Potential Jim Johnson Trade Suitors Who Should Take Risk on Former Star Closer
The Jim Johnson era in Oakland appears to be all but over. After leading the majors in saves each of the past two seasons with the Baltimore Orioles—for a total of 101 combined—Johnson struggled early this year and lost the closer role with the Athletics by mid-April. Now, he's reportedly a candidate to be traded for the second time in six months.
While Johnson started to right the ship upon being removed from the ninth inning, things once again took a turn for the worse in recent weeks, and his ERA has ballooned back up to 6.55 as of his last appearance, which came almost a week ago.
No wonder the A's are actively shopping the nine-year veteran, who turns 31 later this month. Not only that—they're also willing to eat the rest of his $10 million salary, too, according to Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports.
Lefty Sean Doolittle has locked up the job in Oakland, going 5-of-5 in saves and not allowing a single run since the start of May. Plus, the A's have a glut of setup options in their pen, including Luke Gregerson, Ryan Cook and Dan Otero. As a result, the A's no longer have a need for Johnson, whom they acquired in a salary-dump deal from the Orioles over the winter in exchange for second baseman Jemile Weeks.
Another report from Rosenthal revealed that the Miami Marlins nearly traded a draft pick for Johnson before deciding to go another route. That doesn't mean, however, there aren't clubs out there who could—and maybe should—make a play for Johnson, especially since the cost of acquisition for a reclamation project would be very low.
Like these.
Baltimore Orioles
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Hey, it worked before, right?
After jettisoning Johnson, the Orioles handed the reins to Tommy Hunter, who was first bad and then got hurt. That's left manager Buck Showalter to rely on Zach Britton, a talented but inexperienced lefty, and Darren O'Day, a side-armer who's nobody's idea of a closer, in the late innings.
Johnson had success in Baltimore before and could get his mojo back there again.
Detroit Tigers
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The Detroit Tigers have never been shy about collecting current and former closers, whether it's Jose Valverde last year or Joel Hanrahan earlier this season. That's because the ninth inning has been a problem in Detroit for quite some time, and general manager Dave Dombrowski is willing to consider any and all options to uncover a solution.
The expectation was that Joe Nathan, the active leader in saves, would be that answer after signing in the offseason, but he's unexpectedly been terrible this year (6.86 ERA, 1.48 WHIP), especially of late. Johnson at least would bring another veteran, battle-tested arm to a bullpen that remains an area of concern for this contender.
New York Yankees
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Closer David Robertson and reliever revelation Dellin Betances have formed a strong eighth-ninth inning duo at the moment, but neither is entirely proven in his current role.
This possibility isn't as much about Johnson regaining his closer role as it is about the New York Yankees shoring up the later innings with a little more depth, especially while setup man Shawn Kelley is out.
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Los Angeles Angels
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When he's on, Ernesto Frieri is great. Alas, he's equally as bad when he's off, and he's already lost the closer job once this year.
Meanwhile, setup man Joe Smith is solid but not quite closer material for a team that is hoping to contend after a pair of disappointing campaigns.
Johnson would be bringing some baggage to work through, but the Los Angeles Angels don't have any alternatives who are clearly better.
San Francisco Giants
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The San Francisco Giants don't like to use closer Sergio Romo on back-to-back days, let alone three in a row. Plus, setup man Santiago Casilla is out with a hamstring injury.
This club has a knack for getting the most out of its bullpen, so Johnson could fit in well as he tries to figure things out while pitching in low-leverage situations for the team that currently has baseball's best record.
Colorado Rockies
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For all of his struggles with his command, Johnson is still getting ground balls at a 60.3 percent clip. That's his schtick, and it could play well at Coors Field, where fly balls tend to go over the fences.
Besides, does anyone really think 41-year-old LaTroy Hawkins is going to remain the closer all season long?
Sure, the club has righty Adam Ottavino and lefty Rex Brothers in the wings, but neither has much experience getting the final three outs. Considering that the Colorado Rockies signed Hawkins over the winter and then gave the gig to him over Brothers, they clearly value veteran-y presence.
Chicago White Sox
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Simply put, this team has no closer and really hasn't had one all year long.
In the wake of long-term injuries to Nate Jones and Matt Lindstrom, Ronald Belisario ain't cutting it with two blown saves in his first six opportunities and a 4.94 ERA for the year.
Daniel Webb is a nice young arm, but his control (6.5 walk rate) is a work in progress to say the least, so the surprising 30-30 Chicago White Sox could be in the market for some relief if they plan to stay in the playoff picture. Johnson would help stabilize the pen—and step into the ninth inning immediately.
New York Mets
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Although youngsters Jenrry Mejia and Jeurys Familia appear to be holding down the ninth-inning fort, let's not forget: The New York Mets already have given retreads such as Jose Valverde, Kyle Farnsworth and Daisuke Matsuzaka save chances, so...
Statistics are accurate through June 3 and come from MLB.com, Baseball-Reference.com and FanGraphs.com, except where otherwise noted.
To talk baseball or fantasy baseball, check in with me on Twitter: @JayCat11.
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