Wade Davis has been one of the better closers in baseball over the past two seasons, and the Kansas City Royals are expected to make a prudent move to keep the 31-year-old in tow Thursday by picking up his $10 million club option for 2017.
Today’s Knuckleball’s Jon Heyman first relayed news of the Royals’ decision to pick up Davis’ option. Jeffery Flanagan of MLB.com confirmed that report.
Davis has ranked among MLB’s more reliable relievers over the past two seasons—both of which have seen him earn All-Star nods.
He was arguably the best reliever in baseball during the 2015 season, and the numbers back that up. Davis went 8-1 with a 0.94 ERA and 0.787 WHIP in 67.1 innings while recording 17 saves, and he kept opposing batters off balance to the tune of a .144 batting average.
Davis’ 2016 season wasn’t quite as prolific, namely because he missed a portion of July and all of August because of a right forearm strain.
As a result, Davis was limited to 43.1 innings. During that stretch, he notched 27 saves, a 1.87 ERA, 1.131 WHIP, 47 strikeouts and 16 walks as opponents mustered a slash line of .210/.295/.242.
Davis’ recurring forearm troubles over the past year could have given the Royals pause, since they had the option to buy out the final year of his deal for $2.5 million, but the way in which his workload has decreased ever since he shifted to a closing role should alleviate concerns.
Since he’ll officially be under team control for one more season, the Royals will also have the option to dangle Davis as a trade chip should an offer surface that allows them to maximize the return on their investment.
Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com