Shelby Miller collects his first MLB save

April 26, 2023

Los Angeles Dodgers – Evan Phillips’ move to the bereavement list was indeed procedural and he rejoined the Dodgers on Tuesday following the birth of his child, while Brusdar Graterol replaced Phillips on the paternity list. With his team trailing by two in the bottom of the sixth, Phillips made sure he got some work in and pitched a 1-2-3 inning. The Dodgers eventually took the lead, and after Caleb Ferguson left the bases loaded in the eighth, Shelby Miller completed the ninth for his first career save, which the Vulture Save Watch thought might happen. Miller has allowed just two earned runs all season but has not yet recorded a hold.  

Hierarchy remains: *Phillips | Graterol | Ferguson.
* = closer-by-committee

Seattle Mariners – The Mariners used Gabe Speier in the seventh and Justin Topa in the eighth to get the ball to closer Paul Sewald for the save. Both Speier and Topa have yet to allow a run this season, while Matt Brash has been up and down this season and pitched the sixth on Tuesday. Brash did face the heart of the Phillies’ lineup in the sixth, but it’s hard to ignore a pair of 0.00 ERAs.

Updated hierarchy: Sewald | Topa | Speier.

Detroit Tigers — Jason Foley picked up his second save of the season on Tuesday, just as the Vulture Save Watch predicted.

Hierarchy remains: Lange | Foley | Cisnero.

Los Angeles Angels – Carlos Estevez got the save on Tuesday, with Jose Quijada yet to pitch after Saturday’s disastrous outing. We’ll keep Quijada at the top of this committee for now and see if he gets the next save chance, as he had been fantastic up until that blown save. 

Hierarchy remains: *Quijada | Estevez | Moore.
* = closer-by-committee

Kansas City Royals – Taylor Clarke allowed one run but picked up a seventh-inning hold on Tuesday. Meanwhile, Josh Staumont hasn’t pitched since Friday and hasn’t seen much high-leverage work in his three outings since returning to Kansas City, so Clarke moves into the hierarchy for now.

Updated Hierarchy: Barlow | Chapman | Clarke.

Washington Nationals – Mason Thompson pitched the final three innings of a 5-0 win over the Mets on Tuesday to collect the save.

Hierarchy Remains: *Finnegan | Edwards | Harvey.
* = closer-by-committee

VULTURE SAVE WATCH
Today
1. Ian Gibaut (CIN) – Alexis Diaz has gone back-to-back.
2. Taylor Clarke (KC) – Scott Barlow threw 25 pitches last night and Aroldis Chapman has gone in two straight.

Tomorrow
1. Aroldis Chapman (KC) – If Scott Barlow does pitch, that will be two in a row, and we presume Chapman will get Wednesday off.
2. Justin Topa (SEA) – Wednesday would be two straight for Paul Sewald.
3. Giovanny Gallegos (STL) – And for Ryan Helsley.

It’s Time You Met Yennier Cano

April 25, 2023

Baltimore Orioles – Cuban-born Yennier Cano made his MLB debut last season, and his cup of coffee in the bigs yielded an 11.50 ERA across 18 innings, so you’d be forgiven if he wasn’t on your radar coming into the season. But the 29-year-old righty made some mechanical tweaks in the offseason, and the results have been nothing short of spectacular. Cano has now faced 21 hitters in 2023 and retired every single one. That’s right, a 0.00 WHIP across 7 innings, including 9 strikeouts and his first save of the season last night, as he spelled a resting Felix Bautista. Cano’s 95-mph sinker, which sports some absurd late movement, along with his change-up that seems to defy physics, have been his most notable weapons so far. We’ll see how long he can maintain this form.

Updated hierarchy: Bautista | Cano | Baker.

Oakland A’s – Scoffing at the 3-run lead that he’d been summoned to protect in the 10th inning, Jeurys Familia decided to up the challenge level by immediately allowing a 2-run home run, followed by a single, a walk, and a hit-by-pitch. The saving grace was that the second batter in the sequence, Luis Rengifo, tried to stretch his single into a double and was thrown out in the process. With only two outs to go, Familia managed a strikeout of Taylor Ward followed by a game-ending groundout from Mike Trout. Though it was perhaps the least-convincing save of the season, Familia still got the job done, and that’s what tends to matter in terms of who gets the ball next. We’ll move him to the top of this committee… for now.

Updated hierarchy: *Familia | Jackson | Moll.
* = closer-by-committee

Texas Rangers – It was a rough night for Jose Leclerc, as the co-closer allowed two runs to score on bases loaded walks in the 8th, then walked the leadoff hitter in the 9th and ended up with the loss. His ERA stayed at 0.00, because the inherited runners weren’t his, and the 9th-inning batter that he faced advanced a base on an error before scoring the winning run, but obviously this was still Leclerc’s worst outing of the season. We’ll monitor to see if this means Will Smith’s share of save chances increases.

Hierarchy remains: *Leclerc | Smith | Hernandez.
* = closer-by-committee

Toronto Blue Jays – Adam Cimber was placed on the IL with a right rhomboid strain; look for Yimi Garcia’s hold chances to increase over the next couple weeks.

Updated hierarchy: Romano | Swanson | Garcia.

Los Angeles Dodgers – Evan Phillips was moved from the paternity list to the bereavement list, which we’re praying is a procedural move rather than something more ominous. Additionally, Brusdar Graterol also went on the paternity list, leaving the Dodgers thin at the back end of the bullpen. We don’t traditionally update hierarchies for short-term leave like this, so check the Vulture Save Watch for speculative save chances for the next few days.

Hierarchy remains: *Phillips | Graterol | Ferguson.
* = closer-by-committee

Milwaukee Brewers – Matt Bush was placed on the IL on Monday; look for Bryse Wilson to get more late-inning chances.

Updated hierarchy: Williams | Strzelecki | Wilson.

VULTURE SAVE WATCH
Today
1. Jason Foley – Alex Lange has gone back to back.
2. Zach Jackson – Jeurys Familia’s adventurous outing took 27 pitches; he might be off today.
3. Miguel Castro/Joe Mantiply – Andrew Chafin threw 35 pitches last night and Scott McGough threw 26 (after a 21-pitch outing on Saturday).
4. Caleb Ferguson/Shelby Miller – The Dodgers’ top two arms are away from the team.

Tomorrow
1. Erik Swanson – If Jordan Romano goes today, it’s back to back and three of four.
2. Ian Gibaut – Same for Alexis Diaz.

Will Smith picks up another save; Bryan Abreu continues to dominate

April 24, 2023

Houston Astros – After a 22-pitch outing on Saturday — his third appearance in the last four games — Ryan Pressly got the night off. In his absence, the Astros went to Hector Neris in the 8th inning in a tie game, followed by Bryan Abreu in the 9th, once they’d taken the lead. Abreu seems to be tightening his grip on the handcuff role, as we speculated yesterday morning.

Hierarchy remains: Pressly | Abreu | Montero.

Los Angeles Dodgers – With Evan Phillips on the paternity list, Brusdar Graterol got the call on Sunday, pitching the game’s final two innings for his first save of the season. The Vulture Save Watch was on this, of course.

Hierarchy remains: *Phillips | Graterol | Ferguson.
* = closer-by-committee

Texas Rangers – With two lefties due up in the 9th, Will Smith was summoned to protect the Rangers’ three-run lead, and the veteran got the job done, allowing just one hit in a scoreless frame. Though the lefty now has two saves to Jose Leclerc’s one, we’ll leave this committee as is for the time being, as Leclerc (0.00 ERA, 0.84 WHIP) hasn’t exactly done anything wrong thus far, and will likely get more matchup-based opportunities, since he’s righthanded.

Hierarchy remains: *Leclerc | Smith | Hernandez.
* = closer-by-committee

VULTURE SAVE WATCH
Today
1. Jason Adam – Peter Fairbanks has gone back to back.
2. Trevor Stephan – Emmanuel Clase and James Karinchak have gone back to back.
3. Joe Jimenez/Dylan Lee – AJ Minter and Nick Anderson both threw a lot of pitches yesterday (30 and 27, respectively) so the Braves could mix and match in the late innings tonight.
4. Drew VerHagen – Ryan Helsley threw 24 pitches yesterday, while Gio Gallegos has gone back to back.
5. Tyler Rogers/John Brebbia – Camilo Doval has gone back to back; Tyler Rogers threw 20 pitches yesterday but could be available.

Tomorrow
1. Cionel Perez/Bryan Baker – If Felix Bautista goes tonight, it’s back to back and three of four.
2. Jorge Lopez – If Jhoan Duran goes tonight, it’s back to back.

Craig Kimbrel picks up a save while Bryan Abreu continues to impress

April 23, 2023

Philadelphia Phillies – The Vulture Save Watch had Craig Kimbrel listed yesterday and sure enough, Jose Alvarado got the day off as predicted and Kimbrel got the 9th inning.  He pitched a perfect inning for his second save of the season.  After giving up runs in three of his first four appearances this season, Kimbrel now has six straight scoreless appearances.  Alvarado is still the head of the committee at this point but Kimbrel could work his way into more save chances if he continues to pitch like this.

Hierarchy remains: *Alvarado | Kimbrel | Dominguez.
* = closer-by-committee

Houston Astros – Ryan Pressly got the night off after pitching in three of the last four games and the Astros used Rafael Montero in the 8th, where he pitched a scoreless inning for his first hold of the season. That left Bryan Abreu for the save chance in the 9th and he responded with a perfect inning for his first save of the year. Abreu has eight straight scoreless appearances and lowered his ERA to 0.79 after yesterday’s outing. We will slide Abreu up to first in line and see if he can solidify himself as the backup to Pressly.

Updated hierarchy: Pressly | Abreu | Montero.

Pittsburgh Pirates — Duane Underwood Jr. pitched two perfect innings to finish off a 2-1 Pirates win.  This was another hit for the Vulture Save Watch as we predicted both David Bednar and Colin Holderman would get the day off after both pitching in back-to-back games.  

Hierarchy Remains: Bednar | Holderman | Underwood.

Miami Marlins – AJ Puk pitched a scoreless 9th inning to pick up his fourth save of the season.  Puk has recorded the last three saves for the Marlins and four of five total, with the only other save coming on a day he was not available.  It’s hard to ignore how good Dylan Floro has been (0.00 ERA, 0.39 WHIP and 10 Ks in 10.1 innings) but he has no save chances on the season so far.  There have been match-up reasons, as Floro faced the 3-4-5 hitters in the 8th inning yesterday, but if Puk gets the next save, he will likely kick the committee tag and Floro will just be a dominant set-up man.

Hierarchy remains: *Puk | Floro | Scott.
* = closer-by-committee

Los Angeles Angels – Perhaps we jinxed Jose Quijada by moving him to the head of the committee and mentioning his scoreless streak to start the season.  Quijada was called upon for another save opportunity yesterday, but his scoreless start of the season came to a crashing end.  Quijada ended up being charged with five earned runs yesterday while he was saddled with a blown save and loss.  It was just one bad outing and it was encouraging to see him get the save chance, but we will see if this slip up allows impacts future save opportunities.

Hierarchy remains: *Quijada | Estevez | Moore.
* = closer-by-committee

VULTURE SAVE WATCH
Today
1. Aaron Bummer – Reynaldo Lopez and Kendall Graveman have both pitched in two straight.
2. Carlos Estevez – Jose Quijada has pitched in two straight.
3. Matt Brash – Paul Sewald has pitched in two straight.
4. Luis Garcia/Steven Wilson – Josh Hader has pitched in three of four.
5. Brusdar Graterol – Evan Phillips is on the paternity list.

Monday
1. Tyler Rogers – Camilo Doval threw 23 pitches yesterday so if he pitches again today, he will likely get Monday off.
2. Pierce Johnson – Daniel Bard threw 20 pitches yesterday so if he pitches again today, he will likely get Monday off.

Shakeups in the AL West

April 22, 2023
Oakland A’s — The A’s found themselves in a tie game late, and turned to Zach Jackson to face to top of the order in the 8th inning. He let the first two runners reach base, but got the next three outs and was in line for the win after the A’s scored in the top of the 9th. This left the save opportunity to Jeurys Familia, who converted with a timely doubly play. Jackson had the harder assignment, but didn’t perform quite as well, so we will slap a committee tag on this at least until May or Jimenez are ready to return.

Updated hierarchy: *Jackson | Familia | Moll.
* = closer-by-committee

Los Angeles Angels – With a 2 run lead in the 8th, the Angels turned to Carlos Estevez which left the 9th inning for Jose Quijada. Quijada converted for his 4th save on the year, which leads the team. Quijada continued his scoreless streak, and while Estevez will remain in the mix for saves, it looks like the inside track belongs to Quijada at this point, at least until he gives up a run. The Angels also optioned Jimmy Herget to AAA, and called up Austin Warren. Warren had an electric finish to 2021 before struggling throughout 2022, but he has been on fire in the minors and the Angels may give him some late inning chances if he can continue at the major league level. These transactions open up a hierarchy spot for Matt Moore, who picked up a 7th inning hold earlier this week.  

Updated hierarchy: *Quijada | Estevez | Moore.
* = closer-by-committee

Chicago White Sox – With a 2 run lead in the 9th the White Sox brought in Reynaldo Lopez, who had an outing to forget. A leadoff homer brought the game closer, then a single and a walkoff homer ended the game with Lopez taking the loss while failing to record an out. Lopez is still the only player to record a save, but his ERA sits at an ugly 9.35. The saving grace for Lopez is that nobody else is pitching well out of the bullpen either, so he holds onto his top spot for now, but don’t be surprised if the next save chance goes to someone else. 

Hierarchy remains: *Lopez | Graveman | Bummer.
* = closer-by-committee

Philadelphia Phillies – Jose Alvarado continues to impress in the early going, pitching a clean 9th inning and recording his 3rd save in the last 4 days. Craig Kimbrel wasn’t used last night, but he did pick up holds in Alvarado’s other 2 saves this week. Normally 3 clear saves in a row is enough to kick an asterisk, but Kimbrel has been just as good over the last 2 weeks, striking out 8 of the 14 batters he has faced. If Alvarado gets the next save though, it looks like he will have the job to himself. 

Hierarchy remains: *Alvarado | Kimbrel | Dominguez.
* = closer-by-committee

Vulture Save Watch:

  1. Duane Underwood/Colin Holderman (PIT) — David Bednar has pitched in back to back and 3 of 4, while Holderman has pitched back to back as well, leaving a good chance for Underwood to snag a save today.
  2. Craig Kimbrel (PHI) — Jose Alvarado has pitched in 3 of the last 4, while Kimbrel was rested last night.
  3. Brusdar Graterol (LAD) — Evan Phillips is still on the paternity list.
  4. James Karinchak (CLE) — The Guardians have a doubleheader today…
  5. Dylan Floro (MIA) — …Against the Marlins.

For Sunday:

  1. Sam Moll (OAK) — Today would be back to back and 3 of 4 for both Zach Jackson and Jeurys Familia.
  2. Will Smith (TEX) — Same for Jose Leclerc.