Arodys Vizcaino (RP, ATL) – Waiver Wire Pickups

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ANALYSIS: Arodys Vizcaino has finally wrestled the primary closer role away from Jim Johnson and the results have been as expected. Prior to his last outing on August 26^th, Vizcaino had not allowed a run in 10 consecutive appearances. He pitched 9.1 innings in that span and struck out nine batters while allowing just three hits and two walks. That made him a strong contributor in every category and makes him a player to add for the stretch run of the season.

The downside for Vizcaino comes from opportunity. The Braves have 30 saves as a team, which is surprisingly in the middle of the pack among MLB teams. However, since recording three saves in four days to start August, Vizcaino has had just three save opportunities in three weeks.

The good news is that the job is clearly his now, as Jim Johnson has been used in the eighth inning recently and has frequently pitched poorly in that role. Unlike many of the closers currently on the waiver wire, Vizcaino isn’t a huge risk to ratio categories and is also able to contribute strikeouts. That makes it easier to weather the stretches that Vizcaino doesn’t have save opportunities and makes him a nice waiver wire addition.