Kerry Wood in lead for closer’s job
Lou Piniella is trying to find a closer, and hopes to have it decided by next weekend, but it looks like he’s leaning toward Kerry Wood. Piniella wants to see how the three candidates — Bob Howry, Carlos Marmol and Wood — react to pitching on consecutive days, something he’ll have them do for the first time this spring early in this week.
“To me, the two setup roles are just as important as the closer role,” Piniella said. “In fact, they are probably a little more demanding in getting up and getting warmed up and being used as opposed to pitching basically the ninth inning. The closer has a tough job in that the game is in his hands when he gets out there. But, boy, I’ll tell you, the seventh- and eighth-inning pitchers work a heck of a lot more.”
With Kerry Wood’s history of arm troubles, if Piniella truly believes that the closer role is less demanding on a pitcher’s arm than a setup role, it appears that Wood will get the nod.
Filed under: Bob Howry, Carlos Marmol, Chicago Cubs, Kerry Wood