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KC Royals: Wade Davis and Greg Holland Top Two Relievers in MLB

By Leigh Oleszczak

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It’s no secret that the KC Royals had the best bullpen in the MLB last season. It’s also no secret that the majority of the bullpen’s success came from Wade Davis and Greg Holland (as well as Kelvin Herrera). Davis and Holland were recently ranked as the top two best relievers in baseball at the moment, according to the MLB Now Shredder and Brewer Nation.

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MLB Network releases their “Top 10” in each position during every off season and placed Wade Davis and Greg Holland as the number one and two respectively relief pitchers in baseball.

It’s not surprising in the least bit that these two ended up at the top of the list, as they were a big part of getting the Kansas City Royals to their first World Series since 1985.

Wade Davis, who was ranked as the best relief pitcher in the MLB, put up an 1.00 ERA in 72.0 innings pitched in 2014. He also had three saves and did not allow a single home run all season long.

Greg Holland, ranked second by MLB Network, was the team’s closer in 2014 and dominated. He had an ERA of 1.44 in 62.1 innings pitched and only allowed three home runs all season long. Holland had 46 saves last season, one shy from the 47 he posted in 2013.

Holland has been a member of the KC Royals since he was drafted by them in the 10th round of the amateur draft in 2007. He debuted for the Royals in 2010, but didn’t become the team’s closer until the 2012 season.

Greg Holland was ranked the fourth best relief pitcher in baseball going into the 2014 season, according to the MLB Network Shredder. Being ranked so high two years in a row shows great consistency over the past few seasons.

Davis came to the Kansas City Royals via the trade with the Tampa Bay Rays in 2012. Davis and James Shields joined the Royals through a trade that involved sending Wil Myers, Jake Odorizzi, Mike Montgomery, and Patrick Leonard to Tampa Bay.

Wade Davis was originally apart of the starting rotation, but struggled to find a groove during that span. He went 8-11 in 2013 with a 5.32 ERA in 135.1 innings pitched. Moving Davis into the role of a reliever turned out to be a great move, as everyone witnessed during the 2014 season.

The other relievers on the list were:

Overall, it’s not surprising Wade Davis and Greg Holland were ranked as the top relievers in baseball. It was exciting watching them pitch throughout the regular season and throughout the playoffs and World Series as well.

While it’ll be difficult to improve on what they did last season, the future will hopefully remain bright for the KC Royals and their terrific bullpen.

Next: Top HR Hitters In Royals History

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