The Mariners announced that Hisashi Iwakuma’s $7MM option has officially vested based on his on-field performance. The option was widely believed to be a club option, however Bob Dutton of the Tacoma News Tribune recently reported that the option vested by virtue of Iwakuma’s on-field performance. The Mariners have now officially announced as much.
Retaining Iwakuma for a mere $7MM would have been a no-brainer regardless, as the 33-year-old again enjoyed another strong season with the Mariners. In his third big league season, the Japanese righty totaled a 3.52 ERA with 7.7. K/9, 1.1 BB/9 and a 50.2 percent ground-ball rate in 179 innings of work. The somewhat diminished innings total is the result of a strained tendon in his middle finger that kept him on the disabled list through the month of April. He debuted on May 3, however, and made each of his starts for the remainder of the season.
Iwakuma has been an exceptional find for the Mariners, who initially signed him for just $1.5MM one year after the A’s failed to work out a contract with him following their submission of a $19.1MM bid for his exclusive negotiating rights (that sum was returned to Oakland when a deal was not reached). Following a rookie campaign that was split between the bullpen and the rotation, Iwakuma signed a two-year, $14MM extension which contained this option. He then broke out in 2013 with an elite season that led to a third-place finish in the AL Cy Young voting.
All told, Iwakuma owns a stellar 3.07 ERA with 7.6 K/9, 1.8 BB/9 and a 50.1 percent ground-ball rate in 524 big league innings since leaving the Rakuten Golden Eagles of Nippon Professional Baseball for the Major Leagues. Fangraphs pegs his career value at 7.7 wins above replacement, while Baseball-Reference (11.5) and RA9-WAR (12.3) are significantly more bullish.
So far the M’s have had 3 years of Iwakuma at $15.5m, getting a total of 11 rWAR.
Little over a million a WAR.
That my friends is value of the highest order.
Wait, what do you mean by “on-field performance?”
I know batting average, ERA, etc… is prohibited to use as a vehicle to vest an option, however innings total, games started, games finished are allowed. Escalator clauses for HR totals are ok as well, so I’m wondering if it was a strikeout number…?
Just curious what may have triggered his option, if it wasn’t innings based.
In Iwakuma’s career starts when he has walked 2 or more batters he is 8-12. When he has walked less than 2 he is 29-7.
Last year he lost all 6 of his starts when he walked 2 or more batters. He was 15-3 otherwise.
In 77 career starts he has walked 3 or more batters just 13 times, and 4 batters just once. He has never walked more than 4 batters in any appearance.
Over the past two years he is 12th in % of pitches inside the strike zone, and 13th in % of first pitches for strikes. He is also 5th in getting hitters to chase pitches outside the zone.
He’s the very definition of a control type of pitcher, doesn’t get himself into trouble, and can get you to swing at his pitch. Glad the Ms have him under control for one more year!