Dodgers: LA should offer whatever it takes to acquire Felipe Vazquez

Comparing the Elite Relievers

Earlier in the article, I went over the price of Aroldis Chapman, Andrew Miller, and Mark Melancon, the three biggest rental relievers in recent memory.

But since Vazquez would not be a rental but a four+ year cog in the Dodgers’ postseason machine, a better comparison would be a reliever acquired to pitch more than one half-season. That reliever would be last season’s saves leader Edwin Diaz.

The Seattle Mariners sent Diaz to the New York Mets this past offseason, with the key piece being sent back to the Pacific Northwest being young outfielder Jared Kelenic. Kelenic is now the 22nd-best prospect in baseball according to MLB.com, making him more highly rated than any Dodgers prospect as the rankings stand today.

If the Dodgers want to acquire Vazquez then, they again will likely have to provide at least one of these top-25 overall prospects.

But do you not think Vazquez is in the Edwin Diaz or Aroldis Chapman tier? Let’s look at the numbers.

While Vazquez has not had the playoff exposure of Chapman, Miller or Melancon, Melancon had not had playoff experience before leaving Pittsburgh and he excelled in the NL playoffs against the Dodgers.

But his regular-season numbers may be the best in the business, no matter how you slice them.

Thus far this season, Vazquez has hurled 43.1 innings with a 1.87 ERA (14th best amongst relievers with at least 30 innings). His best features though involve his strikeouts, highlighting his electric stuff and his ability to come into a game and completely shut down offenses. His 14.12 K/9 is 6th-best amongst relievers this season.

But what he would do to most help the Dodgers isn’t just striking hitters out. Vazquez would need to be a shutdown lefty in high leverage situations against the heart of the order of the opposition.

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In high leverage situations this season, Vazquez has allowed a minuscule triple-slash line of .164/.200/.254 with 23 punchouts in 18 2/3 innings pitched. Against lefties, this season, his K/9 jumps up to 16.62 K/9 and his walk rate drops to below 6%.

But now let’s look at how he’s fared against the best hitters in the NL who he would need to take down in order for the Dodgers to get back to the title bout.

This season, Vazquez has faced Christian Yelich of the Brewers twice, striking him out each time, though in their five 2018 battles, Yelich went 3-5 with a double and 2 strikeouts. Moustakas and Grandal, the two supporting cast lefties on the Brewers, are hitless with 4 strikeouts between them against Vazquez in 2019.

For the Washington Nationals, this season Anthony Rendon is 0-2 with a walk and Juan Soto is 1-2 with a double and a strikeout. And on the Chicago Cubs, Javier Baez and Kris Bryant are a combined 0-3 with3 strikeouts against Vazquez, while Wilson Contreras and Anthony Rizzo have been able to earn a hit apiece against the lefty.

In all, these sample sizes are obviously too small, but his experience in the NL Central makes him a more dangerous reliever than someone less experienced in taking on the likes of Yelich or Baez. Vazquez is a killer reliever and needs to be the prime target if the Dodgers want to do as much as possible to win this season.