Ranking The Rockies: 33 Rex Brothers

We at BSN Denver are running a series where we rank how valuable each of the Rockies’ 51 players was to the team in 2015. Value was calculated by statistics, viewing, and how memorable each player’s contributions were. The rankings will be from last to first, you may view the full rankings (here).

Player: Rex Brothers

Stats: 17 G, 10.1 IP, 1-0, 1.74 ERA, 1.645 WHIP, 4.49 FIP, 276 ERA+, 4.35 K/9, 6.97 BB/9, 0.0 WAR

Big Moment: Sept 23, Brothers enters the game to pitch the seventh inning with the Rockies down a run. He strikes out the side, fanning Francisco Cervelli, Pedro Álvarez, and Michael Morse. The Pirates rallied big later in the game and won 13-7.

Season Recap: Brothers’ 2012 was one of the best years a reliever has ever had in Rockies history, he followed that with a 2013 season that was one of the best of all time for a relief pitcher. Unfortunately for him, and the Rockies, he couldn’t get it figured out in 2014.

… Said old workout wasn't bad but body needed something different. Hoping for turnaround from rough 2014

— Thomas Harding (@harding_at_mlb) February 17, 2015

In 2015, he started the year in the minors, there he compiled a 4.46 ERA in 42.1 innings. His dominating strikeout rate returned, but then too did his alarming walk rate of 9.4 BB/9. This led to a not so good WHIP of 1.677.

The lefty’s strikeout rate has decreased drastically in the big leagues. From 13.1 K/9 in 2011 to 11 K/9 in 2012 to 10.2 K/9 in 2013 to 8.8 K/9 in 2014 then to 4.35 K/9 in 2015. His walk rate has increased at an opposite rate, getting higher as he gets older. Before September call-ups, he had only come up for three games because the Rockies could not trust his command enough to call him up. He still has the ability to go left on left successfully, left-handed batters OPS’ed almost 200 points less against him than right-handed batters did.

What’s Ahead: Brothers is arbitration eligible, but his poor play in 2014, as well as a lack of an extended period of time in the big leagues in 2015, could have him being a cheap left-handed relief option for the Rockies. The team will certainly reshape their bullpen, and Brothers seems to be a guy they could go to, especially if they are willing to take one more chance on him. Really, they have nothing to lose, however, there has been little to show he can regain his past stellar form.