In the ever changing topography of closers in Major League Baseball three names remain on top of the standings as pillars or consistency. Leading the league in saves as of Monday are Brian Fuentes, Heath Bell and Brian Wilson.
Wait... Who?
That's right. Instead of names like Papelbon, Rivera and Rodriguez we get Fuentes, who leads all of baseball with 22 saves. Bell and Wilson are tagging along closely behind at 21 and 20 saves respectively.
This just goes to prove the point that everyone should adhere to in pre-season drafts and auctions. Do not pay for saves.
Speaking of Brian Fuentes, did you know that he hasn't given up an earned run in June? He's also recorded nine saves and struck out 11 batters in 8.2 innings pitched. His three hits given up and three walks issued give him a June WHIP of 0.69 to go along with his perfect ERA.
Another closer having a good June, albeit not as perfect as Fuentes' efforts, is Andrew Bailey. The new Oakland closer has quietly recorded six saves in June with a 1.93 ERA. He also has 16 strikeouts in 14 innings pitched. I say quietly because Bailey is only owned in 69% of fantasy leagues currently. It's true that the A's aren't going to give Bailey the opportunity to close as many games as say the Angels or Red Sox, but six saves in a month with a sub-two ERA should get you into more fantasy leagues than he's currently in.
On Monday, Randy Choate got the save in Tampa but that shouldn't upset you if you own J.P. Howell. With Troy Percival on the shelf, Howell is still going to get the majority of the save opportunities. Choate actually pitched because Dan Wheeler flubbed up his opportunity to close by giving up a two-out single. Wheeler was only pitching because Howell had pitched in every weekend game and needed rest. Howell is definitely the ninth inning answer. It appears that Choate might be the new eighth inning guy instead of Wheeler.
