Tommy Hunter, Ty Buttrey record saves

September 8, 2018

Washington Nationals — Although their game was rained out yesterday, the Nationals did activate Sean Doolittle from the DL. He hasn’t pitched since July 6, so he may not resume closing immediately, but we expect him to be back in that role sooner rather than later since the Nationals’ committee has been shaky since Doolittle’s injury.

Updated hierarchy: *Doolittle | Miller | Holland.
* = closer-by-committee

Philadelphia Phillies — Seranthony Dominguez pitched the 8th inning of a one-run game and Tommy Hunter pitched a perfect 9th to earn his fourth save of the year. Dominguez hasn’t gotten a save since August 16th, while both Hunter and Pat Neshek have two saves in that time. Dominguez hasn’t been bad over the last few weeks, but he appears to have fallen out of favor for now. Since August 15, Hunter has held opponents to a .088 batting average en route to a 1.64 ERA in 11.0 IP. This should remain a committee for the rest of the season with Hunter and Neshek as the current best bets for saves as the Phillies fight for a playoff spot.

Updated hierarchy: *Hunter | Neshek | Dominguez.
* = closer-by-committee

Los Angeles Angels – With a three-run lead, the Angels turned to Jose Alvarez in the 8th and rookie Ty Buttrey in the 9th. Buttrey pitched a clean inning to pick up his first career save. Buttrey has made the most of his call-up, only giving up one run over 10 appearances (0.96 ERA). Blake Parker is still the most likely option to get saves, and he has two years of arbitration left so the Angels probably won’t be looking to replace him. However, the team may use the rest of September to see if the hard-throwing Buttrey can be their closer of the future.

Updated hierarchy: Parker | Buttrey | Anderson.

Los Angeles Dodgers — As we noted previously, Kenley Jansen did not make the trip to Colorado due to his heart condition. The Dodgers used five relievers to protect a three-run lead over the last three innings, which ended up with Kenta Maeda locking down his second save of the year. Jansen will rejoin the team when they leave Colorado, but in the meantime Maeda is well rested and will likely get any other save chances this weekend.

Hierarchy remains: Jansen | Maeda | Alexander.

Arizona Diamondbacks – After back-to-back rough outings, Brad Boxberger had a clean inning last night, earning his 32nd save in the process. Boxberger had just gotten a vote of confidence from manager Torey Lovullo, and last night was an encouraging performance. However, this is the fifth straight appearance that Boxberger has not pitched a complete inning, as Andrew Chafin started the 9th with a strikeout last night. Boxberger is still the arm to own in Arizona, but don’t be surprised if Lovullo continues to play matchups with Arizona battling for a playoff spot.

Hierarchy remains: Boxberger | Bradley | Ziegler.

Boston Red Sox – Matt Barnes is dealing with a hip injury, and will be shut down for some time. Alex Cora did not offer a timetable for Barnes’ return, saying that they will “get him right.” Barnes had a rough August, posting a 9.64 ERA, and the hip injury may explain his struggles. He may be back as soon as Monday, but in the meantime Ryan Brasier (who blew a lead last night) and Heath Hembree are most likely to pick up the slack in the late innings for a faltering Sox bullpen.

Hierarchy remains: Kimbrel | Kelly | Barnes.

VULTURE SAVE WATCH
Today:
1. Kenta Maeda — Kenley Jansen is not with the team this weekend.
2. Archie Bradley — Brad Boxberger had a solid outing last night, but that is back-to-back games for him, and he has thrown 35 pitches in that span.
3. Cody Allen — Brad Hand threw 22 pitches last night in his third outing in four days, while Allen was held out of last night’s game.
4. Keone Kela — Felipe Vazquez has pitched in three of the last four, throwing 61 pitches in that time.
5. Justin Miller/Greg Holland — Sean Doolittle may get a low leverage appearance before stepping back into the closer’s role.

Sunday:
1. Ryan Tepera/Tyler Clippard — Today would be two straight and three of four for Ken Giles and Ryan Tepera.
2. Justin Miller/Greg Holland/Koda Glover — The Nationals play a doubleheader on Saturday and Doolittle may not pitch back-to-back days. Depending on usage, any of the above three may be in line for a save.

Chavez, Brach pick up extra-inning vulture saves

September 7, 2018

Chicago Cubs — The Cubs used their late-inning hierarchy earlier in Thursday’s game, so for an extra-inning save, Joe Maddon successfully turned to Jesse Chavez. Meanwhile, injured closer Brandon Morrow is expected to throw from a mound on Sunday for the first time in three weeks — a true test to see if he’ll be able to return to his closing duties before the end of the season.

Hierarchy remains: Strop | Edwards | Cishek.

Washington Nationals — Injured hurler Sean Doolittle played catch on Thursday and could be activated from the DL over the weekend. He’d likely take over as closer in short order.

Hierarchy remains: *Miller | Holland | Glover.
* = closer-by-committee

Atlanta Braves — With AJ Minter unavailable and Dan Winkler and Jonny Venters already having pitched, the Braves trotted out Brad Brach in extra innings, and the former Oriole converted for the vulture save, his first with the Braves.

Hierarchy remains: Minter | Winkler | Venters.

VULTURE SAVE WATCH
Today:
None.

Saturday:
1. CJ Edwards — Entering Friday, Pedro Strop has pitched in two straight.

Carlos Martinez could move into the Cardinals’ closer role

September 6, 2018

St. Louis Cardinals — Carlos Martinez picked up his first save in four years, a two-inning, four-strikeout, 40-pitch extravaganza that got Cardinal fans really excited on Twitter. After the game, manager Mike Shildt said that the next save chance will be based on freshness and matchups, so we’ll give Jordan Hicks the nod for now — but don’t be surprised if Hicks stays in the eighth and Martinez gets a real shot at the job.

Updated hierarchy: *Hicks | Martinez | Norris.
* = closer-by-committee

Los Angeles Dodgers — On the advice of his cardiologist, Kenley Jansen will not make the weekend trip to Colorado with the team. Dave Roberts refused to commit to a particular closer in Jansen’s absence, but the options will include Kenta Maeda, Scott Alexander, Ross Stripling — if he makes it back from the DL as expected — and even Pedro Baez or Ryan Madson.

Hierarchy remains: Jansen | Maeda | Alexander.

Atlanta Braves — Mike Foltynewicz and Jesse Biddle strung together seven innings of one-run ball against the Red Sox on Wednesday, and then along came the Braves’ top four relievers to somehow blow a six-run lead and a one-run lead in consecutive innings. It was an uncharacteristic blip, more likely to affect the team’s (theoretical) playoff confidence than the order of their late-inning relievers.

Hierarchy remains: Minter | Winkler | Venters.

Colorado Rockies — There was only one vulture save option on the board yesterday, but it was a profitable one, as Adam Ottavino did in fact secure a save in Wade Davis’s absence.

Hierarchy remains: Davis | Ottavino | Oh. 

VULTURE SAVE WATCH
Today:
None.

Friday:
1. Cody Allen — Brad Hand has pitched in two straight.

Sergio Romo resurfaces for the surging Rays

September 5, 2018

Tampa Bay Rays – Well, Sergio Romo was finally spotted on a Major League mound Tuesday night. With the tying run on deck in the ninth inning, Romo replaced Adam Kolarek and retired the next two batters to preserve a 4-0 win and record his 19th save of the season. After the game, Kevin Cash said the reason for Romo’s absence was that the matchups weren’t right. Jose Alvarado, who had recorded two of the Rays’ last three saves, was used in the sixth inning to protect a 1-0 lead in a move also dictated by matchups. We’ll keep Alvarado atop the Tampa hierarchy for now, but that could change if Romo becomes a late-innings regular again.

Hierarchy remains: *Alvarado | Romo | Roe.
* = closer-by-committee

St. Louis Cardinals – The Vulture Save Watch predicted a Jordan Hicks appearance on Tuesday night, but it was not a traditional save chance for Hicks. The Cardinals entered the ninth inning with an 11-5 lead, but the Nationals cut the deficit to 11-8 and brought the tying run to the plate with two outs before Hicks came on to close out the win. As we said yesterday, Bud Norris’ next outing is huge for him if he wants to keep seeing save chances. Meanwhile, Dakota Hudson came through in a big spot last night as he shut down the heart of the Nats’ order in the seventh inning to keep St. Louis ahead by two.

Hierarchy remains: *Norris | Hicks | Hudson.
* = closer-by-committee

Los Angeles Dodgers — Kenley Jansen may miss the Dodgers’ upcoming series in Colorado, which is where he showed symptoms of an irregular heartbeat less than a month ago. We’ll keep an eye on this, especially if Dave Roberts gives any indication if he has a specific plan for the ninth inning if Jansen skips the trip to Denver.

Hierarchy remains: Jansen | Maeda | Alexander.

Texas Rangers – Jose Leclerc has arguably been the best reliever in baseball since taking over as the Rangers’ closer. In 12 appearances since the trade deadline, Leclerc has allowed only one hit and zero runs while striking out 22 batters. Dating back to June 20, Leclerc has given up just two earned runs and eight hits in his last 26 outings (26.2 IP). He won’t be pitching in October, but Leclerc could play a big role in the fantasy playoffs if he keeps pitching like this.

Hierarchy remains: LeClerc | Martin | Claudio.

VULTURE SAVE WATCH
Today
1. Adam Ottavino/Seung Hwan Oh – Wade Davis has pitched in two straight and three of four. Ottavino has also gone in three of four, so Oh may get a chance if the Rockies want to give Ottavino the night off as well.

Tomorrow
None.

Bud Norris on thin ice after two bad outings

September 4, 2018

St. Louis Cardinals – Two consecutive bad outings suddenly have Bud Norris back on the hot seat. On Sunday, Norris coughed up three runs in the 10th inning and took the loss, and yesterday, he blew a 2-run lead in a game that the Cardinals would go on to lose in extra innings. Norris had a great August, but for a team that is now clinging to just a 1-game lead for the second Wild Card spot, these losses stung. Norris wants to keep the job, but Mike Shildt said that “we’ll keep evaluating what we have” in an extremely lukewarm assessment of the righty’s future job prospects. We’re throwing a committee tag on here and believe that Norris’s next outing is absolutely crucial. A strong outing and he should still see save chances; a bad one and he might not get a look again all month.

Updated hierarchy: *Norris | Hicks | Hudson.
* = closer-by-committee

San Diego Padres – Kirby Yates returned from the bereavement list yesterday, firing a scoreless inning. He’ll resume closing immediately.

Hierarchy remains: Yates | Stammen | Strahm.

Detroit Tigers – Shane Greene gave up two home runs without recording an out, his second rough outing in as many days. But despite their current standing at 28 games under .500, the Tigers don’t seem to have any interest in giving anyone else a crack at the 9th inning, as Ron Gardenhire said after the game that Greene was their guy. Despite a 4.72 ERA, he should continue to get save chances here.

Hierarchy remains: Greene | Jimenez | Wilson.

Houston Astros – With a 3-run lead and with closer Roberto Osuna having pitched in the last two games, the Astros went piecemeal in the 9th inning, as Will Harris and Brad Peacock combined to get the last three outs. The pair would allow the tying run to reach the plate, but Peacock managed to get out of the inning to earn his third save.

Hierarchy remains: Osuna | Rondon | McHugh.

Kansas City Royals – After Wily Peralta got in trouble in the 9th inning, lefty Tim Hill came on and recorded the final two outs of the game to pick up his second save. Peralta has been solid for the Royals and should still be the main option for saves on most nights.

Updated hierarchy: Peralta | McCarthy | Hill. 

VULTURE SAVE WATCH
Today
1. Jordan Hicks – Bud Norris should have the day off today after two straight rough outings.
2. Joe Jimenez – Likewise for Shane Greene.
3. Jeurys Familia/Fernando Rodney – Blake Treinen has gone back to back and three of four; Familia was off Sunday, but has also pitched in three of four, including 23 pitches last night.
4. Jerry Blevins – With the Mets trying to protect both Robert Gsellman (who has gone three of four) and Seth Lugo (3 IP over last 3 days) down the stretch, there’s a decent chance they both have the night off tonight, meaning a mix-and-match 9th. Blevins has the best chance at the save among the pitchers available.

Tomorrow
1. Greg Holland – If Justin Miller goes tonight, it’ll be back to back and three of four.
2. Alex Colome – If Edwin Diaz goes tonight, it’ll be back to back and three of four.
3. Adam Ottavino – If Wade Davis goes tonight, it’ll be back to back and three of four.