Closers of the future starting season in the minors

	Joey Devine had 18 K's in 11 spring innings but is starting the season in the minors. Brian Bahr/Getty Images

By Joshua Whitling, Special to SI.com, TalentedMrRoto.com

There are two trends in the world of closers this week: Unproven rookies being demoted in favor of veterans, and aging closers displaying their brittleness early. Let's take a look at some situations around the league:

Florida: Chic potential closer pick Travis Bowyer was sent down to AAA after a 7.36 ERA in spring training. Consider Joe Borowski good for now, as he doesn't have anybody breathing down his neck and should get some chances to prove himself in the closer's role. The Marlins claimed 6-foot-7, 260-pound right-handed reliever Franklyn German off waivers from the Tigers on Monday. Now that Bowyer is out of the picture -- at least temporarily -- I could see German as the first to capitalize should Borowski falter. German has 12 career saves, decent upside, and it surprised some players and fans when the Tigers waived him.

Tampa Bay: Chad Orvella, who had a 7.59 spring ERA in nine appearances, was sent to AAA to begin the season, leaving the closer's job up in the air. As new manager Joe Maddon said, courtesy of MLB.com:

"[The bullpen is] a fluid situation. We believe in these guys. It's an amorphic bullpen -- there are no roles right now. ... I want them to define their roles. I'm all about role definition in the bullpen. But I can't sit there right now and honestly say what I'm thinking, because I'd be making stuff up. ... I want them to place themselves as we go along."

Dan Miceli is the best option right now, although you're smarter to look elsewhere since it appears the team will go with different guys on any given night, and the Rays aren't set to win bundles of games anyway.

Atlanta: Joey Devine, another potential rookie closer-in-the-waiting, was also sent down to AAA. Do we sense a trend here? The one difference here is that Devine was brilliant this spring, with a 2.45 ERA and a whopping 18 strikeouts in 11 innings. He just needs some time. Perhaps one of Bowyer, Orvella or Devine could pull a Huston Street and jump in when an injury occurs. Based upon spring stats, Devine is most likely to do so. But I wouldn't hold my breath.

Maybe all of these rookies being sent down is an indication that we shouldn't doubt the guy who already has the job too much before the season starts. Reitsma in no jeopardy of losing his job in the near future, and he's now looking like a decent closer who went undervalued in drafts. He'll give up runs and hits, but get you saves and he isn't injury prone.

Detroit: Fernando Rodney is a must-add while Todd Jones is on DL with a bum hammy, and his value should remain high throughout the season. He faces less competition for the backup closer role behind injured Jones now that the team released German, is MUCH younger than Jones, and pitched well last year after the team traded away then-closer Kyle Farnsworth. Things look encouraging for Rodney right now, and they'll be even better if Jones' injuries are a season-long problem.