Fantasy Baseball: Which Chicago Cubs hold the most value?

Hector Rondon

Drafting a closer is one of the tougher jobs for a fantasy team owner.  If you miss out on the top-tier closer’s like Aroldis Chapman, Craig Kimbrel, Greg Holland, and Kenley Jansen  – than you find yourself holding out until later and pick other positions to fill.  And if you’re like me, you watch the waiver wire throughout the season and watch for struggling closer’s who might lose their job.  So where does Rondon rank among the closer’s in the fantasy world?  It may be higher than you think.

I see the him as a low risk – high reward type closer.  He probably won’t be drafted within the top fifteen closers so he could be a steal for most.  That’s why I say low risk.  With the Cubs expected to be much better this year – there will also be more opportunities to shut the door for the Rondon in the ninth inning.  When he won the closer’s job last year – it started out as a bumpy road of sorts.  Once he was more comfortable he was more consistent – then come August – he was on a roll.  He converted 15 consecutive save opportunities to finish the 2014 season.  So, one would expect him to continue that success – especially with a much improved team.

There is also the story that we Cubs’ fans know all too well – that of Carlos Marmol.  Just when we thought the Cubs had their stopper of the future – inconsistency and the heavy reliance on his slider caused him to lose the job. Will Rondon suffer a similar fate? Probably not – but if Rondon does struggle and starts to show he can’t handle the job – the Cubs do have Jason Motte who I’m sure would love to prove his worth again.

Consider all things to work out well for Rondon – which I do think will happen.  I would expect him to crack the 35-40 save area and establish himself as one of the National League’s more reliable closer’s.  Buy low though – you’ll want to look like a genius to your opponents.

Next: Hard act to follow