April 30, 2019
Boston Red Sox – The Red Sox were up by 5 going into the ninth, but Hector Velazquez allowed three runners to reach, creating a save situation for Matt Barnes, who shut the door for his second save of the year. Ryan Brasier remains the preferred option here, while Barnes is doing well in his fireman role.
Hierarchy remains: *Brasier | Barnes | Workman.
* = closer-by-committee
Atlanta Braves – With AJ Minter and Luke Jackson both unavailable after pitching two straight, the Braves used just-acquired Jerry Blevins and rookie Jacob Webb to navigate the 9th. Webb picked up his first career save and has pitched 3.2 scoreless innings to start his major league career.
Hierarchy remains: Minter | Jackson | Winkler.
San Francisco Giants – The hard-throwing Reyes Moronta picked up his sixth hold of the season, pitching the 8th ahead of Will Smith. Moronta has ascended to an important role in this bullpen and should be a reliable source for holds going forward.
Updated hierarchy: Smith | Moronta | Melancon.
VULTURE SAVE WATCH
Today
1. Jeurys Familia – Edwin Diaz has gone three straight.
2. Andrew Miller/John Gant – Jordan Hicks has gone in three straight.
3. Jace Fry/Aaron Bummer – Both Alex Colome and Kelvin Herrera have gone back to back and three of four, so someone weird is getting the save chance tonight if there is one.
4. Jared Hughes/Amir Garrett – Raisel Iglesias pitched 2 innings last night.
Tomorrow
1. Reyes Moronta/Mark Melancon – Will Smith and Reyes Moronta have gone in back to back games.
AJ Minter, Will Smith looking over their shoulders
April 29, 2019
Tampa Bay Rays – Diego Castillo pitched a scoreless ninth for the Rays on Sunday, notching his 3rd save of the year. Jose Alvarado pitched the 8th and looks like he will be continually deployed when the opposing lineup is most threatening. This appears to be a full-fledged committee, with Alvarado, Castillo, and Pagan sharing 10 saves between them so far.
Updated hierarchy: *Alvarado | Castillo | Pagan.
* = closer-by-committee
Atlanta Braves – AJ Minter, who is currently sporting a 9.35 ERA, allowed two runners to reach in the 9th inning before getting yanked for Luke Jackson, who retired both hitters he faced to earn his first save. Minter is on thin ice as the Braves continue to assess their post-Vizcaino bullpen.
Hierarchy remains: Minter | Jackson | Winkler.
Chicago White Sox – The White Sox put Nate Jones on the IL with inflammation in his pitching elbow. Jace Fry will likely see a few more hold chances going forward.
Updated hierarchy: Colome | Herrera | Fry.
St. Louis Cardinals – Protecting a 2-run lead, Jordan Hicks was summoned to put out a fire with two outs in the 8th inning. When the Cardinals scored three runs in the bottom half, they decided to give Hicks the rest of the night off, but then Dominic Leone got in trouble, forcing John Gant to come in and close out the game. It was Gant’s second save of the season.
Hierarchy remains: Hicks | Miller | Gant.
San Francisco Giants – Will Smith gave up three runs in a non-save situation, pushing his ERA to 3.72. The Giants apparently intend to give Mark Melancon the closer job back at some point, and performances like this might make that day come sooner rather than later.
Hierarchy remains: Smith | Watson | Melancon.
Chicago Cubs – The Cubs won a 15-inning marathon in Arizona on Sunday, and their 9th pitcher of the day, something named Allen Webster, picked up the save.
Hierarchy remains: *Strop | Cishek | Kintzler.
* = closer-by-committee
VULTURE SAVE WATCH
Today
1. Jeurys Familia/Seth Lugo – Edwin Diaz has gone in back to back games, and it’s unclear whether the Mets would let him go three straight.
2. Joe Kelly – Kenley Jansen has gone in back to back and three of four.
Tomorrow
1. Andrew Miller – If Jordan Hicks goes today, it’ll be three straight.
2. Kelvin Herrera – If Alex Colome goes today, it’ll be back to back and three of four.
Hector Neris and Emilio Pagan record saves
April 28, 2019
Philadelphia Phillies — The Phillies again went with Hector Neris in a save opportunity and he converted for his fourth save of the season. Neris has now recorded the Phillies’ last three saves and is close to shedding the committee asterisk.
Hierarchy remains: *Neris | Dominguez | Neshek
* = closer-by-committee
Tampa Bay Rays – Diego Castillo started the eighth inning with the Rays up two and the Red Sox 2-3-4 hitters due up. However, Castillo was not sharp and he was pulled for Jose Alvarado after recording only one out. Alvarado was able to get out of the inning but needed 21 pitches so that left Emilio Pagan for the ninth inning. Pagan recorded his third straight save with a scoreless inning. Five relievers have recorded saves for the Rays so far this season and their bullpen is very fluid.
Updated hierarchy: *Alvarado | Pagan | Castillo.
* = closer-by-committee
Cleveland Indians – Tyler Clippard, who missed the start of the season with a strained right pectoral muscle, made his debut for the Indians yesterday. The veteran righty was immediately used in a high leverage spot as he came on to get the last out of the eighth inning of a tie game. Clippard also came back out and pitched a perfect ninth. We expect him to continue to work at the back-end of the Indians’ bullpen.
Updated hierarchy: Hand | Wittgren | Clippard.
Atlanta Braves — Jesse Biddle has been placed on the IL Luke Jackson pitched the 7th and 8th innings ahead of AJ Minter yesterday and has not allowed a run in his last 11 appearances. Meanwhile, AJ Minter blew the save and has now given up 9 runs in 8.1 innings so far this season. Jackson will slide into 1st in line with Biddle injured and could challenge for saves if Minter continues to struggle.
Updated hierarchy: Minter | Jackson | Winkler.
Los Angeles Dodgers — Pedro Baez entered yesterday’s game with the bases loaded and nobody out. Baez did an outstanding job to strand all three runners and protect the Dodgers’ two-run lead. Baez now has two wins and three holds in his past five appearances.
Updated hierarchy: Jansen | Kelly | Baez.
VULTURE SAVE WATCH
Today:
1. Zack Britton – Aroldis Chapman has pitched in two straight, three of four, and five of seven.
2. Ryan Pressly – Roberto Osuna pitched two innings yesterday and has pitched in two of the past three, throwing a total of 40 pitches.
3. Pat Neshek – Hector Neris has pitched in two of the past three, throwing a total of 52 pitches. Seranthony Dominguez has pitched in three of the past four.
Monday
1. Scott Oberg – If Wade Davis pitches on Sunday, that will be three straight
2. Kyle Barraclough – Same with Sean Doolittle
Cody Allen heads to the injured list
April 27, 2019
Washington Nationals — Trevor Rosenthal has lost 12 pounds from a viral infection, the second dozen he’s given up on the season. His upcoming stint on the IL will give him up to a month of minor-league rehab to (hopefully) regain his form. The Nationals also activated Justin Miller from the IL, and he’ll return to 2nd in line.
Updated hierarchy: Doolittle | Barraclough | Miller.
Los Angeles Angels — Just a few days after losing his closer job, Cody Allen was placed on the IL with a back injury. It’s possible the injury is to blame for some of Allen’s struggles this year, but he will still have to earn his place at the back end of the bullpen when he returns.
Hierarchy remains: *Buttrey | Robles | Garcia.
* = closer-by-committee
Arizona Diamondbacks — With a four-run lead, Arizona turned to Matt Andriese in the seventh. He gave up three hits and a walk, but no runs, to earn his fifth career three-inning save.
Hierarchy remains: Holland | Bradley | Hirano.
VULTURE SAVE WATCH
Today:
1. Nick Wittgren/Adam Cimber — Brad Hand has pitched in three straight and the other two main options were each heavily used on Friday. There’s an outside chance of a super deep vulture, like Dan Otero or Tyler Olson.
2. Craig Stammen — Kirby Yates threw 28 pitches last night, and has pitched in three of four and four of six.
Sunday:
1. Zack Britton — If Aroldis Chapman pitches today, that will be three of four and five of seven.
Jose Leclerc gets low-leverage look in first appearance since rough outing
April 26, 2019
Texas Rangers – Perhaps looking to get him right, Rangers manager Chris Woodward sent Jose Leclerc into Thursday’s game with men at the corners and the Rangers trailing 12-0. He hadn’t pitched since Sunday, when he walked four and gave up two earned runs. On Thursday, Leclerc allowed a walk to load the bases and then a ground-rule double to knock in his two inherited runners. He then struck out two to end the inning. So while his final line is clean, it wasn’t a particularly inspiring performance. This situation warrants further monitoring.
Hierarchy remains: Leclerc | Martin | Kelley.
Los Angeles Angels — Pitching for the first time since he lost the closer’s gig, Cody Allen looked shaky again on Thursday. Allen walked the first two men he faced, mixed in a strikeout, allowed a single to load the bases, added a second K and then walked in a run to make it 11-5 Angels before he was pulled. Yikes.
Hierarchy remains: *Buttrey | Robles | Garcia.
* = closer-by-committee
Los Angeles Dodgers — Not that his job is in jeopardy at all, but it’s worth mentioning that Kenley Jansen has allowed a run in five of his last seven appearances. Despite that, he’s 2-0 with four saves over that span. Each time, damage was limited to just one run, but he did yield three home runs in that stretch, including on Thursday when he gave up a solo shot with a 2-0 lead. He still managed to earn the save, but he has been playing with fire a bit these days.
Hierarchy remains: Jansen | Kelly | Alexander.
Chicago Cubs – Brandon Morrow could reportedly resume throwing in a few weeks. It would appear he’s a long way from a return to the big leagues. Meanwhile, the Cubs’ current closer, Pedro Strop, is dealing with a crazy off-the-field situation after his car — a Genesis G90 that’s currently retailing as new for $69,000 — was stolen and was involved in a police chase. He was still talking with police during the fourth inning of Wednesday’s game before leaving to head to the stadium, where he pitched in the ninth to earn his third save. The car is being held by authorities for at least 10 days while they deal with the investigation.
Hierarchy remains: Strop | Cishek | Kintzler.
VULTURE SAVE WATCH
Today:
1. Jared Hughes — Raisel Iglesias has thrown in two of three, but he may have Friday off after a 31-pitch outing on Thursday.
2. Seunghwan Oh — Even though the Rockies were off on Thursday, Wade Davis and Scott Oberg have each pitched in three of five and five of eight.
Saturday:
1. Nick Wittgren — If Brad Hand pitches Friday, that’ll be three straight for him.
2. Drew Steckenrider/Adam Conley — A Friday outing would be three of four for Sergio Romo.
3. Zack Britton — A Friday appearance would be four of six for Aroldis Chapman.
