Fantasy Fallout: Jason Isringhausen and Adam Kennedy Sign with Tampa Bay Rays

The Tampa Bay Rays acquired two former St. Louis Cardinals players in Jason Isringhausen and Adam Kennedy.

Jason Isringhausen, the former closer for the Cardinals, agreed to terms on a minor-league deal.

Adam Kennedy, the disgruntled second baseman who was released about a week ago, also agreed to terms on a minor-league deal.

So what, if anything, will Isringhausen and Kennedy bring to the Tampa Bay Rays? From a fantasy baseball perspective, it doesn’t really look like much.

Simply put, Jason Isringhausen was done four years ago, but he managed to find extremely good luck in his final numbers.  From 2005 to 2008, Isringhausen failed to record a K/BB ratio of above 2.0.  This makes his season ending numbers in each of those seasons very impressive, at least from 2005-2007.

His luck finally ran out last season, but his surface stats in K/9 and BB/9 ratios were strikingly similar to those of past seasons.  Isringhausen is done—he will not contribute to the Rays in 2009 in any positive or meaningful way.

Adam Kennedy could end up being a decent middle infield option for the Rays.  He rebounded nicely in batting average last season, but this was expected, considering that his bat contract rate was actually higher in 2007 (88 percent) than 2008 (87 percent). If he ever became a full time player for the Rays, you could look for 100 runs, 10+ steals, and a batting average around .285.  However, Kennedy does not have any power left, and he won’t drive in a ton of runs.

More than likely, he will play a part-time role on the club, or may not make it up at all. If he plays well in spring training and gets a part-time role, he could be a solid option in a deep league. Tampa Bay probably sees the signing as a defensive-first signing anyway, but they could be pleasantly surprised at Kennedy’s contact bat.

Other Links:

5 o’clock blogger wishes Isringhausen well.

Splitting Seeds says to not forget Grant Balfour in the TB closing situation.

DRaysBay says there is nothing to lose on signing Adam Kennedy to a minor league deal.