Jeremy Accardo, relief pitcher

Is he a major-league pitcher? What’s his role?

He’s a replacement-level major league pitcher, no worse than some other guys whose jobs are secure but probably no better than other guys who are trapped in AAA. He’s pitched just short of 250 major-league innings with an adjusted ERA 5% better than league, but that’s probably misleading because he had an out-of-character 2007 in which he became the Blue Jays’ closer. He then got hurt and is working his way back.

Accardo has been effective in his minor-league stints. He throws hard, but his pitches aren’t very deceptive, so he doesn’t get as many strikeouts and gives up more hits than you’d expect. I’d say he’s got a 50-50 shot at earning a job as a 6th-7th inning man, and he’s 50-50 at doing that job well.

He’ll get a chance in the Indians’ system in 2012, because he signed a minor-league free agent contract with them.