It just occurred to me that we haven’t told you much about the Twins’ closer situation with RHP Joe Nathan likely to miss this season because of a torn ulnar collateral ligament in his elbow.
I don’t run the Minnesota organization; the Twins’ executives do a very good job without my help. Terry Ryan isn’t the GM anymore, but the team should assign him the task of sifting through the closer candidates, internal and external. After all, he’s the one who saw Nathan’s potential back when he was a setup man and stole him from the Giants in the notorious A.J. Pierzynski trade.
The Twinkies have plenty of in-house candidates, even though they’ll no doubt be looking elsewhere as well. They are the defending American League Central champions, after all, and a strong contender again this year, so there’s a lot at stake in a division where one blown save could make the difference in going to the playoffs or staying home.
Thus, we present the pitchers who could receive a promotion from the back to the front of the bullpen. RHP Jon Rauch has been a closer in the majors with mixed results. Of his 26 career saves, 17 came in 22 attempts with the 2008 Nationals. RHP Matt Guerrier has been a reliable setup man, but hasn’t been called on for many saves (one in each of the last four seasons, with a career record of 4 in 14 attempts). RHP Jesse Crain at times was an overpowering closer as high as Triple-A, but his skill set and some arm problems have kept him from being a major factor in the majors (2-for-12 in career saves). LHP Jose Mijares was a minor league closer, but has even less big-league track record (one unsuccessful save attempt in 81 games) than Crain. RHP Clay Condrey: 4-for-6 in his career. RHP Pat Neshek: 0-for-7. The most intriguing candidate is LHP Francisco Liriano. He would have an exceptional repertoire for a closer – fastball, slider, devastating changeup. For Minnesota even to try him as a closer would mean both that the twins are satisfied with five other starters and that they’d trust Liriano to be what could be an overwhelming closer.
In the Phillies’ 4-0 victory over the Tigers, RHP Joe Blanton continued a good spring by outdueling RHP Justin Verlander. Blanton’s pitching line was 430000, compared to Verlander’s 462202. We can only imagine that Blanton’s pitches were moving down and out of the strike zone, which they do when he’s at his best. Philadelphia’s bullpen held Detroit hitless for the final five innings.
The Marlins’ closer, RHP Leo Nunez, had a chance for an easy save, entering their game against the Cardinals to start the ninth inning with a 3-0 lead. Instead, he imploded. His pitching line was 2/3 45311 as he turned the lead into a 5-3 loss. Included were doubles by young 3B David Freese and OF Joe Mather.
Rays LHP Jacob McGee did get a save in a 4-1 victory of the Blue Jays. His pitching line was 210002. They played in St. Petersburg, but the Braves-Yankees game next door in Tampa was rained out.
In a game reduced to eight innings because of rain, the Twins defeated the Orioles 8-3. Baltimore RHP Kevin Millwood again struggled. He’s 0-2 this spring with a 29.70 ERA, including a pitching line of 2 2/3 95512. Minnesota OF/1B Michael Cuddyer hit a home run against Millwood.
The Diamondbacks defeated the Angels 4-1, with LA/Anaheim’s only run coming on C Mike Napoli’s third homer this spring against Arizona RHP Leo Rosales.
The Dodgers defeated the Royals 6-4, with most of the damage against RHP Gil Meche. His line of 274410 included a homer by LA OF Andre Ethier.
The Rangers had one of their occasional offensive explosions, pounding 23 hits in a 16-5 victory over the Rockies. The winning pitcher, RHP Scott Feldman, had a shaky line of 2 1/3 53323, but it was a case of “You should see the other guy.” Colorado RHP Aaron Cook’s line was 2 2/3 99513. Rangers 1B Chris Davis, who seems on track to have a bounce-back season, hit a two-run homer against Cook during a 4-for-4 day with three RBI.
Mets SS Jose Reyes has been diagnosed with a thyroid disorder. He has been prescribed rest, and seems unlikely to be ready for Opening Day.
Sample Scouting Report:
Chris Davis, 1B, Rangers
Ht.: 6-4 Wt.: 235 B: L Age: 24
{2010} In half a season as a rookie in 2008, Davis hit 17 home runs and drove in 55 runs. Last season, he was striking out nearly once every two at-bats when he was returned to Triple-A Oklahoma City. He had been missing fastballs, swinging at balls and taking strikes, but altered his approach and became more patient in the minors. Davis batted .202 before the demotion, but improved to .308 in 36 games after his return to the Rangers. He can’t help but be somewhere between those averages this season, but he had a good start in exhibition games and should be a good power source making more consistent contact. If he doesn’t, he wouldn’t play much because 1B prospects Justin Smoak and Mitch Moreland are coming up behind him. Born: March 17, 1986, Longview, Texas. 2009: 391 AB, .238 BA, 21 HR, 59 RBI, 0 SB, 48 R.
Projection
AB: 482 BA: .258 HR: 26 RBI: 78 SB: 1 R: 67, Value: $7.
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