Koji Uehara

2016 was a struggle for Uehara, both in terms of injuries and effectiveness. The 41-year-old veteran reliever posted a 3.45 ERA over 47 innings, which was his highest ERA since his rookie year with the Orioles in 2009. Boston's acquisition of Craig Kimbrel as their closer and subsequent reassignment of Uehara to a setup role also resulted in a drastic decrease in saves, as Uehara failed to record at least 20 saves for the first time as a member of the Red Sox. Additionally, he missed all of August with a strained pectoral muscle. Now coming off a tough year that included durability issues, it appears clear that he is no longer the high-leverage closer-type pitcher that he once was. However, that didn't deter the Cubs from signing Uehara to a one-year deal over the offseason with the hope that he still has enough left in the tank to provide added depth to their bullpen.

Uehara was cruising along in his third consecutive season as Boston’s closer in 2015 before getting struck be a grounder on his forearm that resulted in a non-displaced distal radius fracture, ending his season prematurely. Until that point, Uehara had a 2.23 ERA and 25 saves in 43 appearances. The 41-year-old right-hander is expected to make a full recovery and be ready for the start of the regular season, but he’s no longer Boston’s closer. The Red Sox bullpen faltered last season and general manager Dave Dombrowski’s first rebuilding step was the acquisition of closer Craig Kimbrel from San Diego. That means Uehara drops down to a setup role, something he’s comfortable with and has accepted after manager John Farrell discussed it with him following the Kimbrel deal. Without the closer job, Uehara obviously loses fantasy value, but he’s maintained a high K/9 rate, which can be useful.

Uehara followed up his dominant 2013 season with the same effectiveness last year, throwing strikes and wiping out batters with his splitter until things fell apart over the final two months (5.74 ERA after Aug. 1). What the Red Sox feared in 2013 when they originally signed Uehara, who has a history of shoulder woes, was overusing him. In 2013, he didn't become the full-time closer until June, so overuse wasn't an issue. In 2014, he started the season as the closer and experienced fatigue with the increased role. Even with his late struggles, Uehara struck out more than 30 percent of the batters he faced for the fifth consecutive year. The organization is fully confident in Uehara and re-signed him for two seasons. It will be interesting to see just how much his workload is reduced, however, as Edward Mujica should be positioned to handle the extra save opportunities that arise on days when Uehara is deemed to be unavailable.

Uehara was Boston's regular-season MVP after stabilizing the closer job in June. He saved 21 games, was dominant against both righties and lefties and struck out a ridiculous 12.2 batters per nine innings. The plan in spring training was to avoid using him on back-to-back days because of a 2012 shoulder injury, which delayed the decision to give him a shot at closing, but he countered that by being an efficient strike-thrower and generally avoiding big pitch counts in his appearances. Uehara threw more innings last season than he has in any big league campaign, and it remains to be seen if that workload affects him at all in 2014, which is in part the reason Boston signed former Cardinals closer Edward Mujica. However, coming off his dominant 2013 campaign, Uehara will open this season as Boston's closer.

Uehara battled a litany of injuries to begin the year, but was Texas' best reliever down the stretch as Mike Adams faded. His control remains outstanding, posting 43 strikeouts against just three walks in 36 innings. He's been among the AL elite for the past two years now, save for a minor blip late in 2011 where he served up a few long balls. Surprisingly, he didn't get a multi-year deal in free agency, instead landing in Boston for $4.5 million on a one-year deal. Should Joel Hanrahan falter, Uehara may be a candidate to move into the closer's role.

Uehara pitched well for Texas after a deadline-deal with Baltimore, walking one and fanning 23 in 18 innings during the regular season (though five homers allowed in 18 innings bloated his ERA). He was touched for a homer in all three appearances in the postseason however, and it's led to some teams inquiring about his availability. Texas seems reluctant to move him, and he should return as the primary seventh-inning reliever bridging the gap to the Mike Adams/Joe Nathan duo. He continues to flash excellent control and miniscule WHIP figures, a trend that is expected to continue despite his postseason failures.

After spending most of the first half of the season on the DL with an elbow injury, Uehara came back to pitch in the bullpen and turned in a fantastic season in 2010. He converted 13 of 15 save chances, turning in a 55:5 K:BB in the process. As an extreme strike-thrower, Uehara tends to be a little gopher-ball prone, but on the flip side those homers tend to be solo shots. He signed a one-year deal to return to the O's in the offseason, but his chances of serving as the full-time closer took a significant hit with the addition of Kevin Gregg.

Uehara made 12 starts before his elbow wore down. He tried to rehab in time to pitch out of the bullpen in September, but things didn't work out. It seems Uehara wants to stick it out in the rotation in 2010 while the Orioles want to make him a reliever. Uehara was a closer for one season in Japan and was successful in the role. The Orioles are stockpiled with young starters so expect him to move to the bullpen, especially if any injuries arise. He would be a sleeper to close games.

Uehara had a John Smoltz-like career path in recent seasons (rotation to closer and back again), but finished last season strong as a starter. The 34-year-old is expected to take over as the O's No. 2 starter behind Jeremy Guthrie, although he profiles more as a back of the rotation option according to many scouts. His 2008 numbers were rather pedestrian, but keep in mind that he was dealing with both a leg injury and a contentious relationship with the Yomiuri Giants, his team in the Japan Central League.

Uehara had been one of Japan's best starters over the past several seasons (he was in Japan's rotation with Daisuke Matsuzaka at the 2006 WBC). However, when he went down with calf inflammation in training camp, Yomiuri moved him to the bullpen (supposedly on a temporary basis) to ease him back into action upon his return, and the team just kept him in the closer role, despite Uehara's wishes to move back into the rotation. Still, Uehara was a stunning success as a closer, saving 32 games in 36 chances and posting a 1.74 ERA and 0.820 WHIP in 55 games (47:4 K:BB ratio in 62 innings; yes, just four stinkin' walks all year). Uehara would like to leave Yomiuri and sign with an MLB team; he becomes an unrestricted free agent in 2008, and almost certainly, he'll try to sign with an MLB team for the 2009 season. Yomiuri signed Marc Kroon this winter, so they'll move Uehara back to the rotation, and likely work him hard since everyone knows he's not coming back. Still, in keeper leagues, he's well worth the roster spot.