The Twins signed Lance Lynn to a one-year deal to help supplement their rotation. The Twins needed to add some rotation depth after losing Ervin Santana for at least a month.
Lance Lynn’s 2017 fantasy stats seemed good on the surface, with a 3.43 ERA, 11 wins, and 7.4 K/9. His ERA was almost 1.50 points lower than his ERA estimators. His 3.8 BB/9 and 1.3 HR/9 boosted up his estimators (4.82 FIP), with a .244 BABIP and 79% LOB% limited runs allowed. While some extreme batted-ball pitchers (high groundball or flyball) can post low BABIPs, he’s neither.
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The low LOB% may be a bit of skill. With no one on base, he posted a 1.0 HR/9 and a 2.8 BB/9. If a runner is on base, he throws hitters nothing to hit, allows fewer home runs (0.6 HR/9), and settles for walks (4.2 BB/9). He’s tried his hardest to not give up a home run with someone on base. He could post a lower ERA with this strategy.
The move to Minnesota shouldn’t drastically change his value. The defense behind him should be better, but he’ll be facing a DH instead of a pitcher as he navigates a lineup. For 2018, I would expect him to post a 4.00 ERA with about a 7.5 K/9. He’ll be a nice back-end fantasy starter.
It tough to find a single pitcher who’ll see his fantasy value drop with this signing. The Twins’ fourth and fifth starters lacked talent with Adalberto Mejia, Phil Hughes, Trevor May, and Anibal Sanchez battling for the last rotation spots. None of them are decent fantasy options.
Previous Hot Stove Analysis
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Royals and Athletics Swap Parts
Miami Sends Christian Yelich to Brewers
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Giants Trade for Andrew McCutchen
Twins Grab Their Closer, Sign Addison Reed
Mets Bring Back Jay Bruce on Three-Year Deal
Toronto Acquires Yangervis Solarte from San Diego
Royals, Dodgers, and White Sox Complete Three-Way Trade
Rockies Fill Closer Vacancy with Wade Davis
Arizona Adds Bullpen Depth with Yoshihisa Hirano
Indians Fill First-Base Void with Yonder Alonso
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Orioles Lose Zach Britton, Brad Brach Likely Closer
Giants Add Evan Longoria, Rays Create a Mess
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