What It Means:

Capps underwent an MRI last Tuesday after feeling discomfort in his right elbow. He subsequently visited Dr. James Andrews in Pensacola. No good news came of that meeting, clearly. The 25-year-old right-hander will miss the 2016 campaign. While the team's hoping he'll be ready for Opening Day, 2017, that's a long ways off, and it should be considered a soft projection at this point. The elbow injury is a tough blow for player and team as Capps was a potential ninth-inning arm. In 31 innings last season, he held a stellar 1.16 ERA and fanned 58. With him out of the picture, A.J. Ramos should be considered locked in as closer.

Capps was as dominant as it gets last season, albeit in limited action. His strikeout percentage was a whopping 49.2, and his 1.17 xFIP showed his 1.16 ERA was no fluke. Ramos is no slouch himself, and we project him to post a 2.26 ERA in 2016 with a 28.8 strikeout percentage. The closer job appears to be his to lose.