Cincinnati Reds J.J. Hoover: Is His Time as the Closer Done?

By Bill Pivetz | Apr 20, 2016

Apr 9, 2016; Cincinnati, OH, USA; Cincinnati Reds relief pitcher J.J. Hoover throws against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the ninth inning at Great American Ball Park. The Reds won 5-1. Mandatory Credit: David Kohl-USA TODAY Sports /

The Reds appointed J.J. Hoover as the closer after trading Aroldis Chapman. That move hasn’t worked out so far. So, who is next in line?

The Cincinnati Reds were very busy in the offseason. They traded away star third baseman Todd Frazier and closer Aroldis Chapman, for completely different reasons. As a result of the latter move, J.J. Hoover became the team’s closer. In just two and a half weeks, he seems to have pitched his way out of the job. However, the Reds don’t have many options to replace him. So, who is the next closer to own?

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J.J. Hoover pitched well last season, which gave Reds management enough confidence to name him the closer for this season. He went 8-2 and recorded one save with a 2.94 ERA, 1.166 WHIP and 7.3 K/9. While you would want the ratio stats to be a little lower, he could have been a top-20 closer in the league.

This season has been quite the opposite. He has just one save in two chances while posting a 15.19 ERA, 2.25 WHIP and four strikeouts. Hoover has allowed eight runs in his last four appearances. His most recent was Tuesday night against the Colorado Rockies. He gave up two runs on two hits in two-thirds of an inning.

That kind of performance will not grant anyone many opportunities to close. Manager Bryan Price is still thinking over what he plans to do with the closer role going forward, WCPO.com’s John Fay reports. Regardless of his decision, J.J. Hoover will not pitch Wednesday after appearing in back-to-back games.

So, the question then arises, “Who is the Reds relief pitcher to own?” Cincinnati doesn’t have many options to turn to, but there are a couple. One would be starter-turned-reliever Tony Cingrani. Despite owning a 3.18 ERA and 1.24 WHIP, he has four holds and seven strikeouts in 5.2 innings.

The only thing that would prevent him from being named the closer is that he is the only lefty in the bullpen. Managers wouldn’t want to limit their only lefty to pitching in the ninth inning. That’s where my sleeper pick comes in.

The pitcher I think will get the job is Caleb Cotham. He is pitching well this season, 0.00 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, five strikeouts and three holds in eight innings this season. The negative to naming him the closer is that he only has 17.2 major-league innings under his belt. But, with the Reds already four games behind the Chicago Cubs, why not make the move to a youngster?

Next: Ryan Madson is a Must-Add Closer

Whatever decision Price makes, it definitely means one thing. J.J. Hoover is out of a job. If you own him, drop him and look to either Cotham (my pick) or another closer sitting on the waiver wire. He’s only going to hurt your team with that bloated ERA and WHIP. He’s already been dropped in 10.1 percent of ESPN leagues, so you might as well join them.

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