Armando Benitez, CL, Florida Marlins

 

by Mike Donner, KFFL

Wednesday January 28, 2004

 

On Dec. 20, 2003, the World Champion Florida Marlins agreed to a one-year deal with RP Armando Benitez, who was a free agent. Benitez spent the last four years with the New York Mets but was bounced around among the Mets, New York Yankees and most recently the Seattle Mariners last season. The deal will pay Benitez $3.5 million for 2004 and is significantly lower than the almost $7.0 million he made last year. The move also meant the Marlins did not offer a contract to former closer Braden Looper - who has signed with the New York Mets (ironically who Benitez spent almost t! he past five seasons with).

 

So the change for Benitez will obviously have fantasy implications, and this report will help you digest what those may be - broken into the following sections:

 

Benitez's career

The Marlins team

Intangibles

Fantasy outlook

Benitez - His Career

 

Benitez started his Major League profession with the Baltimore Orioles in 1994, where he played for five years. He then moved in 1999 to the New York Mets and had spent his entire career with only the two clubs - until 2003 anyway. Last season saw Benitez traded to the New York Yankees in July, being part of a deal with the Mets, only to be shipped off to the Mariners three weeks later. That of course led to his offseason signing by Florida.

 

With that said, let's take a look at his career statistics:

 

Table: Armando Benitez, CL, Florida Marlins - Career Stats Year TM GP SVO SV IP H R ER HR ERA

1994 BAL 3 0 0 10.0 8 1 1 0 0.90

1995 BAL 44 5 2 47.2 37 33 30 8 5.66

1996 BAL 18 5 4 14.1 7 6 6 2 3.77

1997 BAL 71 10 9 73.1 49 22 20 7 2.45

1998 BAL 71 26 22 68.1 48 29 29 10 3.82

1999 NYM 77 28 22 78.0 40 17 16 4 1.85

2000 NYM 76 46 41 76.0 39 24 22 10 2.61

2001 NYM 73 46 43 76.1 59 32 32 12 3.77

2002 NYM 62 37 33 67.1 46 20 17 8 2.27

2003 All* 69 29 21 73.0 59 27 24 6 2.96

*Combined stats for the three teams Benitez played for in 2003.

 

It is clear that Benitez is a closer that has had great success throughout much of his time in the majors. He career save percentage stands at an outstanding 85 percent, with a lifetime ERA of 3.03. Benitez has given up one home run for every 8.7 innings pitched - on average - while also striking out an average of 1.3 batters per inning. The problems in New York - with the Mets - had a great deal to do with a struggling starting rotation, as well as a somewhat weak bullpen. This is further illustrated when looking at the above table and realizing that his save chances have decreased by almost 10 each season from 2001 - 2003.

 

In terms of his pitching style, Benitez is known for his high-90s fastball, combined with a hard splitter and a short slider. When the control with his pitches is on and he is throwing strikes, Benitez is a tough pitcher to hit. He is also a big man, standing 6-4 and weighing 229 pounds; although, that could also be partially to blame for a Benitez weakness - his lack of mobility in the field. Another fault is that he can be somewhat easy to run on, as opposing base-stealers were 10-of-11 against him last season. In addition, Benitez has also been documented to not perform as well when asked to pitch on consecutive days, combined with a penance to fall apart in big games.

 

Now, what does the future in Miami hold for Benitez? As we move along and discuss his new team, hopefully the answer will start to become clearer.

 

Benitez - His Supporting Cast

 

The Marlins Pitching Staff -

 

With the three different teams that Benitez played for in 2003, he only had a chance at a total of 29 saves. As mentioned above, much of his decrease in opportunities was due to the pitchers that the Mets started throughout the year, as well as not being setup favorably by the rest of the bullpen. On top of that, he wasn't in a closers' role with the Yankees or the Mariners. Will he have a better shot in Miami, and is the staff here that much better? The following table will illustrate what each pitching rotation accomplished last year:

 

Table: Marlins vs. Mets Pitching Staff - 2003 Stats Team W L SVO SV R Ks BB OBA ERA

Marlins 91 71 50 36 692 1132 530 0.258 4.04

Mets 66 95 53 38 754 907 576 0.273 4.48

 

 

It does not take much analysis to see that the Marlins' pitchers fared much better, overall, than the Mets' staff did. In fact, Florida's staff ranked seventh in the league for total wins and 11th in number of save opportunities; however, the Mets closers did get three more chances and had two more saves. Then again, the bullpen in New York had an extremely tough year in setting up for the closer, and the Mets' relievers had a total of nine wins to go along with 30 losses. Meanwhile, Florida's bullpen had a very strong year coming in with 31 wins and only 18 losses.

 

When looking at the Marlins' starters, they did not have one rock solid man that stood out in 2003. Instead, the top three men in Florida - SPs Brad Penny, Mark Redman and Dontrelle Willis - came in with 14 wins apiece. No. 4 on the team, SP Carl Pavano came in with 12 wins of his own, so that gave Florida four starting pitchers with 10 or more wins on the year. In comparison, the top four pitchers for the Mets had 49 wins combined, in 2003, and struck out 342 batters. The Marlins' top four had five more wins and struck out 222 more batters, for a total of 564.

 

In addition, SP Josh Beckett - MVP of the World Series - seemed to hit his stride near the end of the season. As a result, he could be primed for a strong season, which would only help Benitez's chances at more saves. On top of that, SP A.J. Burnett might be able to return from Tommy John surgery on his elbow by the early-to-mid part of the season.

 

So with a solid starting rotation for Benitez, to go along with a far better bullpen, the pitching staff in Florida should be a benefit to Benitez and his stats. Now, how could the Marlins' offense affect his chances?

 

The Marlins Offensive Attack

 

Benitez will be joining an organization that has been a much better batting team than what he is accustomed to. When comparing some key stats, the Marlins' squad hit for an average of .266 on the season while the Mets came in with a .247 team average. Florida also had 142 more hits than the Mets did, were able to score 109 more runs and hit 33 more home runs.

 

Florida also has some speedy hitters to set the table for their big bats, namely CF Juan Pierre and 2B Luis Castillo. Pierre led the team with his 668 at bats while hitting .305 and had an on-base percentage of .361. Meanwhile, Castillo came to the plate 595 times and had a team leading (for a starter) .314 batting average to go along with his .381 on-base percentage. Throw in 3B Mike Lowell who had a slugging percentage over .500 and knocked in 105 runs, and it is easy to see that the Marlins have some very solid batters on the roster.

 

Benitez - His New Home

 

After looking over the makeup of his new team, there are still several minor questions to be answered: How could the environment - specifically Pro Player Stadium - affect his 2004 stats? What, if any, history does Benitez have pitching in Florida (obviously as a visitor)? What kind of success did the now departed Looper have as the Marlins' closer last season?

 

First of all, Benitez will leave the confines of Shea Stadium where the centerfield wall is 410 feet deep. He will enter Pro Player Stadium where the deepest part of the field is 434 feet, but because of the setup, just right of centerfield starts to shrink quickly - to a depth of 404 feet. Both stadiums are very similar when comparing both the left and right field walls, as well as left and right to centerfield. The change in field then should not affect the production from Benitez next season much, if at all, and if anything, it should benefit him slightly, as he might not let up as many long balls.

 

In terms of history, Benitez has pitched more games in Pro Player Stadium - in the last three years - then he has anywhere but Shea Stadium, which was obviously his home field for most of that time. Through that span, he played in a total of 11 games in Florida and had seven save opportunities. In addition, he was successful in six of the seven chances, allowed a total of five hits, two earned runs and had an ERA of 1.54 - the lowest ERA in any stadium other than Shea in which he pitched at least eight games.

 

When it comes to Looper's season last year in Florida, he was not a top-10 closer, but he also had a fairly solid overall outing. In 2003, Looper played in 74 games, had six wins to go along with four losses, came through with 28 saves and allowed 34 runs on 82 hits. His ERA was not a strong point, coming in at 3.68, but he also only gave up 4 home runs in 80.2 innings pitched. Late-season addition CL Ugueth Urbina added six saves in eight chances as well, bringing the total to 42 total saves chances for the Marlins' main closers last season

 

With that, we will close (no pun intended!) with a prediction for Benitez in 2004.

 

Benitez - His 2004 Fantasy Outlook

 

While we are not talking about sensational CL Eric Gagne, who had 55 saves for the Los Angeles Dodgers last season, Benitez is a great closer in his own right. We have covered many aspects that will likely contribute to Benitez's potential achievements with the Marlins, most pointing in one direction. Let's highlight what key ingredients will make up his upcoming 2004 campaign:

 

Keep in mind that Benitez signed with the Marlins for less then he made last season and for only one year. So even being with a new team, that fact makes this a "contract year" for Benitez, and you can bet that he will do all he can to perform at a high level.

Benitez will now close for a team that won it all last season, and playing on a winning team - as opposed to a losing one - will go a long way in motivating most players.

Benitez has had superb performances when given the right opportunities and used in the right situations, something he should see in Florida.

The great majority of his team is quite a bit stronger than what he is used to playing with, and they should be able to put Benitez in spots where he can be a more successful closer.

Albeit as a visiting pitcher, Benitez has proven that he can pitch well in Pro Player Stadium, something that the Marlins did not likely overlook.

Looper, who is not as proven a closer as Benitez has been, had decent stats last season for the Marlins.

When taking a hard look at all of the numbers/statistics that we have provided, it really points in a very positive direction. Does that mean Benitez will put up Gagne-like saves next season? Probably not. He should, however, get a great shot at getting back to what we were accustomed to in 2000 and 2001, that being somewhere around 40-to-45 save opportunities. Assuming then that he continues to close in his career range of 85 percent that would give him 34-to-38 saves for 2004. In short, if Benitez can manage to perform as we expect him to, he should once again become a force in many fantasy leagues.

http://fantasysports.yahoo.com/analysis/ne...&league=fantasy

Could be they are on to something. Will be exciting to watch. :thumbup

Good Article.

 

Benitez has been roughed up last season, but when he is on he is un hittable with that fastball almost reaching 100 MPH and the devastating splitter.

 

Lets see what happens when its time for him to step up.

But the thing with Benitez is he is better against left-handers and not so good anainst right-handers.

So in-depth. Do they do this for every player?

benitez is a great fantasy pitcher...he just lacks clutch/intangibles. believe me.

benitez is a great fantasy pitcher...he just lacks clutch/intangibles. believe me.

And Looper had the right stuff? Hey, unless we have Gagne or Smoltz or Rivera, the next level includes guys like Benitez. He will be fine. :hat The champ

benitez is a great fantasy pitcher...he just lacks clutch/intangibles. believe me.

And Looper had the right stuff? Hey, unless we have Gagne or Smoltz or Rivera, the next level includes guys like Benitez. He will be fine. :hat The champ going from looper to benitez is a big step......believe me.....its that you're used to watching Mariano but its an incredible improvement for us IMO..looper had good stuff but didnt have a closer mentality.

benitez is a great fantasy pitcher...he just lacks clutch/intangibles.? believe me.

And Looper had the right stuff? Hey, unless we have Gagne or Smoltz or Rivera, the next level includes guys like Benitez. He will be fine. :hat The champ You'll eat those words. He was on 3 teams last year. his statisitcs were fine with them...but they ALL couldn't wait to get rid of him! There's a reason to it dude. Benitez is the anti-clutch. Benitez is the baseball statician's worst nightmare because he defies statistics. Its almost ridiculous. So have fun with benitez, you're going to wish you resigned Urbina.

 

going from looper to benitez is a big step......believe me.....its that you're used to watching Mariano but its an incredible improvement for us IMO..looper had good stuff but didnt have a closer mentality.

I'm not happy my mets have looper, we should of signed urbina. However, I watched Benitez almost as much as I watched Rivera (okay, half as much, I watch a lot of mets games a year). Benitez is sick, he defies statistics. That's why we hate him. Benitez will be a statistical improvement, but when you TRULY need him, he will fail. You'll be calling for his head come July. He'll probably be traded to some other team that has not yet soured on this wonder man.

 

Looper might not have a closer's mentality, but Benitez has proven to every fan in NY, Seattle, and Baltimore he lacks the proper mentality to win and its truly intangible...and this is coming from me.

benitez is a great fantasy pitcher...he just lacks clutch/intangibles.? believe me.

And Looper had the right stuff? Hey, unless we have Gagne or Smoltz or Rivera, the next level includes guys like Benitez. He will be fine. :hat The champ You'll eat those words. He was on 3 teams last year. his statisitcs were fine with them...but they ALL couldn't wait to get rid of him! There's a reason to it dude. Benitez is the anti-clutch. Benitez is the baseball statician's worst nightmare because he defies statistics. Its almost ridiculous. So have fun with benitez, you're going to wish you resigned Urbina.

 

going from looper to benitez is a big step......believe me.....its that you're used to watching Mariano but its an incredible improvement for us IMO..looper had good stuff but didnt have a closer mentality.

I'm not happy my mets have looper, we should of signed urbina. However, I watched Benitez almost as much as I watched Rivera (okay, half as much, I watch a lot of mets games a year). Benitez is sick, he defies statistics. That's why we hate him. Benitez will be a statistical improvement, but when you TRULY need him, he will fail. You'll be calling for his head come July. He'll probably be traded to some other team that has not yet soured on this wonder man.

 

Looper might not have a closer's mentality, but Benitez has proven to every fan in NY, Seattle, and Baltimore he lacks the proper mentality to win and its truly intangible...and this is coming from me.I won't eat my words with Looper. Looper was very marginal. Benitez is clearly better. If your argument is Looper is better than Benitez, let's have it out. I'll show you all those wonderful stats you base your baseless arguments on in your face. Let's poll the board: Straight up, who would you rather have closing Benitez or Looper. Let's truly measure the intelligence of this room. :hat The champ

I'll show you all those wonderful stats you base your baseless arguments on in your face. ... Let's truly measure the intelligence of this room. :hat The champ

 

So stats have value if they benefit your argument, but they are worthless drivel if they don't? If someone uses them to further your argument they are enlightened, if stats prove you wrong, which is easily done, they are statheads, geeks, or whatever etc.

 

This act is getting old fast.

 

:hat The Champ = :disguise2 The Chump (or is it Chumpette?)

I won't eat my words with Looper. Looper was very marginal. Benitez is clearly better. If your argument is Looper is better than Benitez, let's have it out. I'll show you all those wonderful stats you base your baseless arguments on in your face. Let's poll the board: Straight up, who would you rather have closing Benitez or Looper. Let's truly measure the intelligence of this room. The champ

Benitez is better than Looper, but not better than Urbina. And Benitez is the LAST man on earth you want on the mound when it truly counts. I would of rather had looper on striking Boone out (in game 4?) than Benitez giving up the game winning homer. OVerally Benitez is better. Arguments can be made he's better than Mariano Rivera in the regular season. however, Benitez blows it every time it counts. You'll see it. Big game, benitez in, you know he'll blow it. It is kind of scary, it defies almost all logic. I guess if you screw up only when it matters and are flawless otherwise, you look good on paper. that's the conclusion I have come to.

 

There's a reason everyone wanted to get rid of him.

So stats have value if they benefit your argument, but they are worthless drivel if they don't? If someone uses them to further your argument they are enlightened, if stats prove you wrong, which is easily done, they are statheads, geeks, or whatever etc.

Good point.

great article... i do think that he will become a top closer again like he was in 2000-01.

 

plus he has a better ballpark, better defense, and better team all around.

 

30+ saves this year

good stuff, thanks Ross.

 

I think Benitez will do well here.

30+ saves this year

I would agree with that.

30+ saves this year

I would agree with that. woah you agree with me ? ... awesome

yeh benitez will do awesome here...really good sign and also I think he might even have a shot at the all-star game.

Can be the 2nd or 4th best closer in the N.league with the exception of wagner, smoltz, gagne ( If we had gagne we would already have won the east every year ) Anyway I see benitez putting up some serious numbers.

Lee and Agonz were anti clutch too...

 

Look at what they did in the NLCS and WS.

I won't eat my words with Looper. Looper was very marginal. Benitez is clearly better. If your argument is Looper is better than Benitez, let's have it out. I'll show you all those wonderful stats you base your baseless arguments on in your face. Let's poll the board: Straight up, who would you rather have closing Benitez or Looper. Let's truly measure the intelligence of this room.? The champ

Benitez is better than Looper, but not better than Urbina. And Benitez is the LAST man on earth you want on the mound when it truly counts. I would of rather had looper on striking Boone out (in game 4?) than Benitez giving up the game winning homer. OVerally Benitez is better. Arguments can be made he's better than Mariano Rivera in the regular season. however, Benitez blows it every time it counts. You'll see it. Big game, benitez in, you know he'll blow it. It is kind of scary, it defies almost all logic. I guess if you screw up only when it matters and are flawless otherwise, you look good on paper. that's the conclusion I have come to.

 

There's a reason everyone wanted to get rid of him.

So stats have value if they benefit your argument, but they are worthless drivel if they don't? If someone uses them to further your argument they are enlightened, if stats prove you wrong, which is easily done, they are statheads, geeks, or whatever etc.

Good point.I responded to eating my words regarding Looper. Benitez is better than Looper. Benitez and Urbina are similar. Personally, I wouldn't have minded Ugie coming back. One little problem. Ugie had NO interest in returning. Ugie wanted a huge payday and I read an article around December 7 saying Ugie didn't return the Marlins' calls. Ugie is looking for more than 4 mil a year. Ugie is a bit Pudge like, not believing in taking a pay cut. Notice that no one has signed Ugie either. Stick to the topics. I use stats as a measure, like everyone else does. I just don't measure players entirely on stats. I laugh at the geek argument that WHIP is more telling than Wins for pitchers. I laugh at the Billy Beane philosphy being shot down by Beinfest and McKeon's managing. I look at lots of factors, stats, heart, chemistry with a team, guts. Example of guts: Carl Milano. Example of a choker: Mark Redman. Example of a winner: Dontrelle Willis. Example of a whiner: Brandon Webb. I'd take Ugie over Benitez, but it's not a landslide either way. Cost is a factor with the Marlins. Chalk up another win for :hat The champ

I could be wrong but I thought I read that we never called Uggy once, not that he didnt return our calls

I could be wrong but I thought I read that we never called Uggy once, not that he didnt return our calls

You are wrong. The Marlins obviously were trying to measure whether if signing him was a possibility. You think this FO is that stupid to not know if a player is signable or not? Give me a break. Get your head out of the sand. Indiana. Tells is all. :hat The champ

I go to school in Indiana, Im not from there.

I go to school in Indiana, Im not from there.

OK, that's a bit better. The state is awful. The school isn't any bargain. Defending Bob Knight is all you need to know about Hoosiers. :hat The champ

I could be wrong but I thought I read that we never called Uggy once, not that he didnt return our calls

You are wrong. The Marlins obviously were trying to measure whether if signing him was a possibility. You think this FO is that stupid to not know if a player is signable or not? Give me a break. Get your head out of the sand. Indiana. Tells is all. :hat The champ

You aren't wrong Ramp, anyone who follows the Marlins know Uggie and his agent both said they never heard a word from the Fish. As usual it's the Chump :disguise2 that's wrong. Just like she's wrong about Billy Beane and I'm no fan of his. She's also wrong about Oliver/Redman in that when Redman was traded it was a foregone conclusion that Oliver would ultimately re-sign with the Rockies or perhaps sign with the Giants or Diamondbacks. Admin B., as terrific as he is never expected Oliver to be available when Big Red was traded, there was no plan to trade down by losing Red to sign both AJ and DO. It just worked out that way and now the Chump :disguise2 is trying to tie them all together with a pretty red bow.

 

Here's the quote on ESPN from UU's agent -

 

"We never spoke with the Marlins," Leible said. "Never got one call from them. Not to say, 'Thanks.' Not to say, 'Would you be interested in signing here for less money?' Nothing. It wasn't worth a call? I don't understand that."

 

Being a meglomaniac and a narcissist this will be a hard pill for The Chump :disguise2 to swallow. Maybe we could offer her a glass of Jim Jones' grape kool-aid. hehehe

thanks Marlins2003.... i wish pretty sure I was right

 

and now, your new heavyweight champiiiiioooon of the woooooorrrrrrlddddddd

 

the master if disaster himself, RAMP

 

*crowd goes wild*

 

*puts on new belt*

 

 

 

 

i am now the champ :hat