Question for keeper leagues?

[Gregg]

I think this question would apply to mostly deep keeper only leagues.

Would you keep a very good cheap MR that most likely will not get a chance to close?


Say a $2 Mujica in an NL only 5x5 15 man keeper?

I am thinking I will end up with one or two of these, but picking one up at auction is different than going in with a spot blocked.

What do you guys do?

[wannabegriffey]

Unless the pitcher has a very good shot to move into the closer role, I would never protect a middle relief pitcher.

[joncarlos]

I certainly would (and have) if they are really offering you $5-$7 in profit from their wins/ratios. But I would usually want them to be the backup closer so there was at least upside for saves. Not sure I'd keep a pure MR.

[Moonlight J]

$3 or less is my limit

[Stephen]

I'm not at all opposed to keeping elite middle relievers/set up men. I think I kept Scot Shields on my team for 4 years straight one stretch.

[SlideRule]

Yeah, my rule is only guys that are lights out and would be the likely one to slot into a saves role in case of injury/sucktitude of the original closer. I always seem to have guys I'd rather keep than a $1 MR type, but if you are short on keepers and really like your $2 stud high-leverage MR guy I don't see a big problem. See Paul Sporer's MR-methodology in his SP guide (I think?) for info.

[Lwood]

Depends on what other pitchers I'm keeping. If not many, I'd keep a MR up to a couple of bucks. I'm in a daily league and get lots of vulture wins from MR's.

[Lucky]

I have kept superb middle men in "only" leagues, the best example being Arthur Lee Rhodes, who always seemed to churn out double digit profit.

It is always preferable, though, if your middle guy has some type of path to a closer gig, and that you don't have to leave a good freeze off your list to keep the MR.

[schlesinj]

Roster spots have value too. That said in my "Only" leagues daily transaction I have kept MR. Both my leagues are 4x4 so find any guy with a sniff at saves is worth a shot.

[The Dane]

I think it totally depends on the league. In my two NL-only daily leagues, I often keep pure MRs, because they are SO valuable streaming them in when your starters aren't active. When I get a guy like Affeldt for $1, I'll often hold onto him for years. Also, if a league has a minimum amount of keepers, especially if you are coming off a title run, a $1 MR could be a great keeper.

But that said, as a general rule, I prefer not to hold onto them because they are of moderate value, are sometimes volatile from year to year, and are perhaps the most plentiful resource in the game, outside of crappy team-killing second catchers.