7 years agoWade Davis knocked out 32 saves in 2017, but he also had his highest ERA and WHIP in four years. The good news is that those were still 2.30 and 1.14, respectively, so it’s not liked he was chopped liver. On the plus side, his strikeout rate was a ridiculous 12.12 and he stranded 87.7% of runners that got on base. On the down side, there are a bunch of things that are concerning. First, Davis’s velocity has steadily declined over the last four seasons. At this point, it’s down nearly 1.5 MPH since Davis burst back on to the season as a super-reliever. He’s still averaging 94.3 MPH on his fastball, but the velocity drop is across all his pitches and slower pitches are not a good thing. Secondly, Davis has started giving up home runs again. From 2014 through 2016, Davis only allowed three home runs. In 2017 alone, he allowed six, and now he’s moving to pitching half his games in the most hitter-friendly park in the bigs. He’s also been moved into a situation where he’ll be named closer to start the year, but there’s still competition all around him as the Rockies assembled a bullpen full of closing-capable relievers. Jake McGee, Bryan Shaw, and Adam Ottavino headline a bullpen built for the postseason, but more importantly for fantasy owners, they’re all experienced backend relievers who can step in if Davis stumbles. For those who need saves, Davis could very well continue to be an elite closer this year, but there are a lot of potholes present that could penalize an owner for paying the high price that will be necessary to own Davis in 2018.--Billy Stonick - RotoBaller