August 19, 2019
New York Mets – Taking a 6-run lead into the 9th inning, the Mets went to Edwin Diaz to close it out, and Diaz posted his first 1-2-3 inning since July 21. Given recent usage, it seems the Mets’ plan going forward is that Lugo will get save chances if he’s available, while Diaz is probably the first option if he isn’t. As mentioned before, Lugo has trouble going on back to back nights, so Diaz is probably still in line for a handful of save chances down the stretch.
Updated hierarchy: *Lugo | Diaz | Wilson.
* = closer-by-committee
Colorado Rockies – On Sunday morning, the Rockies placed Scott Oberg on the IL with a blood clot in his arm — reportedly, his season is over — and it took all of several hours for his replacement, Wade Davis, to blow the first subsequent Rockies save chance. We figured Davis would get the first look, but what happens now is anyone’s guess. Jake McGee, Carlos Estevez, and Bryan Shaw have all closed at various points in their career; of those three, only Estevez has pitched well as of late. Jairo Diaz could also get a look, as he’s got a high strikeout rate. We’ll slide Estevez to the top of the committee for now with the caveat that this is an educated guess at best. Complicating matters is that Estevez has gone three innings in the last two days and won’t pitch today; if someone else has success then they could easily vault him.
Updated hierarchy: *Estevez | Diaz | Davis.
* = closer-by-committee
Miami Marlins – Ryne Stanek got the 9th inning for the Marlins on Sunday, but gave up two runs and blew the save. He was a little unlucky, as one of the runs was unearned, but Stanek hasn’t been sharp since joining the Marlins (9.64 ERA over 5 appearances) so there’s no reason to think he’s the favorite for more saves going forward. We’ll continue to monitor this situation, but only owners in deep leagues should be rostering a Marlins reliever at this point.
Hierarchy remains: *Garcia | Quijada | Stanek.
* = closer-by-committee
Chicago Cubs – Craig Kimbrel was activated from the IL on Sunday morning, and immediately got the 9th inning, albeit with the Cubs up by 7 runs. Kimbrel got the first two outs of the inning, also allowing a solo home run and a hit by pitch, before Pedro Strop got the last out. It seems likely that the Cubs, which have had a rather disastrous bullpen stretch in recent weeks, will ease Kimbrel back into the role sooner rather than later.
Updated hierarchy: *Kimbrel | Strop | Wick.
* = closer-by-committee
Washington Nationals – The Nationals placed Sean Doolittle on the IL on Sunday with right knee tendinitis. Daniel Hudson has been the most effective arm in the bullpen lately and is likely the best bet for saves in the near future. Hunter Strickland could also get a look.
Updated hierarchy: *Hudson | Strickland | Rodney
* = closer-by-committee
VULTURE SAVE WATCH
Today/tomorrow
1. Andres Munoz/Craig Stammen – Kirby Yates has thrown 45 pitches over the last two days and could get today off. If he does go, watch for usage to predict tomorrow’s closer; if Andres Munoz goes tonight, it’ll be three straight for him, too.
Tomorrow
1. John Gant – Carlos Martinez threw 21 pitches yesterday; another extended outing and he’ll be off Tuesday.
2. Ryan Pressly/Will Harris – If Roberto Osuna or Ryan Pressly go tonight, it’ll be back to back and three of four.
