Huston Street

Drafting Street is usually accompanied by the simultaneous holding of one's nose. From 2013-2015 this turned out to be unnecessary, but last year, fears came to fruition. The fragile Street returned, missing five weeks early with a strained oblique, then having his season cut short, missing the last two months after knee surgery in August. Assuming that he's fully recovered in the spring, that brings us to the other issue; when healthy in 2016, Street was dismal, sporting career-worst strikeout and walk rates by a large margin. Toting a fastball averaging just 88 mph, Street already has little margin of error. After working successfully on the edges for several years, there's a good chance that Street's days of getting by with mediocre stuff are waning. In fact, it's already clear the veteran righty must earn the closer gig in the Cactus League with the odds not in his favor. Street doesn't fan sufficient hitters to be fantasy viable unless he's getting saves.

Street looked to have a chance to break his career-best 41-save mark set in 2014, but fell apart in the second half after suffering a groin injury, eventually hitting the shelf for good at the end of September. Street's 3.18 ERA is a far cry from the 1.37 ERA he notched in time split between the Padres and Angels in 2014, but some of that may be attributed to the fact that his strand rate finally regressed (80.5%) after peaking at 99.5% and 93.3% in the last two seasons, while his HR/FB rate also settled closer to his career mark (8.9%). Street's ERA last year is likely closer to what prospective owners can expect going forward, but the Angels boast a strong offense, which has resulted in back-to-back 40-save seasons for the first time in his career. Street is expected to be healthy heading into 2016, and should see plenty of chances to get on the mound to finish games.

The Angels went to great lengths to shore up their bullpen, parting ways with top prospects Taylor Lindsey and R.J. Alvarez in order to acquire Street from the Padres in July. The 31-year-old's peripherals came back to earth a bit, but he was still able to live up to the billing as a member of the Halos, tallying a 1.71 ERA in 26.1 innings and collecting 17 saves to give him a career-best 41 on the season. Street has lived dangerously the past two seasons, sustaining strand rates of 99.5% and 93.3% in 2013 and 2014, respectively, but he managed to bring his HR/9 rate down to 0.6 after allowing 12 home runs in 56.2 innings in 2013 (1.9 HR/9). Street will likely be one of the top closers off the board on draft day in 2015 after the Angels exercised his option in October.

Street is a top-tier closing option when he avoids the injury bug, and he mostly upheld his end of the bargain last year, spending just one stint on the disabled list due to a sore calf. En route to the third 30-plus save season in his eight years in the majors, he shockingly did not receive a save chance for nearly a month between Jun. 23 and Jul. 20. Still, he managed to post a more-than-respectable 2.70 ERA, despite career worsts in K/9 (7.3) and HR/9 (1.9). Considering statistical trends, Street may be hard-pressed to replicate the 2013 campaign, especially if his body betrays him as it has in the past.

When healthy, Street is among the most effective closers in the game. The problem is that staying healthy has been a real issue for Street and 2012 was no different as he missed over 60 games due to a strained shoulder and calf. On the mound, he pitched just 39 innings and with the help of a .179 BABIP, Street turned in his lowest ERA (1.85) since his rookie season in Oakland (1.72). Skills wise, Street still has great command of his pitches and Petco Park has helped in part to reduce his home-run rate. Still, there's a reason why Street has only twice saved more than 30 games in a season in his eight-year career and it's injuries. A two-year contract extension to stay in San Diego will undoubtedly help his numbers, but the question will still remain, how many games will he pitch?

Street was traded to the Padres in December and the Rockies were even willing to foot a significant portion of his remaining salary to make the deal happen. Nevertheless, the 28-year-old closer moves from Coors Field to Petco Park, a shift that will undoubtedly help his chances of avoiding the long-ball issues that plagued him (career-high 1.54 HR/9IP) with the Rockies last season. In terms of his effectiveness, Street lost some velocity on his fastball, but lost very little from his strikeout rate (8.49 K/9IP) while posting a career-low 1.39 BB/9IP. If the Padres aren't contending in July, he'll be a trade chip and potential risk to miss out on save chances since the Rockies are picking up the tab, but at the very least you should get at least four good months from him in San Diego.

After shoulder and groin injuries, and a series of setbacks, delayed his 2010 debut, Street had a relatively productive season as the closer for the Rockies. He saved 20 games with a 3.61 ERA and 4.09 K/BB ratio. There were bumps along the way as he suffered a right abdominal contusion as the result of a line drive he took in batting practice in late July, and he lost his command in August with a 12:8 K:BB and 6.06 ERA with three blown saves. He would later admit to pitching through a rib injury in the final six weeks of the season. Assuming he's healthy in 2011, Street should go back to being a dependable closer with good command of his pitches, offering an elite ninth-inning option when he's able to stay on the mound.

Street came over from Oakland in the Matt Holliday trade, and battled Manny Corpas for the closer's role out of spring training. Street won the job, but quickly lost it after just 10 games and a 7.00 ERA. Luckily for Street, Corpas completely failed to capitalize on the opportunity, and then-manager Clint Hurdle was quick to swap Corpas and Street for a second time. This time, however, Street took a firm grasp of job, holding batters to a microscopic .168 average for the remainder of the season. He was the goat in the playoffs, single-handedly blowing two games, but the Rockies were well aware that they'd never have been in the playoffs to begin with if not for Street and his filthy stuff.

Street suffered in silence with a hip ailment in July that quickly moved him out of the closer's role. A change of scenery was exactly what he needed, though it's unclear exactly how the Rockies will use Street and Manny Corpas in the same bullpen. Street posted solid numbers when healthy, and there's every reason to think he can be an elite closer again if given the chance.

Street missed two months of the season with an ulnar nerve injury in his right elbow, but he showed no ill effects after returning in late July (28.1 innings, 19 hits, four walks, 39 K after Aug. 1). There's no reason to think a healthy Street won't approach 40 saves in 2008.

Street was headed toward a 40-save season before getting sidelined with a groin injury for three weeks in mid-August. He came back strong before blowing three of his last four save chances to close the season, but there's no reason to think Street won't be among the top closers in the game in 2007. A 40-save, sub-1.10 WHIP, 70-K, sub-3.00 ERA season is certainly in the works for the next several seasons.

Late spring struggles nearly sent him to minors, but injuries to every capable warm body in the Oakland bullpen eventually led to Street taking over as closer in mid-May. He never looked back. Street struggled a bit against lefties, allowing 43 baserunners in 31.2 IP, but it's nothing that should prevent him from being an elite closer.

Street was a first-round selection in the 2004 draft and rapidly ascended up the A's chain after a successful career at the University of Texas. His performance in the Arizona Fall League (18.1 IP, 11 H, 2 BB, 19 K, 0.98 ERA) has him on the radar for a bullpen role with the A's as soon as early 2005. A solid spring could have him playing a prominent set-up role for the A's right off the bat.