Francisco Cordero: Five Options the Cincinnati Reds Have To Replace Him

Francisco Cordero is tied with Heath Bell for second in the major leagues in saves.

He is 24 for 30 (80%) for the season. His career save percentage is 81.5%. His save percentage with the Reds 85.8%.

Here are some more stats to chew on.

Of the 15 pitchers with 20 or more saves, Cordero is worst in the league in WHIP (1.55), ERA (4.20), and third worst in batting average against (.263).

The Reds pay Cordero a lot of money, so continuing to run him out there for every save will likely be the choice.

Here are five other in-house choices.

Jordan Smith

Jordan Smith appears to be groomed as a future closer.

The 2006 sixth-round pick is a long shot to take the role this year but he already has one save.

His fastball is above average but he needs to work on putting hitters away.

He has given up at least one run in his last three outings so he needs a little more experience but he is close to being ready.

Like many closers, Smith is a former starter. He has pitched in tough situations and has not shown signs of being intimidated.

Aroldis Chapman

Aroldis Chapman's best route to the majors this season is out of the bullpen.

He certainly has closer stuff.

The Reds see him as a Randy Johnson type impact pitcher. That remains to be seen, but there is no reason why he can't be the closer this year, though.

Next year, he can be stretched back into a starter and compete for a rotation spot.

Of course, this all depends on how well Chapman adjusts to the bullpen in the minors.

He's a work in progress, but he could be a dominating late-game option for Reds' manager Dusty Baker.

Nick Masset

Look past Nick Masset's 5.26 ERA and take note that since May 3, he's actually been pretty solid.

Check out Masset's numbers since then:
29 innings
25 K's
2.79 ERA

He has all the pitches to be an effective closer: an upper 90s fastball, a slider, and a splitter.

Arthur Rhodes

Arthur Rhodes is having a great season.

He recently tied the all-time record for most consecutive scoreless appearances with 33.

Even after his two earned run outing on July 9, his ERA is still impressive at 1.54. This is no fluke as Rhodes is enjoying his third straight season like this.

He may not be able to close every day due to his age but this is a guy who has been lights out in nearly all of his outings.

There is no reason he can't do the same thing in the ninth if given the chance.

Homer Bailey

Homer Bailey is a former top pick and another guy who the Reds see as a top of the rotation starter.

However, he hasn't been able to consistently get the job done in that role.

If asked to pitch just one inning, Bailey's fastball would likely approach 100 mph.

The Reds have other good starters now. This is a great opportunity to get Bailey in the ninth inning role.

Bailey has a tender shoulder so starting may not even be an option for him this season.

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The Reds will stick with Cordero but it is fun to look at options.

What do you think? While you're thinking about that, here are more baseball articles to check out:

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