By early May, we usually know who is going to close for most teams for the remainder of the season. It’s rare that the closer you have in early to mid-May is the one who will lead the team in saves at the end of the year. It’s not a hard and fast rule and doesn’t take into account injuries. However, it may be the time to make a play for those closers who are seen as shaky (like Jimmy Henderson in Milwaukee) and make a deal for them if their owners want to sell high. You probably have a couple of weeks to pick up some of these closers before their value solidifies.

Arizona Diamondbacks

I mentioned J.J. Putz’s struggles last week and they’ve continue this week. Putz got the dreaded vote of confidence from manager Kyle Gibson. However, the manager couched his endorsement by saying that the 36-year old closer’s workload will be monitored. I’m not sure what that means, but at a minimum we may not see Putz pitch in back to back games or multiple times in a short duration. His average velocity is down almost one mph from last year and his slider (which he’s throwing a lot more than he did last year) is down 1.5 mph.

That means that David Hernandez (who has struggled mightly this season) or former elite closer Heath Bell may got a few odd save chances for the rest of the year and they each have a great chance to take over the role when…err…if Putz ends up on the DL. Hernandez has been a bit unlucky with a 2.69 HR/9 ratio. He’s also not getting as many hitters to swing and miss on pitchers out of and in the strike zone. Bell hasn’t been a dominant pitcher in two years and hasn’t been effective in a year. However, he’s been surprisingly solid so far. If Hernandez doesn’t turn his luck around, Bell could be first in line to catch Putz’s role.

Boston Red Sox

Joel Hanrahan has returned from his “injury” and manager John Farrell stated that Andrew Bailey will retain the closer’s role. Then, in the first save opportunity since Hanrahan’s return, he picks up the save and Bailey doesn’t make it out of the bullpen. Huh?

Well, Bailey is hurt suffering from some biceps soreness. This comes as no surprise as Bailey has spent time on the DL in each of the last three seasons. He missed almost a year due to Tommy John surgery in May 2005. It is certainly within the realm of possibility that Bailey heads to the DL again this year. If so, it looks like Hanrahan will be the closer. Recall that Hanrahan is probably the fourth or fifth best reliever in the bullpen. He can probably succeed in the short term, but over the long term (if Bailey is out for an extended time) I can see Hanrahan imploding and ceding control to one of Junichi Tazawa or Koji Uehara in that order.

New York Mets

Bobby Parnell hasn’t been great, but he hasn’t been terrible in the closer’s role so far for the Mets. He’s been a bit unlucky sporting a .194 BABIP. The Mets aren’t going to go anywhere this year, so they are best off by letting Parnell find his way.

Frank Francisco remains on the DL and is slowly working his way back. It’s unclear when he’ll return. When he does, I see him moving to a setup role waiting for Parnell to falter. Should Parnell falter before Francisco’s return, look beyond the obvious Brandon Lyon handcuff and look at Jeurys Familia. Familia was moved to the bullpen this year and picked up one save before his promotion. He has terrific stuff, but his arsenal isn’t deep enough to be a full-time starter. I think the Mets could offer him some chances down the stretch to see what he can offer. Dynasty leaguers should be aware of Familia and keep him on your radar.

St. Louis Cardinals

Opening Day closer Mitchell Boggs was demoted to AAA this week. Incumbent closer Jason Motte is scheduled to have Tommy John surgery this week. Trevor Rosenthal has struck out 23 batters in 17 IP over 16 appearances, but seems to give up a run every other appearance.

Edward Mujica’s job security has gotten just a bit better. But, with Boggs demotion, the Cardinals promoted super-prospect Carlos Martinez (a starter in the minors) to augment the bullpen. Martinez’s calling card is his fastball which can touch triple digits. However, as he’s progressed up the minor league ladder, his K/9 ratio and K% have dropped to a more pedestrian 6.9 this year and 7.3 last year (both at AA) and 18.8% and 19.7%. His stuff will play up in the pen so he’s a dark horse for saves.

Close Calls

Ryan Madson had surgery this week to remove scar tissue from his surgically-repaired elbow. It looks like his return date may be pushed back to closer to the end of May instead of mid-May as I noted last week.

The Milwaukee Brewers signed Francisco Rodriguez (former closer-extraordinaire) to a minor league deal. I don’t seeing him taking on the closer’s role at any point for the Brewers, but those in deep leagues should be mindful of his progress.

Jose Veras blew a save for the Houston Astros Friday night. He really doesn’t have closer skills and usually can’t stay healthy. The Astros don’t have a lot of save opportunities, but look at Rhiner Cruz or injured Josh Fields as potential replacements.

Keving Gregg continues to rack up saves for the Chicago Cubs, but Kyuji Fujikawa is likely heading out on a rehab assignment late this week or early next week. We could see Fujikawa back in the bullpen in a couple of weeks and Gregg out of a job. Enjoy Gregg’s saves while you can.