Closer Monkey

Category: Baltimore Orioles

  • Kenley Jansen earns a save on his first day as Dodgers closer

    June 12, 2013 Los Angeles Dodgers — On a tense night that saw five hit batsmen, two bench-clearing brawls, and Mark McGwire’s first ejection in almost 12 years, the Dodgers rallied to take the lead in the bottom of the eighth. Newly anointed closer Kenley Jansen came out for the save and struck out two in a perfect ninth. Meanwhile,…

  • Andrew Bailey back with Boston, while the heat goes up on Jim Johnson

    May 21, 2013 Boston Red Sox — Andrew Bailey was reactivated in time for Monday’s loss to the White Sox. Although he will return to the closer’s seat immediately, John Farrell is likely to limit his workload, at least initially. Hierarchy change: Andrew Bailey to Closer, Junichi Tazawa to Set-up, Koji Uehara to 2nd in line. . Closer . Set-Up…

  • Kenley Jansen closes for the Dodgers; John Axford is still lousy

    May 15, 2013 Los Angeles Dodgers — After 132 pitches got Clayton Kershaw only 26 outs, Don Mattingly turned to Kenley Jansen, not Brandon League, to finish off the 2-0 win. Although Mattingly recently declared League his closer “for now,” that tepid reassurance apparently came with an expiration date. The Dodger relievers might swap roles over the next few…

  • Bell likely to replace Putz, while Tazawa is confirmed in Boston; Marmol back up, Axford back down

    May 8, 2013 Arizona Diamondbacks — J.J. Putz gave up a four-pitch walk to start the ninth Tuesday night, then immediately exited with elbow stiffness. Although Heath Bell is allowing 1.5 baserunners per inning, he has significant experience as a closer and has probably outpitched David Hernandez so far this year. Kirk Gibson might give lip service to a closer-by-committee system,…

  • JJ Hoover snags another vulture save; Andrew Bailey to undergo MRI

    May 6, 2013 Cincinnati Reds – After pitching in back to back games, both Aroldis Chapman and Jonathan Broxton got the day off on Sunday, and the Reds played matchups in the late innings to protect a three-run lead, with Sean Marshall in the 8th and J.J. Hoover in the 9th.  This was Hoover’s 2nd…