To be relied upon heavily again Wendelken, who posted a 1.80 ERA and career-best 29.2 percent strikeout rate across 21 appearances last season, will be relied upon frequently again in 2021, Matt Kawahara of the S... Impact The right-hander logged the second-most innings in the Athletics bullpen behind former closer Liam Hendriks in 2020, and he led all Oakland relievers in batters faced while holding them to a miniscule .546 OPS. Wendelken also stranded 16 of the MLB-high 24 inherited runners he faced with the help of a slider that he deployed more frequently than ever and against which hitters managed just a .115 slugging percentage. Wendelken's frequent middle-inning usage typically limit his hold opportunities significantly, but manager Bob Melvin could be open to expanding his role some in the coming season. "Going into this year, we have that much more faith in him, and he makes our bullpen a lot better when you bring in the type of guys we have here recently and still have a guy like J.B. that can kind of pitch those middle innings - if someone'sin the setup role, he can do that," Melvin said. "He's got postseason experience now. He's a bona fide big leaguer now."
FEBRUARY 23, 2021 • ROTOWIRE
