Originally Posted by MLB.com

JUPITER, Fla. -- Caught in a logjam of relievers with the Angels, Kevin Gregg now finds himself as a front-runner for the Marlins' closer role.

Obtained from the Angels for reliever Chris Resop last November, Gregg is a 28-year-old with 125 games of big-league experience.

That bit of Major League service time is giving him an early edge for Florida's unsettled closer situation.

Ideally, the club wants someone big-league battle-tested to replace Joe Borowski, who parlayed a 36-save 2006 into a free-agent contract with the Indians.

Gregg, who has been a starter and long reliever, is in the closer mix with Taylor Tankersley, Henry Owens and Matt Lindstrom.

"Everybody aspires to be either a closer or starter," said Gregg, a 6-foot-6, 238-pound right-hander. "You want to work in the back end to pitch in the seventh, eighth or ninth inning. I've been blessed over the last couple of years to watch guys like Troy Percival, Francisco Rodriguez, Scot Shields and Brendan Donnelly. Those are some of the premier guys in the game. I've been fortunate to watch them a couple of years."

Because of the depth the Angels had, Gregg found himself logging innings in a long-relief or spot-starter role. He appeared in 32 games a year ago and worked 78 1/3 innings, striking out 71 while walking 21.

His fastball is clocked between 91-94 mph, and he mixes in a sinker and slider.

From his days with the Angels, he witnessed firsthand how talented relievers went right after hitters.

"Along with all of their abilities, they like to attack hitters," Gregg said. "They put hitters on edge. They never pitch timid. They believe in their stuff and that they are going to get guys out.

"They've got good stuff. At this level, a lot of people have good stuff, but you have to believe in what you have. That's what they do. They believe in what they can do and they attack people."

Closing, though, would be a new role for Gregg. He doesn't have a big-league save, and he logged just one save in his Minor League career.

"Baseball is a game of opportunity," he said. "We have an unbelievable starting staff here. I like the idea of going to the back end of the bullpen and pitching in 60-70 games."