August 3, 2015
Pittsburgh Pirates – Three batters into his appearance, Mark Melancon got ejected for hitting Tucker Barnhart. Joakim Soria entered and picked up his first save as a Pirate. Should Melancon be suspended — and we don’t think he will, since the HBP didn’t seem intentional at all — Soria would pick up any save chances.
Hierarchy remains: Melancon | Soria | Watson.
Detroit Tigers – Alex Wilson’s grip on the closer role got a little tighter yesterday, as he pitched a clean 9th inning in a Tigers victory. It was a 5-run game, but his main competition, Bruce Rondon, was summoned to pitch the 8th, which gave the appearance that Wilson is ahead in the pecking order.
Hierarchy remains: *Wilson | Rondon | Alburquerque.
* = closer-by-committee
Toronto Blue Jays – Since declaring that Roberto Osuna and Aaron Sanchez would share the 8th and 9th innings, John Gibbons hasn’t made any effort to actually turn this into a committee. Osuna has pitched the 9th inning in each of his last three appearances, including yesterday afternoon, when he also got the last out of the 8th inning. We won’t remove the asterisk yet, but we’re growing curious as to why Gibbons ever called this a committee.
Hierarchy remains: *Osuna | Sanchez | Hawkins.
* = closer-by-committee
Seattle Mariners – Tom Wilhelmsen picked up an 11th inning save on Sunday after Carson Smith and Fernando Rodney had already pitched. He’s not likely to get more save chances, but we’ll bump him up to the hierarchy for his efforts.
Updated hierarchy: Smith | Rodney | Wilhelmsen.
Colorado Rockies – We’re three days into the Colorado closer committee, and looking more and more like Tommy Kahnle is Walt Weiss’s first choice. He got the last four outs of a four-run victory on Saturday, and then was held out of Sunday’s game, while Justin Miller and Rafael Betancourt pitched the 6th and 7th innings. Scott Oberg eventually blew it and took the loss. We’ll continue to monitor the situation.
Hierarchy remains: *Kahnle | Betancourt | Miller.
* = closer-by-committee
Texas Rangers – Bullpen help came at just the right time for the Rangers, who placed Tanner Scheppers on the DL just a day after sending Keone Kela to the minors for some extended rest. With Shawn Tolleson unavailable after pitching four straight, newcomers Jake Diekman and Sam Dyson were summoned to close out the 9th inning. Diekman walked the only batter he faced on four pitches, but his mere usage suggests he’ll get more high leverage chances going forward; Dyson, meanwhile, was able to do the job, nabbing his first save as a Ranger.
Updated hierarchy: Tolleson | Dyson | Diekman.
New York Mets – Tyler Clippard picked up his first save as a Met on Sunday night, pitching a scoreless 9th inning. As mentioned in yesterday’s Vulture Save Watch, Jeurys Familia had pitched in three straight.
Hierarchy remains: Familia | Clippard | Parnell.
VULTURE SAVE WATCH
1. Drew Pomeranz, Oakland A’s – Edward Mujica has pitched in three straight.
2. Sam Dyson, Texas Rangers – After going four days in a row from Wednesday through Saturday, it’s possible that Shawn Tolleson needs a second day off.
3. Carter Capps/Mike Dunn, Miami Marlins – AJ Ramos threw 23 pitches yesterday in a blown save, and has thrown 68 pitches over the last four games. Carter Capps also left yesterday’s game with elbow discomfort, so if they both can’t go today, it might mean a save for Mike Dunn.
4. Pedro Strop, Chicago Cubs – Hector Rondon threw 29 pitches yesterday and has pitched on four of the last five days.
