by Todd Lammi
With two weeks now in the books in major league baseball, lets review some of the bullpen situations from a fantasy baseball perspective.
Washington Nationals:
Current closer Joel Hanrahan could be out of a job after blowing consecutive saves against the Florida Marlins on Friday and Saturday. Saul Rivera got the chance to close on Sunday and he blew that as well. Rivera was sent to Triple-A after the game. Garret Mock has been recalled from Triple-A and could see a save opportunity, although he had a 17.18 ERA in the minors so far this year. Joe Beimel could also see save chances as he has been the one decent reliever so far this year in the Nationals bullpen. A dark horse candidate is Jason Bergmann who was also recalled from Triple-A on Sunday.
Colorado Rockies:
Two days after being named closer by manager Clint Hurdle, Manny Corpas pitching in the 7th inning in the blowout loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Sunday allowed two runs in one inning, bumping his ERA up to 6.75. Recently replaced closer Huston Street has not been any better, currently sports a 9.64 ERA. In a perfect world, Street would have been the closer until July and then traded with Corpas taking over. Taylor Buchholz might have been an option but is still on the 15-day disabled list with a sprained right elbow. Jason Grilli could be next in line in Corpas fails to deliver when presented with a save opportunity.
Chicago Cubs:
Carlos Marmol – 1.35 ERA, got the save on Friday night and was rewarded by being brought into the game in the 7th inning on Saturday.
Kevin Gregg – 6.00 ERA, has not had a save since opening day, but is still the closer according to manager Lou Piniella.
Talent eventually will win out over stubbornness I have to believe in this case, but until Gregg blows a save or two, it looks like he is still the man.
St. Louis Cardinals:
Without doubt, the main closer is now Ryan Franklin. Manager Tony La Russa is trying to work Jason Motte into situations to be successful to get his confidence built back up. Recently recalled Chris Perez from Triple-A gives them another option in the bullpen, but for now, Franklin should see the majority of save opportunities.
Milwaukee Brewers:
Carlos Villanueva has not been the answer with a 9.00 ERA. Injured closer Trevor Hoffman is scheduled to pitch Tuesday night in Triple-A and again on Friday and if all goes well, he will be recalled the following week. Todd Coffey and Villanueva will battle for the eight inning role once Hoffman returns.
Baltimore Orioles:
George Sherrill remains the closer, but he has to keep on eye on Chris Ray. Sherrill has been getting saves, but his ERA and whip ratio make him less than an ideal closer to own. Ray has strung together three good outings in a row after two initial poor performances. Ray has struck out seven in his last 3 1/3 innings. Ray has not pitched on back-to-back days yet this season so when he does eventually take back the closer role, Sherrill will still see save chances.
Seattle Mariners:
Brandon Morrow has been perfect in his four appearances since blowing his first save. If you own Morrow, handcuff David Aardsma to him. If you don’t own Morrow, Aardsma could get you 5-10 saves the remainder of the season.
