Managers don’t seem to have much patience when it comes to closers.
In week 2 we saw Ron Washington replace Frank Francisco with Neftali Feliz and Cito Gaston replace Jason Frasor with Kevin Gregg. We also saw Brian Fuentes and Michael Gonzalez hit the DL.
That’s four new closers in one week. I told you last week how fluid the closer situation is and the events of this week only cement my belief.
Now it’s time to sort through the mess and try to make sense of the closer position.
Surging 
Jon Rauch, Minnesota Twins
Jon Rauch is one of this week’s big jumpers. After saving his major league leading fifth game of the season, I had no choice but to move Rauch comfortably into my top 20. His ERA now stands at 1.80 and he has taken a strangle hold of Minnesota’s closer role. Expect him to fill in for the injured Joe Nathan for the rest of the year.
Kevin Gregg, Toronto Blue Jays
Kevin Gregg was officially named Toronto’s closer by manager Cito Gaston. He already has three saves on the season and has yet to surrender a run or a walk. Gregg certainly has closer experience, tallying no less than 23 saves in each of the last three seasons. However, the presence of Frasor and Scott Downs will always have Gregg looking over his shoulder.
Neftali Feliz, Texas Rangers
Texas manager Ron Washington quickly removed Frank Francisco from the closers role and inserted flamethrower Neftali Feliz. I fully expect Feliz to be dominant in this role, however I don’t think Washington wants Feliz to close for long. Washington stated that Francisco is his closer, he just removed him temporarily from the role so he could work out some kinks in low pressure situations.
Falling
Trevor Hoffman, Milwaukee Brewers
The veteran closer has blown his last two saves. Since Hoffman doesn’t throw harder than 85 MPH, he needs to be perfect with his location and that hasn’t been the case recently. The good news here is that the Brewers are unlikely to remove him as closer since he is only seven saves away from 600. They would likely put him on the DL for a phantom injury before taking him out of the role.
Chris Perez, Cleveland Indians
Perez’s last two outings have not been pretty. He blew the save on April 11, letting up three runs in the process. The next day he came into a tie game in the ninth inning and failed to record an out, giving up a hit and a walk before being pulled by manager Manny Acta. Not only does Acta not have full confidence in him, but Kerry Wood should be back from injury in two weeks.
Jason Frasor, Toronto Blue Jays
After blowing two saves, Frasor was removed from the closer role. He’s been throwing in the low 90s so far as opposed to last year when he was in the mid 90s. He can be dropped in shallow leagues but keep tabs on Toronto to see if Gregg falters.
On the mend
Brian Fuentes, Los Angeles Angels
Fuentes was placed on the DL with a back strain after hurting his back lifting weights. The good news is that he hasn’t pitched since opening day so his DL stint is retroactive to April 6. There’s no structural damage so it looks like he should be on track to be activated by the middle of next week. Fernando Rodney will take over closing duties in the interim.
Michael Gonzalez, Baltimore Orioles
After three rough outings and decreased velocity, the Orioles decided to put Gonzalez on the DL with a strained left shoulder. He’s scheduled to undergo tests on Thursday so hopefully we’ll know more about the severity of the injury in the coming days. Remember, Gonzalez is being paid closer money so he should return to the closers role when he gets healthy. Until then, expect Jim Johnson to get the save opportunities.
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