Edubray Ramos

Ramos came out of the gate hot in 2018, allowing just two earned runs with a 28.6% strikeout rate in 32 appearances through June 20, good for an incredible 0.64 ERA. From that point on, however, the story was far less pretty, as he recorded a 5.65 ERA and a 16.1% strikeout rate in between three trips to the disabled list with shoulder, knee and blister issues. Assuming those injuries don't linger (the three trips cost him just a combined 37 days off the roster), Ramos has a good chance to get back to his previous form and settle in as a solid setup man. He was riding some left-on-base luck during his hot stretch, but an ERA in the range of the 3.09 FIP he recorded through June 20 seems very possible. That's not all that valuable outside of deep leagues unless Ramos can work his way into a closing role.

The 24-year-old Ramos established himself as a viable major-league reliever in his sophomore season in 2017, putting up a 4.21 ERA in 57.2 innings. His 2.91 FIP suggests that his ERA could have been a good deal lower with better luck, as he was hurt by a .356 BABIP. Ramos posted a high strikeout rate (11.7 K/9), but also a high walk rate (4.4 BB/9) and low groundball rate (37.3 percent). He could be an asset in leagues deep enough where a solid middle reliever has value, but he's far down the Phillies' closer depth chart, so he's unlikely to earn many saves unless the team has a major injury crisis or Ramos improves dramatically. Such an improvement can't be ruled out, as he is still young and posted an impressive 2.4 BB/9 in the minors across six seasons, but it shouldn't be the expected outcome.

Ramos began last season at Double-A Reading, where he was lights out, and quickly earned a promotion to Triple-A Lehigh Valley, where he continued to dominate. The Phillies called him up in late June and immediately had him working in high-leverage situations. Ramos has good life on his fastball, which sits in the mid-90s and touches 98 mph. He complements that with an excellent slider that he uses to generate a lot of swings and misses. It is the kind of arsenal that often earns a player consideration for a closing role. Jeanmar Gomez held down the closing gig in Philly for most of last season, but he faltered in September and lost the job. The Phillies will likely have an open competition for the ninth inning job this spring. Ramos figures to be a top option for the job along with Hector Neris and Joaquin Benoit. He'll even be worth stashing if he loses the camp battle because of his intriguing skills.