Emilio Pagán Keeps Getting It Done

Right-handed reliever Emilio Pagán is a free agent after declining his $10MM player option with the Reds. We ranked him at No. 35 on our list of the Top 50 Free Agents, and two of MLBTR’s three full-time writers expect him to rejoin the Reds on a new deal. As noted in that article, Pagán’s extreme fly ball tendencies have made him a curious fit at the hitter-friendly Great American Ball Park, but he somehow keeps getting it done.

Since the 2024 season, 190 pitchers have thrown at least 100 innings out of the bullpen. Pagán carries a 28.4% strikeout rate and 7.4% walk rate in that time, tying the recently retired Kirby Yates for 23rd with a 21.0% K-BB rate. The league average in that…