Closers are the most overrated players in fantasy baseball. The good ones deliver strong contributions to one category, but generally pitch less than five innings per week.
During drafts, I usually ignore the position until the late rounds. Despite this strategy, my teams are usually very strong in the saves category. In fact, my teams have finished tied-first, second, first and first in saves over the last four seasons in my 10-team roto keeper league.
How is this possible you ask? It’s simple really. Let me run some numbers by you…
Over the past few weeks, we’ve announced the top 90 players on our 2011 big board. Click on each player’s name for a more in-depth analysis, including 2011 projections!
Closers are the most overrated players in fantasy baseball. The good ones deliver strong contributions to one category, but generally pitch less than five innings per week. For this reason, I tend to shy away from them until the later rounds. (Click here to see why adding closers is better than drafting them.)
The one (and only) exception to the rule is Mariano Rivera, who has averaged 40 saves per over the last 14 years, and hasn’t recorded less than 28 in a season since becoming the Yankees’ closer in ‘97. He’s posted an ERA under 2.00 in seven of the last eight years, and is perhaps the only closer without risk as he enters his age-41 season...
Over the last three years, only five closers have recorded at least 30 saves each season (Jonathan Papelbon, Francisco Cordero, Mariano Rivera, Joakim Soria and Brian Wilson). This fact alone illustrates the high turnover rate at this unstable position.
With nearly half of baseball's 30 teams likely to start 2011 with a new closer, it's important for fantasy managers to brush up on the bullpens in transition.
Every week during the 2011 season, I'll update the Closer's Corner as ninth-inning roles change hands. In the meantime, I'll post updates as free agents continue to sign and spring training battles become more clear...
Game No. 22 of 162 in the Fantasy Baseball Insiders Tonight summer-long journey featured one of this year’s biggest surprises and a bounce-back performance from one of Oakland’s young guns…
Game No. 22 – Texas Rangers vs. Oakland Athletics
• After surrendering eight runs (six earned) in five innings in his first start of the season last week, Trevor Cahill rebounded nicely Wednesday against the Rangers. In five innings, the 22-year-old allowed one unearned run on five hits and three walks in five innings...
Wednesday, March 30, 2011
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