Fantasy Baseball Closer Hot Seat - NL

September 2, 2010 @ 12:55:00

By Tim Heaney
Edited by Nicholas Minnix

Fantasy Baseball Closer Hot Seat: AL | NL

Fantasy baseball closer depth charts: AL | NL

In fantasy baseball, the closer position remains volatile. Rarely does every closer hang on to the job for an entire season - injuries, poor performance and managerial decisions can cloud a team's bullpen picture.

Should you be concerned about a struggling stopper? Which relievers are climbing the depth chart? Are any injuries popping up? KFFL.com's Fantasy Baseball Closer Hot Seat keeps you informed when you're looking for saves.

Mound meetings

• When will Lindstrom save one?

  Juan Gutierrez: closer to being named closer? Like the Baltimore Orioles' Koji Uehara, the Arizona Diamondbacks' righty looks like the de facto option, even without a title. Guti worked around a hit to throw a scoreless inning for his second closure in as many days.
  Since his recent return from the disabled list, he has been throwing his slider for strikes more frequently, giving him the consistency needed to be the go-to guy. If he's still out there, don't hesitate; even though Arizona might use someone else on occasion, Guti looks like the best bet.
• Though he wasn't expected to appear in last night's game after being activated, Matt Lindstrom pitched a clean seventh inning to set up Brandon Lyon. The latter recorded the Houston Astros save for the second straight day. Lindstrom said he felt no pain after the outing. Will he return to closing soon?
  "Let's wait on that a bit, simply because Lyon has done such a good job," manager Bradley Mills said after the game. Houston will probably slide Lindstrom in when Lyon needs a day off and possibly to work him back into the role permanently. Hang on to both relievers.
• Ryan Franklin threw in non-save work Wednesday night, which was his first appearance since Aug. 27. The St. Louis Cardinals' righty had been suffering from a stiff neck.
• Having today off, the San Francisco Giants threw closer Brian Wilson into action for the fourth straight day Wednesday. The righty tossed a scoreless inning, needing only 13 pitches. He totaled just 72 over the foursome, with 33 coming on the first night.
• Yes, it was a 16-10 blowout Florida Marlins victory, but embattled closer Leo Nunez pitched in the eighth inning, and Brian Sanches pitched in the ninth. Interim skipper Edwin Rodriguez wanted to throw Nunez in a non-pressure gig, but the choice of inning was interesting. Stay tuned.

Fantasy Baseball Closer Hot Seat: AL | NL

Fantasy baseball closer depth charts: AL | NL

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Tim Heaney

Since Tim joined KFFL in 2006, his work has been featured by USA Today/Sports Weekly and Yahoo! Sports, among numerous publications.

Tim co-hosts KFFL's Big Lead Sports block every Thursday (10pm-1am ET) on Sirius XM Fantasy Sports Radio (Sirius 210 | XM 87) and competes in Tout Wars (2011) and LABR (2012).

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