Fantasy Baseball Fanhouse

Always Be Closing: A Look to 2010

Matt Snyder — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 21:05:00 EST

In last week's version of Always Be Closing, we had a reader request: to look ahead at the closing jobs for 2010. "Artsaba" actually only asked for those who aren't currently closing that could land the gig for next season, but we figured we might as well just list every team.

So, after the jump, we've done so. If there is someone (like the gentleman pictured here) who doesn't need an introduction due to already definitely being his team's 2010 closer, we'll simply list his name. If an explanation is needed, for teams with undecided roles, we'll give one.

A's - Looks like it's going to be Andrew Bailey with Joey Devine and Brad Ziegler setting up.

Angels - Brian Fuentes will have the first crack at the job, but Kevin Jepsen and possibly even Jose Arredondo would be next in line should Fuentes fail to regain the confidence of management.

Astros - Both Jose Valverde and LaTroy Hawkins are free agents. They could sign someone from outside the organization to close -- but he'd have to be a cheap signing like Chad Cordero, Jason Isringhausen or Joe Beimel -- or use someone from within like Wesley Wright or Felipe Paulino.

Blue Jays - It's a coin toss between Scott Downs and Jason Frasor, assuming they don't go outside the organization. We're betting Downs takes it.

Braves - Do they re-up with Rafael Soriano or Mike Gonzalez? If not, they'll be looking for someone new. If they have to promote from within, what about Kris Medlen? He's worked in relief 22 times since the All-Star break, striking out 34 and walking just 9 with a 3.41 ERA. Will they shed enough payroll to make a run at J.J. Putz? This is a tough one to predict.

Brewers - Trevor Hoffman is a free agent, but we think he comes back for one more year.

Cardinals - Ryan Franklin

Cubs - Carlos Marmol

Diamondbacks - They'll likely try to trade Chad Qualls, who has just one year left on his contract. If they aren't successful in moving him, he'll enter the season with the job. During the season, it's still possible they move him before the trade deadline. Behind him, the options are most likely Juan Gutierrez and Clay Zavada.

Dodgers - Jonathan Broxton

Giants - Brian Wilson

Indians - Kerry Wood's going to enter the season as the closer, but he'll be in the last year of his contract and if he continues to struggle, they have the option of going to Chris Perez.

Mariners - David Aardsma should retain the job he's done well to keep.

Marlins - Leo Nunez has been decent-to-good as a closer, after taking over for Matt Lindstrom. They'll likely battle it out in Spring Training for the 2010 gig. Many like Lindstrom to win it back, but I'll put my money on Nunez.

Mets - Francisco Rodriguez

Nationals - Mike MacDougal will be the Opening Day closer, but keep an eye on youngster Drew Storen. Storen closed for Stanford before being selected 10th overall in the draft this past June. Afterward, in pro ball, Storen made three different stops -- finishing in Double A. He racked up a total ERA of 1.95 and a ridiculous 49:8 K:BB ratio in 37 innings -- which helped to make his 0.78 WHIP. He only allowed two home runs, too.

Orioles - Jim Johnson has done well in the job, so there's no reason to think he'd be removed -- even with the presence of Chris Ray.

Padres - Heath Bell

Phillies - He's been a disaster this year, but the guess is they go back to Brad Lidge.

Pirates - I think they'll stick with Matt Capps, but it's always possible they sign someone cheap or trade him.

Rangers - Frank Francisco

Rays - I'm a big fan of J.P. Howell's stuff, and I think the Rays finally give him the job.

Red Sox - Jonathan Papelbon

Reds - Francisco Cordero

Rockies - Franklin Morales was brilliant in the absence of Huston Street. The job will remain Street's, however, unless the Rockies trade him. It's possible they do decide to move him, after having seen Morales' performance.

Royals - Joakim Soria

Tigers - Fernando Rodney is a free agent. If the Tigers don't take the route of signing someone from the outside, it's a good bet they promote Ryan Perry -- not Joel Zumaya -- to the closer job.

Twins - Joe Nathan

White Sox - Bobby Jenks

Yankees - Mariano Rivera

Free agents who could close: Putz, Valverde, Soriano, Gonzalez, Chad Cordero, Isringhausen, Beimel, Hawkins, Brandon Lyon, Guillermo Mota, Takashi Saito, David Weathers, Octavio Dotel, Bob Howry, Billy Wagner, Kevin Gregg

Possible trade candidates who could close: Street, Qualls, Ray, Lidge, Capps, Dan Wheeler

Always Be Closing: A Look to 2010 originally appeared on Fantasy Baseball Fanhouse on Tue, 22 Sep 2009 21:05:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Always Be Closing: Marmol Enters 2010 as Cubs Closer

Knox Bardeen — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 09:55:00 EST

Filed under: MLB Always Be Closing

It was one of the more hotly debated topics of the off-season, which spilled into Spring Training and even the regular season. We wanted to know if Kevin Gregg or Carlos Marmol would close out games for the Chicago Cubs. We won't have any of the intrigue or mystery headed into 2010 as Lou Pinella has already announced that Marmol would be the closer next season.

''He's done enough and shown enough, and we have confidence in him enough that going into spring training next year it's his job,'' manager Lou Piniella said. ''And we'll leave it just at that.''

While this is good news for Marmol, it's more a result of Gregg stinking in the closer's role, more so then Marmol beating him out for the job.

In 66 innings of work Gregg has a record of 5-and-6 with 23 saves. His ERA is high for a closer at 4.77, but some of his other pitching numbers seem good enough to be in that role. He strikes out more then a batter per inning, and actually strikes out 9.3 batters per nine innings. The high strikeout rate is exactly what you want in a closer.

Unfortunately for Gregg, and this was his downfall, he had a propensity of giving up home runs late in games. In all, Gregg has given up 13 home runs in 2009, which is far too many for a closer to keep his job.

Marmol isn't without his own faults though. He's 2-and-3 with 13 saves and his ERA is better then Gregg's at 3.41. Marmol even has a higher strikeout rate then Gregg, striking out 11.1 batters per nine innings. But, Marmol walks almost a batter per inning. He's accrued 62 walks in 68.2 innings and has a 8.1 BB/9 ratio. One of the last things you want is your closer to walk batters. But, as Marmol has only given up one home run this season, at least he's not getting beat by the longball.

Bullpen Still Struggling in Phily
Brad Lidge has followed his perfect 2008 season with a craptastic journey in 2009, he even lost his job to Ryan Madson. But now Madson isn't doing so well.

In the past month Madson has four saves but his ERA has spiked. Since taking over as the Phillies closer, Madson has seen his ERA jump from 3.15 to 3.36. He's also already blown a save and given up earned runs in two of his five save opportunities. And now manager Charlie Manuel thinks his new closer may be tiring.

As Lidge struggles, Manuel has turned to Madson as a closer. He has been in five of the last six save situations. The results have been mixed. Madson has blown six saves this season, and Manuel has expressed concern the lanky righthander is fatigued.

This bullpen, which has had its fair share of question marks already this season, now heads into the playoffs without a dominating ninth inning option. And if that wasn't cause for concern, Manuel may be thinking of shaking up the roles of the pitchers in his bullpen. He may even enter the playoffs with a bullpen where there are no defined roles at all.

"It's always good for a guy to kind of know what his role is," he said. "The public likes it. You guys [the media] like it. Me, I don't like it. I think if I'm the manager, I ought to be able to put you in the damn game when I want to, if you want to know the truth.

"And when you think about it, roles change. You might have a guy you want in the sixth who has thrown and you can't use him, things like that. But for some reason, they like it when you find a role for them. To a certain degree it's good, but it's also hard to stick to."

Get ready for an interesting ride over the next few weeks.

Always Be Closing: Marmol Enters 2010 as Cubs Closer originally appeared on Fantasy Baseball Fanhouse on Tue, 15 Sep 2009 09:55:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Brad Lidge or Ryan Madson: Who's the Phillies Closer?

Knox Bardeen — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 14:53:00 EST

Filed under: MLB Always Be Closing, MLB Waiver Wire

Phillies skipper Charlie Manuel replaced Brad Lidge with Ryan Madson once before as the team's closer, but that was due to a Lidge injury. Now Lidge may be losing his job due to poor pitching.

On Tuesday night Lidge gave up a hit, walked one, let loose a wild pitch and hit a batter in the ninth inning while only recording one out. Manuel hopped out of the dugout and took the ball from Lidge, giving it to Madson with the bases loaded. Madson recorded his fifth save as he retired the next two batters, striking out one and ending the game with a ground ball to shortstop.

Manuel said later that he had no idea who would be the Phillies closer moving forward. He was only trying to win games.

Lidge has 28 saves on the season but those are marred by a 7.11 ERA and a league leading ten blown saves. Madson, on the other hand, has a 3.15 ERA, has thrown more innings and seems to be the safer option for the Phillies in the ninth.

Madson is only owned in 19% of fantasy baseball leagues and is an excellent waiver wire pick up right now for speculative saves.

Timing is the Key
Fernando Rodney was slapped with a three game suspension after he followed through on the brilliant idea of throwing a baseball into the press box in Tampa. The Tigers have appealed the suspension and Rodney is now active and available to pitch until the team drops the appeal of he wins in the appeal process (not likely). The Tigers play 13 of their last 16 games against teams chasing them in the divisional race. Prior to that, next week in fact, the team hosts a three-game home stand against the Royals. That might be a perfect time for Rodney to drop his appeal so he's available for the final stretch run.

On Shaky Ground
Leo Nunez recorded his 19th save of the season on Tuesday, but there is still buzz around the Marlins community that his job isn't safe. Nunez sports a 4.18 ERA and has blown two saves already in September, both because of his propensity to give up the long-ball. In fact, he shares the league lead in home runs allowed by a relief pitcher. The fact that he was given the ball in the ninth inning on Tuesday leads me to think he'll keep his job for the remainder of the season as long as he keeps the hiccups to a minimum. Going into next season though, the closer role may be up for grabs in Florida.

A Very Pleasant Surprise
Huston Street is slowly making his way back from biceps tendinitis. With the way Franklin Morales is pitching the Rockies have the luxury of letting Street take his time. Since Street wet down with the injury, Morales has appeared in five games and has five saves to show for his efforts. In those five games Morales has six strikeouts in five innings and has only given up three hits and zero earned runs.

Brad Lidge or Ryan Madson: Who's the Phillies Closer? originally appeared on Fantasy Baseball Fanhouse on Wed, 09 Sep 2009 14:53:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Roto Rush: A Monumental Labor Day Weekend Potentially Gets Better

Knox Bardeen — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 11:35:00 EST

Filed under: MLB Always Be Closing, MLB Injury Report, MLB Locking Your Lineup, MLB Waiver Wire

Poppin' out of the box scores and right into your cubicle, the Roto Rush is your double espresso shot of fantasy baseball advice every weekday.

On Sunday, Ichiro Suzuki became the second fastest player to ever reach the 2,000 hit milestone as he doubled in the first inning and later scored.

It took Suzuki 1,402 games to reach 2,000 hits. The fastest was Al Simmons who did it in 1,390 games. Suzuki needs five more hits to reach 200 for the season, which would break the record he shares with Willie Keeler at nine consecutive seasons with 200.

As milestone talk goes, Ichiro is playing second fiddle to what's about to happen in New York.

The New York Yankees play a Labor Day, double header against the Rays on Monday and there is a reason or two outside of the fantasy baseball realm to tune into the games.

With a fat wallet like the Yankees have, it was no surprise to see the top free agent pitchers CC Sabathia and A.J. Burnett land in pinstripes. For a complete look at their investment, the Yankees will trot both Sabathia and Burnett to the mound on Monday to pitch, Sabathia during the day and Burnett for the night-cap.

Sabathia is a much better pitcher at night, but manager Joe Girardi must feel his ace can handle the sunlight. Sabathia is throwing well of late. He's has five wins in his last six starts and a 1.83 ERA to boot.

As fantastically as Sabathia has been pitching, Burnett has shown signs of struggle. His ERA is 6.54 since August 1st and he's not collected a win even though he's notched four quality starts in his last seven.

As Sabathia tries to stay on course and Burnett attempts to alter his, all eyes will squarely be focused on Derek Jeter. The Yankee captain needs four hits to pass Lou Gehrig as the all-time Yankees hit leader. Girardi hasn't said if Jeter will play in both games but he'll need security to exit the building if Jeter inches closer to the record in game one and doesn't come out for the night game.

Bits From the Box Scores:
o. Seth Smith hit two home runs and drove in five on Sunday for the Rockies. Over the last month he's batting .391with six home runs and 19 RBI in only 64 at-bats. Smith is widely available in fantasy leagues (only 8% owned) and should start seeing extra at-bats since he's on such a torrid pace.

o. Scott Hairston hit a seventh inning grand slam on Sunday to steal a small portion of the spotlight from Ichiro Suzuki's 2,000th hit.

o. Mike Pelfrey earned his tenth win of the season as he struck out five and only allowed five hits in eight innings of work against the Cubs. It was Pelfrey's first quality start since August 21st.

o. Johnny Cueto struck out nine in six innings of work and only allowed three hits against the Braves on Sunday. He didn't factor into the win as the game went into extra innings. This was Cueto's second consecutive start where he's only given up one earned run.

o. Placido Polanco came into the game Sunday as a pinch hitter and got two hits and stole a base. Over the past week he's batting .458 with two home runs. He's only owned in 33% of fantasy leagues and would make a great waiver wire addition while he's hitting well.

o. Wade Davis had his incredible major league debut ruined by Grant Balfour, J.P. Howell and Russ Springer. Davis pitched seven innings striking out nine batters and walking only one. He also only allowed three hits, but watched his Rays lose due to four earned runs given up by the three aforementioned relievers.

o. Michael Bourn stole two bases on Sunday giving him 52 on the season. He's decided to throw his hat into the ring for the stolen base crown this season. He's three behind Carl Crawford and seven behind Jacoby Ellsbury.

o. Victor Martinez homered to deep right on Sunday in the ninth inning to add icing to the cake for the Red Sox. Martinez is batting .326 with six home runs since joining the Red Sox this season.

o. Jonathan Sanchez threw six innings on Sunday giving up only three hits and one earned run to the Brewers while striking out nine. Sanchez, who has a 2.03 ERA over his last five starts, received a no-decision as Prince Fielder ended the game in the 12th inning in walk-of fashion. It was Fielder's 37th home run of the season.

The Afflicted: Carlos Beltran, who is rehabbing in Single-A currently, played his second consecutive complete game on Sunday. He hasn't cleared this notion with the Mets yet, but Beltran feels he's ready to return to major league action on Tuesday. Yankees closer Mariano Rivera was available to pitch on Sunday but wasn't needed as Toronto won big. Expect Rivera to start accumulating saves again as early as Monday. No need to worry here, but Zack Greinke will be given some extra rest between starts this week. He threw 125 pitches on Saturday and this is just precautionary. Shane Victorino was held out of Sunday's lineup with a bruised knee. He is listed as day-to-day but probably won't see action until mid-week. Micah Owings will receive four stitches near his ear after being beaned on Sunday. He'll remain in Atlanta to be monitored for post-concussion symptoms but hopes to catch up with the team and not miss a start.

Lineup Lock Time: The Cubs and Pirates play first on Labor Day. First pitch is at 12:35 PM ET.

Roto Rush: A Monumental Labor Day Weekend Potentially Gets Better originally appeared on Fantasy Baseball Fanhouse on Mon, 07 Sep 2009 11:35:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Roto Rush: Closers Aching and Sidelined

Knox Bardeen — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 12:05:00 EST

Filed under: MLB Always Be Closing, MLB Injury Report, MLB Locking Your Lineup

Poppin' out of the box scores and right into your cubicle, the Roto Rush is your double espresso shot of fantasy baseball advice every weekday.

It wasn't a good day to be a top-ten closer on Wednesday. Both Mariano Rivera and Huston Street are on the shelf for a few days.

After the game Wednesday night, the Yankees told the media that Rivera was unavailable due to tightness in his groin. The 39-year-old Rivera, who has battled this injury for a while, sat out the final game of the Baltimore series but feels that he'll be back to full duty after a few days of rest.

Street seems just as optimistic after being shut down indefinitely due to biceps tendinitis in his right arm. He hopes to test the arm this weekend. If all goes well he'll be back to action in short time.

Rivera leads the league in saves with 38. He's also struck out more then a batter per inning and has a superb 1.78 ERA and 0.90 WHIP. While he's resting, expect Phil Hughes to get the majority of the save opportunities, just like he did on Wednesday night. Damaso Marte could also get some ninth inning work if Rivera's rest period is extended.

Street has 33 saves in 34 opportunities this season and also strikes out more then a batter per inning. While he tries to recover from biceps tendinitis the Rockies will use Franklin Morales to close, like they did on Wednesday. You'll also likely see Matt Herges and Rafael Betancourt, especially against heavily right-handed lineups.

Bits From the Box Scores:
o. C.C. Sabathia, on Wednesday, became the first American League pitcher to win 16 games. He struck out nine over seven innings and only gave up one earned run.

o. Not only did Ubaldo Jimenez win his sixth game in seven starts on Wednesday, but he lowered his ERA to 3.28.

o. Chris Coghlan extended his hitting streak to ten games on Wednesday. He's batting .393 over the last month with four home runs. It's a shame most fantasy owners aren't reaping the rewards as he's only owned in 33% of fantasy leagues.

o. Brad Penny sure seems to like the climate in San Francisco. On Wednesday he only allowed five hits in eight scoreless innings of work.

o. Scott Kazmir struck out eight in 6.1 innings and only allowed three hits and an earned run. He still took the loss although he pitched very well. King Felix Hernandez just pitched better. Hernandez threw eight scoreless innings and allowed only four hits.

o. He doesn't know the difference between a bruise and a fractured wrist, but he does know how to hit and run. Brandon Phillips hit his 19th home run on the season and already has 22 stolen bases. He'll surely reach the 20/20 plateau.

o. Ted Lilly pitched a gem on Wednesday. He pitched eight scoreless innings striking out five and walking none.

o. He's not in the lineup every day and that doesn't seem to bother Seth Smith. In only 53 at-bats over the last month Smith has a .340 batting average and three home runs with ten RBI. On Wednesday he hit his 12th home run of the season and you should keep an eye on Smith. If he earns more playing time he could be a fantasy force in all leagues, not just NL-only formats.

The Afflicted: You already know about Street and Rivera, but Jarrod Washburn will also miss his next start. Washburn blames a sore left knee for his poor start to his Detroit career. On the good side of injury news, the Marlins expect Nick Johnson to play as early as Thursday night.

Lineup Lock Time: Cleveland and Detroit play at 1:05 PM ET on Thursday.

Roto Rush: Closers Aching and Sidelined originally appeared on Fantasy Baseball Fanhouse on Thu, 03 Sep 2009 12:05:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Chad Qualls Injury Forces Fantasy Owners to Scramble for Saves

Knox Bardeen — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 11:41:00 EST

Filed under: MLB Always Be Closing, MLB Injury Report

A potential season-ending injury is no way for a closer to end a game. But, Chad Qualls did just that on Sunday as he earned his 24th save but took a line drive off of his kneecap on the final play of the game.

Instead of celebrating a three-game sweep, the Diamondbacks tended to closer Chad Qualls, who suffered a dislocated left kneecap on a game-ending play.

Qualls crumpled to the dirt after deflecting a liner by Jason Michaels to shortstop Stephen Drew, who fired to first base for the final out. Qualls immediately motioned to the dugout for help, and trainers and teammates rushed to the mound. After several moments, trainers helped the 6-foot-5-inch, 220-pound Qualls to his feet and off the field.

Arizona manager A.J. Hinch said Qualls had dislocated the kneecap but had no other details about the extent of the injury. Qualls underwent X-rays after the game and did not speak to reporters.

The closer landscape is barren on the waiver wire these days. If the season is over for Qualls, the Diamondbacks may hand ninth inning duties to Juan Gutierrez.

Gutierrez has a 4.29 ERA this season and almost a strikeout per inning. He's the likely choice for the Diamondbacks but you may also see Esmerling Vazquez and Clay Zavada get thrown into the mix if the team runs with a closer by committee approach of Gutierrez comes out of the gate slowly.

You may want to avoid the Diamondbacks closer situation all together and grab either Mike MacDougal or Leo Nunez from the waiver wire. MacDougal has eight saves over the last month with a perfect 0.00 ERA. Nunez also has eight saves but a 3.48 ERA.

Both MacDougal and Nunez are available in over 50% of fantasy baseball leagues.

Chad Qualls Injury Forces Fantasy Owners to Scramble for Saves originally appeared on Fantasy Baseball Fanhouse on Mon, 31 Aug 2009 11:41:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Kendry Morales Upstages John Lackey's 100th Career Win

Knox Bardeen — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 11:00:00 EST

Filed under: MLB Always Be Closing, MLB Injury Report

Poppin' out of the box scores and right into your cubicle, the Roto Rush is your double espresso shot of fantasy baseball advice every weekday.

John Lackey threw eight innings on Sunday, striking out six and not surrendering an earned run. It was his 100th career victory. He should have been the man of the hour, right?

That would have been the case had Kendry Morales not jacked his 30th home run of the season and stolen the show. At least among fantasy circles, anyway.

Morales had twelve career home runs entering the 2009 season and big shoes to fill as the Angels handed him the keys to the kingdom at first base as Mark Teixeira left for the Yankees. He's handled the task admirably batting .311 and is fast approaching the 100-RBI mark. He's also leading the league in RBI since the all-star break with 45.

Over the last 30 days Morales is batting .371 with ten home runs and 33 RBI. There isn't a hotter hitter in baseball at the moment.

As for Lackey, his great outing on Sunday closed the book on a hard-luck August. Lackey's ERA was 3.73 for the month but he only won two games while losing three.

Bits From the Box Scores:
o. August 21st was the last time Francisco Rodriguez entered the game in the ninth in a save situation. On Sunday, just like riding a bike, he remembered just how to close the door on hitters. K-Rod earned his 28th save of the season.

o. Adam Wainwright became the first pitcher to reach the 16-win plateau on Sunday, but it's what he's done lately that's really impressive. Over his last eight starts he's only given up seven earned runs. He has a 1.14 ERA and is 6-and-1 over that time.

o. How do you top a 15-strikeout performance earlier in the week? If you're Zack Greinke you throw a complete game one-hit shutout on Sunday.

o. Derek Jeter had two hits on Sunday bringing him within 12 of Lou Gehrig's team record of 2,721 career hits. While the career mark has no fantasy value whatsoever, know that Jeter hit .381 with six home runs in August and enters the final month of the season one of the hottest hitters in baseball.

o. Baltimore Orioles rookie pitcher Brian Matusz showed his huge upside potential on Sunday striking out eight hitters in seven innings and only allowing one earned run for his third win of the season.

o. Joba Chamberlain left Sunday's game after three innings, giving up four hits and two earned runs. The Yankees say they're limiting his innings, but it seems more likely they're limiting Yankees fans from seeing how poorly he's pitching. He's given up 21 earned runs in his last five appearances giving him a 8.22 ERA over that time.

o. Even though he struck out 11 in seven innings, Clayton Kershaw didn't earn the win in Sunday's game. This has been par for the course as Kershaw hasn't notched a victory since July 18th. In his eight appearances since his last win, Kershaw has five quality starts.

o. Michael Bourn stole two bases on Sunday and now has 48 on the season. With Nyjer Morgan done for the year, Bourn is a shoo-in to win the National League stolen base crown. He's seven behind league leaders Jacoby Ellsbury and Carl Crawford.

o. Roy Halladay continues to struggle. He lost to the Red Sox on Sunday and over his last three starts he's 0-3 with a 7.94 ERA.

o.The Afflicted: Mike Hampton, who has been on the disabled list since August 18th with a partially torn rotator cuff, has decided to have surgery on that shoulder and both of his knees. In other news, the sun rose in the east this morning. Tim Wakefield is set to have another cortisone shot in his back today. The Red Sox don't know when he'll be able to pitch again. Speaking of cortisone, Alfonso Soriano received his shot on Sunday and is expected to miss several games due to left knee inflammation. Jake Peavy left Saturday's rehab start with soreness in his right elbow. He'll be evaluated today by doctors.

Lineup Lock Time: The first pitch on Monday is at 1:05 PM ET as Tampa Bay and Detroit play.

Kendry Morales Upstages John Lackey's 100th Career Win originally appeared on Fantasy Baseball Fanhouse on Mon, 31 Aug 2009 11:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Mariners' Late-Inning Woes Should Cause Concern for Fantasy Owners

Knox Bardeen — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 11:40:00 EST

Filed under: MLB Always Be Closing

An interesting statistic just flew by me. Over the last two weeks three pitchers have blown two saves. While that's not earth shattering stuff, it is odd that two of these three pitchers play for the Seattle Mariners.

In addition to David Aardsma and Mark Lowe's inability to close out games over the last two weeks, they've also seen spikes in ERA. Aardsma hasn't had a month yet where his ERA was above 2.25. But, in August he's exploded for a 7.36 ERA. And, his 2.16 WHIP is approaching those low ERA's he enjoyed earlier. Lowe's high ERA of 4.34 from April to June has now risen to touchdown status as his post-June ERA is 6.84. These aren't the trends you want in your late inning pitchers.

Late last week R.J. White asked if Aardsma was getting tired. That very well may be the case. Aardsma was unavailable at times recently due to overuse, which has opened the door for Lowe to fail in the 9th too. There may be another possible reason for Aardsma's degradation, in addition to fatigue.

Aardsma's 56.9% fly ball rate marks him as an extreme fly ball pitcher. However, only 3.8% of those fly balls are actually turning into home runs. Those two figures just don't jive. Eventually, he's going to start giving up home runs. It may have started already. For the season, Aardsma has only given up three dingers, two of them have been in August. If this is the beginning of a downward spiral for Aardsma, you may want to avoid using him for a while. He's only recorded five saves over the past month and his ballooning ERA isn't worth such a small amount of saves.

NL Saves Leader Lives on New Street
Huston Street is having himself a very nice week on the mound. In 5.2 innings Street has recorded four saves and has struck out six while walking none. He's only given up four hits which means his WHIP was great at 0.71. The only blemish to Street's ERA was a meaningless home run given up to Josh Bard. Street's four saves have given him the National League lead in saves, besting Ryan Franklin by one.

Over What's Ailing Him
Rafael Soriano complained of soreness behind his right shoulder and was recently unavailable to pitch in a weekend series. He seems to be past that soreness as he's appeared in four games since and recorded three saves. In those four games he's struck out four, walked one and only given up two hits. Did I mention he hasn't given up a run and sports a 0.75 WHIP over those four appearances.

I'm Not Wrong All of the Time
On August 12th I asked if Fernando Rodney should be worried about losing his job. Since then he's proven that he isn't worried, and shouldn't be. In five appearances he's given up no earned runs, struck out seven while only walking one. He also saved four games.

Mariners' Late-Inning Woes Should Cause Concern for Fantasy Owners originally appeared on Fantasy Baseball Fanhouse on Tue, 25 Aug 2009 11:40:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Cubs Remove Kevin Gregg as Closer

Knox Bardeen — Tue, 18 Aug 2009 09:56:00 EST

Filed under: MLB Always Be Closing, MLB Injury Report

It's been a season of ups and downs for Chicago Cubs ~~closer~~ relief pitcher Kevin Gregg. He started the year off in rough fashion with a 5.59 ERA in 10 appearances in April with only one save to show for his efforts. But, in each subsequent month, his ERA got better and better.

Sure, he was subject to a blow-up every now and again, but his May ERA was 3.86 to go with seven saves. His June ERA was even lower, at 2.77 with five saves, and July saw eight saves with a 1.93 ERA. Everything pointed to a pitcher moving in the right direction.

Then August happened.

In seven relief appearances, Gregg notched two saves but posted a 7.36 ERA. The final straw, and the end to Gregg's tenure as closer, came Monday evening when Gregg blew a ninth inning, one-run lead against San Diego. Gregg let the tying run score then gave up a Kyle Blanks three-run, walk-off home run to end the game. All the madness happened with two outs in the ninth inning.

Manager Lou PInella announced the change at closer Monday night but has yet to name Gregg's successor.

The world isn't all butterflies and rainbows for Philadelphia Phillies closer Brad Lidge either. On Saturday he blew his major league leading eighth save of the season. Lidge is 0-5 with 23 saves and a 7.21 ERA on the season. Andy Martino of the Philadelphia Inquirer wrote that manager Charlie Manuel is insistent on Lidge remaining the close in Philadelphia.

Manager Charlie Manuel has insisted that Lidge will remain his closer all season, and agreed with the pitcher that his stuff was good.

This is a huge show of good faith by Manuel who has a ready-made replacement closer in Ryan Madson on staff. Madson's ERA for the season 2.95 with more then a strikeout per innings and over the last month Madson is sporting a 1.54 ERA in 11.2 innings of work.

Here's proof that bad things always happen in threes. Pittsburgh Pirates closer Matt Capps has already matched his save total from 2008 with 21. But he's also more then doubled his ERA. In 2009, Capps' 21saves come with a 6.41 ERA. Over the last month Capps only has one save with an 8.64 ERA. Even though things aren't running smoothly in Pittsburgh for Capps his job seems safe because there just isn't any viable option in the Pirates bullpen to take over. This is a case of job security as a result of feeble surroundings.

All the news today can't be bad, I refuse to roll that way. Mike MacDougal has been a most pleasant surprise for the Washington Nationals. MacDougal has pitched a near perfect month of August. In eight appearances MacDougal has seven saves and hasn't given up an earned run. He has five strikeouts and two walks in his 8.1 August innings of work. He has 13 saves and a 3.50 ERA this season after takin gover the closing role in Washington in mid-June.

Set to come off the disabled list this weekend is Billy Wagner. He's returning early from Tommy John Surgery and looks to be used as a left-handed specialist working the 6th and 7th innings for the Mets. Or, he could be traded to a contender to take over a more prominent bullpen role.

Cubs Remove Kevin Gregg as Closer originally appeared on Fantasy Baseball Fanhouse on Tue, 18 Aug 2009 09:56:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Randy Wolf Provides All the Run Support He Needs

Knox Bardeen — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 09:00:00 EST

Filed under: MLB Always Be Closing, MLB Injury Report, MLB Locking Your Lineup

Randy Wolf was good on Sunday. Really good.

Let's start with his 7.2 innings of work on the mound. Wolf gave up three earned runs and five hits. But he struck out an amazing ten batters while walking none. And this isn't the first good outing for Wolf in a while. In fact, quite the opposite.

If you take out the four earned run game on August 6th against Atlanta, you have to go all the way back to June 24th to find another day where Wolf didn't provide the Dodgers with a quality start. Nine of his last ten outings have been quality starts and he's sporting a 3.13 ERA over that time. He only has four wins to show for it, but that sounds like a run support issue and not a dig on Wolf.

I mentioned earlier that we should start with Wolf's pitching because he brought his lumber to the yard on Sunday as well. Wolf went 3-for-4 with a double and a home run. He drove in three runs and scored twice himself. If you seem to be having a run support issue, maybe that kind of day at the plate is a good idea for every start.

Bits From the Box Scores:
o. You don't lose your job by giving up one walk and one hit in two innings of relief. Especially when it's was errors in the field that caused the loss, not pitching. But Fernando Rodney is already in hot water and his loss today, even though he didn't give up an earned run, only fuels the speculation of a closer change in Detroit.

o. Josh Willingham hit his 18th home run of the season on Sunday and now has seven over the last month while hitting .312 with 24 RBI. He's available in over half of all fantasy leagues and worth a look.

o. I never thought I would have to say this. Mike MacDougal has been fantastic for the Nationals as their closer. In seven innings of work in August he's recorded six saves, only given up three hits and allowed zero earned runs.

o. With the bombs Carlos Gonzalez hit on Sunday (one in each game of the Rockies double-header) he has four dingers in his last six games. He's also batting .400 in 54 August at-bats.

o. Marco Scutaro went 3-for-5 on Sunday with a home run. The round-trip job was his 11th (career high) and now his three hits put him at .300 for the season. Scutaro's best season prior to 2009 was in 2004 in Oakland when he batted .273.

o. Julio Borbon has seven hits in the four games since he was called up earlier in August. He's batting .429 with five stolen bases now and showing why he's such a hot prospect.

o. Hunter Pence has found his power stroke over the last week. His blast on Sunday gave him four home runs in the last five games.

o. Since returning from his back injury, Roy Oswalt has given up 11 earned runs in 11 innings. Raise your hand if you think everything is ok with him.

o. If you can only muster one stinking hit Joe Mauer, why even come out and play. Your 1-for-4 performance on Sunday did you no good in your quest for .400.

o. Have a week Adrian Gonzalez. Three home runs, eight RBI and a 20-for-34 stretch (.588) over his last seven games is incredible. Sunday was just another day at the park going 4-for-5 with a home run and RBI.

o. The Yankees lost on Sunday? Inconceivable.

o. Andre Ethier went 4-for-5 on Sunday with four RBI. He now has 24 home runs on the season and is batting .352 during the last month of play.

o. Ryan Howard, himself, crushed the Braves on Sunday. He had four RBI while blasting two home runs.

The Afflicted: Matt Harrison underwent surgery for Thoracic Outlet Syndrome on his left shoulder last month. He's progressing and could begin throwing this week. Martin Prado was scratched from the lineup on Sunday as a result of dizziness he felt in the batting cage prior to the game. He did pinch hit late in the game. Three players took baseballs to the head on Saturday. Ian Kinsler was back in the lineup on Sunday, but David Wright and Hiroki Kuroda both required hospital stays. Wright was placed on the disabled list on Sunday and his season is in jeopardy. Kuroda says he feels lucky to be alive. The Blue Jays have decided to keep Shaun Marcum on the disabled list for the remainder of the season. His rehab is going fine, as are his checkups. This is a precautionary measure. Tim Hudson is said to be two minor league starts away from returning to the Braves rotation.

Lineup Lock Time: Arizona and Atlanta are getting things started at 4:05 PM ET.

Randy Wolf Provides All the Run Support He Needs originally appeared on Fantasy Baseball Fanhouse on Mon, 17 Aug 2009 09:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Should Fernando Rodney Be Worried About His Job?

Knox Bardeen — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 14:15:00 EST

Filed under: MLB Always Be Closing

Detroit Tigers closer Fernando Rodney has only one blown save this year. He's recorded 23 saves, has almost a strikeout per inning pitched and at 3.86, his ERA, while not superb, is manageable. So, why is his job on the line?

It could be the 18 walks he's issued since June 1st in only 28 innings of work. It could also be the five home runs he's given up since June 1st compared to only allowing one prior. But, most likely, it's the way he's started out the month of March. In five appearances Rodney has two saves and a win, but he's allowed four earned runs in only five innings. Patience is wearing thin in Detroit, and they have other options.

Brandon Lyon has had quite an opposite experience since June 1st. In 33 innings of work he's sporting a 0.82 ERA and has 27 strikeouts and ten walks. The walk rate is still a little high for a dominant closer, but everything else about Lyon screams that he's ready to take the helm when the Tigers finally grow tired of Rodney.

Lyon could be a nice speculative waiver wire pick up of trade right now. If he doesn't take over for Rodney, you're still going to get ERA and WHIP assistance while Lyon is tearing it up.

It was August 2nd when Scott Downs was placed on the disabled list again. Since then, Jason Frasor has been the acting closer, although the Blue Jays haven't been giving him many opportunities to act like a closer. Since July 8th, Frasor hasn't allowed an earned run. But in that time, he's only recorded two saves in 11 appearances. His ERA is perfect, his WHIP is 0.60, but Frasor just isn't going to be a top option for saves because his team doesn't give him enough opportunities.

Tuesday night was big for Bobby Jenks. For the first time since July 20th he recorded a save. He had a miserable July where batters hit .394 against him and he posted an 8.59 ERA. Some of that could have to do with his bout with kidney stones. The White Sox have a lot of viable options in their bullpen to replace Jenks if he were to fall out of favor. But, Ozzie Guillen has supported Jenks throughout, and it looks like Jenks is now healthy again and ready to put July behind him. He's still a good number two option amongst closers.

Should Fernando Rodney Be Worried About His Job? originally appeared on Fantasy Baseball Fanhouse on Wed, 12 Aug 2009 14:15:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Rich Harden Leads Cubs to NL Central Top Spot

Knox Bardeen — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 08:03:00 EST

Filed under: MLB Always Be Closing, MLB Injury Report, MLB Value Machine

Poppin' out the box scores and right into your cubicle, the Roto Rush is your double espresso shot of fantasy baseball advice every weekday.

Sure, he gave up a home run to Joey Votto on Sunday, but that's about all the Cincinnati Reds got facing the Cubs' Rich Harden.

For Harden this was his third consecutive start where he showed the potential of being a front-line ace. He struck out eight in only six innings and that home run was the only hit and only run he allowed the Reds in route to earning his seventh win.

Over his last three starts Harden has struck out 21 while walking only two batters in 19 innings. His ERA over this time is 0.47 and he has two wins to show for great pitching.

This is the first time in 2009 Harden has put together this kind of run. He's been able, on a number of occasions, to put two good starts together, but never three as he seems to get shelled every time he's about to take that next step towards becoming the solid number one guy the Cubs desperately need him to be.

Not only does Sunday's win put the Cubs on top in the National League Central division for the first time since April 21st, but Harden's daytime win at Wrigley Field is his first since August 24, 2008.

With Harden's new-found awesomeness the Cubs could be ready to sit on top of the division for the duration of the season.

Bits From the Box Scores
o. As I mentioned above Joey Votto clobbered his 15th home run of the season against Rich Harden on Sunday. This was his second game in a row with a dinger and he's hit three in the past five games.

o. Batting .333 in the month of July, Jimmy Rollins continued his torrid pace on Sunday belting his 10th home run of the season, his fourth in July. Those that bought low should be very, very happy with the move.

o. With Sunday's 1-for-2 performance, Matt Holliday has at least one hit and one RBI in every game he's played since joining the Cardinals.

o. The Padres seem very serious about keeping Kyle Blanks in the outfield. With Adrian Gonzalez getting a day off Sunday, Blanks still played right field. He also hit his third home run of the season. As the Padres inch closer and closer to dealing Gonzalez, the days of Blanks being an outfielder seem numbered.

o. His last start, prior to Sunday, was a complete game shutout. Today John Lannan only lasted eight innings and gave up an earned run. Mike MacDougal blew his first save of the season, so Lannan doesn't have a win to show for his hard work today. But you should take note of how well he's pitching. Just temper your excitement down one notch, his last two starts have been against the Mets and Padres.

o. Take away his June 2nd start where he gave up five earned runs and David Hernandez would have a 2.76 ERA instead of his already good 3.20 mark. He should complain too much. he did earn his third win of the season as the Orioles scored him some runs and the bullpen didn't destroy his efforts. If Hernandez didn't pitch in the murderous American League East, he'd be worth looking at in most formats. As it stands right now, he's only worth a flier in deep AL-Only leagues.

o. Completing his third consecutive quality start n a row on Sunday, Brett Cecil gave up four hits and an earned run in seven innings to beat the Tampa Bay Rays and earn his fourth win. In his last three starts Cecil is 2-0 with an 0.45 ERA. He also has 21 strikeouts in 20 innings of work.

o. Troy Tulowitzki has never reached double digit stolen bases in a single season. In fact he's only combined for 11 swipes in the three years he's been in the big leagues prior to 2009. But on Sunday, Tulowitzki stole his 13th bag. Take that with his 18 home runs and the Rockies shortstop could reach the 20/20 mark this season.

o. Justin Morneau hit two bombs on Sunday. He's good. He's really, really good!

o. Max Scherzer struck out eight in seven innings Sunday earning his first win since June 23rd.

The Afflicted: Kevin Millwood left Sunday's game after two innings and won't be sure whether he'll make his next start until Monday. He felt his left gluteus muscle tighten up. Yes, I said gluteus. It looks like Joel Zumaya will pitch again this season. Pedro Martinez only lasted 1 1/3 innings on Sunday in his minor league rehab start. Before you Phillie phanatics scream you should know that Martinez looked sharp. It was rain that cancelled his day. Erik Bedard will miss at least two starts and has been placed on the 15-day disabled list with inflammation in his left shoulder. LaTroy Hawkins has been filling in for injured teammates all season. Now it's his turn. He's been dealing with back pain all month and will have an MRI on Monday.

Don't Forget About: The David Letterman Show on Monday night. Mark Buehrle, DeWayne Wise and Josh Fields will read the Top 10 List tomorrow before their series opener in Minnesota. Monday night's Letterman will feature the three key players involved in orchestrating Major League Baseball's 18th perfect game this past week.

Rich Harden Leads Cubs to NL Central Top Spot originally appeared on Fantasy Baseball Fanhouse on Mon, 27 Jul 2009 08:03:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Chatting Waiver Wire, Closers and Sell High Candidates With Sid Rosenberg

Knox Bardeen — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 21:00:00 EST

Filed under: MLB Always Be Closing, MLB Waiver Wire

We're almost exactly at the halfway mark of the major league season. If you're really going to make that final run for the title you need to make careful and calculating roster moves from this point forward. On Tuesday, I spoke with Sid Rosenberg on OPENSports.com about some pitchers and hitters that you can easily find on the waiver wire. We also spoke about major league teams using the closer by committee system and how to handle that on your fantasy team. And finally, we spoke about guys like Mark Reynolds and Adam Jones and let you in on why you should consider unloading these guys at a premium. Check out the video after the jump.

Chatting Waiver Wire, Closers and Sell High Candidates With Sid Rosenberg originally appeared on Fantasy Baseball Fanhouse on Wed, 01 Jul 2009 21:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Howell Still the Man in Tampa, Fuentes Still the Man

Knox Bardeen — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 11:30:00 EST

Filed under: MLB Always Be Closing

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.

Howell Still the Man in Tampa, Fuentes Still the Man originally appeared on Fantasy Baseball Fanhouse on Tue, 30 Jun 2009 11:30:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Braves Buying In to Two-Closer System, Nationals Just Buying Time

Knox Bardeen — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 14:50:00 EST

Filed under: MLB Always Be Closing

In what is most likely music to many fantasy owners' ears, Jose Valverde is back from the disabled list and ready to close out games for the Astros. He's thrown in two games since his return and has struck out three batters and hasn't allowed a hit in 1.1 innings of work. It's likely that he'll re-assume the role of closer for the Astros upon their next save opportunity.

Manny Ramirez still gets all of the press in Los Angeles, even when he's not on the field. That's a shame because Jonathan Broxton has become a dominant force on the mound, and one of the games top closers. He's closed out his last eight save opportunities and leads all closers in strikeouts with 53. He also frustrates hitters more than other closers as hitters only have been able to muster a .103 batting average against Broxton.

While we all wait for Drew Storen, the tenth overall pick in this year's First Year Player Draft, to make his way up the organizational depth chart and land in D.C., the Nationals have handed the closer's job to Mike MacDougal. He hasn't pitched in a save opportunity yet, but it won't be long until he's blowing saves just like every other Nationals option in the 9th inning.

Who is the only National League team to have two relievers on staff with five or more saves? Why, it's the Atlanta Braves. Nobody seems to know who the closer is in Atlanta. It may be that both Mike Gonzalez and Rafael Soriano are handling the duties. While this isn't the optimal fantasy situation, the Braves don't seem to mind since both pitchers are throwing magnificently right now. Soriano got the most recent save on June 9th, but Gonzalez closed out the June 7th game. Keep your eyes on this situation in case one of these two falls from grace.

Jason Isringhausen and Frank Francisco have both landed back on the disabled list, but the severity of their injuries are completely different. Isringhausen's season is done after tearing a ligament in his elbow. Francisco, on the other hand, is eligible to come off of the DL on Friday. He was placed on the DL (retroactive to June 4th) with shoulder stiffness and hasn't pitched since June 3rd. Francisco will make a rehab assignment on Thursday to see if he's ready for action on the weekend.

Braves Buying In to Two-Closer System, Nationals Just Buying Time originally appeared on Fantasy Baseball Fanhouse on Tue, 16 Jun 2009 14:50:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Lidge's DL Stint Temporarily Ends Phillies' 9th Inning Suffering

Knox Bardeen — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 14:53:00 EST

Filed under: MLB Always Be Closing, MLB Injury Report

It was announced by the Phillies today that Brad Lidge is being placed on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to June 7th. To say he's been having a disappointing season in an understatement.

Lidge, 32, is 0-3 this season with 13 saves and a 7.27 ERA in 28 relief appearances. Opponents have hit .306 against him. In his last seven games, Lidge was 5-for-7 in save opportunities with a 1.42 ERA and a .182 opponents' batting average.

It's time to run to your waiver wire and sign Ryan Madson, who's owned in only 18% of Yahoo! fantasy leagues. Madson will be handed the closing duties while Lidge is out.

Madson already has two saves filling in for Lidge. He also sports a 2.22 ERA and 1.06 WHIP with 31 strikeouts in 28.1 innings. Batters are only hitting .202 against him.

Lidge's DL Stint Temporarily Ends Phillies' 9th Inning Suffering originally appeared on Fantasy Baseball Fanhouse on Tue, 09 Jun 2009 14:53:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Kevin Gregg: Public Enemy No. 1

Knox Bardeen — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 10:24:00 EST

Filed under: MLB Always Be Closing

The first thing that Randy Wells might want to do today is seek Carlos Zambrano out for guidance. Whether this advice be about punching teammates in the face or taking out aggression on innocent Gatorade machines in the dugout, Wells needs to ask how to properly express the way he feels about Carlos Marmol and Kevin Gregg.

Wells took a no-hitter into the seventh where Chipper Jones crashed the party. Upon leaving the game, Wells, while disappointed, had to take solace in the fact that he would at least get the victory. Enter Marmol, then Gregg to completely screw the pooch on that one.

Marmol gave up an earned run in the 8th and Gregg allowed a bottom of the ninth two-run blast from Jeff Francoeur to tie the ballgame. The Cubs eventually lost the game in the 12th when Chipper produced a walk-off single.

Let's put aside the fact that Gregg is still closing out games for the Cubs even though he's sporting an ERA above five while Marmol has shined in the past month with a 1.38 ERA. Neither late inning option has provided squeaky clean results this season. The pulse with Cubs faithful is starting to sound like life support may be needed if the closer conundrum in Chicago isn't addressed.

Speaking of Cubs faithful, and not that I took any pleasure in watching a great performance from Wells get torn apart, I did, however, rather enjoy some of the responses I saw on twitter last night.

Aisle424 made me laugh a few times with tweets like "#newandinterestingwaystograbdefeatfromthejawsofvictory" and with the way he signed off for the night, "If anyone needs me, I'll be curled up in a fetal position for awhile."

Some were as simple as BigLeagueStew's tweet of "Damn you, Kevin Gregg!"

Most tweets contained too many expletives to post here, and TheMontyShow even proved that Cubs fans have no faith in Kevin Gregg by predicting the eventual home run that tied the game, "Am I the only Cub fan nervous every time Kevin Gregg comes in the game???? 5-3 BTM 9, 1 out.".

Needless to say, it's a rough time in Wrigleyville right now. We'll have to wait and see if bullpen roles change anytime soon.

In other closer news:

- Royals closer Joakim Soria was activated from the disabled list now that he seems to have recovered from a strained rotator cuff. It's time to get him off of your fantasy DL and back into the lineup.

- Ryan Madson got the save last night for the Phillies, his second of the season. Instead of this being the beginning of Brad Lidge losing control of his handle on his ninth inning role, Madson throwing was just a case of Lidge getting a ~~well deserved~~ scheduled night off.

- Injured Astros closer Jose Valverde joined the team recently to finish up his rehab. He threw a 25-pitch bullpen session before Monday nights game and felt fine. He's going to test mobility this week before pitching to hitters this weekend. The question for the Astros is what to do with LaTroy Hawkins when Valverde returns. Hawkins has five saves and a 1.42 ERA while filling in for Valverde and could slide back into his set-up role or could become trade bait.

Kevin Gregg: Public Enemy No. 1 originally appeared on Fantasy Baseball Fanhouse on Wed, 03 Jun 2009 10:24:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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The Closer Report: Heath Bell Shines as Brad Lidge Declines

Knox Bardeen — Thu, 28 May 2009 10:05:00 EST

Filed under: MLB Always Be Closing, MLB Value Machine

It's always nice to know how secure a closer's job is and who's next in line if somebody loses their 9th inning job. The Closer Report will give you that info. And if that wasn't good enough, we'll rank the closers from top to bottom.

As you'll see, Heath Bell has taken over the top spot on this edition of The Closer Report. A few big-name, top-of-the-charts closers from years past have fallen off quite a bit. How weird is it to see Brad Lidge near the bottom of the closer rankings and Joe Nathan stuck in the middle?

Closer	Rank	Next in Line	Comments
Heath Bell Padres	1	Edward Mujica	Bell got "touched up" last week for one run. That was his first all season and his ERA sits at 0.46.
Francisco Rodriguez, Mets	2	J.J. Putz	K-Rod is right behind Bell with 13 saves. His ERA is higher and his strikeout-to-walk ratio isn't as good as Bell's.
Trevor Hoffman, Brewers	3	Carlos Villanueva	Hoffman has 11 saves since coming off of the DL on April 27th. He's hot and the Brewers are hot. How long will this last?
Jonathan Papelbon, Red Sox	4	Takashi Saito	Papelbon is working on adding a slider to his mix of pitches. Over his last two appearances that experiment hasn't turned out well.
Francisco Cordero, Reds	5	David Weathers	Cordero hasn't blown a save this season and has recorded a strikeout per inning pitched. Both great things for a top-5 closer.
Jonathan Broxton, Dodgers	6	Cory Wade	Broxton has actually blown a couple of saves, but turned them into wins. He has five relief wins to go along with his 11 saves. He's also leading all closers with a 13.88 K/9 ratio.
Mariano Rivera, Yankees	7	Phil Coke / Alfredo Aceves	Rivera has a sick strikeout-to-walk ratio of 24.00 (24:1 K:BB). His ERA has climbed a bit lately, but that was before the Yankees started clicking. Expect a big run soon from Rivera.
Ryan Franklin, Cardinals	8	Dennys Reyes / Jason Motte	Franklin doesn't have the massive strikeout totals of some closers but he is entrenched as the closer on a contending team and batters are hitting .162 against him.
Frank Francisco, Rangers	9	C.J. Wilson	Francisco has already recorded a save (his 10th) since his return from the DL and has three strikeouts in two innings of work with zero runs given up. He's back!
Brian Fuentes, Angels	10	Jose Arredondo	Fuentes has two blown saves thus far but hasn't blown one since May 1st. Since then he's recorded eight saves and only given up one earned run in 9 2/3 innings.
Chad Qualls, Diamondbacks	11	Tony Pena	True, Qualls has 11 saves. But he's given up five earned runs in his last seven games. Let's hope this isn't the start of something bad.
Bobby Jenks, White Sox	12	Matt Thornton	Jenks is more like a low-end No. 1 closer with the White Sox playing poorly.
Joe Nathan, Twins	13	Matt Guerrier	Nathan has already blown two saves and isn't the same dominating force in the 9th inning that he was last season.
David Aardsma, Mariners	14	Mark Lowe	Since overtaking Brandon Morrow, Aardsma has really shined in the closer role. Now if only the Mariners could consistently provide him with save opportunities.
George Sherrill, Orioles	15	Chris Ray	Sherrill's job is no longer in jeopardy as he's recorded six saves over the last month with an 0.82 ERA.
Scott Downs, Blue Jays	16	B.J. Ryan	Downs is doing just fine in save opportunities, it's the non-save chances where he seems to get worked over. He has a fantastic strikeout-to-walk ratio of 11.50 (23:2 K:BB) and is striking out more than a batter per inning.
Fernando Rodney, Tigers	17	Joel Zumaya	Rodney doesn't strike a lot of batters out, but he doesn't make too many mistakes either. He hasn't blown a save yet.
Brian Wilson, Giants	18	Jeremy Affeldt	This is typical Brian Wilson we're seeing here. A mid-four ERA and three blown saves already.
Kevin Gregg, Cubs	19	Carlos Marmol	Gregg was rolling along nicely in early May until a four-run outing almost doubled his ERA. He's not in terrible danger of losing his job, but Marmol is always one step behind.
Mike Gonzalez, Braves	20	Rafael Soriano	Soriano had to step in and fix a mess Gonzalez created this past week. Gonzo has already blown three saves and Soriano seems capable, when healthy, to do the job.
Huston Street, Rockies	21	Manny Corpas	Street is seven for seven in save opportunities and has brought his ERA down to 3.26 while not giving up an earned run in the month of May.
Brad Ziegler, Athletics	22	Andrew Bailey	Bailey earned his second save of the season and manager Bob Geren said Bailey and Ziegler may share closing duties from here on out.
Matt Capps, Pirates	23	John Grabow	Capps hasn't thrown in two days but it seems like he'll miss a trip to the DL. His 6.46 ERA and .361 batting average against are reasons for alarm.
LaTroy Hawkins, Astros	24	Chris Sampson	Hawkins hasn't recorded a save since May 14th and actually has two losses over that same period of time.
Brad Lidge, Phillies	25	Ryan Madson	Lidge's four blown saves is the most in Major League Baseball. This is a far cry from his perfect season of 2008.
Kerry Wood, Indians	26	Rafael Betancourt	Wood isn't being given the save opportunities to make him a No. 1 closer option, or even a mid-to-upper No. 2 option, for that matter. Batters are hitting .290 against him too.
Matt Lindstrom, Marlins	27	Leo Nunez	Lindstrom has a 5.85 ERA and isn't offering fantasy GM's the consistency needed to be a top fantasy closer.
Jason Isringhausen, Rays	28	Joe Nelson / Dan Wheeler	With Troy Percival out Izzy was handed the keys and promptly blew his first save opportunity. He may stay in the role or the closer duties could go to Nelson or Wheeler. Keep watching.
Juan Cruz, Royals	29	Kyle Farnsworth	Cruz is filling in nicely for Soria with two saves going for him. Soria will be out another two weeks, so if you need saves Cruz can be a cheap option.
Joel Hanrahan, Nationals	30	Joe Beimel	Hanrahan still isn't close to becoming more than a bottom-rung closer, but he has recorded two saves in his last three appearances without giving up an earned run.

The Closer Report: Heath Bell Shines as Brad Lidge Declines originally appeared on Fantasy Baseball Fanhouse on Thu, 28 May 2009 10:05:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Scott Linebrink to the Rescue

Knox Bardeen — Wed, 27 May 2009 12:37:00 EST

Filed under: MLB Always Be Closing

You may have noticed in the box scores Wednesday morning that Scott Linebrink earned a save Tuesday night as the White Sox beat the Angels. It wasn't a flawless performance as Linebrink gave up a solo home run to Torii Hunter in addition to another hit in his inning of work. The White Sox won 4-2 and Linebrink notched his first save, but why wasn't Bobby Jenks closing the game out?

Jenks wasn't being punished for blowing his first save of the year this past weekend, he simply had flu-like symptoms and couldn't go Tuesday night. As soon as Jenks is healthy, he be back pitching the 9th for the Sox.

In other closer-related news:

Another non-closer earned a save Tuesday night as Juan Gutierrez recorded a five-out save to give the Diamondbacks a 6-5 win over the Padres. Maybe Gutierrez was given the opportunity to close the game because he did so well to get out of the eighth inning or maybe it was because both Chad Qualls and Tony Pena had pitched in five of the last seven games for Arizona.

The Oakland A's may have a closer controversy brewing as Andrew Bailey earned his second save of the year Tuesday night. A's manager Bob Geren said that closing duties might be shared between Bailey and Brad Ziegler going forward.

Bailey has a 2.12 ERA and three wins to go along with his 37 strikeouts in 29 2/3 innings pitched. He may be worth picking up in deep mixed-leagues and AL-only leagues.

Scott Linebrink to the Rescue originally appeared on Fantasy Baseball Fanhouse on Wed, 27 May 2009 12:37:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Roto Rush: Yanks' Fancy New Bandbox

Tom Herrera — Fri, 08 May 2009 18:00:00 EST

Filed under: MLB Always Be Closing, MLB Injury Report, MLB Waiver Wire

Poppin' out the box scores and right into your cubicle, the Roto Rush is your double espresso shot of fantasy baseball advice every weekday.

At least we know Alex Rodriguez will have plenty of help from Yankee Stadium as he makes his way back from hip surgery.

Just ask Johnny Damon, who's suddenly turned into one of the hottest power hitters in baseball after hitting only 17 home runs all of last year. Damon has already knocked seven out this season, including three this month. The Rays joined in on the ball-smashing fun Thursday, launching six homers as a team. So is a trip to Yankee Stadium the same as visiting Arlington now?

There's no doubt right field has been especially friendly to hitters of all shapes and sizes. Six out of the eight homers that were hit in Thursday's Rays-Yanks game went to right field. When Buster Olney took a closer look at the problem in late April, one official said: "With the way the wind has been the last couple of days, right field is a joke." Some of the latest theories include skewed architectural construction, seating angles and blaming the old Yankee Stadium's presence for causing the wind current to shift.

Whatever the case may be, this home run onslaught could continue all season long. That means you have to strongly consider playing all your hitters there. It's currently right below Rangers Ballpark in Park Factors. Heck, it even helped Carl Crawford hit his first one out. I wouldn't be surprised to see over 20 jacks from Damon this season and over 30 from Nick Swisher.

Bits From the Box Scores:
o. Ichiro is just starting to get warmed up. He collected three hits Thursday and stole his fifth base of the season. You know who also stole his fifth? Coco Crisp. That gives him three over his last two games, and he comes at a rock-bottom price compared to Ichiro if you need swipes and runs.

o. Brian Bannister's ratio isn't pretty, but you can't ignore a 1.48 ERA and 1.19 WHIP through his first four games. If he can keep his walks and home runs allowed down he's got a pretty good shot to repeat his strong 2007 season, where he finished with a 3.87 ERA. More of an option in deep and AL-only leagues.

o. Bengie Molina hasn't drawn a walk yet. He's also hit three homers in his last three games and seven total -- on pace to shatter his career high.

o. I discussed a bunch of players who can help you fill in for Manny Ramirez, but another cheap alternative I didn't mention is Brad Hawpe. He's starting to turn it on and you shouldn't have to pay a ransom to acquire him.

o. Remember when Emilio Bonifacio was a king amongst infielders? Yeah, now he's basically Craig Counsell. Another lowly performance against the Braves dropped his batting average to .194 for May. He'll still retain value because of his speed, but the honeymoon is over and Fredi Gonzalez can't keep trotting him out at leadoff much longer.

o. Always nice to see Chris Davis hit one out of the park, especially since I have about four teams counting on him as a corner infielder. Maybe the mechanical tinkering I mentioned is already starting to pay off. Don't sleep on Justin Smoak, though. He's tearing it up in the minors.

o. Asdrubal Cabrera has a hit in 12 of his last 13 games. With 21 runs, five steals and a .330 average, there's really no reason he should be on the waiver wire in so many leagues. He's an ideal fill-in for Alexei Ramirez, who shouldn't be abandoned.

o. Two hitters that are quietly heating up: Jayson Werth and Jay Bruce. The Phillies outfielder has three home runs and eight RBI over his last four games, while the Reds' 22-year-old has three HR this month as well.

o. It's quickly starting to get shaky for Armando Galarraga -- eleven runs over his last two starts. I think it's time to be selective play the matchups with both him and Edwin Jackson.

o. Aaron Hill is up to eight homers, 28 RBI and 25 runs for Toronto. Safe to say the power is back.

The Afflicted: Alex Rodriguez and Brian McCann are back in the lineup for the Yankees and Braves. Mariano Rivera is experiencing shoulder discomfort. Nothing to be alarmed about yet. Anibal Sanchez will be out two months with a shoulder injury. It looks like Chris Carpenter is on track for a late May return.

Weekend Aces in the Hole: On Saturday, Paul Maholm (3-0, 2.97 ERA) faces the Mets at Citi Field. He holds a 2.25 career ERA vs. New York. Joe Saunders (4-1, 3.29 ERA) against the Royals at home is another solid option. Jeff Weaver (1-0, 1.00 ERA), impressive over his first two outings, will get an easy matchup on Sunday vs. the Giants. Max Scherzer (0-3, 3.38 ERA) is somehow sitting on the waiver wire in about 30 percent of mixed leagues. He'll take on the Nationals at home and should pitch his third consecutive quality start.

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Roto Rush: Yanks' Fancy New Bandbox originally appeared on Fantasy Baseball Fanhouse on Fri, 08 May 2009 18:00:00 EST . Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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