One of the smartest moves the Orioles made this past offseason was the signing of future Hall of Fame closer Craig Kimbrel.
The Orioles knew in late August 2023 that amazing closer Félix Bautista would likely be lost for the postseason and ultimately the 2024 season. In early December, GM Mike Elias signed Kimbrel to a one-year deal worth $13 million guaranteed. The deal was done in the same no-nonsense approach Elias had used to lock down an innings-eating starting pitcher in Kyle Gibson the year prior. It worked out pretty darn well with Gibson, and it’s working out marvelously again, even if some percentage of the fan base doesn’t believe in Kimbrel.
Fans tend to forget not all closers are Bautista in terms of physical and actual dominance. These fans also haven’t contemplated that Bautista may never again be quite as good as he was in 2023, but that’s a conversation for another day.
Kimbrel’s 23 saves are second most in the American League behind Cleveland’s Emmanuel Clase (27). Clase is having an absurdly good season in 2024. His numbers are silly (0.85 ERA and 0.638 WHIP). But as great as he’s been, he has just 39 strikeouts in 42.1 innings.
Kimbrel, who has successfully converted 23 of 27 save chances, has an ERA of 2.10 and a WHIP of 0.903. The 36-year-old right-hander has struck out 52 batters in 34.1 innings. So you tell me who is really more dominant.
All the angst about Kimbrel stemmed from five appearances from late April through early May. In those five appearances, Kimbrel allowed six hits, seven walks, six earned runs and two home runs. His ERA during that short stretch was 23.14. Batters hit .500/.684/1.167 against him.
At the time, I was getting irrational texts that Kimbrel was toast and had to be released immediately. Luckily, cooler heads like Elias and manager Brandon Hyde were making the decisions.
I wrote at the time that Kimbrel’s breakneck usage was unwise based on his season in Philadelphia in 2023. His 64 innings were the most the veteran had thrown since 2018. At the time of Kimbrel’s meltdown, he was on pace to throw well more than that.
Since May 10, here are Kimbrel’s numbers: 22 appearances, 21 innings, six hits, two runs (one earned), 31 strikeouts, five walks and three hit batters. Opponents are hitting .088/.184/.103.
During MASN’s Orioles-Athletics broadcast on July 7, play-by-play man Kevin Brown alluded to the fact that Kimbrel could still make the All-Star Game as a replacement for a pitcher who won’t be available to throw during the game.
Though Kimbrel deserves to be in Arlington, here’s hoping the right-hander gets the entire week off because right now, it sure seems that hitters can’t beat him. Overuse is the only thing that can bring him down.
More than anything from this point on, Elias has to be hyper-focused on getting an arm of substance for the back end of games to occasionally give Kimbrel a break, which would give Hyde more flexibility as the Orioles approach October.
Photo Credit: Courtesy of the Baltimore Orioles