If you're one of those simpletons that believes wins are the only stat that matters for pitchers, you would already think that Tyler Clippard was awesome. He does have seven of them, after all.
↵But if you're a natural skeptic, like me, you're probably a bit slower to jump on the Clippard bandwagon. That is, until now, I hope. SB Nation's Jeff Sullivan crunched some numbers and found that Clippard is getting it done against some really strong opposition.
↵↵↵Tyler Clippard has done a lot of things right, and what makes his achievement all the more astonishing is that he's done it against the second-toughest opposition in baseball, as the batters he's faced have combined for a .771 OPS.
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↵When you look at Clippard's line, you might think the wins are pretty lucky, but there's no arguing the fact that he's still a very good reliever. At 25 years old, Tyler Clippard's career may just be beginning. Some might suggest that, at fewer than 100 career innings out of the bullpen, Clippard has yet to really prove himself. Well, he's proven himself. He's proven himself against a collection of strong bats, and he's passed with flying colors.
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Okay, that convinced me to join the bandwagon. I hope there's still a spot on there.