Last year, Jeanmar Gomez tallied 37 saves for a Phillies team that won only 71 baseball games. Those 37 saves are the 9th-most in a single season in franchise history, trailing seasons by Jonathan Papelbon, Steve Bedrosian, Brad Lidge, Jose Mesa and Mitch Williams.
And Gomez has had an excellent spring, too. In 8 2⁄3 innings, he has a 1.04 ERA in 7 appearances, with 4 strikeouts and 1 walk.
So it makes all the sense in the world that, with about a week left before Opening Day, he is the front-runner to open the season as closer once again, right?