Kyle Farnsworth’s monopoly money

Folly is fleeting faith in Farnsie

Few fantasy baseball players could imagine Kyle Farnsworth as a component of the Tampa Bay Rays' closing crew for long. His effectiveness, along with Joe Maddon's use of the right-hander, may be changing that.

Thankfully, you haven't let the scenario that Farnsworth entered in the ninth on Friday mislead you. With one out to go and Michael Cuddyer strolling to the dish, the right-hander replaced Jake McGee, who had done his job for the most part. The rookie allowed an inherited runner to score when he faced and retired only Jim Thome on a fielder's choice ground-out.

Posthaste to Park Place

To open the frame, the Rays' skipper called on southpaw Cesar Ramos, who walked Jason Kubel and induced a fly-out from Justin Morneau. Next up was righty Juan Cruz, who walked Delmon Young before yielding to McGee. (Joel Peralta pitched a spotless eighth, by himself, it should be noted.)

Such micromanaging isn't surprising. "... I was not kidding that everybody's gonna be utilized in the last inning." Maddon remarked afterward. "Did not wanna have to do that, but we're willing to do that if necessary." This turn of events is proof that the hardened veteran isn't the closer.

If Cruz gets Young, there are two down and the left-handed lumberjack otherwise known as Thome is still next in the batter's box. Does Maddon bypass Maddon Logic (which in this case happened to coincide with conventional wisdom) there and go to Farnsie? Probably not. Does he leave Cruz in to finish it off? Probably not.

Just me and my lefty McGee ... et al.

Farnsworth, 36 this past Thursday, owns the most property on this Parker Brothers game board. Three chances to seal the deal - he's been in place for all of 'em and hasn't let Maddon down. But we've gone around the block only once, and no one has the moolah to put up houses, let alone hotels. McGee was the racecar coming in.

This isn't to discredit Farnsworth's rotisserie value. He was an incredibly enticing bargain this spring and so far has delivered. Few gave the hurler credit for his maturation in the past couple of years. This arrangement works only to keep Farnsie's rotisserie leverage low, which is a shame.

The Rays are known for their calculated, low-cost gambles on players who don't rate with most other clubs but in whom the front office and staff see great potential value. Say what you want about Manny Ramirez; one year at $2 million was more than a worthwhile gamble, even if he never made one of his 17 plate appearances before turning tail.

The one-year deal for $3.25 mil (including a 2012 option) the Rays handed Farnsworth this offseason wasn't surprising, considering that he made more than $5 million annually, on average, in the previous five years. But Tampa clearly had confidence in their evaluation; the market seemed to be skeptical of his 2010 statistical improvement and was lukewarm for him, at best.

Maddon may not have a closer in name all year. That's certainly not unprecedented. While others cherry-pick save opportunities, though, the skipper's deployment of Farnsworth may be the best thing for him - and fantasy baseball players who invested.

***

Facebook: KFFL Baseball | KFFL.com | Twitter: KFFL Baseball | KFFL.com
Ryan R. Bonini | Tim Heaney | Keith Hernandez | Nicholas Minnix