July 30, 2018
Cincinnati Reds – Veteran David Hernandez has been quietly putting together his best season ever, and could potentially be on the move today or tomorrow. Yesterday, he struck out three hitters in a scoreless inning, and while we can’t picture him closing for any contenders, a better squad could mean more holds or vulture save opportunities.
Updated hierarchy: Iglesias | Hughes | Hernandez.
New York Mets – Anthony Swarzak picked up his second save in five days on Sunday afternoon with a perfect, two-strikeout inning. Look for the Mets to continue to spread chances around, but Swarzak looks like the guy who is most likely to get one on any given night.
Updated hierarchy: *Swarzak | Gsellman | Lugo.
* = closer-by-committee
Chicago White Sox – On Saturday, Jace Fry got the final three outs of a 4-run victory, but Sunday went far worse for Chicago’s new probably-closer. After allowing a leadoff home run to tie it, Fry hit a batter on a 1-2 pitch, then gave up a double before being lifted for Jeanmar Gomez, who made things much worse by giving up three more hits. Our guess is that he gets another shot before the White Sox start looking elsewhere, but given how well Xavier Cedeno is pitching, Fry probably can’t afford another outing like this one.
Hierarchy remains: *Fry | Cedeno | Gomez.
* = closer-by-committee
San Francisco Giants – Will Smith picked up his 5th save of the season yesterday, and is the only Giant to have logged a save in the past month. Thanks to his cardio rating of infinity, Smith should be the only guy in this bullpen getting save chances; we’re kicking his asterisk.
Updated hierarchy: Smith | Watson | Melancon.
Baltimore Orioles – The Orioles traded Brad Brach to the Braves on Sunday. Mychal Givens is the most likely choice to close for the Orioles, but we’ll monitor how Buck Showalter manages the late innings with Brach gone.
Updated hierarchy: Givens | Fry | Wright Jr.
Atlanta Braves – A.J. Minter has pitched well for Atlanta, but Brach gives Brian Snitker an intriguing option for the ninth. We’ll keep Minter at the top of the hierarchy but label this as a committee for now until we hear how Snitker plans to deploy his new arm.
Updated hierarchy: *Minter | Brach | Winkler.
* = closer-by-committee
VULTURE SAVE WATCH
Today/tomorrow
1. Matt Barnes – Craig Kimbrel threw 33 pitches on Friday and 11 more yesterday. He’s probably good to go today, but if it’s a lower-leverage chance, the Red Sox could give him the night off. If he does pitch, look for Matt Barnes to get the save chance tomorrow.
Tomorrow
1. Adam Ottavino – If Wade Davis goes tonight, it’ll be three straight.
