Empty the Bench

ETB had a conversation the other week about MLB closers, and we came to a general conclusion that the Detroit Tigers’ all-time leader in saves, Todd Jones, is very likely the “worst good closer” in baseball. Surprisingly effective, among the league leaders in saves, but probably has the most underwhelming stuff in the majors when it comes to closers.

You don’t see many of these guys succeed by just throwing strikes and hoping for the best. Okay, that’s a little unfair and oversimplifying what Jones brings to the table when he takes the mound. He’s got nice movement on his curve, some decent off-speed pitches, and, well, he throws strikes, something a lot of pitchers–closers or otherwise–frequently struggle with. For the season, he’s 1-3 with a 5.86 ERA, 17 saves (out of 21 opportunities), and just 14 strikeouts in 27.2 innings. Hitters are batting a collective .304 against him thus far; not exactly the kind of numbers you’d expect to see from a guy ranked in the top 10 for saves in all of baseball. Are you comfortable with him as your fantasy team’s primary closer? Didn’t think so.

Boy howdy, does this guy know how to create drama. Case in point: last night, Jim Leyland brings him on in the ninth inning with the Tigers up 9-5 on the lightweight Washington Nationals. Jonesy then quickly takes his team on his trademark rollercoaster ride, yielding three runs before facing Dmitri Young with no outs and two men on. To his credit, his closer mentality then took over: he fanned Young, forced Austin Kearns into a fielder’s choice, and got Ronnie Belliard to ground out, preserving the 9-8 win for Detroit. Despite the win, afterwards Jones was frustrated and fed up:

Jones didn’t accept the ready excuse for his difficult inning, saying he was perfectly ready to pitch. But he wasn’t happy, either, complaining about the way he thinks he’s perceived. “I’m sick and tired of everybody poking fun at me, or whatever,” he said. “I’m trying to get three outs every night. It’s not a laughingstock, it’s somebody’s career. I’m trying to get outs whenever I can. I’m a grown man. I know how to get outs. And everyone wants to make fun of me.”

Todd, you seem like a good guy, a good teammate, and despite what some of your stats might indicate at the moment, you’re a good pitcher, too. There’s a very simple way to end the jokes, or the poking fun at you, or whatever it is you call it: simply help reduce the heart-attack rate in the metro Detroit area by firmly closing the door on the opposing team at a minimum 90% of the time you get the opportunity to do so.