April 11, 2014
Oakland A’s – Bob Melvin is giving Jim Johnson a break from closing duties for the time being. Johnson may have the chance to win the job back if he pitches well, but for now, the A’s are going closer by committee. Sean Doolittle, Luke Gregerson, Ryan Cook, and Dan Otero all figure to be involved, though Melvin offered a hint yesterday about his preferred options when he summoned Cook in the 8th inning of a 4-run game. Cook had 16 saves over his first two seasons, but he’s still rounding into form after starting the season on the DL. His usage yesterday suggests that Luke Gregerson is the preferred right-hander in the committee right now. Hierarchy change: Sean Doolittle to Closer, Luke Gregerson to Set-up, Ryan Cook to 2nd in line.
| . | Closer | . | Set-Up | . | 2nd in line | . | 2015 Closer | . | Updated | |
| OAK | Sean Doolittle | Luke Gregerson | Ryan Cook | Ryan Cook | 4/10/14 |
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New York Yankees – With both Shawn Kelley and Adam Warren unavailable, David Phelps picked up his 2nd career save, throwing a spotless 2.1 innings with 3 Ks. With the rest of the bullpen now rested, Phelps will return to his swingman role and is unlikely to see many more late game appearances. No hierarchy change.
| . | Closer | . | Set-Up | . | 2nd in line | . | 2015 Closer | . | Updated | |
| NYY | Shawn Kelley | Adam Warren | Matt Thornton | David Robertson | 4/11/14 | |||||
| David Robertson (DL) |
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Houston Astros – After Chad Qualls pitched the 8th, Josh Fields came on for the 9th inning in a 5-run ballgame yesterday. But Fields, who previously had been considered the likely leader of Houston’s closer by committee, had his worst outing of the year, allowing three runs to score. With Matt Albers on paternity leave, Anthony Bass was called upon to bail Fields out, and Bass picked up his first save of the year. Houston’s bullpen is more volatile than any other team’s in baseball right now, so Bass could certainly get another opportunity like this in the future, but for now, we still consider him to be behind Fields, Qualls, and Albers. No hierarchy change.
| . | Closer | . | Set-Up | . | 2nd in line | . | 2015 Closer | . | Updated | |
| HOU | Josh Fields | Chad Qualls | Matt Albers | Josh Fields | 4/11/14 | |||||
| Jesse Crain (DL) |
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New York Mets – Carlos Torres came on in a tie game in the 6th inning on Thursday night, then stayed on for the 7th after the Mets took the lead. Torres would go on to earn the win, striking out 3 in his 2 innings of work. Hierarchy change: Carlos Torres to 2nd in line, replacing Gonzalez Germen.
| . | Closer | . | Set-Up | . | 2nd in line | . | 2015 Closer | . | Updated | |
| NYM | Jose Valverde | Kyle Farnsworth | Carlos Torres | Bobby Parnell | 4/11/14 | |||||
| Bobby Parnell (DL) |
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Chicago White Sox – Other than Matt Lindstrom, who is entrenched as Chicago’s not-very-good closer, the White Sox bullpen has been a different animal almost every night this season. Yesterday, it was Daniel Webb who bridged the gap to Lindstrom, throwing two perfect innings with 2 Ks. Webb now has a 2.84 ERA, a 0.95 WHIP, and a 7/2 K/BB ratio this season. As mentioned yesterday, Ronald Belisario is hurting and has an ERA in the teens. Hierarchy change: Daniel Webb to Set-up, replacing Ronald Belisario.
| . | Closer | . | Set-Up | . | 2nd in line | . | 2015 Closer | . | Updated | |
| CHW | Matt Lindstrom | Daniel Webb | Maikel Cleto | Nate Jones | 4/11/14 | |||||
| Nate Jones (DL) |
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VULTURE SAVE WATCH
1. Chad Qualls/Matt Albers/Anthony Bass, Houston Astros – I guess Anthony Bass has to be in here every day now, too. Gross.
