Ranking the Closers - "Preseason" Power Rankings.

Here is the first edition of our very own Closer Power Rankings - we'll refer to this as the "preseason" list, even though the season is a couple of days old, and even though some early returns have been quite ugly due to injury (Gagne), or ineffectiveness. (Rivera).

As you may expect, these rankings required a decent amount of debate - obviously, about where to rank the individual closers, but also about the very nature of the rankings themselves. Were we ranking the best projected fantasy performers for 2005? The pitchers with the best stuff, regardless of the strength of their team? Obviously, every closer's success is largely dependent upon the success of their team. If they don't get many save opportunities, they won't get many saves.

In the end, we've decided to tilt these rankings toward the "talent" end of the spectrum, while still considering the "team performance/save opportunities" factor to a lesser extent. (Two parts talent, one part team, more or less.)

If you're after an in-depth assessment of a given closer, just check out the Closer Previews published over the past couple weeks. We'll be updating these Rankings on a weekly basis. But for now, here they are:

1. Eric Gagne, Los Angeles Dodgers - Yes, he's hurt. That didn't stop him from getting ejected from yesterday's game, though!
2. Brad Lidge, Houston Astros - Simply unstoppable in the 2004 postseason.
3. Francisco Rodriguez, LA Angels - Finally getting his shot. He's got the repertoire.
4. Billy Wagner, Philadelphia Phillies - Healthy again, more or less.
5. Mariano Rivera, New York Yankees - Has blown 4 consecutive saves vs. Boston.
6. Joe Nathan, Minnesota Twins - Just got it done in 2004. Almost every time out.
7. Keith Foulke, Boston Red Sox - Somehow gets outs, despite a pedestrian fastball.
8. Armando Benitez, SF Giants - Declining K-Rates are a concern, despite an awesome 2004.
9. Trevor Hoffman, SD Padres - All-time great; Padres should be even more improved in '05.
10. Octavio Dotel, Oakland A's - He's got the stuff. He'll get the chances. He just needs to bring it all together.
11. Francisco Cordero, Texas Rangers - Injuries are a concern. Production is not.
12. Jason Isringhausen, STL Cardinals - Steady production, best lineup in the NL.
13. Troy Percival, Detroit Tigers - Urbina wants his job back. Injuries are always a concern.
14. Dan Kolb, Atlanta Braves - We'll see how he performs when people are watching.
15. Chad Cordero, Washington Nats - It's just a matter of time before he makes the Top 10.
16. Shingo Takatsu, Chicago White Sox - Mr. Zero got a tough save on Opening Day.
17. Braden Looper, NY Mets - Absolutely roughed up on Opening Day. Must turn it around.
18. Jeremy Affeldt, KC Royals - Great stuff, and the blister problems may be over. Lousy team.
19. Eddie Guardado, Seattle Mariners - Joe Nathan showed how easy it was to succeed in MIN.
20. B.J. Ryan, Baltimore Orioles - Fantastic stuff. Could shoot up this list in a hurry.
21. Guillermo Mota, Florida Marlins - Mota must show that his skills translate to the 9th.
22. LaTroy Hawkins, Chicago Cubs - With JoBo healing faster than expected, may be headed back to the 8th inning, where he excels.
23. Danny Graves, Cincinnati Reds - Horrendous in 2004's 2nd half. If it's not a hot seat yet, it's certainly getting warm.
24. Danys Baez, TB Devil Rays - Great 2004 may be an aberration. Rough division for an up-and-coming team.
25. Jose Mesa, Pittsburgh Pirates - There is no explanation for his 2004 success. And yet, he continued to get it done.
26. Bob Wickman, Cleveland Indians - Injuries, production, age, conditioning. Where to start?
27. Brandon Lyon, Arizona D-Backs - Great stuff, returning from injury.
28. Mike Adams, Milwaukee Brewers - If Kolb can be successful in MIL, why not Adams?
29. Miguel Batista, Toronto Blue Jays - This has disaster written all over it.
30. Unknown Colorado Reliever, Colorado Rockies - Tsao, Kim, or "Other"... they all have to pitch in Coors.