Already under the knife to repair a torn flexor tendon, Joel Hanrahan also underwent Tommy John Surgery this afternoon. (Image Credit: Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports)

Joel Hanrahan underwent surgery this afternoon to repair a torn flexor tendon in his right arm and more damage was discovered than originally expected. The right-hander wound up undergoing Tommy John Surgery as well, according to Pete Abraham of The Boston Globe. Hanrahan will miss at least the next 12 to 15 months, putting a return at the earliest of mid-2014.

Hanrahan produced mediocre results in limited action for the Boston Red Sox this year. In just 7.1 IP he’d allow 8 runs (9.82 ERA) on 10 hits, walking 6. He’d earn the save in three of his first four outings on the year, but things would seemingly fall apart after. Needless to say, it wasn’t the results that Boston thought they were bringing in when they acquired him over the winter from the Pittsburgh Pirates. It’s unclear just how severe the concerns were, but there has been some recent speculation that the team knew of some health issues Hanrahan was dealing with before the trade was completed. Buster Olney recently suggested that these issues were part of the reason why the Pirates had such a hard time finding substantial offers for the now 31 year old.

He’ll be a free agent at season’s end.

Pittsburgh shipped Hanrahan (and Brock Holt) to Boston in late December for Stolmy Pimental, Ivan De Jesus, Mark Melancon, and Jerry Sands. Pimental has garnered much of the early attention of the group, going 2-1 with a 2.89 ERA through his first eight starts at Double-A. He’s looked like an improved pitcher with the Pirates organization, though it is his third season at the level which could be a factor. De Jesus is hitting .326/.381/.467 in 105 PA at Triple-A, while Sands has struggled to a .150/.282/.183 mark in 143 PA. Sands, who’d hit nearly 30 HR each of the past two years at the level, has yet to go deep. Melancon has quietly justified the deal completely for the Pirates. In 21 appearances out of the team’s bullpen he’s posted a 0.43 ERA, 0.714 WHIP, 0.4 BB/9, and 9.4 K/9 in 21.0 IP.

Well, he was true to his word, to a point. The Red Sox organization has to be one of the few in the world that has been desperately trying to throw dollars at people and can’t find takers fast enough. Although Boston has been an aggressive free agent player, and as the acquisition of ex-Pittsburgh reliever Joel Hanrahan this week shows, in the trade market, as well, they still haven’t done enough or acquired enough to completely reinvent themselves and ensure they will be pennant contenders in 2013. (more…)

Hanrahan has saved 76 games over the past two years. Image: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

According to John Perrotto of USA Today and Baseball Prospectus, the Pirates are eyeing shortstops Dee Gordon of the Dodgers and Jose Iglesias of the Red Sox in talks for their closer.

Neither Gordon nor Iglesias appear to have an immediate role on their current clubs, with Los Angeles set to go with Hanley Ramirez and short and Stephen Drew having signed in Boston. Drew’s contract is for just one year, however, so it remains likely that Iglesias continues to factor into Boston’s long-term plans more than Gordon does with the Dodgers.

Pittsburgh has Clint Barmes under contract for 2013, but to say that Barmes struggled in 2011 would be a huge understatement. In nearly 500 plate appearances, Barmes turned in a horrific .229/.272/.321 line, though he did play solid defense at short. Neither Gordon nor Iglesias project as strong offensive players, but it wouldn’t take much to be better than Barmes was last year and both young shortstops have high ceilings as prospects and could yet grow into offensive contributors. Entering his age-34 season, Barmes is likely only to get worse.

Of the two interested clubs, Los Angeles makes a bit more sense as a trading partner for Hanrahan. The Dodgers have spent a fortune building a roster full of superstars, but seem content to trust their ninth inning to Brandon League, who lost his closing job in Seattle last year. Hanrahan has been one of the better ninth inning hurlers in the league over the past few years and while most clubs are starting to understand that paying for saves is not a wise move, there remains a school of thought that having an “established” closer is a valuable thing. For a club like the Dodgers, who have put so many resources into the first eight innings, it would be silly to leave the last three outs to chance if they can get a guy like Hanrahan for the price of a minor league shortstop that has no role in the big leagues with your organization.

The Pirates have Jason Grilli ready to step is to the role should they move Hanrahan.

September 7, 2012; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Chicago Cubs relief pitcher Carlos Marmol (49) pitches against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the ninth inning at PNC Park. The Chicago Cubs won 12-2. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

Marmol collected just 20 saves last season and was in and out of the closer’s role. His last season of dominance came in 2010, but even then he was walking far too many hitters. Though Marmol has fanned almost 12 batters per nine innings over his career, he’s also walked half that many. Last season, Marmol saw his walk rate climb to 7.3.

It’s one thing to be effectively wild. It’s another entirely to simply be wild.

In addition to his inconsistencies, Marmol is owed just shy of $10 million for the 2013 season, though it’s expected the Cubs would be willing to pick up part of that tab in order to facilitate a deal. Chicago has newly-signed Japanese righty Kyuji Fujikawa ready to serve as Marmol’s set-up man, but he’s been a top closer in Japan for the better part of a decade and could easily claim the job.

Marmol joins Pittsburgh’s Joel Hanrahan on the trade market and there are a few closer’s left on the free agent market as well in Rafael Soriano, Brian Wilson, and Jose Valverde. What’s unclear is where any of these guys will find an opportunity to close games.

A brief jaunt through the league brings only a handful of places where a job may even be possible and none of them are premium locations for free agents. Teams like Miami or Houston could use a ninth inning man and such a pitcher could use a one-year deal and figure to build value to be traded to a contender at the deadline.

Other teams like Detroit or Toronto may have openings, but prefer to go with in-house options instead of paying a premium for saves.

In the case of each of these pitchers, a job pitching in middle relief is far more likely to come, as is the paycheck normally given to pitchers in those roles. Soriano, in particular, grossly mis-judged the closer’s market when he opted out of a $14 million 2013 salary with the Yankees in an attempt to land a multi-year deal. He may wind up getting his $14 million back, but it might have to be spread over three seasons for him to do it.

The Prates have been lamenting the lack of interest in Hanrahan on the trade market and I expect the Cubs will find similar struggles in moving Marmol.

It’s all Bobby Valentine’s problem now and if you don’t think the .500 Red Sox (43-43) have problems, then why do they have guys wearing numbers like 77 and 66 in their lineup against their bitter rivals? Those are the kinds of numbers that get passed out in cattle-call tryouts. Or if Wayne Gretzky is playing for you.

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Last season, Walden was worth 1.7 WAR and struck out about ten batters per nine innings with a 2.98 ERA and a 3.88 BB/9 in 60.1 innings. He saved 32 games and ended up with a 45.2 GB% in a great year.

Apr 22, 2012; Anaheim, CA, USA; Los Angeles Angels reliever Jordan Walden (51) delivers a pitch against the Baltimore Orioles at Angel Stadium. The Orioles defeated the Angels 3-2 in 10 innings. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee/Image of Sport/US PRESSWIRE

This year, he struggled mightily as the closer and brought down his projected ERA total to about 3.90 from 3.75 due to his struggles. It seems too early to give up on Walden, and it is far too irrational to acquire a lesser closer.

In 2011, Pirates closer Joel Hanrahan had a career year and was worth 2 WAR after a 2010 season in which he set his previous career high for WAR at 1.4. In fact, Hanrahan became a better pitcher in each year of his career. In 2007, he was worth -0.4 WAR, he was then worth 0.7 WAR in 2008, and Hanrahan improved to 0.9 WAR a year later.

He became the closer in Pittsburgh last season and saved 40 games in 68.2 innings with a 2.18 FIP. He struck out eight batters per nine and walked two per nine in 2011, and he set a career high with a 52.4 GB%. Hanrahan is on pace for a 3.00 ERA and has four saves this season.

Current Angels closer Scott Downs was a terrific offseason acquisition in 2010 and was signed to an inexpensive deal. As solid as it gets, Downs has never been worth less than 0.5 WAR at any point in his career. He had four straight seasons of at least 1 WAR from 2007-2010 with the Blue Jays before being worth just 0.9 WAR last season.

Although he may not have any closing experience, I was surprised to hear the announcers during the Angels-Indians game yesterday saying that he isn’t closing material. Downs is one of the better relievers in the game and is better than some current closers. I don’t see the problem with using him as a closer, since he is one of the most consistent RPs in the game.

The other two relievers, Grant Balfour and Brandon League, currently close for other teams in the AL West. Balfour is a former Tampa Bay Rays gem and has saved six games this season with a 1.38 ERA. He is on pace for a 3.50 ERA in an expected 60 innings of work.

When the Rays won the World Series, Balfour had a monstrous year and was worth 2.1 WAR thanks to a 1.54 ERA. He followed that up with a 0.8 WAR season in 2009 and a 1.1 WAR year in 2010. In his first season with the Athletics, Balfour was merely average and was worth 0.4 WAR with a 3.57 xFIP in 62 innings of work.

The last closer on the list of three, Brandon League, used to be Downs’s teammate in Toronto. He became the closer in Seattle last season after a promising 1 WAR campaign in 2009 and a mediocre season in 2010. League saved 37 games last year with a career-high 1.4 WAR and finished with a healthy 2.79 ERA. League has seven saves so far this year with a 2.78 FIP (same total in 11.2 innings this year as 61.1 last year) and will likely have a 3.30 ERA.

All three of the closers the Angels are looking at are good, but so are Downs and Walden. Of the five, Downs is the safest bet and Walden has the highest upside. However, he also has the highest downside, but the Angels should stay pat and shouldn’t acquire a closer. Trading for closers is usually expensive in terms of assets, and it isn’t like the Angels have a huge need for one anyway. They just need good regression to take place in Walden’s case, because six appearances doesn’t dictate much of anything.

In the mean time, the Angels can close Downs and use Walden as the set-up man until they feel comfortable with Walden closing again. Both of these pitchers are near opposites, with Walden being the young, sometimes mercurial yet talented righty, and Scott Downs being the veteran left-hander with two great pitches and impressive consistency.

The relievers that the team is looking at are quality pitchers, but the Angels need to take a step back and analyze the situation with a more patient eye before coming to a decision. They already have two great high-leverage relievers who can switch off closing duties if need be, and they also have solid depth in the pen with LaTroy Hawkins.

Be sure to check out all of Call to the Pen’s transaction breakdowns for the 2011-12 offseason. You can follow Call to the Pen on Twitter at @FSCalltothePen or like us here on Facebook.

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Once upon a time the Pirates were the pride of the city, the team that gave the world Roberto Clemente, Harvey Haddix’s 12 perfect innings, Bill Mazeroski’s seventh-game World Series-winning home run to beat the Yankees, Ralph Kiner, Pie Traynor, Paul Waner, Lloyd Waner and Honus Wagner. For those who don’t know their history, Wagner is more than the most valuable baseball card ever. He was just about the greatest shortstop ever.

Now honestly, how many players on the current Pirates roster can you even name?

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