July 23, 2016
Seattle Mariners — Edwin Diaz pitched the eighth inning of a one-run game and added two more strikeouts to his league-leading 44 relief strikeouts since his June 6 debut. A converted starter, Diaz has a plus fastball and an incredible 18.3 K/9 ratio this season. All that’s holding him back thus far is his age (22), but four straight eighth-inning appearances suggests that Scott Servais is coming around to using him over Joaquin Benoit. It may be hard for Diaz to keep up his otherworldly ratios, but he could still see save chances soon.
Updated hierarchy: Cishek | Diaz | Benoit.
San Diego Padres — Lefty Brad Hand pitched the eighth inning in a three-run game; although he gave up a run, he earned his third hold in the last week, edging him past Kevin Quackenbush in our hierarchy. Hand could see another promotion soon, as Ryan Buchter has been drawing interest from teams in the market for lefthanded relief help.
Updated hierarchy: Maurer | Buchter | Hand.
New York Mets — Hansel Robles pitched a solid sixth and seventh to earn the win on Friday. Robles has seen his role expand in the New York bullpen, while Jerry Blevins has been used as more of a LOOGY.
Updated hierarchy: Familia | Reed | Robles.
VULTURE SAVE WATCH
1. Pedro Strop, Chicago Cubs — Hector Rondon has pitched in four of the last five games, including a 22-pitch outing last night.
2. Fernando Abad, Minnesota Twins — Brandon Kintzler worked in and out of a jam on Friday, needing 24 pitches to close out the Red Sox. He’s gone in three of four now, while the rest of the Twins’ pen is well-rested.
3. Adam Ottavino, Colorado Rockies — Carlos Estevez pitched in his third straight game on Friday. Ottavino has been excellent since his return and may get a shot at a save on Saturday.
