July 23, 2022
New York Yankees — The Yankees suffered a major blow when Michael King left last night’s game after throwing a pitch in the 8th inning. The early diagnosis is a fractured elbow which will end his season. King had been excellent, leading the team in holds and the Yankees will certainly be active at the trade deadline trying to find someone to replace those innings. The Yankees do have some hope that Zach Britton might be able to return from Tommy John surgery later this year, but until reinforcements arrive, expect Lucas Luetge to see an increased role. Luetge has been a true fireman this year, sometimes getting a single batter and sometimes working multiple innings (like last night), but he has been effective.
Updated hierarchy: Holmes | Peralta | Luetge.
Houston Astros — Readers of Alerts knew that Ryan Pressley was on the paternity list, and that Rafael Montero was the most likely to see saves in Thursday’s double header. Readers of the Vulture Save Watch would know that Montero would need a rest and that Hector Neris was the best option for a save yesterday. Chalk another one up for the vulture save watch, and keep Montero active at least until Ryan Pressley is back.
Updated Hierarchy: Montero | Neris | Stanek.
Boston Red Sox – It wasn’t a traditional save situation, but if you expand the timeline a bit, infielder Yolmer Sanchez found himself pitching in a high leverage spot. He entered the 9th inning with the Red Sox already having given up 27 runs. 3 more and they would tie the Orioles for the most runs surrendered in a single game in the modern era. Mixing a high 70s fastball with a 45 MPH eephus pitch, Sanchez escaped the inning only giving up 1 run and left the Red Sox in a tie for 5th most runs surrendered. This was actually Sanchez’s 2nd career relief appearance, as he threw an inning for the White Sox in 2020. Given how poor the rest of the bullpen was last night, the Sox may need to keep Sanchez nearby.
Hierarchy remains: Houck | Schreiber | Whitlock.
Milwaukee Brewers – Perhaps getting a jump on the trade deadline, or maybe looking for some insurance in case Josh Hader’s struggles going into the all-star break continue, the Brewers signed former Giants closer Jake McGee yesterday. McGee had been released by the Giants after a miserable year, and perhaps a change in scenery will find him returning to form, but it will take some work for McGee to crack the Milwaukee hierarchy. Josh Hader looked more like his old self pitching a scoreless 9th while striking out 2 in a tie game last night, which has to be encouraging for the Brewers.
Hierarchy remains: Hader: | Williams | Boxberger.
Oakland A’s – Lou Trivino was handed a 3 run lead in the 9th inning but after 2 quick outs, he ran into trouble. 3 hits and a walk later the lead was down to 1, and the A’s called in A.J. Puk to try to escape the jam. Although he hit the first batter he faced, Puk got a groundout to end the game and earn his first save of the year. Despite his struggles, the A’s seem dedicated to Lou Trivino as their closer, at least until Dany Jimenez returns, but there is still no firm timetable for Jimenez to rejoin the team. Better to just steer clear of this bullpen.
Hierarchy remains: Trivino | Jackson | Puk.
Vulture Save Watch:
- Zach Jackson (OAK) — Lou Trivino has pitched in back to back games.
- Evan Phillips (LAD) — Craig Kimbrel has pitched in back to back games, throwing 32 pitches over those 2 days.
- Eli Morgan (CLE) – The Guardians play a doubleheader …
- Kendall Graveman (CHW) – … against the the White Sox.
For Sunday:
- Devin Williams (MIL) — Josh Hader threw 21 pitches yesterday, and another long outing could earn him a rest on Sunday.