Seattle Mariners Closer Breakdown

May 9, 2006 @ 14:29:34

By Bryce McRae
Edited by KFFL Staff

After another late-inning meltdown against the Chicago White Sox Thursday, May 4, Seattle Mariners manager Mike Hargrove decided it was time to remove Mariners closer "Everyday" Eddie Guardado from his closing role and institute a closer-by-committee approach, at least for the time being.  In addition to the blown saves, it was the manner in which Guardado was losing, giving up three ninth-inning home runs that led to Mariners' losses.  Having blown three saves already and compiling a 7.59 earned run average (ERA) through Monday, May 8, Guardado will be given every chance to regain the closer's role, but at the moment, Hargrove feels it is time to switch gears. 

However, the closer-by-committee approach lasted all of three days.  Hargrove confirmed Sunday, May 7, that Mariners reliever J.J. Putz would be getting the majority of the save opportunities for the time being, although it will still change on a day-to-day basis.  Don't expect Putz to get the automatic call that Guardado once did, but he will be the first-choice out of the bullpen to finish off teams.  Putz wrapped up his fourth save of the season Monday, May 8, lowering his ERA to 2.04, the lowest ERA on the Mariners roster.

Hargrove wanted to get back to having one closer, which provides more stability in the bullpen, so Putz will get the call the majority of the time.  Hargrove did leave the door open for someone else to assume the closer's role if Putz falters.

What the future holds

With his major league debut coming in 2003, Putz has compiled decent numbers in the role of a set-up man, although he never had the control or high strikeout totals that would signify him as a potential closer.

Table: Putz Career Statistics

Season	Team	Saves	SVO	ERA	IP	K	BB
2003	SEA	0	0	4.91	3.2	3	3
2004	SEA	9	13	4.71	63.0	47	24
2005	SEA	1	4	3.60	60.0	45	23
2006	SEA	3	4	2.16	16.2	23	5

As you can see, in 2006, Putz has managed to keep his walks low while racking up strikeouts at a pace almost twice what he did in 2005.  It appears as though Putz has finally gotten the hang of his split-fingered fastball, which gives him the strikeout pitch most relievers covet.  If he can keep this up, there is no reason why the job won't remain his, but Putz could just as easily fall back to his previous ways. 

Helping him out will be Guardado, who is adjusting to life as a mentor, and taking great pride in Putz's success.  Guardado is still a candidate to return to his closer role as he has saved 58 games (out of 73 opportunities) for the Mariners since joining the team in 2004.  But it will take a collapse by Putz for Guardado to find himself back in the closer's role.

Table: Guardado Statistics 2002-06

Season	Team	Saves	SVO	ERA	K	BB
2002	MIN	45	51	2.93	70	18
2003	MIN	41	45	2.89	60	14
2004	SEA	18	25	2.78	45	14
2005	SEA	36	41	2.71	48	15
2006	SEA	4	7	7.59	13	8

Guardado has already given up over half the walks he had last season, so control appears to be a big issue for him.  If he can get that under control (pardon the pun), he could return to his old role with the club, but more likely, he will slot in as the set-up man for Putz.

Another candidate to replace Putz, if he falters, is reliever Rafael Soriano, another Mariners pitching prospect.  Called up in 2002 for his major league debut, Soriano pitched well for the club in 2003 before undergoing Tommy John surgery on his elbow in 2004. 

Table: Soriano Career Statistics

Season	Team	Saves	SVO	ERA	K	BB
2002	SEA	1	1	4.56	32	16
2003	SEA	1	2	1.53	68	12
2004	SEA	0	1	13.50	3	3
2005	SEA	0	0	2.45	9	1
2006	SEA	0	1	3.06	23	7

Soriano was tagged as a future closer before the injury and is just now making his way back. He pitched only 7 1/3 innings in 2005, and has shown excellent strikeout ability so far this season.

Left-handed pitcher George Sherrill has one save in one opportunity for the Mariners this season but he seems suited more as a set-up guy as opposed to a closer. 

There are a few relievers commonly available in fantasy leagues who could contribute to your team right now if Putz is not available or you are a Guardado owner. Not all of these players will rack up the saves, but may get the occasional save opportunity to go along with helping your team in at least one key category.

Table: Commonly Available Relief Pitchers

Player	Team	Saves	SVO	ERA	K	WHIP
Shawn Camp	TB	3	3	3.68	6	1.50
Duaner Sanchez	NYM	0	0	0.00	17	0.71
Jorge Julio	NYM	1	1	6.06	29	1.53
Scott Cassidy	SD	0	1	1.02	17	1.02

Summary

Putz will remain the closer for the time being, making him a strong pick-up in fantasy leagues if he is available as a free agent.

Soriano should be available in most leagues and he could be considered a sleeper at the position, especially in keeper leagues.  If you have room on your roster, he would be a good pick-up.

If you have Guardado on your team, hang on to him for the time being but if he hasn't regained the closing job soon, it might be time to get rid of him.  Both Putz and Soriano are younger then Guardado, who will turn 36 this October, and they are performing better than Guardado.  It appears as though a changing of the guard (again, pardon the pun) is underway in Seattle.

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Bryce McRae
Bryce McRae is a Managing Editor with KFFL and has been involved in fantasy sports since 1999. He joined KFFL as a volunteer writer in March 2005 before becoming a Hot off the Wire Analyst in March 2006. He began working in his current capacity in September 2008. His work has appeared on fantasy sports sites such as Yahoo! and CBS Sportsline as well as in print. He graduated from the University of British Columbia in 2008 with a B.A. in History and U.S. Studies.

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