Yardbarker: Fernando Rodney

MLB Start 'Em, Sit 'Em - Week 21

Tue, 19 Aug 2008 07:56:49 -0500

Screaming Sports' Phil Yoon goes over a week of upcoming matchups and determines who you should sit, who you should start and why. Surprisingly, there are three pretty big names that should be riding the pine this coming week.

MLB Weekly Sleepers - Week 22

Mon, 18 Aug 2008 06:01:51 -0500

Screaming Sports' Tommy D breaks out another edition of MLB Sleepers and runs down a quick list of potential needles (in a haystack - get it?) for the upcoming week. So, who could surprise some unsuspecting opponents this week? Only one way to find out ... click it.

Inside The Box - August 11th Edition

Mon, 11 Aug 2008 07:54:51 -0500

Today's edition features slumping second half second basemen, a player hitting .300 after managing in the minors last season, a pitcher hitting free agency at the right time, why you should teach your kids to play every position on the field and lots more.

Ask Detroit or St. Louis if Closers Are Overrated

Wed, 06 Aug 2008 18:19:34 -0500

Sabermatricians are in theme to their lost opportunity? The Blown Save. In the past week the Tigers have declared two new closers. Fernando Rodney was declared the closer last week, he responded by blowing the only two chances he was given. As a result he was removed from the role and the job was given to youngster Joel Zumaya. Zumaya responded last night by giving up 4 runs in the 14th inning to cough up a win to division leader Chicago, meanwhile Rodney no longer the closer pitched 3 scoreless innings.

For the Cardinals the story has been the rotation of Izzy and Franklin in the closers role. Izzy was the intial team closer but was replaced by Franklin due to injury and ineffectiveness. Franklin was then moderately successful as the closer until Izzy came back to which he blew game after game after the all star break. After blowing three in a row he was again replaced by Izzy, since being replaced Franklin has thrown 5.2 scoreless innings. Meanwhile, Izzy gave up 3 runs last night to blow the lead. Combined the two have 13 blown saves this year. Simply put the 9th inning has been one massive headache for a team that sits only a .5 game back of the wild card.

The bottom line is there is a mental hurdle to get over for closing the games. And some pitchers just don't have it. Perhaps, Zumaya will be able to recover and turn into a solid closer, but given the Tigers struggles one could expect the hurdle to be too high.

(I picked up Rodney last week for the ole fantasy team, and picked up Zumaya on a whim monday thinking he would get the job. I also had Franklin through his multiple blown saves. Ya, not so much good luck oozing from this mans team)

AccuScore Closer Report - 8/6

Wed, 06 Aug 2008 12:59:02 -0500

Bullpen issues seem to be getting even worse across baseball as players succumb to injuries and poor performance. There are some possible places to steal some saves but it will require some patience, foresight, and a lot of luck.

New Sheriff in Texas

Wed, 06 Aug 2008 11:57:28 -0500

C.J. Wilson's mystery injury is finally revealed and he is headed to the DL. Eddie Guardado immediately becomes very valuable in fantasy, but several other relievers should be downgraded after recent performances. Adam Jones might be done for the year, and another Baltimore rookie dominated the Angels.

Ah, the closer by committee

Tue, 05 Aug 2008 20:46:31 -0500

The Tigers are going the route of closer by committee. Sort of. In the sense that Kyle Farnsworth, Fernando Rodney, and Joel Zumaya will all get opportunities there is definitely a committee of people who will be closing games. But it seems as if it will be pre-determined heading into the game [...]SHARETHIS.addEntry({ title: "Ah, the closer by committee", url: "http://www.detroittigersweblog.com/2008/08/ah-the-closer-by-committee/" });

Twins Surging

Mon, 04 Aug 2008 04:20:16 -0500

Spurred by the return of Francisco Liriano to the rotation, the surprising Twins pushed into first-place in the AL Central over the weekend. A lineup filled with no-names and a young pitching staff has kept the quintessential small market team in contention. Manny Ramirez and Jason Bay have taken well to their new homes, Tampa keeps winning, and teams continue to have problems with their closers.

Trade Deadline Deals - Impact on Your Fantasy Team

Fri, 01 Aug 2008 16:18:52 -0500

What are the fantasy impacts of the trade deadline deals? Which players gained the most value (hint, Andy LaRoche), and which lost the most (Andruw Jones)? Foxsports Fantasy breaks it down for you.

Dertroit Tigers Needed More Bullpen Help

Thu, 31 Jul 2008 15:50:00 -0500

The trade deadline has passed now and all the tigers got was farnsworth great pickup in my opinion.I think they could have used more help like a lefty.So in say my peace i hope rodney,zumaya figure out there stuff because we will need it if we are going to make the playoffs.A starting pitcher would not had hurt with the struggles nate robertson has had.

AccuScore Closer Report - 7/30: Shaky Pens

Thu, 31 Jul 2008 14:37:05 -0500

This time of year very few closers are truly safe. The situations in Pittsburgh and Cleveland are unsettled, and Detroit has thrown another surprising name into their bullpen mix. Jonathan Lee sorts it all out in this week's Closer Report.

Fantasy Baseball: The Home Stretch

Wed, 30 Jul 2008 10:58:38 -0500

As each day goes by, we are getting closer and closer to the rosters expanding and baseball teams calling up players from the minor leagues. August is a crucial month in that teams begin to call up guys with much more potential than their lesser teammates. Josh Hamilton was called up as a member of the Cincinnati Reds and played a big role not only for their team, but for some lucky fantasy owners across the country. Other than guys that I have previously mentioned (Francisco Liriano and David Price), here are 2 guys who should be called up within the month and have a positive fantasy impact. Gio Gonzalez SP OAK- WIth Oakland seemingly refusing to try and contend this year by trading Joe Blanton and possibly Huston Street, watch Billy Beane call up Gio within the next week or so. In 115 IP, Gio has racked up 119 K's. While his ERA is a bit high, he struggled at the beginning of the year and has been on a tear lately. His biggest issue are control problems but he has nasty stuff and has been tough to get hits off of. Look for Gio to start against weaker teams as well, even as early as this week against the Royals. Matthew Laporta CLE OF- The crown jewel of the C.C. Sabathia trade, Laporta will be called up to show GM Mark Shapiro exactly what he got for his hefty lefty. In AA ball with Milwaukee, Laporta was batting .288, with 20 HR and 66 RBI. He has gotten off to a slow start with the Cleveland minor league team, but expect that to change quickly. A key stat about this guy is that he takes walks. With Milwaukee's AA team, he had an On Base Percentage of .402, very impressive considering his Batting Average was below .300. Laporta can help your fantasy team across the board besides for steals and should make an impact as soon as he is called up. There are other options, rather than banking on prospects, that one can take in making their fantasy baseball team better. It is at the point where certain categories should be disregarded. For instance, in a rotisserie league, if you are already near the bottom in ERA and around the middle of the pack in strikeouts, load up on strikeout pitchers. Look at pitchers such as Jonathan Sanchez or Ian Snell, guys who have struggled this year but have above average strikeout numbers. Snell has really struggled this year after a solid 2007, but expect a resurgence from him towards the end of the year as 2 of his last 3 starts have been solid. The waiver wire is a great place to find these category fillers. Pitchers such as Braden Looper, Kenny Rogers, and Kyle Kendrick are available in many leagues and can help you pile on wins because they play for above .500 teams. Also, keep tabs on teams set-up men and team decisions to make changes in the bullpen. The Detroit Tigers just named Fernando Rodney their new closer, which skyrockets his value, and drops Todd Jones's down like the Dow Jones. Check on Jon Rauch in Arizona, and see if Brandon Lyon can hold on to his closer role, or choke with a talent like Rauch waiting in the wings. On the hitting side, there are plenty of solid options on the waiver wire to shore up some holes that your team may have. Denard Span of the Minnesota Twins has been very good since becoming the leadoff guy. While he won't get you any power numbers, Spam will get on base, steal a couple, and score some runs for your ball club. With Joe Crede on the DL, look out for Josh Fields. He was called up on Friday and will play both 3B and OF. Fields was projected to start at some point this season, but Crede has been so good that he hasn't seen the majors until friday. Fields is a power guy and can grab you some HR and RBI very quickly.

Todd Jones out as closer

Sun, 27 Jul 2008 22:29:53 -0500

Jim Leyland hasn't been shy about making changes to established roles this season. He quietly announced a big one on the radio pre-game show with Dan Dickerson when he said that Todd Jones is out as closer and Fernando Rodney would primarily assume the role. It had become clear over the last couple weeks that [...]SHARETHIS.addEntry({ title: "Todd Jones out as closer", url: "http://www.detroittigersweblog.com/2008/07/todd-jones-out-as-closer/" });

Star-Studded Lineup Gets Boost From Scrubs

Tue, 01 Jul 2008 08:16:57 -0500

"A scrub is a guy who thinks he's fly, and is also known as a busta." Two weeks ago, Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle dubbed Tigers ultra-reserve Ryan Raburn a "scrub". That game, Raburn hit a pinch-hit solo homerun to put the Tigers ahead and up for good on their way to a 5-1 win against the San Francisco Little People. Since then, the Tigers are 9-2 and their "scrubs" have had a considerable hand in each of the nine victories.

Livin’ Large on the Left Coast

Mon, 23 Jun 2008 18:16:22 -0500

Four of six, and twelve of fifteen. The Tigers are rolling, finally living up to some of the promise that accompanied them at the beginning of the season. The team's recent success has come with, not surprisingly, a resurgent offense and much steadier pitching. For the first time this year we've seen a string of [...]