Closers are an obsession of the fantasy class. No matter what the Todd Jones and Salomon Torres and Bob Wickmans tell us about the skill set needed to be a successful closer, we cannot stop trying to guess who the next undrafted free agent pick-up will be who turns into a $20 player mid-round draft pick.
Here is a list of current NL closers/Closers-To-Be. However, this is sorted by K/9 and includes each pitcher's BAA. What's it say? Something I'm sure. What that something is is open to interpretation.
Are the BAA's abnormally low for closers? Are the K/9 predictive of job stability?
| Name | TM | K/9 | BAA |
|---|---|---|---|
| FranciscoCordero | MIL | 12.8 | 0.077 |
| BrettMyers | PHI | 12.3 | 0.238 |
| TakashiSaito | LAD | 10.9 | 0.188 |
| TomGordon | PHI | 10.9 | 0.308 |
| ArmandoBenítez | SF | 10.3 | 0.245 |
| JoséValverde | ARI | 9.5 | 0.234 |
| RyanDempster | CHC | 9.0 | 0.159 |
| DanWheeler | HOU | 9.0 | 0.203 |
| DavidWeathers | CIN | 8.5 | 0.176 |
| BillyWagner | NYM | 8.5 | 0.169 |
| KevinGregg | FLA | 8.3 | 0.195 |
| RafaelSoriano | ATL | 8.0 | 0.119 |
| ChadCordero | WAS | 7.9 | 0.31 |
| TrevorHoffman | SD | 7.7 | 0.164 |
| MikeGonzález | ATL | 6.9 | 0.246 |
| BobWickman | ATL | 6.7 | 0.229 |
| JasonIsringhausen | STL | 6.6 | 0.154 |
| SalomónTorres | PIT | 6.4 | 0.25 |
| BrianFuentes | COL | 6.2 | 0.159 |
| JonRauch | WAS | 6.0 | 0.203 |
| HenryOwens | FLA | 6.0 | 0.225 |