Well, it finally happened. The total meltdown of Kelvim “Donde Esta El Plato” Escobar has forced Carlos Tosca to promote someone, and all those waiting for Cliff Politte as a closer in waiting can now count on him as a closer.
I’m a Politte fan. I bought him in the end game in Tout Wars two years ago, based on his brief but impressive K/BB ratios the year before, and he promptly went on the DL, then got traded to the AL. But for the most part since then he’s pitched the way I hoped he would..
This spring has been rockier for him, and I think there’s a good chance the Blue Jays’ newest closer isn’t going to take the world by storm. But Politte should be able to do the job most nights, which will be a big improvement over Escobar.
If he’s available, grab him. He’s not a dead-on cinch to prevail, but he’s well worth the risk that he’ll utterly fail.