Fantasy Baseball: 6 Closer Situations To Monitor

Closers are one of the most frustrating positions in fantasy baseball, but in order to succeed, it's necessary to acquire saves. If you are in need of saves, here are the six teams who currently have shaky closer situations that you should be closely monitoring.

The Houston Astros have entered the season with plans on using a closer by committee. This is a situation that I am steering clear from if I can help it, but if I were absolutely desperate for saves and all other options were exhausted, I'd take a flyer on Chad Qualls, who I believe will eventually claim this job full-time.

Until Aroldis Chapman returns from injury, the Reds -- similarly to the Astros -- plan on using a closing committee. Many believe that J.J. Hoover will be leading the committee and if you needed to pick up a Reds reliever today, he's likely your guy. Be wary though if you do make the add. It would not surprise me at all if Logan Ondrusek, Sam LeCure or Alfredo Simon (who's currently in the rotation) ends up securing the interim role.

Bobby Parnell still has the job, but at this point, him being replaced is a matter of when, not if. Parnell's velocity has been down all spring and it was down again today in his disastrous Opening Day appearance. The Mets have a "proven" veteran in Jose Valverde (he was the only Mets reliever who looked alright -- this is a very bad bullpen) and there are rumblings that he may be stepping into the ninth-inning role soon.

The Blue Jays announced that Santos will be their closer until Casey Janssen is healthy, but even once Janssen returns, I don't believe the job will necessarily be just handed back to him. Santos is an excellent pitcher (he had a 1.75 ERA and a 0.58 WHIP with the Blue Jays last season) and he could very well run away with this job and never look back. If you own Casey Janssen, Santos is a must-add if he's still available.

It was Francisco Rodriguez, not Jim Henderson, who picked up the save on Opening Day for the Brewers. After the game, manager Ron Roenicke said that he wasn't happy how Henderson was throwing at the end of Spring Training and that KRod is his closer for now. I wouldn't be surprised if Henderson is closing a month from now, but KRod is a must-add for those seeking saves for the time being.

Robin Ventura announced earlier today (Monday) that Matt Lindstrom will be the White Sox' closer this season. Many thought that Nate Jones was going to be the closer, but it appears that Ventura is opting for the more experienced arm. This is Lindstrom's job to lose and he is a must-add in all leagues.