Where does Ryan Madson rank among closers?

Brave-less new world for Hanson

Recovering from Tommy John surgery may be slightly swifter because he's a reliever, but the expected stopper may not start off well in his early OC days. This makes Ernesto Frieri a sound last-round stab in mixed leagues. Southpaw Sean Burnett could sneak in a few closures, as well.

Still, Madson's timeline stemming from his April 2012 surgery favors him at least taking a save mound sooner than later. Always allow a significant period for skills revival from a TJS returnee, but even if he has to yield early on to other members of this suddenly deep corps, that could offer a sweet buy-low opportunity sometime this summer.

Displaying even a sizable fraction of his strong history of control will make Madson's year useful, even if he doesn't repeat his 2011 saves total of 32. In the middle tier of mixed stoppers, he's an alluring prize that will require patience but, as long as he's not your only fireman, pay off with a sound rehabilitation.