Fernando Rodney

2013

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2012

Rodney opened 2011 as the Angels' closer, but an early-season bout with wildness cost him the job. Rodney pitched well for most of the season, but his control problems popped up again at the end of the season and he ended with a 26:28 K:BB ratio. Still, he did have a 7.3 K/9IP and his groundball rate was 58 percent of batted balls. After signing with Tampa Bay, he's unlikely to unseat Kyle Farnsworth for the closer's job. However, strange things have happened in the Rays' bullpen in the past - like Kyle Farnsworth winning and keeping the closer's job all year last season.

2011

Rodney became the Angels' closer last season following the midseason trade of incumbent Brian Fuentes. Rodney was a bit erratic thanks to 35 walks in 68 innings, so he is not guaranteed to enter this season in the same role in a bullpen that includes Kevin Jepsen and free-agent acquisition Scott Downs. Rodney is still worth a later-round pick since he will likely get the first crack at the ninth-inning role, but don’t be surprised if he cedes the spot at some point.

2010

Rodney snagged the Tigers' closer job out of spring training last season and never let go. He finished the season with a career-best 37 saves, failing to convert on just one chance. Of course, a look at his overall stats (4.40 ERA, 1.467 WHIP, 61:41 K:BB ratio) shows that Rodney wasn't very successful when pitching in non-save situations. Still, Rodney picked a great time to put together a career year as he signed a two-year, $11 million contract with the Angels. His fantasy value will take a hit since he'll likely move to a set-up role behind Brian Fuentes, although he could still get save chances after Fuentes' struggles last season.

2009

Rodney is likely to lose his shaky hold on the Tigers’ closing role this winter as the team has indicated it would like to find a short-term option through free agency or trade. The team doesn't have a lot of faith in Rodney's ability to close after his inconsistent 2008 season. His biggest problem last year was the increase in his walk rate. He still has good stuff as his strikeout rate indicates, but the deteriorating command is a bad sign. Injuries may have had something to do with that as Rodney spent a significant amount of time on the disabled list with arm troubles. The Tigers believe Rodney's ideal role is setting up their closer, and they'll try to return him to that role this season. He'll still be worth keeping an eye on in fantasy leagues as he could earn a handful of saves in a set-up role.

2008

Rodney struggled with arm problems last season and didn't really fully get on track until August. He still managed to post a nice strikeout rate despite the arm issues and the Tigers still consider him an integral part of their bullpen. Unfortunately, they've also said they don't consider Rodney an option to close, even with Joel Zumaya hurt. Still, with only Todd Jones ahead of him on the depth chart while Zumaya sits out, Rodney makes an intriguing fantasy sleeper.

2007

Rodney was one of the most dominant relievers in the league last season. He stayed healthy all year proving that his Tommy John surgery is well behind him. He even filled in for closer Todd Jones when he was injured. Rodney should be in line for saves behind Jones this season but he’ll compete for that honor with uber-hyped Joel Zumaya and his 100+ mph fastball. Even if Rodney doesn't pick up any saves he'll have value because of his ability to rack up the strikeouts.

2006

Despite having the skill set to close, Rodney received a vote of low confidence when the team acquired Todd Jones, a former Detroit closer who had a resurgent year as the Marlins' fireman. Don't let the Tigers' lack of faith cast a pall over Rodney. His solid K/9 IP can be a fantasy asset in deeper leagues and he's likely to end up with at least a couple vulture saves.

2005

Before the Tigers signed Ugueth Urbina last season, Rodney had been named the team's closer. Even after the demotion to set-up man, Rodney was still expected to be a major player in Detroit's bullpen, but he ended up missing the entire season after undergoing Tommy John surgery on his throwing elbow. He's not scheduled to start throwing again until spring training, and it usually takes pitchers at least a year before they're able to return to pre-surgery form, so don't expect much from Rodney this season.

2004

The closer for Triple-A Toledo most of the year (even with Matt Anderson present), Rodney's ERA was pretty ugly with the Tigers, but his strikeout rate lends some hope for success, if he can improve his control. See German, Franklyn.

2003

Rodney pitched very well at Double-A and Triple-A last year and poorly at the major-league level in two trials, but the main thing we found out about Rodney last year was that he was 25, not 21 as the Tigers thought. Hence, he quickly went from possible "closer of the future" material to just another guy in the bullpen mix. His minor-league numbers from last year were good enough to merit a second look if not a second bid.