ray 2023 Outlook: Solid Floor with Ace Potential
2 years agoRobbie Ray wasn't the ace in Seattle he had been in Toronto, but he was still more than solid with a 12-12 record and 3.71 ERA over 189 IP. His 3.59 xERA and 3.58 xFIP were both a little better than his ERA, so betting on slight improvement in 2023 would be prudent. However, Ray might have an easy path to going back to the ace level. He introduced a sinker to his repertoire against righties last season that didn't generate whiffs (8.2 SwStr%), didn't get him ahead in the count (48.7 Zone%), and allowed RHB to hit .315 with a .595 slugging percentage. Scrapping it in favor of the fastball (59.4 Zone%, 11.4 SwStr%) and slider (19.5 SwStr%, 39.2 Zone%, 35.6% chase) he previously relied on could work wonders. Even if he doesn't, Ray will always be an excellent source of strikeouts in fantasy (27.4 K% last year) and figures to earn his fair share of wins with Seattle's improving roster. An ADP of 99.21 is a fantastic price for Ray's combination of floor and ceiling.
