Rays bullpen continues letting them down

May 2, 2013

Tampa Bay Rays – An ugly April for the Rays bullpen has spilled into May, as 7th inning man Jake McGee gave up 5 runs on Wednesday against the Royals.  McGee’s ERA jumped from 6.48 to 11.00 after the shellacking, and with hard-throwing righty Kyle Farnsworth struggling, the Rays may have to start leaning on journeyman Jamey Wright to get a few high-leverage outs late in games.  Wright has been one of the few reliable arms in Tampa, with a 1.54 ERA in 12 games so far.  Hierarchy change: Jamey Wright to 2nd in line, replacing Jake McGee.

 |Closer |Set-Up |2nd In Line |2014 Closer |UpdatedTB |Rodney |Peralta |Wright |Rodney |5/2/13

 
VULTURE SAVE WATCH
1. Dane De La Rosa/Scott Downs, Los Angeles Angels – Ernesto Frieri threw 35 pitches last night, and has thrown 62 total over the past three days.  Scott Downs would be the man to earn the save in his absence, but he suffered a ribcage injury last night, and might not be available tonight.  If that’s the case, the job likely falls to young righty Dane De La Rosa.

Joel Hanrahan returns from the DL, but Andrew Bailey keeps his job

May 1, 2013

Boston Red Sox — Joel Hanrahan’s return from the DL today came with a clear statement of boundaries from manager John Ferrell: Andrew Bailey will remain the team’s closer for the foreseeable future. Although Hanrahan might pitch some lower-leverage innings to begin with, he will be certainly be the choice in the 9th if the oft-injured Bailey goes down again. Hierarchy change: Joel Hanrahan to Set-Up, Koji Uehara to 2nd in line.

 |Closer |Set-Up |2nd In Line |2014 Closer |UpdatedBOS |Bailey |Hanrahan |Uehara |Bailey |5/1/13

 
Arizona Diamondbacks — J.J. Putz blew another save last night, dropping him to a woeful 5-for-9 on the year. The Diamondbacks have no shortage of options in the bullpen, including strong set-up man David Hernandez, experienced veteran Heath Bell, and impressive lefty Matt Reynolds (who has allowed no runs and only seven baserunners through 13 innings), so although Putz is still the man for now, he should be looking over his shoulder in earnest.  No hierarchy change.

 |Closer |Set-Up |2nd In Line |2014 Closer |UpdatedARI |Putz |Hernandez |Bell |Putz |5/1/13

 
VULTURE SAVE WATCH
1. David Hernandez/Heath Bell, Arizona Diamondbacks — J.J. Putz blew last night’s save and has pitched in three of the last four games, and four of the last six.
2. Ryan Cook, Oakland A’s — Grant Balfour and Sean Doolittle have each pitched in three straight.