June 30, 2015
Los Angeles Angels – Baby-faced phenom Trevor Gott has pitched in 8 games for the Angels so far this year and has yet to give up a run. The 22 year-old right-hander has earned a number of high-leverage assignments since his June 13 call-up from Triple-A Salt Lake City. Expect Mike Scioscia to give the kid a chance to earn more holds in the coming weeks.
Updated hierarchy: Street | Smith | Gott.
New York Mets – A week from today, Jenrry Mejia will be eligible to return from his 80-game suspension. Given the uncertainty in the Mets bullpen behind Jeurys Familia, Mejia will likely be tapped for some late-inning work and could be a source of holds almost immediately.
Hierarchy remains: Familia | Parnell | Robles.
VULTURE SAVE WATCH
1. Trevor Gott/Fernando Salas, Los Angeles Angels – Huston Street and Joe Smith have now pitched in three straight, which means Closer Monkey newcomer Trevor Gott gets his first save opportunity. Fernando Salas, who was once a closer for the Cardinals, is also a possibility.
2. Will Smith, Milwaukee Brewers – Aging closer Francisco Rodriguez has been used a lot lately and has pitched in two straight (44 pitches). Will Smith has also gone in back-to-back games, but has thrown 10 fewer pitches and has shown his ability to pitch three straight, having done so four times already this season. (Yesterday, he also made a better joke about his name than we ever have.)
