Closer Updates: Blue Jays & Brewers
The Ryan Franklin and Joe Nathan/Matt Capps stuff is old news by now, but let’s get you caught up on some others in danger of losing their jobs…
Archive for Closers
Closers Update: Joe Nathan and Ryan Franklin
There’s no position more fungible on a baseball team than the closer. At other positions you can have middling to even below average success and still keep your job (see Bartlett, Jason). But, blow a few saves in a row? If you’re named anything other than Mariano Rivera you’re likely in trouble. That was the fate endured by Joe Nathan and Ryan Franklin over the weekend.
Middle Relievers: One Riser, One Faller
Let’s take a quick look at two middle relievers heading in the opposite fantasy directions…
Two Closers Going In Opposite Directions: Farnsy & Thornton
Let’s look at two closers who, right now, are headed in the opposite direction…
Stock Up/Stock Down: Closers
The season is all of a week old, not even when you consider that today’s games haven’t been played yet, but we’ve already had some movement on the closer front. Let’s take inventory of whose stock is on the rise, and whose is slipping…
Small Sample Size Musings: Venters & Kimbrel
A few weeks ago in Spring Training, new Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez said that he planned to use lefty Jonny Venters and righty Craig Kimbrel as co-closers at the start of the year, basing their usage on matchups. It’s a great plan; a manager deserves to be applauded for not marrying himself to one set ninth inning guy and instead optimizing his bullpen, even if it creates headaches for us fantasy players. Yet when the time came yesterday, here’s how Fredi played his cards with two-run lead…
Ranking The Closers By Job Security
A few weeks ago we ranked relievers based on their projected fantasy value, and built into that is a look at each closer’s job security. Let’s be a bit more straight forward on the job security front, since knowing which closers are at risk of losing their job is half the battle.
Waiver Wire: March 28th
Spring Training position battles are starting to be settled and injuries are starting to have more of an impact on the regular season. Let’s look at a temporary closer and new everyday outfielder…
Do You Have To Wait On Closers?
Punting saves is one of the most popular strategies promoted by some of the most read fantasy analysts in the business. Don’t feel comfortable completely ignoring the category? That’s ok, you can always pick up saves late in a draft or play the waiver wire. There’s so much turnover at the position that you are bound to find someone solid. At least, that’s what the analysts will tell you. The strategy has been driven into our heads so many times now, however, that there may actually be value in targeting closers relatively early in drafts.
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