Jose Veras

2013

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2012

Veras finished second among National League relievers, pitching in 79 games for the Bucs. He has a tight fastball and a big breaking ball but has a tendency to pitch either really well or really poorly, with few outings in between. He'll likely serve as a seventh-inning man in Milwaukee after getting traded to the Brewers for Casey McGehee in December. Veras compiled a team-high 27 holds for the Pirates but also blew seven leads. Opposing batters hit just .206 off of him in 71 innings but he walked 34 hitters. Unless he can better command his pitches he'll never find himself in a prominent bullpen role as anything more than a setup man.

2011

Veras' season started out terribly, as visa issues delayed his arrival in camp and he looked awful in April, but he bounced back nicely after a Triple-A stint. That wasn't enough for the Marlins to bring him back, but he should be able to get a look from someone, as he's only 30 and can still strike out a batter an inning or so. Veras has the skill set to emerge as the closer in an unsettled bullpen after signing with Pittsburgh. However, he'll need to reduce his walks as he had just a 54:29 K:BB ratio last year with the Marlins.

2010

Veras has a live enough arm to get your attention but walks and homers rarely mix well when you're toeing the rubber for a living. He came over from the Yankees in a trade and lived up to his reputation, allowing three homers and 14 walks in 24.2 innings while striking out 22. He'll try to earn a spot at the back of the bullpen, but he doesn't offer any fantasy value.

2009

Veras didn't take long to earn a promotion from Triple-A and he went on to have an impressive 9.83 K/9IP for the Yankees working out of the bullpen last season, but his command was very inconsistent (4.53 BB/9IP). Having allowed seven homers in just 57.2 innings, he'll need to cut back on the free passes in order to minimize the damage from the gopher ball and avoid being bypassed by some of the organizations younger and more highly-touted relief options. Still, Veras will be in the mix to remain in a similar role as long as he has a good showing this spring.

2008

Veras spent most of 2007 on the DL because of bone chips in his throwing elbow, but he'll get a chance to make the leap as a regular contributor for the Yankees in Joe Girardi's new bullpen this spring. Even if he begins the season at Triple-A, Veras will likely get another look in the big leagues sooner than later. He's got set-up man stuff in his arsenal, but he'll need to stay healthy and command his pitches to get a high-profile role in New York.

2007

Veras has the potential to be a viable relief option, after fully making the switch to bullpen work back in 2005. In 50 appearances for Triple-A Columbus, Veras racked up 21 saves. He's shown the makeup to be a closer at the minor-league level, while his stuff has big-league level potential. In 131.2 innings of work over the past two seasons, Veras has racked 146 strikeouts. He's worth watching in case he lands on a team where he'll get opportunities for significant work.