Duke in the MLB: Season review

With the regular season in the books, the Blue Zone takes an end-of-year spin around the big leagues to recap the seasons of Duke's MLB products, some of whom are postseason-bound:

Marcus Stroman, Toronto Blue Jays: The 23-year-old impressed in his first season at the big-league level, compiling an 11-6 record and a 3.65 ERA. Stroman made 20 starts and racked up 130.2 innings for the Blue Jays after making his big-league debut May 4. He notched his first-career complete game Sept. 8 with a dominant performance against the Chicago Cubs, scattering three hits and picking up eight punchouts in an 8-0 win.

The right-hander used his sinker to devastating success in July, allowing one or fewer runs in four of his five starts and posting a season-low 1.71 ERA for the month. After a rough August, Stroman regained his form in September, winning three of his four starts and picking up his first career save Saturday. One thing that won't make his personal highlight reel: a five-game suspension levied by the commissioner's office in mid-September for throwing at the head of Baltimore Orioles catcher Caleb Joseph. But despite the brief hiccup the 2012 first-round pick proved his worth this season and will be a nice complement to Mark Buerhle and R.A. Dickey in 2015.

Nate Freiman, Oakland A's: Freiman got to know the route from Triple-A Sacramento to Oakland well this season, as the 6-foot-8 first baseman was one of the first options for the A's when major-league players suffered injuries. Freiman appeared in 36 regular-season games and hit .218, with five home runs and 15 RBIs. The average might have been low, but Freiman had limited opportunities to get at-bats and find a rhythm at the plate, playing a platoon with Brandon Moss, Stephen Vogt and Kyle Blanks at first base.

First called up in late June, Freiman made an immediate impact, crushing a three-run home run to win the A's the game against the Miami Marlins. From there, Freiman was relatively quiet, except for a three-game series at Atlanta in August in which he launched three long home runs. The A's scuffled down the stretch and will limp into Wednesday's wild-card bout with the Royals. Should the A's advance to the American League Division Series, Freiman could find himself out of a roster spot for the five-game set, but could rejoin the club in the next round when rosters expand.

Dan Otero, Oakland A's: Freiman's former Blue Devil teammate concluded his solid year in the Oakland bullpen with a 2.28 ERA and an 8-2 record. Otero's middle-relief role allowed him to pick up seven wins in the first half of the season as the A's entered the All-Star Break with the best record in baseball. But as the A's hit a late-season swoon, the wins dried up for Otero, but his stuff remained stellar. The right-hander—who began his college career at Duke before transferring to South Florida for his final season—finished the regular season with 12 holds, appearing in 82 games and tossing 86.2 innings in relief. His ability to continue to get outs and his 3-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio will be important if Oakland wants to make a deep October run.

Chris Capuano, New York Yankees: Capuano—the longest-tenured Blue Devil in the big leagues with nine years of service—bounced around the league this season, ending up in the Bronx to conclude the year. The one-time-starter began the year in Boston working out of the bullpen, but didn't have much success, and the Red Sox waived him after 28 innings and a 4.55 ERA. Capuano was claimed by the Rockies and designated to Colorado's Triple-A club, but never made an appearance for the big-league club before being acquired by the Yankees, who were fighting to remain relevant in the AL East and facing a slew of injuries in the starting rotation. Capuano plugged one of those holes, taking the ball every fifth day and tossing 65.2 innings for New York in 12 starts. The results again weren't stellar, but Capuano's 4.25 ERA was good enough to keep him in the rotation. He finished the year with a 3-4 overall record.