Hanrahan Set to Close In Washington

By Jason Grey
ESPN.com

Joel Hanrahan just got real popular with fantasy players.

The first look at the fantasy spin on the Jon Rauch and Randy Wolf trades of Tuesday was available right after the deals were made, but since then, our speculation that Hanrahan will get the first shot at closing games with Rauch no longer in the picture was confirmed by the Nationals' Web site.

The 26-year-old has thrived in his first season converting to a relief role. He was once a highly touted starting prospect in the Dodgers system until shoulder problems derailed him in 2003. Working in the 'pen in maximum-effort stints has added velocity to his fastball, which now touches 97 mph and is complemented by a hard, mid-80s slider. It's certainly prototypical closer's stuff.

The one issue with Hanrahan is his tendency to get wild at times. Though he's striking out more than a batter per inning, he's also walking just under five batters per nine, and that could come back to bite him a bit more in the final couple of months of the season. He's not necessarily a sure thing because of his control, but merely a good speculative play for saves. Saul Rivera and Luis Ayala will also be in the mix should Hanrahan falter. Chad Cordero is expected to resume his role as the team's closer next season.

Nationals general manager Jim Bowden also confirmed to the team Web site that the plan is for Emilio Bonifacio to come up at some point later in the season, and that he is expected to bat leadoff and start at second base on Opening Day 2009, with Ronnie Belliard backing him up. Of course, things could change by that time, but that's the plan, and Bonifacio has a ton of stolen-base potential if he can make enough consistent contact at the big league level.