Fernando Rodney headed to the Marlins; Ryan Buchter to close for Padres

June 30, 2016

Miami Marlins – Rumors have been flying all afternoon, and the teams have just made it official: Fernando Rodney is headed to the Marlins in exchange for a minor leaguer. Despite the year he’s having, we think it’s unlikely that Rodney would close given his volatile history and the year that A.J. Ramos is having. Still, he bolsters a Marlins bullpen and provides another option when Ramos is unavailable.

Updated hierarchy: Ramos | Rodney | Phelps.

San Diego Padres – The cupboard is pretty bare in San Diego after the departure of closer Fernando Rodney, but Ryan Buchter was named the primary set-up man in early June and we suspect he has the best shot to close for the Padres, who have yet to make any announcements.

Updated hierarchy: Buchter | Villanueva | Quackenbush. 

Jake McGee to return this Saturday for the Rockies

June 30, 2016

Colorado Rockies — After two rehab outings, Jake McGee is expected to return from the disabled list on Saturday — but Walt Weiss refused to commit to a set role for the lefthander going forward, calling the Rockies’ bullpen situation “ever-evolving.” If Gigalith hits the hierarchy, don’t say he didn’t warn you.

Hierarchy remains: Estevez | Motte | Germen.

Philadelphia Phillies — Just a few days removed from entering a game in the fourth inning, Brett Oberholtzer was called on in the tenth to earn his first career save. Jeanmar Gomez and Hector Neris had already pitched, and David Hernandez was coming off a lengthy outing on Tuesday. Although Oberholtzer doesn’t project to make a difference going forward, Edubray Ramos is a name worth watching. Pete Mackanin has already described him as a future closer, and he could get a shot if Gomez is traded next month.

Hierarchy remains: Gomez | Neris | Hernandez.

Chicago White Sox — Nate Jones earned a save by retiring one batter with the tying run at the plate, avoiding the indignity of Chicago losing a game they led 9-1 at the start of the ninth.

Hierarchy remains: Robertson | Jones | Duke.

VULTURE SAVE WATCH
1. Felipe Rivero, Washington Nationals — Shawn Kelley has pitched in three of four (63 pitches).
2. Jason Grilli, Toronto Blue Jays — Roberto Osuna threw 29 pitches on Tuesday, his second straight day of work.
3. Jake Diekman, Texas Rangers — Sam Dyson was a key part of a six-run bullpen implosion on Wednesday, giving up the tying and winning home runs. He might get a day off to clear his head.
4. Kevin Siegrist/Trevor Rosenthal, St. Louis Cardinals — The Cardinals are in a committee situation, and leader Seung Hwan Oh has thrown over 20 pitches on consecutive days. Many of their pitchers have had similar recent workloads, so there’s an outside chance they give Rosenthal another shot at a save.

 

Alex Colome hits DL, forces Rays into committee

June 29, 2016

Tampa Bay Rays – Alex Colome was placed on the 15-day DL Tuesday with biceps tendinitis. It’s retroactive to June 19, so Colome may not miss much more time, but in his stead, manager Kevin Cash will mix and match in the late innings based on matchups. Xavier Cedeno is the best bet to lead that committee, with Cash also mentioning righties Matt Andriese and Erasmo Ramirez as candidates.

Updated hierarchy: Cedeno | Ramirez | Andriese.

St. Louis Cardinals – It wasn’t a save situation, but with the Cardinals ahead over the final three innings on Tuesday, Jonathan Broxton, Kevin Siegrist and Seung Hwan Oh came out in that order to finish the game. It’s still a committee, especially with none of the three pitchers having recorded a save since Trevor Rosenthal’s demotion, but all indications so far are that Oh will be the ninth-inning guy for the Cardinals.

Hierarchy remains: *Oh | Siegrist | Broxton.
* = closer-by-committee

Seattle Mariners — Edwin Diaz, a starter-turned-reliever, was called up from Double-A on June 4 and picked up his fourth hold of the season on Tuesday. He showed off his plus fastball to get the final out of the eighth, striking out Gregory Polanco while hitting 100, 101 and 99 on the radar gun. With two strikeouts on Tuesday, Diaz has now fanned 21 of the 58 batters he has faced (36.2%) this season. He earned praise from manager Scott Servais after the game, and with the stuff he has, Diaz should get more high-leverage looks for the Mariners.

Updated hierarchy: Cishek | Benoit | Diaz.

Oakland A’s – Ryan Madson was needed for a six-out save on Tuesday, going two innings for the first time since 2009. Sean Doolitle was unavailable, sore from a 33-pitch outing on Saturday. He’ll be evaluated on Wednesday, but if he is unavailable again look for John Axford to get a save chance.

Hierarchy remains: Madson | Doolittle | Axford.

VULTURE SAVE WATCH
1. Kevin Siegrist/Jonathan Broxton, St. Louis Cardinals – Seung Hwan Oh threw 25 pitches last night, and the Cardinals are technically in a committee until further notice.
2. John Axford, Oakland Athletics  – As mentioned above, Ryan Madson went two innings last night, throwing 43 pitches. If Sean Doolittle is still sore, Axford should get the call.
3. Jim Johnson, Atlanta Braves – Arodys Vizcaino threw 30 pitches in a tough outing on Tuesday.
4. Pedro Strop, Chicago Cubs – Hector Rondon has appeared in back-to-back games, including a 26-pitch outing last night in which he blew a save, leading to a taxing night for the rest of the bullpen. Strop was a rare Chicago pitcher to not take the mound in the 15-inning contest.
5. Ross Ohlendorf, Cincinnati Reds – Tony Cingrani went 1.2 innings last night and has thrown 37 pitches over the last three days.

Jonathan Papelbon on his way back

June 28, 2016

New York Yankees – Aroldis Chapman had a save opportunity snatched away from him by Mother Nature last night – a rain delay in the ninth held him to only nine pitches. When play resumed hours later, Kirby Yates was given the unenviable task of warming up at 2 am to close out a game. He didn’t, giving up 3 runs and blowing his second save of the season.

Hierarchy remains: Chapman | Miller | Betances.

Washington Nationals – Jonathan Papelbon pitched a scoreless, 10-pitch inning for the Nationals last night – the single-A Potomac Nationals, that is – before joining the big club later in the evening. Amazingly, it was Papelbon’s first ever rehab start in his long career. According to Pap, he “felt great” and is expected later this week. Until then, Shawn Kelley is the closer in DC.

Hierarchy remains: Kelley | Rivero | Treinen.

VULTURE SAVE WATCH
1. Kevin Siegrist/Jonathan Broxton, St. Louis Cardinals – The Cardinals remain in committee mode until further notice.