Cardinals' Oh ranked 16th among closers
Oh Seung-hwan
By Baek Byung-yeul
St. Louis Cardinals Korean reliever Oh Seung-hwan was ranked 16th among top closers of the Major League Baseball (MLB) chosen by FanGraphs, a baseball analysis site, Thursday (KST).
The 34-year-old right-hander, who made his MLB debut this season with the Cardinals, listed his name on the list of the top 52 closing pitchers.
Baseball writer Brad John wrote in his Dec. 21 article “Way Too Early Rankings: Relief Pitchers” that he trusts Oh, but added “it’s hard to completely overlook a lurking Trevor Rosenthal rebound.”
After spending 11 seasons in Korea and Japan, Oh signed a two-year contract with the Cardinals last offseason. He spent the first half of the season with the club in the role of setup man, but took over the closing job from struggling former closer Rosenthal in July. The writer placed Rosenthal 36th on the list.
In his first season in the U.S., Oh played in 76 games and recorded six wins, three losses and 19 saves with an ERA of 1.92 in 79 2/3 innings. He especially wowed Cardinals fans with his stunning performance, striking out 103 while walking just 18.
The writer placed Aroldis Chapman, who recently signed a five-year, $86 million contract to return to the New York Yankees, at the top of the list. Capman was followed by the Los Angeles Dodgers’ Kenley Jansen and the Baltimore Orioles’ Zach Britton.