After beginning the year as my No. 7 relief pitcher, the Rays' Fernando Rodney is all the way down to No. 16 now, and it's not just because he blew his second save Monday. In fact, if he had yet to blow a save, I'd still be down on him.
Why? The walks. They were all the difference in his breakout 2012. It's not that his stuff got any better. It's just that he threw it over the plate. And now he's not. In fact, he hasn't been much worse than he's been so far this season, issuing 7.6 walks per nine innings. His changeup is his best pitch, but when he's constantly behind in the count, he can't use it as effectively.
Maybe he'll come around, but given that last season is, to this point, the outlier in his career, I'm genuinely worried, and I'd trade him for any of the 10 closers I have ranked ahead of him.