Fantasy Baseball Sleepers 2012: Closers Who Will Be Strikeout Machines

Most fantasy baseball owners would rather attend a Justin Bieber concert than be forced into drafting closers early. That means elite names like Craig Kimbrel, Mariano Rivera and Jonathan Papelbon will be gone, forcing them to scour the second-tier choices.

Let's examine some sleeper options at the position who should rack up a bunch of strikeouts. At least they should allow owners to get reasonable production from the relief pitcher spots without having to pay heavily for them.

Carlos Marmol

Chicago Cubs fans know they are in for a wild ride any time Marmol takes the mound. He usually gets the job done, but he takes the most adventurous routes to get there. That includes a sky-high strikeout rate of more than 12 batters per nine last season.

The Cubs don't have much depth behind him in the bullpen, so his job should be secure. That's more important than anything else when it comes to closers because if they aren't getting saves, they're basically worthless to fantasy teams.

My advice would be draft Marmol in the middle rounds, but don't actually watch him pitch unless you want gray hair by season's end. Just check the box score. It will look a lot better that way.

Rafael Betancourt

Betancourt, who has been a tremendous setup man for several seasons now, will finally get his chance to close for the Colorado Rockies. He's sliding in most drafts simply because owners don't recognize his name from previous drafts and there isn't much hype about closers.

That said, he has a great chance to finish as one of fantasy's top five relief pitchers. He has electric stuff, leading to a strikeout rate above 10, and actually pitched better at home last season than he did on the road, so you don't have to worry about the Coors Field factor.

All signs point to a monster season for Betancourt in his first season patrolling the ninth inning. Take him with confidence after the top-tier guys are picked.

Sergio Santos

The Toronto Blue Jays acquired Santos from the Chicago White Sox after saving 30 games on the South Side last season. He'll assume the same role north of the border and should pick up right where he left off. His strikeout rate was above 13 in 2011.

His value should receive a nice boost because the Blue Jays are finally starting to look competitive again. With young stars like Brett Lawrie and J.P. Arencibia alongside slugger Jose Bautista, they will put Santos in a lot more save positions.

Santos has been severely undervalued by most owners heading into the season, so snag him late and watch him pile up the numbers. He will be a steal.