Giants closer Brian Wilson was a revelation in the postseason.
There was the postgame interview following San Francisco's World Series-clinching Game 5 win in which he said he wanted to "rage -- right now."
There were the statistics -- 6-for-6 in save chances, zero runs allowed and 16 strikeouts in 11 2/3 innings in the playoffs.
And, of course, there was the beard, which was so comical, so dark, it seemed fake. The facial hair was so popular a Google search for "Brian Wilson beard" produces more than 600,000 results. Heck, baseball guide Scott Kendrick and I debated its merits in our World Series preview.
I'd be tempted to rank Wilson first among the closers in our fantasy baseball keeper rankings for the beard alone. But Wilson was lights-out in 2010 and was very good in 2009, making him an easy choice to top the final position breakdown of our keeper look-ahead to 2011. (Note: We'll conclude the rankings with an overall top 20.)
We start the rankings with a simple premise: We're looking for players who can help us the next two to three years, with 2011 being the most important. Beyond that, it can be a crapshoot as players age, change leagues and/or have Milton Bradley join their clubhouse.
The players' ages on April 1, 2011 are in parentheses. On to the closers:
- Brian Wilson, Giants (age 29): He saved 48 games in 53 chances in 2010, had a 1.81 ERA and struck out 93 in 74 2/3 innings. Wilson has 127 saves the last three seasons, and he fanned 83 batters in 72 1/3 innings in 2009.
- Neftali Feliz, Rangers (22): All he did in his first full major-league season was save 40 games in 43 opportunities, compile a 2.73 ERA and 0.88 WHIP, while striking out 71 in 69 1/3 innings.
- Heath Bell, Padres (33): With apologies to Wilson and his beard, Bell was the best closer in the 2010 regular season (6-1, 1.93 ERA, 47 saves in 50 chances, 86 Ks in 70 innings). He is 89-for-98 in saves with 12 wins and 165 Ks in 139 2/3 innings the last two seasons.
- Joakim Soria, Royals (26): If only he pitched for another team. Soria was 43-for-46 in save opportunities, had a 1.78 ERA, 1.05 WHIP and 71 Ks in 65 2/3 innings in 2010. He has 115 saves, nine blown saves and 206 Ks in 186 innings in the last three years.
- Carlos Marmol, Cubs (28): He struck out a ridiculous 138 batters in 77 2/3 innings in his first full season as the Cubs' closer, and his other stats weren't too shabby (38 saves in 43 chances, 2.55 ERA, 1.18 WHIP). In his first four full seasons, Marmol has averaged 12.8 strikeouts per nine innings.
- Mariano Rivera, Yankees (41): Yes, he should be retired by, oh, now. He's also a free agent, but the Yankees will bring him back, and Rivera will keep saving games and posting sub-2.00 ERAs and sub-1.00 WHIPs (in 2010, he had a 1.80 ERA and 0.83 WHIP). His 33 saves last season were his lowest total since 2007, and his 45 Ks were his worst since 2002, but be honest: Would you be surprised if he was still an effective closer in 2013?
- John Axford, Brewers (28): He took over for all-time saves leader Trevor Hoffman during the season and won eight of 10 decisions, had 24 saves in 27 opportunities, struck out 76 in 58 innings and had a 2.48 ERA.
- Jonathan Papelbon, Red Sox (30): He is scheduled to be a free agent following the 2011 season, and there are rumors the Red Sox would like to trade him. But the guess here is he'll stay in Boston for one more year and save another 37 to 40 games. Papelbon had career-worst figures in ERA (3.90) and blown saves (8) last season.
- Rafael Soriano, Rays (31): He would be higher on this list if we thought he was going to return to the Rays, but Soriano might have priced himself out of Tampa's range after saving 45 games in 48 chances with a 1.73 ERA and 57 Ks in 62 1/3 innings in his walk year.
- Jonathan Broxton, Dodgers (26): New Dodgers manager Don Mattingly has said Broxton will regain the closer's role after losing it to Hong-Chih Kuo last season. Broxton blew seven saves in 29 chances in 2010, but was productive in 2009 (36 saves, 2.61 ERA, 0.96 WHIP, seven wins, 114 Ks in 76 innings).
Honorable mention
- Chris Perez, Indians (age 25): After the All-Star break, Perez was Wilson-like, only with a mullet instead of a Just For Men beard. Perez was 16-for-17 in save chances, with a 2-0 record, 0.63 ERA and 32 Ks in 28 2/3 innings after the break.
- Andrew Bailey, Athletics (26): If he wasn't an injury risk, he'd rank higher after saving 25 games in 28 chances with a 1.47 ERA, 0.96 WHIP and 49 Ks in 42 innings. Bailey had 26 saves and 91 strikeouts in 83 1/3 innings as a rookie in 2009.
- Matt Capps, Twins (27): He was excellent in 2010 (42 saves, 2.47 ERA, 59 Ks), but Joe Nathan is expected to return from elbow surgery by spring training. If Nathan is healthy, he likely would reclaim his old job, crushing Capps' fantasy value.
- Huston Street, Rockies (27): Another injury risk, Street's 2010 season was delayed by a shoulder ailment, and he had four losses, five blown saves in 25 chances and a 3.61 ERA once he returned.
- Jose Valverde, Tigers (33): He saved 26 games in 29 chances with as many strikeouts as innings pitched (63) in his first year in Detroit. Valverde has a combined 51 saves the last two seasons after tallying 91 in 2007 and '08 with Arizona and Houston, respectively.
- Francisco Cordero, Reds (35): The Reds are trying to trade him after he blew eight saves in 48 chances with a 3.84 ERA and 1.43 WHIP (his highest since 2001, when he pitched in three games for Texas).
- Ryan Franklin, Cardinals (38): I did a double-take when I read his age while researching this piece. Franklin's ERA jumped from 1.92 in 2009 to 3.46 in 2010 and his saves dropped from 38 to 27. He's not a strikeout asset, either (42 in 65 innings last season).
- Drew Storen, Nationals (23): He had five saves, a 4-4 record and 52 Ks in 55 1/3 innings as a rookie.
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