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Closer Report

HOUSTON TX - JULY 25:  Aroldis Chapman #54 of the Cincinnati Reds closes out the Houston Astros in the ninth inning at Minute Maid Park on July 25, 2012 in Houston, Texas. Cincinnati Reds win 5-3.  (Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images)
HOUSTON TX - JULY 25: Aroldis Chapman #54 of the Cincinnati Reds closes out the Houston Astros in the ninth inning at Minute Maid Park on July 25, 2012 in Houston, Texas. Cincinnati Reds win 5-3. (Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images)
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Every week I take a look at the going's on in the life of relief pitching in fake baseball. These rankings are a pretty good indicator of who has been getting it done and who has wasted your roster space. So have a gander at how I would rank the best conclusionary pitchers and the guys that set them up.

  • Well the Astros are just a dismal resource for saves. Maybe Brett Myers was underrated before he was traded. CoCo Cordero is not the short term or long term answer there. Look for a healthy dose of see what we got moing forward in Houston; Wilton Lopez and anyone else with a creditable arm could see chances if Cordero is shown the door,
  • The situation in Milwaukee isn't much better. Axford was awful, them K-rod was worse than awful if that's entirely possible and now it looks like a committee thing. Now to make it worse the Brewers have fired bullpen coach Stan Kyles, because clearly it was his fault.
  • In trade rumors it seems like Jonathon Broxton is going to get moved. He is rumored to be going to Texas and will assume a set-up role in front of Joe Nathan. Greg Holland will/should be the pick-up in the wake of a trade happening.
  • Also in trade news Rafael Betancourt is being, well pun intended courted by several teams on the fringe of contention. He is signed cheaply for the next 2 years and would make sense for teams looking for an upgrade for next year in their closer situation. Rex Brothers or Matt Belisle would assume the closer role, if Colorado actually gets a save chance.
  • Continuing with the trade rumors, Brandon League is drawing interest from the Giants. Now this is a situation where he may gain value. Bochy is a fickle beast and likes using his guys, Casilla and Romo in set-up roles, unfortunately he was forced to used Casilla there, with great results here and there. League could sneak his way into a closer role there and squeak out some late season value.

Stick around after the jump for closer rankings and Hold Tiers


2. Rafael Soriano

3.Aroldis Chapman



5. Jim Johnson

6. Chris Perez

7. Joel Hanrahan

8. Jason Motte

9. Jonathan Papelbon

10 Kenley Jansen

11. Joe Nathan

12. Ernesto Frieri

13. Jonthan Broxton

14.Ryan Cook

15. Tyler Clippard

16.Santiago Casilla

17.Huston Street

18. J.J. Putz

19.Addison Reed

20.Rafael Betancourt

21. Casey Janssen

22. Alfredo Aceves

23. Jose Valverde

24. Francisco Rodriguez / Jon Axford

25. Tom Wilhelmsen

26.Francisco Cordero / Wilton Lopez

27. Carlos Marmol

28. Steve Cishek

29. Bobby Parnell / Frank Francisco

30. Jared Burton / Glen Perkins / Matt Capps

Tier 1.

Mike Adams TEX

Sergio Romo SF

Vinnie Pestano CLE

Joaquin Benoit DET

Sean Burnett WAS

Sean Marshall CIN

David Hernandez ARI

Jason Grilli PIT

Antonio Bastardo PHI

Scott Downs ANA

David Robertson NYY

Vincente Padilla BOS

Ronald Belisario LAD

Tier 2:

Tim Byrdak NYM

Pedro Strop BAL

Eric O'Flaherty ATL

Aaron Crow KC

Joel Peralta TB

Josh Lindblom LAD

Matt Belisle COL

James Russell CHC

Jake McGee TB

Grant Balfour OAK

Mitchell Boggs STL

Shawn Camp CHC

Tier 3:

Chad Durbin ATL

Greg Holland KC

Juan Cruz PIT

Bryan Shaw ARI

Mike Dunn MIA

Luke Gregerson SD

Juan Cruz PIT

Joe Smith CLE

Kelvin Herrera KC

Matt Thornton CHW

Jose Arredondo CIN

Brad Ziegler ARI

Boone Logan NYY

Jesse Crain CHW

Andrew Miller BOS

Brett Myers CHW