2010 MLB closers - final report

***2010 MLB closer report last updated 10/2/10 12:00 AM***

For 2011 MLB closers - the most thorough information on MLB bullpens - click here.

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Closers are listed at the top under each team name. Their competition follows. This list will be updated throughout the regular season:

Arizona Diamondbacks:
Juan Gutierrez
Aaron Heilman
Blaine Boyer
Esmerling Vazquez
Chad Qualls

Atlanta Braves:
Billy Wagner (L)
Jonny Venters (L)
Peter Moylan
Takashi Saito
Eric O'Flaherty (L)

Baltimore Orioles:
Alfredo Simon
Matt Albers
Mark Hendrickson (L)
Koji Uehara
Will Ohman (L)

Boston Red Sox:
Jonathan Papelbon
Daniel Bard
Hideki Okajima (L)
Manny Delcarmen
Ramon Ramirez

Chicago Cubs:
Carlos Marmol
Kerry Wood
Sean Marshall (L)
Andrew Cashner
James Russell (L)
Justin Berg

Chicago White Sox:
Bobby Jenks
Tony Pena
Matt Thornton (L)
J.J. Putz
Sergio Santos

Cincinnati Reds:
Francisco Cordero
Nick Masset
Logan Ondrusek
Arthur Rhodes (L)
Jordan Smith

Cleveland Indians:
Chris Perez
Rafael Perez (L)
Tony Sipp (L)
Joe Smith
Frank Herrmann

Colorado Rockies:
Huston Street
Matt Belisle
Manuel Corpas
Rafael Betancourt
Joe Beimel (L)

Detroit Tigers:
Jose Valverde
Brad Thomas (L)
Eddie Bonine
Phil Coke (L)
Ryan Perry

Florida Marlins:
Leo Nunez
Brian Sanches
Mike Dunn (L)
Clay Hensley
Jose Veras
Burke Badenhop

Houston Astros:
Brandon Lyon
Matt Lindstrom
Wilton Lopez
Jeff Fulchino
Tim Byrdak (L)

Kansas City Royals:
Joakim Soria
Robinson Tejada
Dusty Hughes (L)
Kyle Farnsworth
Blake Wood

Los Angeles Angels:
Fernando Rodney
Brian Fuentes (L)
Kevin Jepsen
Francisco Rodriguez
Scot Shields

Los Angeles Dodgers:
Jonathon Broxton
Hong Chih Kuo (L)
Ronald Belisario
Ramon Troncoso
George Sherrill (L)

Milwaukee Brewers:
John Axford
Todd Coffey
Kameron Loe
Carlos Villanueva
Trevor Hoffman

Minnesota Twins:
Jon Rauch
Matt Guerrier
Jesse Crain
Jose Mijares (L)
Brian Dunsing (L)

New York Mets:
Francisco Rodriguez
Hisanori Takahashi (L)
Pedro Feliciano (L)
Elmer Dessens
Manny Acosta

New York Yankees:
Mariano Rivera
Joba Chamberlain
David Robertson
Boone Logan (L)
Chad Gaudin

Oakland Athletics:
Andrew Bailey
Craig Breslow (L)
Brad Ziegler
Jerry Blevins (L)
Michael Wuertz

Philadelphia Phillies:
Brad Lidge
Ryan Madson
Jose Contreras
Chad Durbin
J.C. Romero (L)

Pittsburgh Pirates:
Octavio Dotel
Evan Meek
Joel Hanrahan
D.J. Carrasco
Javier Lopez (L)

St. Louis Cardinals:
Ryan Franklin
Kyle McClellan
Mitchell Boggs
Dennys Reyes (L)
Trever Miller (L)

San Diego Padres:
Heath Bell
Luke Gregerson
Edward Mujica
Mike Adams
Joe Thatcher (L)

San Francisco Giants:
Brian Wilson
Jeremy Affeldt (L)
Sergio Romo
Guillermo Mota
Santiago Casilla - 15-day DL as of Apr 1, 2011 (Right elbow inflammation)

Seattle Mariners:
David Aardsma
Brandon League
Jamey Wright
Garrett Olson (L)
Sean White

Tampa Bay Rays:
Rafael Soriano
Joaquin Benoit
Dan Wheeler
Randy Choate (L)
Lance Cormier

Texas Rangers:
Neftali Feliz
Darren Oliver (L)
Frank Francisco
Darren O'Day
Alexi Ogando

Toronto Blue Jays:
Kevin Gregg
Jason Frason
Scott Downs (L)
Casey Janssen
Shawn Camp

Washington Nationals:
Matt Capps
Drew Storen
Sean Burnett (L)
Tyler Clippard
Miguel Batista

Reynolds' bad rap

Everyone knows Mark Reynolds is extremely strikeout prone. He owns the three highest totals for strikeouts in a single season, including last year's record-smashing 223. Many fantasy baseball managers let that slide in 2009 because Reynolds performed in breakout fashion, walloping 44 home runs and still managing a slash line of .260/.349/.543, respectable numbers for most power hitters even in spite of the ridiculous whiff numbers.

This year, Reynolds has still managed decent power numbers with 51 extra base hits, but his sky-high strikeout numbers and plummeting batting average have reduced him to marginal fantasy starter rather than the power force he appeared to be in 2009. Reynolds is in jeopardy of a record-setting year of futility in potentially becoming the first every-day player to have a higher strikeout total than batting average (currently 206 K total and .199 average) for the season. His BABIP of .322 for his career is a bit on the high side in terms of good luck. This year's BABIP is .255, which is highly unlucky.

Fantasy Impact: Reynolds goes from a guy who looks like a perennial keeper in your typical keeper league to back in the draft heap for 2011. The good news is that BABIP should come up more in line of his career numbers moving forward, as his high strikeout numbers had never produced a batting average below .239. Bringing Reynolds BABIP back toward the norm leaves a would-be .224 average for this season and he would produce at a .236 clip in 2010 at his career BABIP. That's below Reynlods .243 career batting average, which means last season is still looking like a career year rather than a harbinger of future success. Reynolds simply slipped back to the pack in 2010, despite his 32 home runs leading the third base position. If your league keeps between five and six keepers, he's on the fringe for 2011.

Aviles for this year, Gordon for next?

A couple of notes on a couple of Royals to keep an eye on for the last week of the regular season and into next year. Mike Aviles hit just his seventh home run of the season Thursday night, but he entered Thursday hitting .365 in September before finishing 1-5 for his night.

As you might expect, Royals teammate Alex Gordon turned in a typical 1-4 night in Cleveland, leaving his 2010 average at an unimpressive .227. It's what Gordon is saying moving forward, however, that deserves some attention. Gordon claims he's going to "dominate" in 2011.

Fantasy Impact: Aviles now owns five homers in September and he's hit safely in 13 of 17 games. After a miserable 2009 campaign and quiet start to this season, he's making up for his struggles quite nicely as the season winds down. Remember, he hit .325 after a mid-season call-up in 2008, meaning he can go on long streaks of quality production. Infield eligibility at both SS and 2B add to his increasing value. He's worth an add if you need any kind of infield help.

Gordon's proclamation is at least noteworthy and potentially a warning for fantasy owners for next year. Remember, this is a former No. 2 overall pick out of baseball powerhouse Nebraska who went from college ball to the big leagues in one year with relative success. Gordon hit .321/.438/.578 over parts of three seasons in the minors, and while he's only performed at .247/.330/.408 over four years at the major league level. Injuries, however, wrecked last year and Gordon was able to belt 31 homers in his first two seasons at the ages of 23 and 24. Big things potentially lay ahead, making Gordon a great late-round sleeper pick in 2011. If he's feeling good enough to proclaim future success after a season split between a sub-par big league numbers and another Triple-A masterpiece, there's a good chance he can perform somewhere in-between next year.

Bumgarner loses first start

Giants youngster Madison Bumgarner made his much-anticipated first start of 2010 and fared well enough to hang around in the big leagues. After some early hiccups, including two home runs and four earned runs in the first two innings, Bumgarner settled down and pitched seven innings, throwing 66 of his 96 pitches for strikes.

Fantasy Impact: Most teams would take those kinds of numbers from their fifth starter, which is exactly Bumgarner's slot for now. He is, however, much more talented than a back-end pitcher in San Francisco's rotation. Bumgarner is a potential future star with high-end upside. He deserves to be active in all formats.

Gutierrez could be D'backs future closer

The Arizona Diamondbacks like what they've seen from setup man Juan Gutierrez to the point that he might end up Arizona's closer next season. Chad Qualls is the incumbent in 2010.

Gutierrez's performance last year validated GM Josh Byrnes decision to trade former closer Jose Valverde to the Astros after the 2007 season for Gutierrez, Qualls and infielder Chris Burke. While Burke was a bust, Qualls has put together two good seasons and Gutierrez could conceivably slip into the closer's role if Qualls departs as a free agent following 2010.

"He's always had plus stuff, very solid delivery and arm action and multiple pitches," Byrnes said. "He has a lot of pieces in place to be successful. You hoped it would translate, and now that he's had success, he can build off that."

Which is exactly what Gutierrez is trying to do.

"I learned more about how to pitch last year," he said. "I learned how to control your emotions. When you have a bad day you've got to forget about it. You have to say this is a new day and I'm going to show the world what I have."

Fantasy Impact: There's a chance Gutierrez earns the job even sooner than 2011. Consider that Qualls is coming back off a serious injury sustained late in 2010, so he's not necessarily in baseball shape going into the year. Then, there's the chance that the Diamondbacks, who won't be picked any higher than third in the NL West this year, could be sellers come July. If Qualls is moved to a contending team, Gutierrez could be in line for as many as 15-20 saves over the latter half of the season. The D'backs bullpen is definitely one to monitor all summer long.

Verducci effect

Tom Verducci's 10 young pitchers at risk of a blowout include Josh Johnson and Felix Hernandez, two guys who had hugely impressive 2009 seasons. Funny that Joba Chamberlain and Max Scherzer made the list. They've already experienced arm troubles.