Relief Pitcher Rankings and Dollar Values

[Greg Ambrosius]

I apologize for not listing relief pitchers last week. Attached are the rankings and dollar values for all relief pitchers:



Relief Pitchers

1. Jonathan Papelbon Bos.

2. Francisco Rodriguez Mets

3. Brad Lidge Phi.

4. Joe Nathan Min.

5. Mariano Rivera NYY

6. Joakim Soria K.C.

7. Jose Valverde Hou.

8. Bobby Jenks WSox

9. Kerry Wood Cle.

10. Jonathan Broxton L.A.

11. B.J. Ryan Tor.

12. Carlos Marmol Cubs

13. Francisco Cordero Cin.

14. Brian Fuentes LAA

15. Matt Capps Phi.

16. Huston Street Col.

17. Joey Devine Oak.

18. Brian Wilson S.F.

19. Heath Bell S.D.

20. Chris Perez St.L

21. Chad Qualls Ari.

22. Mike Gonzalez Atl.

23. Trevor Hoffman Mil.

24. Frank Francisco Tex.

25. Matt Lindstrom Fla.

26. Brandon Morrow Sea.

27. Joel Hanrahan Wash.

28. Troy Percival T.B.

29. Fernando Rodney Det.

30. Grant Balfour T.B.

31. J.J. Putz Mets

32. Manuel Corpas Col.

33. George Sherrill Bal.

34. Chris Ray Bal.

35. Brad Ziegler Oak.

36. Takashi Saito Bos.

37. Dan Wheeler T.B.

38. Aaron Heilman Sea.

39. Scot Shields LAA

40. Jose Arredondo LAA

41. Kevin Gregg Cubs

42. Ryan Rowland-Smith Sea.

43. J.P. Howell T.B.

44. Jon Rauch Ari.

45. Rafael Betancourt Cle.

46. Tony Pena Ari.

47. Scott Downs Tor.

48. Rafael Perez Cle.

49. Rafael Soriano Atl.

50. Manny Delcarmen Bos.

51. Hideki Okajima Bos.

52. Matt Thornton WSox

53. Octavio Dotel WSox

54. Taylor Buchholz Col.

55. Jesse Carlson Tor.

56. Carlos Villanueva Mil.

57. Jeremy Accardo Tor.

58. Jason Motte St.L

59. Justin Masterson Bos.

60. Brandon Lyon FA

61. Bob Howry S.F.

62. Jason Isringhuasen FA

63. John Grabow Pit.

64. C.J. Wilson Tex.

65. Ryan Franklin St.L

66. Arthur Rhodes Cin.

67. Darren Oliver LAA

68. Jeff Samardzija Cubs

69. LaTroy Hawkins Hou.

70. Scott Linebrink WSox

71. Santiago Casilla Oak.

72. Jeff Bennett Atl.

73. Chad Bradford T.B.

74. Kyle Farnsworth K.C.

75. Edwar Ramirez NYY

76. Brandon League Tor.

77. Cla Meredith S.D.

78. Tyler Yates Pit.

[Greg Ambrosius]

Here are the current AL dollar values for RPs:



Relief Pitchers

1. Jonathan Papelbon, Bos $28

2. Joe Nathan, Min. $26

3. Mariano Rivera, NYY. $25

4. Joakim Soria, K.C. $24

5. Bobby Jenks, WSox. $22

6. Kerry Wood, Cle. $21

7. B.J. Ryan, Tor.. $19

8. Brian Fuentes, LAA. $19

9. Joey Devine, Oak. $16

10. Frank Francisco, Tex. $13

11. Brandon Morrow, Sea. $12

12. Troy Percival, T.B. $11

13. Fernando Rodney, Det. $9

14. Grant Balfour, T.B. $8

15. George Sherrill, Bal. $8

16. Chris Ray, Bal. $8

17. Brad Ziegler, Oak. $7

18. Takashi Saito, Bos. $7

19. Dan Wheeler, T.B. $7

20. Aaron Heilman, Sea. $7

21. Scot Shields, LAA. $6

22. Jose Arredondo, LAA. $6

23. Ryan Rowland-Smith, Sea. $5

24. J.P. Howell, T.B. $5

25. Rafael Betancourt, Cle. $4

26. Scott Downs, Tor. $4

27. Rafael Perez, Cle. $4

28. Manny Delcarmen, Bos. $3

29. Hideki Okajima, Bos. $3

30. Matt Thornton, WSox. $3

31. Octavio Dotel, WSox. $3

32. Jesse Carlson, Tor. $3

33. Jeremy Accardo, Tor.. $3

34. Justin Masterson, Bos. $3

35. C.J. Wilson, Tex. $3

36. Darren Oliver, LAA. $2

37. Scott Linebrink, WSox. $2

38. Santiago Casilla, Oak. $2

39. Chad Bradford, T.B. $2

40. Kyle Farnsworth, K.C. $2

41. Edwar Ramirez, NYY $2

42. Brandon League, Tor. $2

43. Jesse Crain, Min.. $2

44. Joaquin Benoit, Tex. . $2

45. Robinson Tejeda, K.C. $2

46. Masa Kobayashi, Cle. $2

47. Joe Smith, Cle. $2

48. Jim Johnson, Bal. $2

49. Ron Mahay, K.C. $1

50. Jerry Blevins, Oak. $1

51. Eddie Guardado, FA. $1

52. Joe Borowski, FA $1

53. Roy Corcoran, Sea. $1

54. Jose Mijares, Min. . $1

55. Bobby Seay, Det. . $1

56. Andrew Brown, Oak. $1

57. Warner Madrigal, Tex. $1

58. Jamie Walker, Bal. $1

59. Clay Rapada, Det. $1

60. Jonathan Albaladejo, NYY $1

61. Matt Guerrier, Min. $1

[Greg Ambrosius]

Here's the current dollar values for NL leagues:



Relief Pitchers

1. Francisco Rodriguez, Mets. $27

2. Brad Lidge, Phi. $26

3. Jose Valverde, Hou. $22

4. Jonathan Broxton, LAA $20

5. Carlos Marmol, Cubs. $19

6. Francisco Cordero, Cin. $19

7. Matt Capps, Pit. $16

8. Huston Street, Col. $16

9. Brian Wilson, S.F. $16

10. Heath Bell, S.D. $15

11. Chris Perez, St.L. $15

12. Chad Qualls, Ari. $15

13. Mike Gonzalez, Atl. $15

14. Trevor Hoffman, Mil.. $13

15. Matt Lindstrom, Fla. . $12

16. Joel Hanrahan, Wash. $12

17. J.J. Putz, Mets. $8

18. Manuel Corpas, Col. $8

19. Kevin Gregg, Cubs. $6

20. Jon Rauch, Ari. $5

21. Tony Pena, Ari. $4

22. Rafael Soriano, Atl. $4

23. Taylor Buchholz, Col. $3

24. Carlos Villanueva, Mil. $3

25. Jason Motte, St.L. $3

26. Brandon Lyon, FA. $3

27. Bobby Howry, S.F. $3

28. Jason Isrignhausen, FA. $3

29. John Grabow, Pit. $3

30. Ryan Franklin, St.L. $3

31. Arthur Rhodes, Cin. $2

32. Jeff Samardzija, Cubs . $2

33. LaTroy Hawkins, Hou. $2

34. Jeff Bennett, Atl. $2

35. Cla Meredith, S.D. $2

36. Tyler Yates, Pit. $2

37. Saul Rivera, Wash. $2

38. Leo Nunez, Fla. $2

39. Pedro Feliciano, Mets $2

40. Luis Ayala, FA. $2

41. Cory Wade, L.A. $2

42. Jeremy Affeldt, S.F. $2

43. Trever Miller, St.L. $2

44. Steven Shell, Wash. $2

45. Brian Shouse, FA. $2

46. David Weathers, Cin. $2

47. Chad Durbin, Phi. $2

48. Chan Ho Park, Phi. $2

49. Eric Gagne, FA. $1

50. Tom Gordon, FA. $1

51. David Riske, Mil. $1

52. Geoff Geary, Hou. $1

53. Manny Acosta, Atl. $1

54. J.C. Romero, Phi. $1

55. Blaine Boyer, Atl. $1

56. Logan Kensing, Fla. $1

57. Luis Vizcaino, Cubs. $1

58. Mike Lincoln, Cin. $1

59. Doug Brocail, Hou. $1

60. Cory Wade, L.A. $1

61. Jorge Julio, Mil. $1

62. Justin Hampson, S.D. $1

63. Ryan Madson, Phi. $1

64. Micah Owings, Cin. $1

[ToddZ]

Just my $.02 -- I think K-Rod is being given too much credit for the saves record, I don't think his peripherals match guys like Nathan, Papelbon and Rivera and I don't think you can count on any more saves than those other guys.

[Crazy Like a Fox]

Originally posted by ToddZ:

Just my $.02 -- I think K-Rod is being given too much credit for the saves record, I don't think his peripherals match guys like Nathan, Papelbon and Rivera and I don't think you can count on any more saves than those other guys. I agree 100%. K-rod is getting too much value based on his saves record. He had a great year no doubt, but getting that many save chances is a luck factor. Nathan and Rivera look far more appealing.

[eddiejag]

Notice you dont have any of the possible closer's for Seattle on the list.

Tyler Walker

Mark Lowe

Miquel Batista

[Crazy Like a Fox]

Originally posted by eddiejag:

Notice you dont have any of the possible closer's for Seattle on the list.

Tyler Walker

Mark Lowe

Miquel Batista They do have Brandon Morrow listed in the RP section. I don't think anybody knows for sure what the Mariners are going to do with him. You'd think Morrow would be the logical choice. I can't imagine they'd trust Lowe, Batista or Walker to closeout the few games they'll win.

[eddiejag]

YES they do have Morrow but if he starts someone will have to close.Bastista has expierence getting 31 for Toronto one year.Walker has closed just a couple years ago and 49 k's in 53 innings last year show's DOM you would need.Just saying they a worthy enough canidates to be on this list if not too late.

[Edwards Kings]

Originally posted by ToddZ:

Just my $.02 -- I think K-Rod is being given too much credit for the saves record, I don't think his peripherals match guys like Nathan, Papelbon and Rivera and I don't think you can count on any more saves than those other guys. Have to disagree a bit with the Master on number crunching a bit. Not on the 60+ saves part as anything over 40 has the smell of luck to it, though to give credit where credit is due, K-Rod has had 40+ save seasons four years in a row now.



It is on his peripherals that I disagree. K-Rod had some control issues early in the year (26 BB in 42 IP before the break), but certainly got it back in the second half (only 8 BB to go with 36 K's in only 26.1 IP). With the exception of one bad game versus Seattle on 8/13 (3 hits, 1 BB, and 3 ER), he only allowed 3 ER after the Break.



Papelbon (who btw is my #1 ranked Closer) after the break had three pretty rough games in September, 10 fewer K's in about the same number of IP, and allowed about the same number of hits as K-Rod.



Nathan after the break gave up fewer hits in about the same number of IP, but had as many walks as K-Rod and fewer K's. Likewise, his game at Cleveland on 9/16 is one he would like to forget.



Nathan and Rivera's stats after the break are very close, but the number of inning + games he had to pitch without blow-ups means he was most consistent of all, but again showing elite numbers that K-Rod met or beat.



If anything, K-Rod may be a bit undervauled (not in this ranking, but in the early mocks overall) because of his early control issues (with coverting 38 save chances in the first half) skewing his overall 2008 stats and recent big contract, but IMHO his peripherals hold up fine with the rest of the elite.



[ January 29, 2009, 06:44 AM: Message edited by: Edwards Kings ]

[ToddZ]

I agree with what Wayne says about K-Rod being undervalued a bit in the mocks, bur still feel his peripherals, specifically his walk rate, are a bit inferior to Papelbon, Nathan and Rivera. I am high on Soria as well, but he has to show he can sustain a very low hit rate as his BB/9 is a little higher than everyone but K-Rod's.



K-Rod did have an absolutely lights out second half, but the first half walks cannot be ignored, especially since he has NEVER carried a BB/9 less than 3.0. Granted, his first half walk rate was above his career norm, but history suggests you cannot base his 2009 expectation on his second half of 2008.



Nathan, Papelbon, Rivera and K-Rod all had K/9 between 9.8 and 10.1, call it a wash.



Papelbon, Rivera and K-Rod had HR/9 between .52 and .55, basically the same number of HR in slightly different innings, with Nathan allowing 1 more HR, so this too is basically a wash.



H/9 data is shaky to use as pitchers of this level tend to have a BABIP lower than what is "expected" globally, but yet there is still is some degree of variability. Papelbon and K-Rod are in the 7s with Nathan, Rivera and Soria in the 5s.



Then there is BB/9. Mo was just sick at .76, Pap at 1.04, Nathan 2.4 and K-Rod 4.5, admittedly elevated as he struggled with injury and refining his repertoire in April. But as stated, the lowest BB/9 he has ever had is 3.2.



If everything else is a wash, his BB/9 puts him just behind Papelbon, Mo and Nathan.



[ January 29, 2009, 08:51 AM: Message edited by: ToddZ ]

[Edwards Kings]

Todd, you, of course, are correct. Historically, K-Rod has had a too high walk rate (3.95 per 9) compared to Papelbon, Nathan, and Rivera (2.07, 2.75, and 2.01 respectively taking out Nathan and Rivera's early careers as starters). But, the K rate for K-Rod of 11.70 is superior to the others (10.57, 10.74, and 8.31) and the hit per nine is comparable (6.08 for K-Rod and 6.30, 5.87, and 6.86 for the others). The increased K-potential may not be enough to totally offset the increased walk rate, but I do not think it weakens his periferals enough to take him down a level.



In short, I am splitting hairs on four VERY elite closers. With Soria and Lidge in the pot, I would love to have any one of them on my team in 2009!

[ToddZ]

The other thing about K-Rod is he is in midst of somewhat re-inventing himself as a pitcher. His repertoire has changed, perhaps due to injury concerns.



It could be his improved BB-rate is indeed real - or it could mean his declining K-rate may continue to decline.



With so much question - at least on January 29 with respect to the 2nd/3rd tier of closers, I am thinking about diving into the top-tier. K-Rod is definitely top-tier, but if I am going to go against the proverbial 'smart grain' and get a top-tier guy, he carries more risk than Papelbon or Nathan.



Others may understandably consider the 2nd/3rd tier to be plush with Broxton/Bell/Marmol/Lindstrom/Hanrahan/Qualls/Francisco/Devine/Perez etc. joining guys like Wood/Cordero/Street/Capps/Hoffman/Jenks/Ryan/Gonzalez/Fuentes etc. On this date, I just see a lot of risk in terms of injury and performance, more so than usual from this tier(s).



In an auction, I can cherry pick the ones on the 2nd/3rd tier I favor. In a draft, you may be at the mercy of your opponents, especially if you have a pick near a turn.



With the current mantra being "wait on saves", I am at least considering jumping in at the Pap/Mo/Lidge/Soria/Nathan/K-Rod level.



[ January 29, 2009, 10:32 AM: Message edited by: ToddZ ]

[sportsbettingman]

Some little notes I have on Mr. Francisco Rodriguez...



Although the numbers are still solid...his BAA has never improved from one year to the next.



He got his nickname "K-Rod" WAY back in 2004...and again...the numbers are still solid...but if you are a trends guy...you can't like three years in a row of falling K-rate, with 2008 being pedestrian for a closer.



His WHIP has fallen into a "poor" zone for an "elite" closer...almost falling every year of his career, and being weak the last two years.



Sure...his save record was impressive, and he carried many fantasy teams on his back last year...but the opportunity to close in a given game is not in his control, and that equals luck in my book. Give any decent closer that many chances to close in a year, and they'd have done it as well.



Now I know that Washington and Atlanta had offenses that were not feared, but how many other teams in the league could also win close to 100 games if they got to face Seattle, Oakland and Texas so many times per year.



I think Florida will be better in 2009, and Philly is a dominant team...so even with no DH in the NL...as closer, he'll never face a soft at bat in the 9th inning like a starter would.



...and lastly...I have a gut feeling he's a head case, and will implode under the New York pressure if he has a run of bad outings.



You ain't in La La Land anymore, Frank.



~Lance

[Edwards Kings]

Originally posted by sportsbettingman:

Some little notes I have on Mr. Francisco Rodriguez...



He got his nickname "K-Rod" WAY back in 2004...and again...the numbers are still solid...but if you are a trends guy...you can't like three years in a row of falling K-rate, with 2008 being pedestrian for a closer.



I admit I am prejudiced for K-Rod as he did keep me in the middle of the pack in saves by himself last year, but as for falling DOM and less than stellar WHIP, I actually saw the opposite last year after the All-Star Break. It was either the big-contract push (possible, but the 38 saves before the ASB got him that) or he was finally healthy. Take away one game (vs Seattle for goodness sake) and his WHIP was 1.19 which is certainly not chump change. And the 36 K in his last 26.1 IP (not a bad work load) puts his DOM above 12 K per 9 IP.



I agree with Todd that Papelbon carries less risk than K-Rod, but Nathan is 34 (not too bad, but certainly a riskier age than K-Rod's 27), and Rivera is 39. Soria plays for KC so save chances may be limited and Lidge has given his fair share of free passes as well. In short, each carry at least some risk that Papelbon maybe does not, but they are all still elite.

[Crazy Like a Fox]

Originally posted by sportsbettingman:

Some little notes I have on Mr. Francisco Rodriguez...



Although the numbers are still solid...his BAA has never improved from one year to the next.



He got his nickname "K-Rod" WAY back in 2004...and again...the numbers are still solid...but if you are a trends guy...you can't like three years in a row of falling K-rate, with 2008 being pedestrian for a closer.



His WHIP has fallen into a "poor" zone for an "elite" closer...almost falling every year of his career, and being weak the last two years.



Sure...his save record was impressive, and he carried many fantasy teams on his back last year...but the opportunity to close in a given game is not in his control, and that equals luck in my book. Give any decent closer that many chances to close in a year, and they'd have done it as well.



Now I know that Washington and Atlanta had offenses that were not feared, but how many other teams in the league could also win close to 100 games if they got to face Seattle, Oakland and Texas so many times per year.



I think Florida will be better in 2009, and Philly is a dominant team...so even with no DH in the NL...as closer, he'll never face a soft at bat in the 9th inning like a starter would.



...and lastly...I have a gut feeling he's a head case, and will implode under the New York pressure if he has a run of bad outings.



You ain't in La La Land anymore, Frank.



~Lance His whip has fallen into a "poor zone" for an elite closer. I can't really call him a headcase, but you never know how players will react to the New York environment, usually it's a negative influence on their numbers. Maybe there's evidence contrary to that. I just see Rivera, Nathan and even Soria as better options.



On a side note: I think elite closers were being taken WAY too early in past years (based on the limited amount of innings making little impact on e.r.a./whip) now they're looking like bargains in the 5th and 6th rounds.



I think Edward Kings and sportsbettingman make great arguments for their case. I think either way, you're gonna be pretty happy with K-rod or any of the top 4 elite closers. Lidge scares me a little. You never know when those Pujols nightmares will start again.

[sportsbettingman]

Mariano has 11 straight years of knowing how to get himself ready for opening day. I trust he knows his body and routine enough to honor his contract and be ready.



His career numbers are Hall of Fame, and the 38 year old version WITH the uncomfortable arm was not too bad. The Yankees go easy on him each March anyway.



~Lance

[RedRum]

Brandon Lyon, DET is going to close for the Tigers...



The Detroit Newspapers are already penciling him in...