Sleepers: NL CENTRAL
HOUSTON ASTROS
DIVISION RANK : 1 (MLB RANK : 9)
Closer – Jose Valverde – I’m not sure how anyone else felt about Jose after his impressive 47 save campaign, but he followed that up with another stellar season of 44 saves. While his peripherals were up across the line for the most part, his K/BB ratio improved slightly. Concern can be raised for the amount of long balls that he tends to give up, but overall Valvarde has moved into the top third of the leagues closers.
Grip on Closers Role – Extremely Firm
Injury Concerns – Minimal
Next in Line – LaTroy Hawkins, Doug Brocail
Waiversharks.com Deep Sleeper Candidate – In a bullpen followed by average arms, it wouldn’t necessarily be crazy to consider Fernando Nieve as a longshot. He at least has decent enough stuff to be given a shot ahead of the veterans mentioned above. At 26, it is time for Nieve to make the club out of the spring and with a tad of experience in the last year or so closing out games at AAA Round Rock, Fernando may be a short-term solution for a desperate Astros team.
Even Deeper…The baseball world may not know much about Samuel Gervacio at the moment, but we soon may have our eyes opened to this 24-year old Dominican prospect. With 23 saves over the past two minor league seasons, he has racked up 200 big K’s over 151.1 innings. Deep? Perhaps, but with impressive lines like that, tied in with the fact that he doesn’t walk an absurd amount of batters, nor give up the big hit (only 10 HR’s allowed over the same timeframe) Gervacio may be the answer upon the expiration of Valverdes’ contract at the end of this season.
CHICAGO CUBS
DIVISION RANK : 2 (MLB RANK : 12)
Closer – Carlos Marmol – There is no questioning the goods of his stuff; however, Marmol may be best suited remaining a set-up man in the Windy City . With Kerry Wood flying the coop, Marmol is the likeliest candidate to inherit the job on a team that is anticipating a big season. Expect lots of K’s and batters looking silly swinging aimlessly, it will surely come down to the mental toughness of the 26-year old to determine how many games he can close out. With the under-rated Kevin Gregg in the wings, it should make a good case for the competition to garner the title of Cubbies’ closer.
Grip on Closers Role – Firm
Injury Concerns – Slight
Next in Line – Kevin Gregg, Jeff Samardzija
Waiversharks.com Deep Sleeper Candidate – Neil Cotts is a solid if not under-valued lefty that can provide the Cubs with the depth that they will require in order to go on a deep playoff run. He can be a workhorse if necessary and provide the team with a dependable back-up plan if the bad stuff hits the fan.
Even Deeper…Without too much in their system, the Cubs are more than likely dependant on attracting free-agent arms to close out games, or with acquiring solid arms via trade. Out of all of their developing arms the one that could be a future closer in our eyes is Stephen Vento. A raw 22-year old pitching prospect, he has only reached high A-ball and notched up 17 big saves along the way. A few years away for sure Vento; if handled properly, could become a legitimate major league arm.
CINCINNATI REDS
DIVISION RANK : 3 (MLB RANK : 13)
Closer – Francisco Cordero – Many knock his ability to be considered a valuable closer, even on a sub-par Reds roster, he has shown that he isn’t a flash in the pan. With mid to upper 90’s fastballs and a solid slider to depend on, Cordero has been dependable racking up 211 saves over his last eight professional seasons. At 33-years old, expect him to increase his save total of last year, and resting on a plus-40 save season.
Grip on the Closers Role – Extremely Firm
Injury Concerns – Minimal
Next in Line – David Weathers, Arthur Rhodes
WaiverSharks.com Deep Sleeper Candidate – Question marks abound in Cincy with a few older arms being depended on and not many other options, look for Jared Burton to possibly step up and make some noise. Effective when the ball was handed to him in various situations it may be a nice opportunity to see how he handles the pressure in a major league game with three outs remaining.
Even Deeper…Making his way through the minor league system Josh Roenicke has been given the opportunity and performed well in locking down 43 games in three seasons and whiffing 160 batsmen in 131.2 innings. He may not be the prototypical closer type, but he has paid his dues along the way. At 26, it may be the year that Roenicke can contribute at the major league level.
PITTSBURGH PIRATES
DIVISION RANK : 4 (MLB RANK : 14)
Closer – Matt Capps – Another box-type closer that has a solid arm and intimidating presence to his advantage, Capps may not get the amount of save opps’ that most teams provide, but he usually makes good on his attempt. After dealing with an injury shortened 2008 season, Capps will return to his role and provide the Bucs’ with the type of stuff that will rest their mind when entering the late innings with a lead. May never be a 40+ save type closer, but he will comfortably settle in at 30-37 saves each year, pending health.
Grip on the Closers Role – Extremely Firm
Injury Concerns – Fair
Next in Line – John Grabow, Tyler Yates
Waiversharks.com Deep Sleeper Candidate – Take a look at Romulo Sanchez and you can see the type of goods that he has are closer worthy. At 24, this big Venezuelan righty has an opportunity if Capps gets derailed again, as the Bucs’ bullpen has as many question marks as the Riddlers’ jacket. Without an overly powering fastball, Sanchez surprises with his control and ability to work the count. May not stand out, but is simply effective in his effort.
Even Deeper…Jesse Chavez is the name that comes to mind when thinking about the Pirates future closer. Thrown into the role last year at AAA-Indianapolis, Chavez impressed by holding hitters at bay (.225 BAA) and punching out more than one batter per inning (70 K’s in 68.2 inn.) and getting a taste of the majors and keeping that rate constant (16K’s in 15 inn.) Chavez and many of the other young arms have an opportunity to make the team should they impress in spring training and while he hasn’t wowed anyone with his showing in winter ball in the Dominican League, Chavez will be ready.
MILWAUKEE BREWERS
DIVISION RANK : 5 (MLB RANK : 15)
Closer – Trevor Hoffman – Can the old man continue to add to his storied career and major league record career saves mark? The Brewers hope so and after the Eric Gagne experiment exploded in their face, they signed the 41-year old in hopes that he could at least be serviceable, since they have struggled to find a replacement for Francisco Cordero. Bernie Brewer hopes to celebrate along with the thousands of inebriated fans leaving Miller Park should the “Hells Bells” afficienado be able to get the three final outs with some sense of regularity.
Grip on the Closers Role – Firm
Injury Concerns – Fair
Next in Line – David Riske, Jorge Julio
Waiversharks.com Deep Sleeper Candidate – Where does Carlos Villanueva stand in the Brewers plans? I for one, believe that his name may be one that comes up when discussing a potential closing candidate. Let’s be honest, Hoffman wasn’t horrible, but wasn’t terrific either. Villanueva has worked hard and limited his walks to improve his K/BB ratio to more than 3:1, all the while keeping the rest of his peripherals in check. I expect big things in 2009, who’s to say that adding closer to his title isn’t possible?
Even Deeper…Omar Aguilar is a potential closer in the making. Resembling former Brewer Salomon Torres, Aguilar has closed out 26 big games over the past two minor-league seasons while sitting down 135 batters over 121.2 innings of A and AA-ball. Many believe that he is on the cusp of being on the opening day roster, and we couldn’t agree more. Expect Aguilar to get a legitimate shot at contributing to the Brewers movement.
ST. LOUIS CARDINALS
DIVISION RANK : 6 (MLB RANK : 26)
Closer – Chris Perez – Could be Perez, could be Franklin . For the sake of who we think it will be, we’ll go with the younger, more closer type arm of Perez. Injury riddled in 2008, Perez seemed to take the closer reins and be running with it, but hit a wall. The off-season controversy hasn’t resolved who Tony LaRussa will call on come the ninth, but we feel even if it does end up being Perez, he could only hold on for a limited amount of time.
Grip on the Closers Role – Paper Thin
Injury Concerns – High
Next in Line – Ryan Franklin, Brad Thompson
WaiverSharks.com Deep Sleeper Candidate – Perez could fall in the ranks and have rookie Jason Motte roll right on by. Motte certainly has the goods to be an effective closer, with a solid debut in 2008. Expected to begin the year as potentially a set-up man, Motte can pitch his way into the closer’s role before the All-Star break. Expect several Cards’ to get the chance to pad their saves stats in what may be a long season in Missouri .
Even Deeper…What is not to love about Noel “Fernando” Salas? This heat-throwing righty pitched incredible in the 2008 season for AA-Springfield and ran up some impressive stats. A 6.25 K/BB ratio is impressive at any level, and while he has a tendency to give way to the long ball (12 HR’s allowed) he racked up 25 saves. To his credit, Salas still has some work to do, but the raw talent is definitely there. The expectation is to have him step up to AAA-Memphis this spring, where they will definitely give him every chance to close out games for the Redbirds.
