Something that has plagued closing pitching in the past few years has been the idea that designated closers are much rarer because year-to-year consistency as a pitcher is much rarer now. Somebody could notch 30 saves one year, maybe two, and then either get hurt or not be as good anymore, and then that sort of makes it difficult to close games again after that. Nobody's closing 30 games a season for 10 years as much anymore. There's only a handful of guys in this current crop that I see being a closer til they retire basically, and it's guys like Hader and Clase and Jansen.
But making that leap is difficult, because when do you denote that? At one point does a pitcher stop being just a guy who does his job properly and start being someone who can never not close games? It's completely arbitrary. Edwin Diaz can be a terrific closer but it lands in between years of being a good reliever who also happens to work the ninth. Emilio Pagan can close games but he's had more success as a setup man. Tanner Scott has become a great closer, but it's been because he's been RP1 on the last three or four teams he's pitched for. Does this mean Tanner Scott will close games for the rest of his career? Who knows.
And so here we have Andres Muñoz, the current AL saves leader with 13 for the Mariners. Muñoz, who is 26, came over in the Austin Nola deal from San Diego, and since 2022 has been the most consistent reliever in Seattle. He started closing games in 2023 after the Mariners began to move on from Paul Sewald, and last year he held the job all year and finished with 23. Because the Mariners, y'know, didn't score a lot of runs last year, and because the rotation was so damned good, the save situations were not always there for Muñoz, but he finished the season with a 2.12 ERA, and an All-Star appearance. If Muñoz had not been there, the Mariners would have been even worse.
So now that the Ms are, gasp, A FIRST PLACE TEAM WITH A LINEUP THAT'S HITTING, and the pitching is a little closer to average, there was more save situations and more opportunities for Muñoz to savor the moment. So far this year, Muñoz has appeared in 18 games, finished 14 and saved 13, struck out 25...and allowed no earned runs. His 1.9 WAR through six weeks of play is almost as much as his full season WAR from 2024. Nobody is hitting him, nobody is touching him, and he's been the cherry on top of a great start for the Mariners.
But...like any closing option, and any reliever now, will the other shoe drop? Will there come a point where Muñoz is no longer RP1 caliber and has to cede the ninth to someone more efficient? Will he go cold spontaneously, much like Emmanuel Clase has this year and Josh Hader did last year? As great of a closer Muñoz has become, I still can't tell if he's a great closer or if he's just a great reliever who's been finding success in the ninth. I do see him becoming more comfortable closing, and he's definitely come into his own in the last few years there, so I certainly hope he can keep the pace up. But it's definitely a reality that this is no longer assured.
Meanwhile, the 1st place Mariners? I love it. Julio, Randy, Raleigh and Polanco all hitting? Incredible. Ben Williamson making strides at third? Love to see it. This team finally having a great season would solve so many problems, and shoo the dark cloud over the AL West. Please let it happen.
Coming Tonight: A future Hall of Famer I have seen play three times, and it's looking like I'll see him a fourth.
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