The Miami Marlins have a "Help Wanted" sign on their bullpen door after closer Steve Cishek suffered a fourth blown save on Monday. The loss sent his ERA skyrocketing to 10.52, and he now has more blown opportunities (4) than saves (3). Cishek was rock solid for the past two years, but the Marlins brass isn't happy with the current state of affairs.
"Cishek has done a tremendous job for us. But at the end of the day, it's about winning games,' Marlins manager Mike Redmond said. "We can't keep blowing leads. We'll see tomorrow, regroup, and see where we're at."
That's why the Marlins are reportedly talking to super agent Scott Boras about hard-throwing reliever Rafael Soriano, who lost his closing job with the Washington Nationals last season after a disastrous second half.
Soriano is a veteran with plenty of closing experience. He has 207 careers saves, and has slammed the door for the Seattle Mariners, Atlanta Braves, New York Yankees, Tampa Bay Rays and Nats. Despite his second half struggles in 2014, Soriano's final line of 4-1 with a 3.19 ERA and 1.13 WHIP aren't ugly. He also did not show any dip in velocity at 35 years old.
If Soriano isn't the answer, the obvious choice within the organization is A.J. Ramos, a strikeout machine who has struggled with control. His K/9 is a robust 11.12, but he's walking three batters per nine, a potentially fatal flaw in save situations. That number is down significantly from the 6.07 mark he posted in 64 innings of work last season.
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