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2011 Fantasy Baseball Closer Report – Week 26

Posted by Todd Lammi on September 19th, 2011

With the Tampa Bay Rays trying to chase down the Boston Red Sox the last two weeks of the season, closer Joel Peralta has helped to shut the door in the ninth inning, collecting three saves last week with six strikeouts. Peralta now has a 3.06 ERA for the season to go with a .94 WHIP and given how cheap the Rays like to go on relief pitcher contracts, Peralta figures to be in the mix for saves in 2012 if he is re-signed.

Closer Frank Francisco picked up two saves for the Toronto Blue Jays last week and has been quietly effective since the All-Star break, posting a 1.48 ERA to go with a 0.86 WHIP with 22 strikeouts in 24 1/3 innings. His control has been much better as well with only four walks allowed in that stretch.

Drew Storen of the Washington Nationals snared four saves last week giving him a total of 38 for the season in 43 chances. Storen has picked up his strikeout pace since the All-Star break, fanning 33 in 24 innings of work, but he has been easier to hit as well with a .242 batting average against compared to a .193 mark in the first half of the season.

Jose Valverde collected three saves for the Detroit Tigers last week and has now converted all 46 save chances for the season. Valverde has a 2.41 ERA and 1.20 WHIP for the season and you can bet that the team will be picking up $9M club option for 2012.

2011 Fantasy Baseball Closer Report – Week 25

Posted by Todd Lammi on September 12th, 2011

Jason Motte has entrenched himself as the flavor of the month closer in the St. Louis Cardinal bullpen, collecting three saves last week in four innings of work with three strikeouts. I see that some owners are cutting Fernando Salas in keeper league formats which I don’t understand. With as much shuffling as the Cardinals have done in the bullpen this season, I would hold Salas in keeper league formats unless you absolutely need his roster spot in order to try and win your league this season.

Bobby Parnell blew two saves last week for the New York Mets, although in the last outing both runs were unearned, but he now has five blown saves in 10 chances for the season to go with six losses. Manny Acosta up one save for the Mets but also blew two saves as well leaving the New York bullpen in a state of flux.

Jim Johnson collected two saves for the Baltimore Orioles last week and should see a good portion of saves the last couple of weeks of the season after Kevin Gregg blew another save over the weekend. Johnson has thrown a career high 81 2/3 innings this season and currently sports a 2.76 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP.

Kyle Farnsworth blew his only two save chances for the Tampa Bay Rays last week, allowing three home runs in 1 1/3 innings. Farnsworth has picked up only one save since August 19th but should the remaining save chances the rest of the way for the Rays as the try to hunt down the Boston Red Sox for the wild card spot.

On a side note, I will be doing some fantasy football work over at a new site that just launched at www.insidethehuddle.tv. The site is dedicated to information on the Green Bay Packers but it will have a lot of fantasy football coverage as well.

2011 Fantasy Baseball Closer Report – Week 24

Posted by Todd Lammi on September 5th, 2011

It depends how depserate for saves you are over the last few weeks of the season as to whether you want to risk carrying Bobby Parnell of the New York Mets on your active fantasy baseball roster. Last week Parnell collected four saves, but it came with a price tag of a 5.79 ERA and a 1.93 WHIP.

Colorado Rockies current closer Rafael Betancourt picked up two saves last week with two perfect innings of work and it looks like he will keep Huston Street in a setup role for another week at least. Street is signed through 2013 so I would not worry about him being out of a job in 2012 if you own in him keeper leagues.

One guy who has quietly flown under the radar this year has been Jonathan Papelbon of the Boston Red Sox. Papelbon has bounced back from his struggles last season and has converted 29 of 30 saves with a .90 WHIP and a .202 batting average against.

It’s much easier to carry one or two starting pitchers on your fantasy roster who aren’t strikeout pitchers when you have a stud closer that can rack up a lot of whiffs each week. For example, last week Craig Kimbrel of the Atlanta Braves finished with two saves plus 10 strikeouts in five innings. For the season, Kimbrel now has 113 strikeouts in 68 2/3 innings. and he finished the month of August a perfect 10-for-10 in saves with no runs allowed in 12 2/3 innings of work.

2011 Fantasy Baseball Closer Report – Week 23

Posted by Todd Lammi on August 29th, 2011

Despite the return of closer Huston Street to the active roster, Rafael Betancourt remained at closer for the Colorado Rockies last week. Betancourt blew a save on Saturday night, but then got the ball again on Sunday and converted the save chance with a scoreless inning. The run allowed by Betancourt was his first earned run he surrendered so far in the second half of the season in 19 innings. Street will likely return to the closer role once he is back to full strength, but Betancourt should be able to grab some saves for at least week.

Mark Melancon has been struggling of late for the Houston Astros with two blown saves and a loss in his last eight appearances. With the Astros so far out of contention, the team really has no reason to remove Melancon from the role and instead let him work through his issues in order to see if he is a viable candidate to close in 2012. Wilton Lopez would like get some save chances if the Astros decided to make a move at some point.

Closer Leo Nunez in Florida has gone into the tank the second half of the season, blowing saves in two of his last three appearances and allowing nine runs over 2 2/3 innings. Steve Chisek picked up two saves last week in place of Nunez and could get a look going forward with a 2,79 ERA and 1.17 WHIP for the season.

Despite the overall stellar numbers of Fernando Salas, he has blown his last two save chances and there are rumblings that Jason Motte could see some chances the remainder of the season. Motte has worked 17 scoreless innings since the All-Star break with a 0.34 WHIP and 13 strikeouts in 17 2/3 innings.

2011 Fantasy Baseball Closer Report – Week 22

Posted by Todd Lammi on August 22nd, 2011

Closer Brian Wilson was placed on the disabled list by the San Francisco Giants which leaves a hole at the back of the bullpen. Jeremy Affeldt will get a look in the closer role, but with the depth of the bullpen and how well the relievers have been pitching, it is conceivable that Santiago Casilla, Javier Lopez or Ramon Ramirez could see save opportunities as well. Ramirez and Affeldt have the second most saves after Wilson with three apiece.

Toronto Blue Jays reliever Jon Rauch will miss two to three weeks of action due to appendicitis which seemed to open the door for Frank Francisco to go back into the closer role but Francisco was scratched from Sunday’s contest due to a sore right shoulder. If Francisco is unable to go this week, Casey Janssen could see save some save chances. Janssen has a 2.20 ERA and 1.10 WHIP on the season.

Kevin Gregg got a vote of confidence as closer for the Baltimore Orioles but it really doesn’t matter much since team is not winning any games. Given his first save opportunity since July 29th, Gregg blew the save on Saturday allowing two hits and a walk without recording an out. Gregg has now allowed seven runs over his last two innings. Mike Gonzalez could be back in the mix for saves with his solid performance in August with six scoreless innings and seven strikeouts.

2011 Fantasy Baseball Closer Report – Week 21

Posted by Todd Lammi on August 15th, 2011

A big reason that the Arizona Diamondbacks currently lead the National League West is because of the 1-2 punch in the back of their bullpen. Last week the team notched five saves as J.J. Putz collected three and David Hernandez picked up two. Hernandez has 11 saves to go with 17 holds on the season and a 2.83 ERA with a 1.11 WHIP. That is not bad for a closer handcuff that when undrafted in mixed league formats. Because of the injury history of Putz, Hernandez has a little more value in keeper leagues than most closer handcuffs would have.

Closer Huston Street of the Colorado Rockies was placed on the disabled list on August 9th and could be back once his 15 days are up. In the meantime, Rafael Betancourt takes over as closer making him a solid one to two week play for teams needing a save or two to gain points in the standings. Betancourt has been unscored upon in 13 innings since the All-Star break with 24 strikeouts.

Kevin Gregg had a rough outing in a non-save situation yesterday, allowing four hits and two walks without recording an out against the Detroit Tigers. Gregg now has a 4.28 ERA and 1.58 WHIP for the season. If the Baltimore Orioles make a move at closer, Jim Johnson could see some save opportunities. Johnson has a 2.97 ERA with a 1.23 WHIP and picked up the save yesterday to bail out Gregg.

While not a closer, Glen Perkins of the Minnesota Twins was credited with two blown saves in his last two outings. Perkins has allowed runs in four straight appearances and has not picked up a hold since July 27th.

2011 Fantasy Baseball Closer Report – Week 20

Posted by Todd Lammi on August 8th, 2011

Jon Rauch is still collecting saves for the Toronto Blue Jays but he has not looked pretty doing it. Rauch has allowed runs in four of his last five outings and surrendered 10 hits over his last 5 1/3 innings of work. Frank Francisco could see the next save opportunity with seven straight scoreless outings in the books.

Chris Perez has been struggling of late for the Cleveland Indians, collecting only one save since July 15th while blowing two chances and he has also been scored upon in six of his last seven appearances. Combining his numbers from July and August, Perez has walked five and struck out six in 10 1/3 innings with eight earned runs allowed.

After a disastrous July that saw Carlos Marmol of the Chicago Cubs post a 9.90 ERA with a 2.30, the right-hander has gotten out of the gates quickly in August by converting all four save chances while walking only one batter in four innings. His seven blown saves for the season are two more than he had all of 2010.

Fantasy baseball owners that pounced on Javy Guerra when he was a free agent have to be smiling to themselves now that Guerra has converted all 10 save chances, while posting a 1.69 ERA and a 1.16 WHIP for the season. Guerra has not allowed a run since July 6th and has yet to yield a home run this year.

2011 Fantasy Baseball Closer Report – Week 15

Posted by Todd Lammi on July 5th, 2011

Hopefully if you read the column last week you had the chance to grab David Hernandez from the waiver wire if he was out there to cover for any potential loss of job or injury to J.J. Putz which did indeed happen. Putz is currently on the disabled list with a bad right elbow and the Arizona Diamondbacks hope he can return after the All-Star break though that may be a little too optimistic given Putz’s injury history and age.

Matt Capps had a rough start to the month of July with a disastrous blown save on July 2, allowing four runs in 2/3 of an inning and then was pulled the following night from a save chance when he allowed two runners while recording only one out. Tonight he was removed again from a save chance allowing a run and three baserunners before Glen Perkins bailed him out for his second save of the season. Perkins is having a career year this season with a 1.80 ERA and a 1.27 WHIP. Perkins looks to be next in line for saves if Capps is removed from the role with Joe Nathan possibly figuring into the mix as well.

Mark Melancon seems to be fading in Houston as he has allowed runs to score in four of his last five outings, taking on a full 1.5 runs to his ERA on the season. He has not collected a save since June 8th and could be looking at a return to the set up role if he does not turn things around quickly. Wilton Lopez would likely be next in line for save chances if the Astros decide to make a move.

2011 Fantasy Baseball Closer Report – Week 14

Posted by Todd Lammi on June 28th, 2011

Philadelphia Phillies relief pitcher Antonio Bastardo should be a popular waiver claim this week as he takes over as closer with Ryan Madson going on the disabled list. Bastardo has a .96 ERA and a .86 WHIP for the season with 33 strikeouts in 28 innings.

Not a good start to the week for Los Angeles Angels closer Jordan Walden who blew his third consecutive save, giving him six blown saves for the season. Walden had been perfect in saves through the month of June until his in his last three outings in which he also recorded no strikeouts. Despite the three blown saves, Walden has not gotten pounded so he is lucky to keep the job for now. Veteran left-hander Scott Downs could see some save chances if the Angels decide to make a switch. Downs has five wins on the season with a 1.69 ERA and a .90 WHIP.

June has been a much different month for J.J. Putz of the Arizona Diamondbacks as he has blwon three saves and took a loss last night. For the month of June, Putz has a 4.91 ERA and a 1.18 WHIP. He has held up so far this season but if I owned Putz, I would want to be sure I had David Hernandez on reserve just in case.

Neftali Feliz has been struggling a little bit for the Texas Rangers as he allowed four runs on 6-22 after pitching two innings the previous night, leaving him with a 6.52 ERA and a 1.14 WHIP for the month. This comes on the heels of his control issues in May when he walked nine in 10 1/3 innings. Despite his struggles, Texas Rangers president Nolan Ryan said that reports of the team’s interest in New York Mets closer Francisco Rodriguez was not true because Rodriguez does not offer improvement to the bullpen. A few more rough outings from Feliz in July and that may soon change though.

Just when it looked like Los Angeles Dodgers closer Jonathan Broxton was close to returning, he has now been shut down for three weeks after undergoing an MRI yesterday. If there other closer options on your league’s waiver wire, I would claim someone and dump Broxton as there is a chance he could be out for a much longer period.

2011 Fantasy Baseball Closer Report – Week 13

Posted by Todd Lammi on June 20th, 2011

Houston Astros relief pitcher Brandon Lyon will miss the rest of the season with an injury to his pitching arm that will require surgery. Mark Melancon figures to remain as closer for the rest of the season which gives him a nice bump in value for his owners. Melancon has picked up three saves in June giving him six for the season to go with a 1.62 ERA and a 1.14 WHIP ratio.

J.J. Putz has struggled in June for the Arizona Diamondbacks with three blown saves and opposing hitters are batting .310 against him, leading to a 6.43 ERA and a 1.29 WHIP. Whether you own Putz or not, I would be grabbing David Hernandez on your reserve if you are in need of saves.

Fernando Salas hit a bump in the road for the St. Louis Cardinals this past week blowing a save and taking a loss. Salas has a 5.79 ERA (thanks to two home runs this month) and a 1.07 WHIP in June. With Eduardo Sanchez on the disabled list, Mitchell Boggs could be back in the mix for some save chances if Salas struggles. Boggs has worked 5 2/3 scoreless innings since coming back from the minor leagues.

No issues so far for closer Andrew Bailey of the Oakland Athletics in his return from injury as he has been a perfect 4-for-4 in save chances. Bailey’s numbers for 2011 have been right in line with previous seasons.

Week 12 Closer Stats – American League Saves:

Matt Capps – 3
Andrew Bailey – 3
Jordan Walden – 2
Chris Perez – 2
Joakim Soria – 2

Week 12 Closer Stats – National League Saves:

Joel Hanrahan – 3
Francisco Cordero – 3
Carlos Marmol – 2
Drew Storen – 2
Brian Wilson – 2

2011 Fantasy Baseball Closer Report – Week 12

Posted by Todd Lammi on June 13th, 2011

Sergio Santos could be out of the closer role for the Chicago White Sox with another blown save this week. Santos took two losses last week and allowed eight runs in 2 2/3 innings. His control has deserted him, as he walked six hitters during that time. While manager Ozzie Guillen has publicly backed Santos for now, the team has a lot of options in the bullpen to turn to as needed. Jesse Crain picked up a save on Saturday and has a 3.10 ERA and 1.07 WHIP for the season and Matt Thornton has looked better in June so far with a 1.59 ERA and a .71 WHIP in 5 2/3 innings.

The Kansas City Royals moved Joakim Soria back into the closer role after he worked three consecutive scoreless innings after blowing back-to-back saves at the end of May. Soria responded by picking up two saves Thursday and Friday and how now six scoreless innings over his last five outings with two hits allowed. However, he still has not yet looked like the dominant pitcher he has been in year’s past and I would hold onto Aaron Crow despite him not getting any save chances if you have room on your bench for him.

Jonny Venters is slowly creeping into the closer role for the Atlanta Braves after picking up two saves last week. Venters now has a 0.44 ERA on the season with a 0.74 WHIP and 43 strikeouts in 40 2/3 innings. Meanwhile, current closer Craig Kimbrel has not picked up a save since June 7th and has allowed three runs in his last two innings or work.

Mark Melancon looks like he should still have some decent value going forward for the Houston Astros as Brandon Lyon came off of the disabled list and allowed five runs in one inning over two outings. Lyon now has a 10.22 ERA and 2.35 WHIP for the season.

Week 11 Closer Stats – American League Saves:

Kyle Farnsworth – 3
Joakim Soria – 2
Brandon League – 2
Kevin Gregg – 2
Sergio Santos – 2

Week 11 Closer Stats – National League Saves:

Drew Storen – 4
Huston Street – 4
Ryan Madson – 3
Jonny Venters -2

2011 Fantasy Baseball Closer Report – Week 10

Posted by Todd Lammi on May 30th, 2011

The Kansas City Royals finally made a move with struggling closer Joakim Soria by removing him from the ninth inning role and replacing him with Aaron Crow. Soria blew his fifth save of the season on Monday against the Los Angeles Angels, giving him three blown saves in the last seven days. With his lack of strikeouts as well as his lack of command, it seems like there has to be an injury lurking for such a drastic drop off in performance. Crow has a 1.33 ERA on the season with a 1.04 WHIP and has struck out 26 in 27 innings.

Jon Rauch and Octavio Dotel should be in line for some save chances this week for the Toronto Blue Jays after Frank Francisco blew two save chances last week, allowing three runs in 1 1/3 innings. Francisco has a 6.59 ERA on the season with a 1.61 WHIP. Rauch picked up a save last Friday against the Chicago White Sox and will likely get the first shot at a save chance this week.

Kevin Gregg looks to be living on borrowed time in Baltimore with a 1.77 WHIP thanks to 18 walks against 15 strikeouts in 20 1/3 innings of work. He has walked six hitters in his last three innings with one strikeout and while he has not blown a save since May 16th, it is going to be hard to prevent that from happening in the future with the current state of his control. I would be looking to grab Koji Uehara if he is still a free agent as he would be next in line for saves. Uehara has a 2.78 ERA with a 0.88 WHIP this season and 28 strikeouts in 22 2/3 innings.

If you anticipate needing another closer later in the season, you should start looking to reserve candidates now on your bench in you have the space. With the San Diego Padres playing sub .500 baseball, Heath Bell will likely be traded before the deadline which puts guys like Mike Adams (1.46 ERA, .73 WHIP), Ernesto Frieri (2.00 ERA, 1.22 WHIP) and Luke Gregerson (2.63 ERA, 1.33 WHIP) in the mix for saves.

The same holds true for the New York Mets where Francisco Rodriguez could be moved if the Mets try to shed payroll, though the options are a little more murky than with the Padres. Taylor Buchholz (3.12 ERA, 1.12 WHIP), Pedro Beato (2.38 ERA, 1.01 WHIP) or even veteran Jason Isringhausen (3.12 ERA, 1.15 WHIP) could see save opportunities if a deal goes down.

Week 9 Closer Stats – American League Saves:

Jordan Walden – 4
Brandon League – 3

Week 9 Closer Stats – National League Saves:

J.J. Putz – 4
Heath Bell – 3
Craig Kimbrel – 3

2011 Fantasy Baseball Closer Report – Week 9

Posted by Todd Lammi on May 23rd, 2011

It seems like rookie closer Craig Kimbrel of the Atlanta Braves is averaging a blown save per week of late after blowing his fourth save of the season last week, after he allowed four hits in 1/3 of an inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks. That concluded a stretch in which he pitched six times in eight days. In his last outing on Saturday, he picked up a save but did not strike out a hitter, making it the first time he threw a full inning and did not strike someone out since April 29th. I think it bears watching to see what effect that workload has on him over the next two weeks. Hopefully if you own Kimbrel you also have Jonny Venters on your team as well, though he is being worked just as hard as Kimbrel is.

Jordan Walden has not been the same closer in the month of May that he was earlier in the season for the Los Angeles Angels. Walden has three blown saves this month with a 6.00 ERA and a 1.78 WHIP as hitters are batting .318 against him. If Walden blows another save or two in the near term, veteran lefty Scott Downs could see some save chances. Downs has a .71 ERA and .87 WHIP in 12 2/3 innings so far in 2011.

Fernando Salas had about as big of a week as you can as closer, picking up four saves and a win for the St. Louis Cardinals. Salas has been a perfect 7-for-7 on saves this season and looks to have the job until he blows a save or two. The Cardinals demoted Mitchell Boggs to Triple-A who was closer for a couple of days back in April after he gave up five runs in five innings in May.

Octavio Dotel picked up a save on Saturday for the Toronto Blue Jays, the day after Frank Francisco was saddled with a loss. It would have been the third straight day of work for Francisco so it was not surprising that he was held out of action. Dotel has a 5.84 ERA and 1.78 WHIP on the season so don’t make any rash decisions to drop Francisco for Dotel.

It has been an ugly May for interim closer Brian Fuentes for the Oakland A’s. Fuentes has a 5.63 ERA with a 1.75 WHIP and has collected four losses, including three straight decisions though to be fair in one game the run was unearned.

Week 8 Closer Stats – American League Saves:

Kyle Farnsworth – 2
Chris Perez – 2
Matt Capps – 2
Frank Francisco – 2

Week 8 Closer Stats – National League Saves:

Fernando Salas – 4
John Axford – 4
Francisco Rodriguez – 3
Leo Nunez – 3
J.J Putz – 3
Ryan Madson – 3

2011 Fantasy Baseball Closer Report – Week 8

Posted by Todd Lammi on May 16th, 2011

It was not a good week for Brandon League of the Seattle Mariners as he blew three saves, taking three losses in the process. The blown saves were the first of the season for League who had rattled off nine straight save conversions. He hasn’t looked right since saving a game on May 5th. Since that time, he has worked three innings, allowing 12 hits and 10 runs. As long as League is not injured, he should be safe since the Mariners don’t really have any other good options to close currently in their bullpen. Jamey Wright seems to be next in line based on his numbers, but he blew a save last week and has zero saves in his career, while blowing all 11 chances. Not exactly a recipe for success if he takes over. David Pauley has also been pitching well in the Mariners pen with a 1.16 ERA and a 0.77 WHIP, but he also have zero career saves to his credit.

It seems like each week we are talking about the bullpen situation for the St. Louis Cardinals as one blown save gets a guy pulled from the role with so many options in the bullpen. It happened to Eduardo Sanchez last week and Fernando Salas is now back in the saddle again and he earned his fourth save of the season Monday night with Sanchez serving in a set up role.

Whatever bumps in the road Atlanta Braves rookie closer Craig Kimbrel faces, it looks like he has nothing to worry about in his role as closer no matter how well Jonny Venters is throwing. Kimbrel blew his third save of the season on May 11th and since that time has worked in four of five games with Venters not seeing any save chances.

Fernando Rodney does not look like he is any threat to challenge Jordan Walden for the closer role for the La Angeles Angels. Rodney blew to saves within a seven day time period giving him three for the season, along with a 4.24 ERA and a 1.59 WHIP.

Week 7 Closer Stats – American League Saves:

Jose Valverde – 3
Sergio Santos – 2
Jonathan Papelbon – 2
Neftali Feliz – 2

Week 7 Closer Stats – National League Saves:

Ryan Madson – 3
John Axford – 3
Francisco Rodriguez – 3
Leo Nunez – 3
Craig Kimbrel – 2
J.J. Putz – 2

2011 Fantasy Baseball Closer Report – Week 7

Posted by Todd Lammi on May 10th, 2011

New closer Mark Melancon picked up his first save for the Houston Astros in place of the injured Brandon Lyon. Melancon has a 1.62 with a 1.20 ERA through 16 2/3 innings with 12 strikeouts and should see the majority of saves while Lyon is out as Melancon as closing experience from the minor leagues. Lyon is out with a partially torn rotator cuff and will attempt to rehab the injury rather than undergoing surgery. Even if Lyon comes back, there is no guarantee he comes back as closer after blowing four of eight saves early in the season.

Vicente Padilla looks to be locked in as the closer for the Los Angeles Dodgers after collecting his second save of the season last week. Padilla has a 2.57 ERA with a 1.00 WHIP through seven innings with six strikeouts. Jonathan Broxton looks like he will be out for up to six weeks with elbow issues giving Padilla a lot of value in mixed league formats.

The bullpen situation in St. Louis is ever changing with so many different options for manager Tony La Russa that the hot hand could get the call in the ninth inning until he blows a save. That is what happened when Eduardo Sanchez blew a save and Fernando Salas got the call on Saturday. Salas is a perfect 3-f0r-3 on the season with a 1.42 ERA and a 1.03 WHIP in 12 2/3 innings with 14 strikeouts. I saw several leagues where Salas was dropped as fantasy baseball owners thought Sanchez was the lead dog. If Salas is still out there in your league, I would be looking to scoop him up.

Frank Francisco has moved back into the lead for the closer role in the Toronto Blue Jays bullpen after converting two saves last week. He has a 2.70 ERA with a 1.05 WHIP and eight strikeouts in 6 2/3 innings. Jon Rauch has not had a save opportunity since blowing a save back on May 3rd against the Tampa Bay Rays.

Week 6 Closer Stats – American League Saves:

Chris Perez – 3
Mariano Rivera – 2
Kyle Farnsworth – 2
Brandon League – 2
Jose Valverde – 2
Frank Francisco – 2
Brian Fuentes – 2

Week 6 Closer Stats – National League Saves:

Brian Wilson – 3
Francisco Rodriguez – 3
Drew Storen – 2
Craig Kimbrel – 2
Joel Hanrahan – 2
Francisco Cordero – 2
Heath Bell – 2
Leo Nunez – 2
Eduardo Sanchez – 2

2011 Fantasy Baseball Closer Report – Week 6

Posted by Todd Lammi on May 3rd, 2011

Leave it to manager Tony La Russa of the St. Louis Cardinals to wreak havoc on the fantasy baseball waiver wire when it comes to closers. A week after it looked like Mitchell Boggs was the man in St. Louis, the Cardinals used several different relievers to collect saves last week as Fernando Salas, Eduardo Sanchez and Trever Miller all closed out games. Since blowing a save on March 26, Boggs has not received another shot in that role, instead serving as a set up man or early relief pitcher. Given how many options La Russa has to work with and he still has Ryan Franklin they are trying to get back in the groove, this will likely be a rotating situation for the foreseeable future.

As much as manager Don Mattingly says that Jonathan Broxton is the closer for the Los Angeles Dodgers, he looks to be hanging on by a string, despite converting seven of eight saves. His numbers suggest he is far from the dominating closer he was just two years ago with a current 4.38 ERA and 1.78 WHIP. Vicente Padilla looks to be the next best option in the bullpen so far as he has chalked up four holds and a save in five relief outings. Hong-Chih Kuo figures to be in the mix eventually but he struggled in his first outing back allowing four runs in 1/3 of an inning.

The Toronto Blue Jays currently have co-closers in the bullpen with Jon Rauch and Frank Francisco now back from the disabled list. Rauch had been perfect in five saves this season before blowing the win Tuesday night by surrendering a two-run home run to B.J. Upton of the Tampa Bay Rays. Francisco has yet to collect a save since returning to action but has posted good numbers in 5 1/3 innings with six strikeouts and a 1.69 ERA to go with a 0.75 WHIP.

Brandon League owners in the American League have to feel pretty good about drafting him late in fantasy baseball leagues this season. League is a perfect 7-for-7 in saves with a 2.45 ERA and a 0.91 WHIP while serving as the closer in Seattle with David Aardsma out with an injury. Aardsma is currently on rehab though he has been shut down for a few days with forearm stiffness and should be back by the middle of the month. I would expect Aardsma to eventually see save chances when he comes back and for the Mariners to look to trade either Aardsma or League at the trade deadline.

Sergio Santos looks to be locked in as closer for the Chicago White Sox as he has collected all of the saves since April 25th and is still unscored upon for the season. Santos is holding hitters to a .159 batting average against after allowing batters to hit .261 against him in 2010.

2011 Fantasy Baseball Closer Report – Week 5

Posted by Todd Lammi on April 26th, 2011

We saw several new closers emerge in the American League in week 4 as the Darren Oliver and Arthur Rhodes both claimed saves in the Texas Rangers bullpen last week when Neftali Feliz went on the disabled list. Oliver had thrown two consecutive days when Rhodes picked up his save so I still expect Oliver to be the lead dog for now.

After weeks of wreckage in the Chicago White Sox bullpen, the one pitcher that had remained unscathed got the save opportunity on Sunday as Sergio Santos earned his second career save. Santos will likely get the next couple of opportunities and if he does well, he will have a good shot of earning the job for the foreseeable future. Santos has been unscored upon in 11 innings this season with 14 strikeouts.

It looks like Ryan Madson will not have to wait until 2012 after all when he is a free agent to become closer. The Philadelphia Phillies moved him into that role over the weekend when Jose Contreras was placed on the disabled list. Madson collected two saves and now sports a 1.00 ERA and a 0.89 WHIP.

Mitchell Boggs had smooth sailing in his first week as closer for the St. Louis Cardinals as he was a perfect 3-for-3 on saves with three strikeouts. Eduardo Sanchez looks like he owns the 8th inning role now and it a good pickup if you are looking for strikeouts in your bullpen.

Drew Storen looks to be the man in Washington Nationals bullpen over Sean Burnett after earning two saves last week. Storen has put his spring struggles behind him and is cruising with a 0.71 ERA and a 0.87 WHIP. If you did not pick him up on waivers or via trade the first few weeks of the season, you have likely missed your window.

Amazingly the person with the most blown saves in the American League was Mariano Rivera last week as he allowed his first runs of the season in blowing two saves. In those two outings, Rivera allowed six hits and two walks in 2 1/3 innings.

2011 Fantasy Baseball Closer Report – Week 4

Posted by Todd Lammi on April 19th, 2011

The change was finally announced at closer for the St. Louis Cardinals today with word from manager Tony La Russa that closer Ryan Franklin will be pitching in a different role going forward. Franklin has blown 4 of 5 saves this season and has an 11,57 ERA with a 2.14 WHIP. While La Russa did not immediately name an interim closer, the Cardinals do have several options in the bullpen. Mitchell Boggs should get first crack at the job. Boggs has a 2.00 ERA with a 0.67 WHIP and 12 strikeouts in nine innings. If La Russa is looking for a veteran pitcher, he could turn to Miguel Batista who has a 1.29 ERA this season with a 1.43 WHIP and 41 career saves.

Matt Capps has taken over as closer in Minnesota after Joe Nathan blew two saves last week. Nathan has struggled with his control in his return from Tommy John surgery this season, walking five in 5 1/3 innings with three strikeouts.

Also struggling in the early going has been Joakim Soria of the Kansas City Royals. Despite reports that he is fine, his stats seem to say otherwise with a .273 batting average against and four walks with only three strikeouts. Rookie Aaron Crow has been the best relief pitcher in the bullpen so far with 10 1/3 scoreless innings and 12 strikeouts. If I owned Soria in an AL-only league, I would make sure Crow was on my reserve just in case.

John Axford of the Milwaukee Brewers seemed to be on the right path after blowing his first save of the season, but then his control problems came back in his last two outings as he walked four in two innings. He also had control problems when he was in the minor leagues so it is something to keep an eye on going forward.

Frank Francisco was activated from the disabled list by the Toronto Blue Jays and should be soon back in the mix competing for saves with Jon Rauch. Rauch has three saves so far this season with a 2.70 ERA and a 1.20 WHIP.

2011 Fantasy Baseball Closer Report – Week 3

Posted by Todd Lammi on April 11th, 2011

Things are a mess in the Chicago White Sox bullpen where four guys are not in the mix for saves because Matt Thornton has struggled in the role in his first go round as full-time closer. Thornton was charged with his third blown save on Monday night, though he deserved better since Juan Pierre dropped a fly ball that allowed the game-tying run to score. What was more note worthy though was after that play, Thornton was pulled and relieved by Jesse Crain. With Chris Sale and Sergio Santos also in the mix for saves, it is a total crapshoot at this point when trying to set a weekly lineup who might pick up the save.

Just when the Jordan Walden train was leaving the station and picking up stream, Los Angeles Angels manager Mike Scioscia decided to throw Fernando Rodney back in the mix and got him a save on Sunday night. It was the third straight night of work for Rodney who may be in an equal time-share with Walden for now.

Brian Fuentes picked up his fourth save of the season for the Oakland A’s on Monday night, but keep in the back of your head that Andrew Bailey is expected to return some time by the end of the month.

Despite St. Louis Cardinals manager Tony LaRussa’s claim that Ryan Franklin’s job is safe, I would be looking to reserve Mitchell Boggs if I owned him. Franklin has blown three of four save chances this year and hitters are batting .353 against him.

Through two weeks of the major league baseball season, Jonathan Broxton leads all closers in saves with five, but where are the strikeouts? He has recorded only one strikeout this season in 4 1/3 innings.

2011 Fantasy Baseball Closer Report – Week 2

Posted by Todd Lammi on April 5th, 2011

There has been a few shakeups so far for fantasy baseball closers and we are just in week two of the fantasy baseball season. I expected Fernando Rodney to lose his job at some point for the Los Angeles Angels but it has happened even sooner than I expected with new that manager Mike Scioscia has removed him from the role. Young flame thrower Jordan Walden will take over and is a must grab for the waiver wire this week in AL only as well as mixed league formats.

Control issues came back to bite Rodney in the early going this season, as he walked four and allowed two hits in 1 1/3 innings of work. Walden has worked 2 1/3 scoreless innings so far this season with five strikeouts.

Sean Burnett looks locked in as the Washington Nationals closer for now after bailing out Drew Storen on April 2nd and picking up a four out save. I would still keep Storen on my roster in NL only and deeper mixed leagues, but in shallower mixed leagues I would be willing to drop him.

As I mentioned in earlier articles, it seemed like the Atlanta Braves wanted Craig Kimbrel to win the closer job and they have set it for that to happen with Jonny Venters pitching in the eighth inning and saving Kimbrel for the ninth. So far so good for Kimbrel who has two scoreless innings with five strikeouts.

Joel Hanrahan seems to have a solid grasp on the close role in Pittsburgh collecting three saves so far in the season with five strikeouts in 3 1/3 innings. Evan Meek meanwhile has struggled, allowing six hits through 1 2/3 innings and two walks.