Archive for Closers

Got two young players finally stepping into more prominent roles this week…

Brandon Belt | 1B, OF | Giants | Owned: 32% Yahoo! and 49.2% ESPN

It took yet another Aubrey Huff (knee) injury, but it appears as though Belt has been freed for good. The 24-year-old has started 15 straight games at first base — even against left-handed starters — and he owns a .362/.483/.702 line with more walks (ten) than strikeouts (nine) during that time. Over the last two weeks, his 236 wRC+ leads all of baseball.

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• Uh oh. Frank Francisco is been battling a left oblique injury that he suffered Friday night. The Mets originally didn’t seem too concerned, essentially deeming him day-to-day, but as we’ve historically seen with pitchers, opposite side oblique injuries are “nothing to sneeze at.” Well, word has come down mid-sentence (no, literally) that Francisco is indeed hitting the disabled list. And in an obvious move of goodwill to the fantasy community, manager Terry Collins has made life easy on owners by decreeing that Bobby Parnell had the ninth inning tonight (when he knew no Francisco this evening but prior to the DL announcement). Parnell certainly brings the heat (mid-upper 90’s on the fastball) and has career 8.4 K/9 that he’s improved a touch on this year (9.0). Maybe most impressively, he’s a flamethrower who keeps the walks down (3.8 BB/9 career, down to 2.4 this year) — put the whole package together and he has a career 3.78 xFIP (3.12 since the start of 2010). Pick him up in all leagues; I already have. He may only be a short-term hold, but with oblique injuries having a tendency to linger (see Doug Fister), he might be a bit more than a short-term investment.

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• Closer controversy brewing in Minnesota? Well, maybe not a true controversy, but Matt Capps is clearly not as healthy as the Twins would like you believe. We know because it was Glen Perkins, not Capps, who was called in to dust of a 5-4 win in Cincinnati tonight — giving up a couple hits, but also whiffing two. It’s now been over a week since Capps last appeared, and while the fact that he hasn’t been placed on the disabled list shows that Minnesota doesn’t think his shoulder issue is a huge one, it has clearly nagged him longer than originally expected. Perkins has the peripherals of a closer (11.7 K/9, 2.98 xFIP) and seems likely to eventually force Minnesota’s hand in the ninth, whether it be through a Capps trade or a potential Wally Pipp-type situation. One thing is clear: buy Perkins, sell Capps. Even if the latter regains his job in the next week or so, it’s becoming increasingly hard to imagine him lasting the season at the back end of the bullpen. Also, while the Twins threw up a smokescreen about Jared Burton getting save chances, it’s been pretty obvious that Perkins is the guy who is the heir apparent in the Twin Cities. Burton might be worth a glance in super-deep leagues, but probably shouldn’t be on the radar in anything else.

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• Joe Nathan pitched  a scoreless ninth inning last night for his 14th save of the year and currently has a 1.63 ERA with the peripherals to back it up. Nathan is showing the elite strikeout ability he had in his prime on the Twins, striking out 31.7% of the batters he has faced this year. However, what is really outstanding about Nathan this year is his walk rate which is currently a career low and league leading  0.65 BB/9. If you add it all up Nathan is pitching to a 2.13 xFIP on one of the better teams in the league — a great recipe for success and many saves. Nathan didn’t have the best year in 2011 after recovering from Tommy John surgery and many people suspected that Neftali Feliz or Mike Adams would take over the closing gig in Texas in 2012, but Nathan has had a fantastic season thus far and should be regarded as one of the top closers in the game again.

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• It wasn’t a clean save tonight for Chris Perez as he gave up two hits and a run against the Reds, but he still notched his league leading 22nd save of the year. Chris Perez has an ERA (2.73) that is lower than his peripherals would indicate (3.81 xFIP) but even if he regresses, Perez has a firm grasp on the role in Cleveland which isn’t something I thought I would be saying in the Bullpen Report in March. The man expected to replace Perez, Vinnie Pestano, is  having a great year himself with a strikeout rate of 11.67 K/9 and a solid 3.31 xFIP but unless Perez is traded or injured, Pestano won’t be seeing regular save opportunities any time soon.

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Drew Storen is throwing off a mound and is targeting the all-star break for his eventual return to the Nationals bullpen. Tyler Clippard has a stranglehold on the ninth inning job for the time being, but given Davey Johnson’s hesitance to use Clippard outside his familiar setup role early in the season and Storen’s career rates (8.7 K/9, 3.45 xFIP), it seems like there will be at least one more closer change in the DC metro area before the season is over. If Storen is lurking on your waiver wire, it might be time to add him to the watch list (shallower leagues) or scoop him up (deeper leagues). Clippard is worth holding for the time being, but maybe some covert shopping to find an owner who will pay for Clippard as the rest-of-season closer is in order.

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With the trade deadline looming and injuries affecting many contender’s bullpens, non-contending teams will start listening in on offers for closers. Many of these closers will lose value in roto leagues, but in holds leagues such as ottoneu or any other league that accounts for holds, the value of these relievers is still prevalent. Some teams may be looking to ditch these relievers as the deadline nears, but if you are looking to solidify your bullpen for the stretch run of the season, these closer trade candidates could be solid targets.
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Relief pitchers qualified at starters are great assets for fantasy teams with a limited number of RP slots (and IP limits). These pitchers can be played when a starter has a day off to pad a team’s rate stats. Also, they are a great source of creating Holds and on the rare occasion,a few Saves. Here is a look at some of the top SP qualified RP so far in 2012.

Brett Myers – 2.08 ERA, 6.6 K/9, 1.7 BB/9, 15 Saves
Brett’s main value comes from the Saves he generates. His strikeout rates are not ideal for a RP, but his low walk rate allows him to maintain a decent K/BB (4.0) and low WHIP (0.83). The one huge issue with Myers is that he may end up getting traded to a contender and lose his closer role

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Eric Wedge announced that Brandon League will regain his ninth inning role sooner than later, which is upsetting to Tom Wilhelmsen owners but is refreshing for those who have stuck with League through his early season struggles.

Despite Wilhelmsen’s three consecutive saves in three straight opportunities, he may soon be moved back to the set up role. In keeper or dynasty leagues, Wilhelmsen is certainly the player to target if you are looking for the closer of the future in Seattle. With League being an impending free agent, Wilhelmsen will most likely take over the role for next season. If League pitches well over the course of the next month and a half, he could even be a trade candidate for a team looking for right-handed pitching help.

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•After blowing his first save of  the year on Sunday, Rafael Soriano would have been available to pitch on Monday if it weren’t for a blister that developed on his pitching hand. Putting any blister issues to rest tonight, Soriano finished the game retiring the Braves in order while striking out two batters for his 10th save of the year. Boone Logan recorded the final two outs yesterday and although Soriano’s performance tonight likely means Logan will have little chance of seeing the ninth inning, it’s worth noting that he has quietly put together an excellent season with a 2.53 xFIP and an outstanding strikeout rate (13.29 K/9). Logan is still better used as a situational reliever as he has a minuscule .268 wOBA against left-handed hitters and a less than spectacular .347 wOBA against right-handed hitters, but should still be a solid contributor to holds and strikeouts for those in need of any relief help.

David Robertson meanwhile pitched another scoreless inning today in triple-A on his rehab stint and could join the Yankees over the weekend. The Yankees have previously said that Soriano will remain the closer even when Robertson returns and I see no reason why that won’t still be the plan based off of Soriano’s work tonight.

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