I hate closers. Okay, maybe that is a bit extreme. It’s not like I send hate mail to Craig Kimbrel and Mariano Rivera. I hate the idea of closers. Of course, my hatred for closers probably shouldn’t have much to do with your draft strategy as it pertains to closers. So, let me outline why I hate closers and what that has to do with you.

The save was invented in the 1960s by a journalist (Jerome Holtzman) who wanted to give credit to relievers that finish a team’s win under pressure situation. 1969 was the first season where saves were officially used. Under the current rules, a pitcher can earn a save if the tying run is in the hole in the final inning (or they have a three run lead).

I’m sure Mr. Holtzman meant well, but the statistic has begun to wag the dog. Players that save a lot of games get paid a lot of money. When they get paid a lot of money they are automatically used to save games. You see how we are moving in circles here? Unfortunately, those that save games are not necessarily the best reliever on their team. So, we see that saves have made teams a slave and they can make you a slave as well.

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The biggest concern for you has to be the fickle nature of the position. Consider the following: let’s make a list of all the closers that have been closing for the past five years. Even if we include Mariano Rivera we are talking about three guys (Mariano Rivera, Jonathan Papelbon, and Joe Nathan). If we remove those that have missed injury time we are down to Papelbon.

The implications for you are obvious. Outside of five to six guys, there just aren’t many closers you can count on. Between five and ten closers will lose their jobs every year. You can often find their replacement on the waiver wire. So, outside of those five or six guys I wouldn’t sweat closers that much. Of course, the TRI scores will reflect that.

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