Carlos Marmol has been the closer for the Cubs since 2009.
He started out strong his first two years, but in the later end of 2011 and into 2012 the wheels came off for him and it started to get ugly for the Cubs.
He has lost all confidence in himself to battle back from getting down in counts. If he doesn’t start off his innings showing good command it is very hard and almost impossible now to get his command back. He doesn’t throw his slider (which is his best pitch) for strikes consistently anymore, instead he hopes that the hitters will chase it , and the worst part is that through scouting hitters know what to expect from Marmol nowadays. Marmol’s control issues have made him one of the more hittable closers in the MLB today.
If Marmol gets behind in the count (which he does way too much) he has to throw a fastball in the hitters wheelhouse and that is when he gets hammerd. After he lets that first base runner on he begins to lose his command and lose his confidence.
A great example of this was yesterdays game in the 9th inning . Although Marmol got the first out in the ninth by getting Garrett Jones to chase a slider, a pitch that Jones should have known was coming. He then hit Andrew McCutchen, who later stole a base. After Marmol surrendered an RBI single to Pedro Alvarez, he then walked Gaby Sanchez.
At this time, Dale Sveum pulled the trigger and took Marmol out. Marmol cannot be trusted with a lead in the 9th inning anymore, and Dale Sveum did what many Cubs managers before him didn’t; he took Marmol out when he clearly had no command of his pitches.
If the Cubs cannot find an adequate trade partner for Marmol, they need to release him. He is blocking Kyuji Fujikawa’s potential to be the Cubs closer. Marmol is a disease, and Dale Sveum showed yesterday that he isn’t afraid to take Marmol out. As the season goes on and if the Cubs don’t trade or cut Marmol, his leash needs to become shorter and shorter. Marmol is past his prime and should not be the closer.
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Obvious Confucius say Marmol would be good trade for bag of peanuts.
Marmol has been the closer since 2009.