November 20, 2008 According to Jayson Stark of ESPN.com, the Cubs are going to promote Carlos Marmol to the closer role in 2009.
Our View:Even though the Cubs traded for Kevin Gregg, they will turn to Marmol. In 2008 he was very successful in the setup role. In 82 games last year he had 114 strikeouts in 87.1 innings and also compiled an ERA of 2.68.
October 7, 2008 The AP reports that reliever Carlos Marmol suffered minor injuries in a car accident early Tuesday in the Dominican Republic. A truck hit a car carrying Marmol, a cousin and a friend in his hometown of Bonao near 2 a.m. Marmol said in an e-mail to The Associated Press that the air bag deployed and he only suffered a cut and an “inflammation” of his forehead. “Out of precaution they did different studies on my body, and I don’t have any kind of serious injury,” he wrote.
Our View:Marmol was gold in middle relief this season with 114 strikeouts in 87.1 innings. Kerry Wood is facing free agency and if he were to leave, Marmol would likely take over the closer's role in Chicago.
July 21, 2008 Carlos Marmol is expected to handle the closer's role, as it appears that Kerry Wood is headed to the DL due to his nagging finger blister, according to the AP.
Our View:Wood's DL move could be retroactive to July 12, meaning Marmol would serve as the closer for about a week before Wood returns. He is worth starting in your fantasy lineups for that said week.
July 13, 2008 Carlos Marmol will replace teammate Kerry Wood on the National League All-Star team, according to MLB.com. Marmol's selection was due to him having the next highest vote total on the Player Ballot.
Our View:Marmol has struggled recently, but at the time of the vote, he was dominating. However, he still holds fantasy value because of his strikeout rate and low WHIP.
July 5, 2008 The Cubs weren't able to find any issues with reliever Carlos Marmol tipping his pitches. "We thought we had found something on the plane [Thursday] night, and we looked at it further [Friday], and it wasn't much different, so we don't think that's it," manager Lou Piniella tells the Chicago Sun-Times. "The next step is we run him out there tonight if we need him and get people out." Marmol has allowed 10 runs over his last seven appearances.
Our View:We're just going to throw this out there, but have the Cubs considered not driving Marmol into the ground? He is a brilliant setup man, but Carlos has been one of the most heavily-used relievers over the last calendar year.
