No mo Romo, so who’s the closer?
Mattingly exploring ninth-inning options
Throughout the Miami Marlins’ throwback weekend, Semisonic’s classic “Closing Time” frequently echoed around the ballpark.
With veteran reliever Sergio Romo, Miami had a consistently reliable closer to finish off games this season. But after trading the 36-year-old right-hander to the Minnesota Twins late Saturday night, Miami will be searching for someone new to fill the role.
Earning the closer position in the first week of the season, Romo went 17 for 18 on save chances.
Prior to Sunday’s game, Marlins manager Don Mattingly didn’t officially name a closer, indicating the team would take a committee approach in the early stages. Nick Anderson, Jarlin Garcia and former starter Trevor Richards are all potential options.
“I think [Anderson’s] been the
guy with the most dominant stuff out of the bullpen,” Mattingly said. “Jarlin’s throwing the ball good back there. We’d still like to be able to use [Anderson] in leverage with the best part of [the opposing team’s] order. That may be the ninth, it may be the eighth, so we’ll use him accordingly and figure out the next part of that.”
Acquired from the Twins in the offseason, Anderson has been one of the biggest surprises this season. A late bloomer, the 29-year-old right-hander has emerged as major asset. Utilizing a midto-high 90’s fastball, Anderson has notched a 36.9% strikeout rate — sixth-best among NL relievers with at least 30 innings pitched.
For the season, Anderson has posted a 4.04 ERA 1.25 WHIP with one save in 43 appearances.
A left-hander, Garcia is another potential option. Sporting a 2.59 ERA in 28 appearances, he’s pitched 18 consecutive scoreless innings dating back to June 14.
After being moved to the bullpen on Friday, Richards is an intriguing option to close out games. While he doesn’t have an overpowering fastball, he commands an elite-level changeup that’s generated one of the highest whiff rates in the league. The 26-year-old right-hander has struggled to develop a third pitch to pair with his four-seamer and changeup, but in a short relief role he could focus primarily on those two pitches.
“We don’t necessarily want to throw [Richards] right into the ninth, but if we have to we would,” Mattingly said. “Or the eighth or the seventh, so he’s going to be an interesting guy to see what it looks like out of the bullpen consistently.
“There’s been different guys over the years who get it done differently. Trevor Hoffman ends up in the Hall of Fame with basically a fastball/changeup. So I think there’s been different guys over the years who have been big changeup guys. Fernando Rodney — his changeup is his best pitch and sets everything up.
“There’s different spots for guys with that pitch combination — especially if that’s a plus-plus pitch and that’s what … the changeup is for Trevor.”