September 2, 2016
Chicago Cubs — As the Vulture Save Watch predicted, C.J. Edwards was called upon in the ninth Thursday with closer Aroldis Chapman needing the night off. Edwards picked up his first career save, one of a few developing storylines for the Chicago bullpen. The Cubs activated reliever Joe Smith from the disabled list Thursday and immediately thrust him into a high-leverage spot. Smith responded by setting down the side in order in the seventh and eighth innings and may continue to see more late-inning looks down the road despite a rough start to his Cubs career (3 ER, 3 HR in 3.2 IP before the DL stint). In other news, teammate Pedro Strop suffered a new injury — a strained groin — while working out and will miss an additional two weeks. Hector Rondon, meanwhile, is still rehabbing his injury and will pitch Saturday and Monday in the minors.
Updated hierarchy: Chapman | Edwards | Smith.
Atlanta Braves – Shae Simmons has had a long journey back to the major leagues, and on Thursday against the Padres, he got into his first game since July of his rookie year (2014). Simmons made the most of his return, tossing a scoreless eighth inning in a 9-6 win. In other news, Chris Withrow returned from the DL. It remains to be seen how he’ll fit into the team’s eighth-inning plans the rest of the season.
Hierarchy remains: Johnson | Cabrera | Simmons.
San Diego Padres — The Padres called up Ryan Buchter when rosters expanded Thursday. Buchter was having a solid season, though slowed up a bit in August (4.50 ERA in seven appearances) before he was sent down to the minors to get some rest. With Buchter rejoining a mediocre bullpen, he may be in line to pitch in tight spots in baseball’s final month.
Updated hierarchy: Maurer | Quackenbush | Buchter.
New York Mets — Fernando Salas pitched in his first game for the Mets Thursday since being acquired from the Angels this week, retiring three of the four hitters he faced with his new team trailing 6-1. We’ll continue to monitor how Terry Collins uses him moving forward.
Hierarchy remains: Familia | Reed | Salas.
VULTURE SAVE WATCH
1. J.C. Ramirez/Deolis Guerra, Los Angeles Angels — Who gets the first save chance in the post-Fernando Salas era?
