Chicago White Sox: David Robertson a relief at closer

By Brian Draus | May 13, 2015

The Chicago White Sox bullpen was awful in 2014, as just about every member of the pen struggled mightily.

White Sox Sox General Manager Rick Hahn did everything in his power to upgrade that area of the team in the offseason, by signing David Robertson and Zach Duke, not to mention acquiring Dan Jennings from the Marlins. Robertson is a premier closer, which is something the Sox have been lacking since the middle of the last decade.

Here is a breakdown of Robertson’s start to 2015.

More from White Sox News

Record: 3-0

Considering the fact that picked up his third win of the season this past Sunday versus the Reds, it was not in the fashion he would have liked. It was on his first blown save of the year, after he blew a 3-1 lead in the top of the ninth inning. Robertson picked up his other two wins against division opponents (Cleveland and Kansas City). Just for a quick fact, all of them have been at home.

Saves: 6 of 7

Robertson has been lights out in the ninth in most of his outings, as he doesn’t even allow a runner to reach base in some of them. He only has one blown save, and in all of his saves Robertson has not allowed a run.

ERA: 0.64

Considering how dominant Robertson has been, he has only allowed one earned run (one unearned run as well) in 14 innings pitched. Only allowing one earned run in 14 innings is impressive, especially for a closer who pitches many of those innings in high pressure situations.

K/BB: 25/1

This is that most astounding statistic that Robertson has put up so far in the early season. A 3-to-1 K to BB rate is good, and any pitcher that is putting up a 25/1 rate is producing video game numbers.

WHIP: 0.71

This is a good stat to judge a relief pitcher by. Anytime a WHIP is below one, that pitcher is dominant. When a reliever has an ERA and WHIP below one, that is all-star material.

Hits allowed: 9

Robertson has allowed nine hits all year, but in nine of his appearances he has not allowed a hit. Some of his outings teams seem to be able to muster up a couple of hits, and in others he seems un-hittable.

Summary

I don’t expect Robertson to be this good all year. Will he be one of the best closers in the game? Absolutely, but I doubt he will have both an ERA and a WHIP below one at the end of the season.

Robertson is a big addition to the Sox staff, due to the fact that he makes it an eight inning game. If they can get the ball to Robertson with the lead, it should lead to a lot more wins.

Next: MLB Rankings: What to make of the Twins?

More from Southside Showdown

Home/White Sox News