Jorge Julio

[Jer19G]

Any chance Baltimore could try to trade for Urbina? They could gamble a prospect or two that he will be back for ST. He has a nice price for a solid closer.

I think the o's are set on using Ryan at closer,but their bullpen could use some usefull additions. Though Ryan struggled at the end of the season he may be more skilled than Urbina. I think at this point the o's main focus is to land a solid starter or two.

[Absolutely Adequate]

I agree that on pure stuff, Julio is great. Unfortunately, he's been relying too much on throwing instead of pitching.

If he ever listens to a coach, he'll get much better. But if he doesn't, he'll keep getting hit.

A late gamble, especially in holds leagues.

[El Gaupo]

I can see your point....in fact Ryan was given a chance to close toward the end of the season and he struggled a bit. I don't think there is any doubt that both Julio and Ryan have closer stuff, however, the correct mental makeup for the job seems to be something some guy have and others don't.....I personally think that Ryan can handle the job....he made huge stride last season when he was given the responsibility of being the "setup man" facing both right and left handed batters. I think Ryan proved that he can handle guys on both sides of the plate (although he is still better against lefties), whether he can handle the 9th inning is yet to be seen.
_________________
We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit.

I totally agree with assessment. I would also add that it appeared that Ryan wore down near the end of the season. I still wonder how committed teams are to having a lefty for a closer.

[io]

i think Matt Riley could be a good gamble in relief situations .. he has great stuff but seems to blow up every few starts or so. if he can't fix that, maybe 1 inning on a consistent basis is all he needs.. he has some sort of strange mentality and i've heard that most succesful closers have a screw loose somewhere