2009 Closers Thread (No Game Commentary Please)

[Halo Homers]

What about Jonathan Sanchez getting a look at closer for SF now that he's out of the rotation.

First relief appearance. 1 Inn, 3k.

Wilson has been solid, but he does not have as good stuff as Sanchez.

Also, to answer an earlier post, I think Chris Perez immediately becomes the setup man in Cleveland, and with Cleveland out of it, he'll probably get some save opportunities as Cleveland evaluates him as potential closer for 2010. I would track him , if not pick him up outright. Perhaps Cleveland trades Wood at the deadline?

[fezzik]

Wilson's stuff is pretty sick. He relies too heavily on his fastball at times, but when you thrown 97+ that's not a horrible thing as long as you're locating. I don't see his closer job in jeopardy whatsoever.

[Halo Homers]

Wilson's stuff is pretty sick. He relies too heavily on his fastball at times, but when you thrown 97+ that's not a horrible thing as long as you're locating. I don't see his closer job in jeopardy whatsoever.

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It will be interesting to see how that plays out. I would track Sanchez

[bluejkrew]

C.J. pitched in the 8th in a non-save situation today. Safe to assume F. Francisco has his old job back?

And congrats to Mo for his 500th!!!

[GiantsFan14]

Wilson's stuff is pretty sick. He relies too heavily on his fastball at times, but when you thrown 97+ that's not a horrible thing as long as you're locating. I don't see his closer job in jeopardy whatsoever.

yup, wilson's job is very secure, it would take quite a bad streak for him to lose it and even then affeldt and romo would be well ahead of sanchez on the closer depth chart.

[ivanhack]

Roto Wire

Jun 28 Nunez (ankle) pitched a shutout inning of relief Saturday, allowing one hit and one walk while striking out two.

Recommendation: According to the Miami Herald manager Fredi Gonzalez said that he'd stick with Dan Meyer as his short-term closer until Nunez proves he's 100%, but Saturday's outing might have put to rest most of those doubts. Nunez likely won't get used in a save chance Sunday, but should be the main saves guy for the Marlins starting next week.

Yahoo Sports

Jun 28 RHP Leo Nunez was available to pitch Saturday and Sunday but wasn't used. He'd been out since he suffered a mild right ankle sprain Tuesday. Nunez will get a chance to take over as the Marlins' closer once he pitches in game situations to the satisfaction of manager Fredi Gonzalez.

Not so fast.
Rotoworld: Leo Nunez (ankle) is available for Saturday's game against the Rays, but won't be given the opportunity to close until he can show that the ankle isn't a factor.
"I'm not going to put a guy out there who we don't know how he's going to react in a game to close out a game," manager Fredi Gonzalez said. "It's hard for me to say 'You're healthy,' and then throw him out there. So if we're going to use him, we're going to use him early on in a game and back him up with Dan Meyer, or somebody else."

Translation: Nunez only earns this job through performance.

Meyer is closer for now.

[connmen]

As a less than usual observer of closers, let me pose this one to the Closer-Thread community:

I know Rodney is perfect in save opportunities, but he has had a 1-2-3 save in only one of his last 7 saves.

Leyland's quotes that I've read have all been weary of the fact that this type of wildness can lead to trouble. He also stuck to Todd Jones the past two years. What is the best bet right now on Rodney? What would it take for the guy to lose his job? One bad outing or many? Or just continued roller-coaster saves?

[bigwords]

I think it would take several blown saves for Rodney to lose his job, but with a 3.94 ERA belying a xERA of 4.32, that's indeed possible.

Oddly, Rodney actually pitched a bit better this past week, striking out 5 to 1 walk in 3 innings. He got unlucky, giving up that HR and allowing a few hits, but he was due for some bad luck, I suppose.

I think the bigger concern with Rodney is his injury track record.

He's probably somewhat safe in his job at the moment, but he's a pretty good sell-high candidate.

[Rollotommasi]

As a less than usual observer of closers, let me pose this one to the Closer-Thread community:

I know Rodney is perfect in save opportunities, but he has had a 1-2-3 save in only one of his last 7 saves.

Leyland's quotes that I've read have all been weary of the fact that this type of wildness can lead to trouble. He also stuck to Todd Jones the past two years. What is the best bet right now on Rodney? What would it take for the guy to lose his job? One bad outing or many? Or just continued roller-coaster saves?

dude, he's 17/17 with 2.65 Era in Save situations


you can drop Zumaya

[Olly]

I wouldn't be surprised if some of the quotes were about Zumaya. As someone who watches most of the games, he's the guy with issues. Look at his game log.

Even if Rodney got hurt, Bobby Seay would become the closer.