Finding a reliable arm at the back end of the bullpen will be one of the key challenges Florida State faces as it heads into 2017.
In years past, rarely has closing out games been a problem for the Seminoles. Names like Billy Strode, Jameis Winston, Robert Benincasa, Daniel Bennett and others always seemed to give head coach Mike Martin an arm he could depend on to get the final three-plus outs in a given contest.
Last year however, locking games down was far from a sure thing. Tyler Warmoth, a Stetson transfer, started the year strong before ultimately struggling once ACC play got underway. Warmoth finished the year with a sub-par 5.34 ERA. Warmoth finished the year with a team-high four saves, but that’s the fewest for any FSU saves leader since 1994.
As a team, Florida State was 37-0 when leading after eight innings last season, but some of that was luck. Warmoth finished the year with a 1-1 record, but blew 2-run leads in the ninth against both Notre Dame and Miami in games FSU rallied to win in its last at-bat. He also allowed three runs in the 10th inning against Florida Gulf Coast after the Seminoles rallied from a 6-run deficit to force extras.
Warmoth has moved on and the Seminoles will have to replace him. They seem to have a number of candidates to do that, but who emerges might not be known until the start of the season.
For the time being, the favorite might be 2-way freshman J.C. Flowers. Flowers is an outstanding athlete with a very good fastball and a youngster the Seminoles are very high on.
Flowers is also expected to be the everyday center fielder and having him in the lineup through the early innings and on the mound late would be nothing new for FSU. Former outfielder Mike McGee and former catcher Buster Posey each were everyday players who hit in the middle of the order and closed games for the Seminoles.
Unfortunately for Martin and staff, Cobi Johnson won’t be ready to go in 2017 after having midseason Tommy John Surgery last year. Johnson had been used primarily as a starter, but has closer-type stuff.
Another candidate at the back end of the pen might be sophomore Chase Haney. A sinkerball pitcher, Haney went 5-0 as a freshman with a 2.78 ERA in 32 1/3 innings with 37 strikeouts and a .238 opponents’ average. Haney did occasionally struggle to find the strike zone, walking 19 batters and hitting seven more in 2016.
Though he cooled down late in the year and had a horrendous appearance in the ACC Tournament final against Clemson, Jim Voyles may also be a candidate. Voyles doesn’t have dominant stuff, but pitches to contact and is no stranger to appearing often.
Last season, Voyles worked more innings out of the bullpen than anyone else for the Seminoles despite missing time. Voyles had two saves last year for FSU and opponents hit just .197 against him.
Whoever ultimately emerges as the closer for Florida State won’t have the toughest act to follow, but that doesn’t change the importance of the role. Though the blown saves last season didn’t come back to result in losses for FSU, it did create extra work for a fairly deep bullpen. In a 2017 season that FSU hopes to see end in Omaha, it’s important to keep arms fresh for as long as possible.
Mike Ferguson is the editor of The Daily Nole. Follow Mike on Twitter @MikeWFerguson
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