Ryan Franklin Out as Closer
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
He may not be a closer, but
Mike Leake finished the weekend in style. He was arrested for stealing $60 worth of shirts from Macy's, which is ridiculous for a man making about half a million dollars this year. Even more so for a man that had four times that amount in cash in his wallet.
Leake's arrest is just another in a line of baseball's bonehead run-ins with the law. Baseball players may not be much more likely to get arrested than the average bloke, but they certainly don't seem to be doing it in smart fashion.
So what we'll do is name our closer tiers in their honor. For the purposes of this exercise, the more ridiculous the example, the higher the tier. Because, if nothing else, we'll remember them for their follies.
Tier 1: Elite (4) (AKA: The "Matt Bush" Tier.)Mariano Rivera, New York Yankees
Neftali Feliz, Texas Rangers
Heath Bell, San Diego Padres
Joakim Soria, Kansas City Royals
Matt Bush was once arrested for driving (drunk) on to a school campus, screaming at some freshman lacrosse players… and then throwing one. Frosh-toss someone, end up in the police blotter, and you'll reign reprehensibly and ridiculously over our tiers, much like these closers reign over the league. Evidently, Mariano Rivera was mad that we didn't put him in the top tier to begin the year. He's not looking anything like his 41 years of age. Even after blowing his first save of the season Tuesday night, he's only walked one batter all year, and eight hits in ten appearances. Yeah, he's still got it. Joakim Soria should be fine, but he's walked just as many as he's struck out this year and is in danger of dropping to the next tier if he keeps that up. There's already some whispers about whether or not the Royals will trade their closer in the second half. It does seem, however, that this team is trying to claw their way back to respectability - short term signings like Jeff Francoeur and Melky Cabrera suggest that they want to win some games and don't mind blocking some prospects. If they do think they will be competitive soon, they won't trade the Mexpatriot.
Tier 2: Rock Steady (5) (AKA: The "Mike Leake" Tier.)Brian Wilson, San Francisco Giants
Carlos Marmol, Chicago Cubs
Jonathan Papelbon, Boston Red Sox
Craig Kimbrel, Atlanta Braves
J.J. Putz, Arizona Diamondbacks
J.J. Putz is healthy now, so let's not think about his past. He hasn't walked a guy or blown a save this year. In fact, he's only given up one earned run so far. He deserves to be in this tier while his arm is still attached. Brian Wilson has settled in after his tumultuous return from the disabled list. He hasn't given up a run (and only one walk) since his first two appearances, and is looking absolutely filthy on the mound. He's even added a two-seamer that has made some batters look really, really silly. Wilson would be the next man in line should someone in the elite tier falter.A contending team like the Red Sox won't trade Jonathan Papelbon mid-season, most likely. And the closer has struck out eight against only two walks this year, with one sole earned run on the register. His velocity is not all the way back, but he's still throwing 94 regularly. That's 'not bad.'Craig Kimbrel walked a dude finally. That's ten strikeouts and one walk in his first six innings this year. Fire!
Tier 3: OK options (5) (AKA: The "Randall Simon" Tier.)Francisco Rodriguez, New York Mets
Jose Valverde, Detroit Tigers
Joel Hanrahan, Pittsburgh Pirates
Chris Perez, Cleveland Indians
Huston Street, Colorado Rockies
Francisco Cordero, Cincinnati Reds
Comment:Randall Simon was booked in 2003 for hitting one of the Milwaukee Brewers' racing sausages with a bat. He hit a big, foam, person-filled sausage with a bat. In the end, he didn't serve time - just a three-game suspension - so it just ended up being a bad week for him.Huston Street had a bad week this past week. He did manage a save, but he didn't strike out a single batter in three appearances, walked one, gave up a home run, and almost blew a save against the Mets. Matt Lindstrom came in to nail down the save, but Street is still the closer. A few strikeouts would be nice, but Street should be fine. Overall, he still has 11 strikeouts in 11 1/3 innings, against only four walks. Contrast that work with Francisco Cordero's effort recently - he has five strikeouts against two walks in six innings - and you'll see how different the sample sizes are for each closer. We're stuck reading the tea leaves, and those leaves are mixed when it comes to Cordero. His velocity is down almost two miles per hour, but his results have been okay so far. Call this a cautious promotion, especially with Aroldis Chapman hitting 105 on the gun this week. He's lurking in that pen should Cordero's lack of velocity catch up to him.
Tier 4: Question marks (6) (AKA: The "Jae-Kuk Ryu" Tier.)Leo Nunez, Florida Marlins
Jonathan Broxton, Los Angeles Dodgers
Jordan Walden, Anaheim Angels
Kyle Farnsworth, Tampa Bay Rays
Kevin Gregg, Baltimore Orioles
John Axford, Milwaukee Brewers
Comment:Ryu, a minor leaguer in the Cubs organization in 2003, hit a bird that nested at the park he was visiting. Ozzy the osprey was eventually fine, but with his eye bleeding after the game, Ryu was booked for animal cruelty.Good thing that Ryu didn't have the gas of a Jonathan Broxton or he would have killed the endangered bird. Unfortunately for Broxton, he still doesn't have his career strikeout rate or velocity back. Over the past week, he has struck out four batters in three innings, and some of the velocity seemed to be creeping back. On the other hand, he also gave up three runs in those three appearances. It's still a mixed bag.Jordan Walden is cooking with 96-MPH gas and striking out batters at a double-digit rate, so his slightly higher walk rate is not super concerning. Fernando Rodney is pitching well, but it's Walden… for now.Kyle Farnsworth just keeps pitching well and getting the opportunities in Tampa Bay. He could do it all year with a few blowups. On the other hand, John Axford may not make it through the year. He used to have control problems, and they are back in full force this year. The problem with taking advantage of this situation is that there's no clear successor. Of the regular bullpen options this year, only Kameron Loe has the rates of a closer - but his fastball barely cracks 90 MPH. Young Zach Braddock has been groomed for the role but has been much less exciting this year. LaTroy Hawkins has finished his rehab, too. Who knows what's going on here.
He may not be a closer, but
Mike Leake finished the weekend in style. He was arrested for stealing $60 worth of shirts from Macy's, which is ridiculous for a man making about half a million dollars this year. Even more so for a man that had four times that amount in cash in his wallet.
Leake's arrest is just another in a line of baseball's bonehead run-ins with the law. Baseball players may not be much more likely to get arrested than the average bloke, but they certainly don't seem to be doing it in smart fashion.
So what we'll do is name our closer tiers in their honor. For the purposes of this exercise, the more ridiculous the example, the higher the tier. Because, if nothing else, we'll remember them for their follies.
Tier 1: Elite (4) (AKA: The "Matt Bush" Tier.)Mariano Rivera, New York Yankees
Neftali Feliz, Texas Rangers
Heath Bell, San Diego Padres
Joakim Soria, Kansas City Royals
Matt Bush was once arrested for driving (drunk) on to a school campus, screaming at some freshman lacrosse players… and then throwing one. Frosh-toss someone, end up in the police blotter, and you'll reign reprehensibly and ridiculously over our tiers, much like these closers reign over the league. Evidently, Mariano Rivera was mad that we didn't put him in the top tier to begin the year. He's not looking anything like his 41 years of age. Even after blowing his first save of the season Tuesday night, he's only walked one batter all year, and eight hits in ten appearances. Yeah, he's still got it. Joakim Soria should be fine, but he's walked just as many as he's struck out this year and is in danger of dropping to the next tier if he keeps that up. There's already some whispers about whether or not the Royals will trade their closer in the second half. It does seem, however, that this team is trying to claw their way back to respectability - short term signings like Jeff Francoeur and Melky Cabrera suggest that they want to win some games and don't mind blocking some prospects. If they do think they will be competitive soon, they won't trade the Mexpatriot.
Tier 2: Rock Steady (5) (AKA: The "Mike Leake" Tier.)Brian Wilson, San Francisco Giants
Carlos Marmol, Chicago Cubs
Jonathan Papelbon, Boston Red Sox
Craig Kimbrel, Atlanta Braves
J.J. Putz, Arizona Diamondbacks
J.J. Putz is healthy now, so let's not think about his past. He hasn't walked a guy or blown a save this year. In fact, he's only given up one earned run so far. He deserves to be in this tier while his arm is still attached. Brian Wilson has settled in after his tumultuous return from the disabled list. He hasn't given up a run (and only one walk) since his first two appearances, and is looking absolutely filthy on the mound. He's even added a two-seamer that has made some batters look really, really silly. Wilson would be the next man in line should someone in the elite tier falter.A contending team like the Red Sox won't trade Jonathan Papelbon mid-season, most likely. And the closer has struck out eight against only two walks this year, with one sole earned run on the register. His velocity is not all the way back, but he's still throwing 94 regularly. That's 'not bad.'Craig Kimbrel walked a dude finally. That's ten strikeouts and one walk in his first six innings this year. Fire!
Tier 3: OK options (5) (AKA: The "Randall Simon" Tier.)Francisco Rodriguez, New York Mets
Jose Valverde, Detroit Tigers
Joel Hanrahan, Pittsburgh Pirates
Chris Perez, Cleveland Indians
Huston Street, Colorado Rockies
Francisco Cordero, Cincinnati Reds
Comment:Randall Simon was booked in 2003 for hitting one of the Milwaukee Brewers' racing sausages with a bat. He hit a big, foam, person-filled sausage with a bat. In the end, he didn't serve time - just a three-game suspension - so it just ended up being a bad week for him.Huston Street had a bad week this past week. He did manage a save, but he didn't strike out a single batter in three appearances, walked one, gave up a home run, and almost blew a save against the Mets. Matt Lindstrom came in to nail down the save, but Street is still the closer. A few strikeouts would be nice, but Street should be fine. Overall, he still has 11 strikeouts in 11 1/3 innings, against only four walks. Contrast that work with Francisco Cordero's effort recently - he has five strikeouts against two walks in six innings - and you'll see how different the sample sizes are for each closer. We're stuck reading the tea leaves, and those leaves are mixed when it comes to Cordero. His velocity is down almost two miles per hour, but his results have been okay so far. Call this a cautious promotion, especially with Aroldis Chapman hitting 105 on the gun this week. He's lurking in that pen should Cordero's lack of velocity catch up to him.
Tier 4: Question marks (6) (AKA: The "Jae-Kuk Ryu" Tier.)Leo Nunez, Florida Marlins
Jonathan Broxton, Los Angeles Dodgers
Jordan Walden, Anaheim Angels
Kyle Farnsworth, Tampa Bay Rays
Kevin Gregg, Baltimore Orioles
John Axford, Milwaukee Brewers
Comment:Ryu, a minor leaguer in the Cubs organization in 2003, hit a bird that nested at the park he was visiting. Ozzy the osprey was eventually fine, but with his eye bleeding after the game, Ryu was booked for animal cruelty.Good thing that Ryu didn't have the gas of a Jonathan Broxton or he would have killed the endangered bird. Unfortunately for Broxton, he still doesn't have his career strikeout rate or velocity back. Over the past week, he has struck out four batters in three innings, and some of the velocity seemed to be creeping back. On the other hand, he also gave up three runs in those three appearances. It's still a mixed bag.Jordan Walden is cooking with 96-MPH gas and striking out batters at a double-digit rate, so his slightly higher walk rate is not super concerning. Fernando Rodney is pitching well, but it's Walden… for now.Kyle Farnsworth just keeps pitching well and getting the opportunities in Tampa Bay. He could do it all year with a few blowups. On the other hand, John Axford may not make it through the year. He used to have control problems, and they are back in full force this year. The problem with taking advantage of this situation is that there's no clear successor. Of the regular bullpen options this year, only Kameron Loe has the rates of a closer - but his fastball barely cracks 90 MPH. Young Zach Braddock has been groomed for the role but has been much less exciting this year. LaTroy Hawkins has finished his rehab, too. Who knows what's going on here.
Tier 5: Rollercoaster rides (9) (AKA: The "Vince Naimoli" Tier.)
Matt Capps, Minnesota Twins
Brandon Lyon, Houston Astros
Jose Contreras, Philadelphia Phillies
Frank Francisco /
Jon Rauch, Toronto Blue Jays
Sean Burnett /
Drew Storen, Washington Nationals
Brian Fuentes, Oakland Athletics
Brandon League, Seattle Mariners
Mitchell Boggs /
Jason Motte /
Ryan Franklin, St. Louis Cardinals
Sergio Santos /
Jesse Crain /
Chris Sale /
Matt Thornton, Chicago White Sox
Comment:Vince Naimoli was once pulled over for a DUI. Among his first words to the officer was the age-old refrain: "Do you know who I am?" Well, no, the cop didn't, and no, you probably wouldn't be able to spot most of these guys on the street either. At least they have some short-term value, which is more than we can say for the former Rays owner.Joe Nathan, whose velocity is not all the way back since his surgery, volunteered to give up his closer role to the more effective Matt Capps for now. Nathan is the superior pitcher if he has his stuff, though, so this is still in flux. A few good appearances and Nathan could move up the ranks pretty quickly.Frank Francisco is back! Don't drop Jon Rauch just yet, though. Frankie Frank, a name you'd never forget after his own chair-throwing run-in with the law, was terrible in his rehab stint, and Rauch has been dealing. Just another situation where both relievers need to be owned in most leagues.The bottom of this tier is just a mess. Sean Burnett and Drew Storen are splitting save opportunities for now, but it's probable that Storen wins out in the end. He has the pedigree and the four-pitch mix going for him. Also, although they've both locked down saves in the past week, Burnett gave up runs in both of his two appearances and also blew an opportunity. Brandon League has been doing fine, but David Aardsma is on his way back. The worst situation in the league, however, belongs to Ozzie Guillen in Chicago. The only pitcher in his bullpen that could close but hasn't been removed during a blow save opportunity is Sergio Santos. And Santos converted to pitching last year. Last year. This bullpen is so crazy that it's almost impossible to figure out who is going to close in the future. Ozzie himself said he had no closer. Matt Thornton had the best fastball in the league last year (and the year before), but he's getting hit around. Chris Sale, also a lefty, is young and still figuring out how to use his arsenal (and is also getting hit around). Jesse Crain is pitching well but he is throwing his fastball only 40% of the time and doesn't *seem* like a closer. Throw a dart, pick up a White Sox reliever, and cross your fingers. Joining the White Sox as a mess is the Cardinals' bullpen. Manager Tony La Russa says that he's removed Ryan Franklin from the role for now, but didn't announce who would get saves in the meantime. Given his proclivity for veterans (ask Colby Rasmus how TLR feels about rookies), it probably won't be young fireballer Eduardo Sanchez. Jason Motte, who owns a straight but rapid fastball and nothing else, is probably the best option if you look past this year's stats. But it'll probably be Mitchell Boggs for now, because he's found a way to boost his strikeout rate in the young season. In the end, La Russa hinted that Franklin's removal was temporary when he said he'll treat his former closer as a slumping hitter. Franklin may be back shortly.* * * * * * * * * *
Injured David Aardsma, Seattle Mariners (hip surgery)
Andrew Bailey, Oakland Athletics (forearm tightness)
Brad Lidge, Philadelphia Phillies (shoulder)
Comment:David Aardsma is starting his rehab assignment this week. If he's on your waiver wire, it's time to pick him up and stash him for saves later on this month. Andrew Bailey is throwing but doesn't have a schedule yet.The Deposed:Fernando Rodney, Los Angeles
Joe Nathan, Minnesota
Expect the newest member of this list to jump off the graveyard and back in to the land of living before long. He just needs to find his old control and stuff - it might just take another month or so. Tommy John is major surgery, we can forget that fact sometimes.* * * * * * * * * *The Steals DepartmentDexter Fowler is available in a half to two-thirds of the leagues out there, but he has the upside to be valuable in all leagues. Over the past three years, he's made improvements in his strikeout rate - if he can carry that success over into this year, he could improve on his .260 batting average. He also has shown league-average power in his young career, if not so far this year. He is a beast against lefties, but playing every day for the most part. He's not without his flaws - he does need to continue to work at his strikeout rate, which has been poor so far in this young season - but how many other players on the waiver wire could hit better than .275 with double-digit home runs and 30 stolen bases? It's like a free Jose Tabata! Maybe. Jarrod Dyson is pretty much universally un-owned, and that's for a multitude of reasons. He's in a crowded outfield in Kansas City, competing with Melky Cabrera and Mitch Maier for playing time in center field. It's also unclear how much contact he can make, as he struck out in about a fifth of his minor league at-bats (and more in the major leagues). That's not a terrible rate, but it's not great since he also has no power at all. On the other hand, he does take walks, and he might be the fastest player in the big leagues. He also started twice over the weekend, and has stolen five bases even though he's only been on base five times. That kind of speed, even from a flawed hitter, might be worth picking up in your deep league.