Adam Plutko

Plutko opened the minor-league season on the IL with a forearm strain and made his way to the majors in mid-May, but still ended up making 20 starts for the Indians in 2019. His numbers (4.86 ERA and 1.29 WHIP) were nothing special, and yet the estimators say he overachieved. Plutko sits at 91 mph with his fastball, and his slider -- his top secondary pitch -- is not a wipeout pitch by any stretch of the imagination as evidenced by the pitch's 11.5% swinging-strike rate (8.4 SwStr% overall). He limited the free passes (5.6 BB%) and has gotten decent marks for command, but the long ball has been a major problem, with Plutko averaging more than two per nine in 189.2 frames at the big-league level. He figures to be on the outside looking in for a rotation spot entering spring training. As the team's depth is inevitably tested throughout the year, he will likely see some starting opportunities.

Plutko managed a sparkling 1.70 ERA in 14 starts for Triple-A Columbus, but he wasn't able to carry over any of that success to the major-league level. In 12 starts and another five relief appearances with Cleveland, he posted a 5.28 ERA (6.10 FIP). He walked just 7.1% of opposing batters but struggled to put big-league hitters away, striking out just 18.4% after posting a 25.7% strikeout rate in Triple-A. He also couldn't keep the ball in the stadium, allowing 21 homers. His 15.4% HR/FB wasn't far from the league average, so the homers can be blamed primarily on his inability to keep the ball on the ground, as he managed just a 26.8% groundball rate. It's hard to see Plutko making a significant enough improvement to be fantasy relevant this season.

Plutko was a minor league workhorse in the Indians' organization in 2016. The 25-year-old right-hander tossed 71.2 innings and 90.0 innings in Double-A and Triple-A respectively. After making 15 starts for Triple-A Columbus and earning a 3.97 ERA and 4.03 FIP, Plutko was called up to the Indians in late September, where he appeared in only two regular season games and pitched 3.2 innings. Plutko relies much more on pinpoint control as opposed to high velocity, which allows his fastball to still be an effective pitch despite sitting in the low 90's. Additionally, Plutko has been effective at consistently throwing strikes, which he demonstrated by his 130:46 K:BB in 2016. While he appears to be major-league ready and was developed as a starter, Plutko's best chance to make the Indians 2017 25-man roster will be via a spot in the bullpen. In order to do so, he will need to continue to demonstrate a high level of command.