Arthur

Rhodes

Rhodes, who has battled back problems for much of the season, could be ready to pitch this evening.

Beane said it was something he and the Rockies discussed during the summer, but that the talks haven’t been revisited in the offseason. Beane seemed more interested in replacing Damian Miller through free agency, perhaps with Gregg Zaun.

Each of them pitched in the ninth inning last night with no save on the line. This closer situation should work much like a platoon -- Nelson, a righty, will get most of the work, especially since Rhodes is the only lefty in the Seattle pen. Rhodes may only pick up saves when a tough left-hander is up for the final out. Shigetoshi Hasegawa will move into Nelson’s setup role.

''I’ve been pitching on it, and it hasn’t healed,’' Rhodes said. He was already struggling when the injury occurred, and now has a 9.89 ERA over his last 23 appearances. If he misses any time, though, the Mariners will be without a lefty in their bullpen.

Could the Twins turn another left-handed setup man into a closer? Rhodes wouldn’t be very expensive after a down season and would probably do just fine in the ninth inning. More likely is that the Twins are pursuing him with the intention of using him as a setup man.

Rhodes was weighing offers from the White Sox and Braves, too, but his agent, Dan Horwits, said, “I would say that the A’s are definitely the front-runners.”

After a couple of good bullpen sessions that will be aimed at building up Rhodes’ arm strength, he could be ready to start a rehab assignment at Triple-A Sacramento. Rhodes’ best case scenario will be a return to setup duties by the end of the month.

This shouldn’t be enough to keep Rhodes from performing his usual setup duties.

He is going home to Texas to tend to a personal matter. Just as well, as the A’s much maligned closer could use a few days to cool off after being ejected from last night’s game.

It also did not explain why Rhodes has been suffering from back spasms for over a week. The left-hander will likely be unavailable for the next little while and could be placed on the disabled list.