NL West Closers

LAD: Eric Gagne
Back-up: Danys Baez, Yhancy Brazoban

SD: Trevor Hoffman
Back-up: Scott Linebrink

AZ: Jose Valverde
Back-up: Greg Aquino, Brandon Lyon

SF: Armando Benitez
Back-up: Tyler Walker, Tim Worrell

COL: Brian Fuentes
Back-up: Jose Mesa, Mike DeJean

As a general rule, I expect top closers to go for $30+, mid-range ones for $20+ and lowest rung ones to go in the high teens.

In the NL West, Hoffman is the only lock for $30+. Gagne normally would be, but he has some injury concerns that would preclude him from that area. The other three will go in the $20s but likely at the low end of that range.

Fuentes scares me, as every Colorado pitcher does, but the two seasons out of the last three in which he was healthy were good ones. As a result, some teams will ignore the Coors factor. I won't. Plus, he is 30, and there is no reason to think a nagging injury like the one in 2004 will not re-occur.

Despite my own concerns, I believe he will for for $20+. I'd only be confortable in the high teens, but how do I lump him with Joe Borowski?

When I look for back-ups, I note whether they have prior experience successfully closing and what their strikeout rates are. Neither criteria is a secret, but I tend towards more weight on past experience than good strikeout rates.

There are no surprises in my list of back-ups. I do note, though, that all the current closers, with the exception of Hoffman, have had recent injury concerns. Even Hoffman was shelved in 2003 with a shoulder injury.