Committees shaping up in Arizona, Texas

April 3, 2023

Washington Nationals – Washington’s first win was closed out by Kyle Finnegan, and while Davey Martinez said that Finnegan would sometimes be used as a fireman, Sunday’s usage gave good insight into the pecking order when the bullpen is deployed traditionally. Hunter Harvey got out of a tight spot in the 6th inning, and after a clean 7th by Erasmo Ramirez, Carl Edwards Jr. got the 8th. Given that Harvey’s spot was higher-leverage than Ramirez’s, we’ll sort the hierarchy accordingly.

Updated hierarchy: *Finnegan | Edwards | Harvey.
* = closer-by-committee

New York Yankees – Ron Marinaccio has started the season with 3.1 hitless innings, tallying 6 strikeouts in the process. He picked up his first hold of the season on Sunday, and given his usage thus far, he’s earned a spot on the hierarchy.

Updated hierarchy: Holmes | Loaisiga | Marinaccio.

Cleveland Guardians – Make a wish when you see the first robin Vulture Save of Spring! With their top two options unavailable, the Guardians went to Trevor Stephan when they gained the lead in extra innings, and Stephan converted.

Hierarchy remains: Clase | Karinchak | Stephan.

Arizona Diamondbacks – Scott McGough got his first save of the year after Andrew Chafin got the first out of the 9th. Based on usage thus far, it seems these two will share save opportunities depending on matchups.

Hierarchy remains: *McGough | Chafin | Ginkel.
* = closer-by-committee

Texas Rangers – Jose Leclerc was the presumed closer coming in to the season, and picked up the first save chance on Thursday. But last night’s game was a reminder that Bruce Bochy never actually declared a closer before the season, as a presumably well-rested Leclerc was bypassed in favor of Will Smith. Smith hadn’t appeared yet — and a lefty was due up second in the inning — so it’s possible this was a one-off. But Smith had his best seasons under Bochy in San Francisco, and Bochy could be setting up a committee approach. We’ll slap an asterisk here and see what unfolds.

Updated hierarchy: *Leclerc | Smith | Hernandez
* = closer-by-committee

VULTURE SAVE WATCH
Today
1. Rafael Montero – Ryan Pressly may still be out with an illness.
2. Buck Farmer/Reiver Sanmartin – Alexis Diaz has gone back to back.
3. Jimmy Herget/Ryan Tepera – Carlos Estevez threw 28 pitches on Sunday.
4. Luis Garcia/Steven Wilson – Josh Hader has gone back to back and Luis Garcia has thrown 46 pitches over the last three days.

Tomorrow
1. Aroldis Chapman – If Scott Barlow goes today, it’s back to back.
2. Jose Cisnero – If Alex Lange goes today, it’s back to back.

Jhoan Duran unavailable after sleeping weirdly while Ryan Pressly has not been feeling well

April 2, 2023

Minnesota Twins – Jorge Lopez pitched a perfect 9th inning for his first save of the season.  Jhoan Duran was unavailable because he slept funny the night before.  We will see if Lopez continues to steal save chances from Duran when he is available.

Hierarchy remains: *Duran | Lopez | Thielbar.
* = closer-by-committee

Houston Astros — With Ryan Pressly unavailable because he wasn’t feeling well and Rafael Montero having pitched two nights in a row, Hector Neris got the save chance. Neris was summoned in the 8th inning with two runners on and struck out Elvis Andrus to end the threat. Neris came back out for the 9th inning and although he labored a little bit, he was able to get the job done to record his first save of the season.

Updated hierarchy: Pressly | Montero | Neris.

Chicago White Sox — Joe Kelly made his season debut yesterday as he came on in the 7th inning of a tie game and was greeted by boos from the home Houston Astros’ crowd.  Kelly ended up taking the loss but manager Pedro Grifol mentioned Kelly as a high leverage guy, along with with Reynoldo Lopez, so we will add him back onto the hiearchy.

Updated hierarchy: *Lopez | Graveman | Kelly.
* = closer-by-committee

Los Angeles Angels — Tucker Davidson pitched four scoreless innings to finish out the Angels’ 13-1 victory yesterday and earn his first career save.  Davidson will likely be the Angels’ sixth starter and does factor into their normal late inning bullpen plans.

Hierarchy remains: *Estevez | Herget | Tepera.
* = closer-by-committee

Los Angeles Dodgers – Andre Jackson picked up the first save of the season for the Dodgers as he pitched the last three innings of their lopsided 10-1 victory yesterday.  Jackson only allowed one hit over three scoreless innings but he is not expected to be included in more conventional save chances moving forward.

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

VULTURE SAVE CHANCE
Today
1. Trevor Stephan – Emmanual Clase has pitched in two straight, while James Karinchak threw 25 pitches yesterday and has pitched in two of three.
2. Jorge Lopez – Hopefully Jhoan Duran got a better night of sleep last night but if there are any lingering affects, Lopez would likely get the save chance.
3. Rafael Montero – Ryan Pressly has been battling an illness so he might not be available today.
4. Giovanny Gallegos/Zach Thompson – Ryan Helsely has pitched in two of three, throwing a total of 48 pitches. Giovanny Gallegos got good news when an MRI came back clean and could possibly be available today but it seems unlikely. Andre Pallante and Jordan Hicks have also thrown a lot of pitches after appearing two of the last three so Zach Thompson could be a long shot.

Monday
1. Cionel Perez/Bryan Baker – If Felix Bautista pitches on Sunday, it will be two straight and three of four. Same for Cionel Perez.
2. Chris Martin – Kenley Jansen threw 19 pitches yesterday and the Red Sox will likely be cautious with him to start the season so if he pitches again today, he will likely get Monday off.
3. Taylor Rogers – Camilo Doval threw 26 pitches yesterday and could get Monday off if he pitches again today.

Committees begin to take shape

April 1, 2023

Houston Astros — Before last nights game, manager Dusty Baker said he wanted to stay away from relievers he had used on Thursday. So with a 3 run lead in the 9th it was obviously Rafael Montero (who threw the 8th on Thursday) who got the ball in the 9th. Montero did only throw 10 pitches vs. Ryan Pressley’s 21, so this is almost certainly early season load management, but Pressly’s season did start with a him taking a loss after giving up 2 runs in a tie game. Pressly has earned plenty of rope so no need to worry about this situation yet.

Hierarchy Remains: Pressly | Montero | Abreu.


Miami Marlins — The first save of the Marlins committee went to A.J. Puk, who pitched the 9th inning of a 2 run game. He gave up a solo homer to Pete Alonso, but was otherwise unscathed. Dylan Floro was brought in to face righties in 8th (and immediately faced 2 left handed pinch hitters). We still think Floro will see the bulk of chances due to the righty-lefty matchups, but if you’re scraping the barrel for Marlins saves, Puk is about even in this committee. 

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

Colorado Rockies — Colorado held a 4 run lead last night, so we did get to see the committee in action. Brad Hand took the 8th inning and surrendered a run, leaving a save situation for Pierce Johnson. Johnson struck out 2 on the way to his first career save. As with all committees, this one will likely be flexible, but Johnson seems to have the inside track for now. 

Hierarchy remains: *Johnson | Hand | Lamet.
* = closer-by-committee

Arizona Diamondbacks — The Diamondbacks scored 2 runs in the top of the 8th to take a lead, and after long reliever Drey Jameson got 2 outs, they turned to Scott McGough for the last out. He walked the first  batters he faced, but got out of the inning only to be lifted after walking the first batter of the 9th. This left Andrew Chafin for the save, and he stranded the runner to pick it up. We won’t make a move on this hierarchy yet, but keep an eye on how McGough gets used his next time out. 

Hierarchy Remains: *McGough | Chafin | Castro.
* = closer-by-committee 

Vulture Save Watch:

  1. James Karinchik (CLE) — Emmanual Clase pitched in a non-save spot yesterday, and if the Guardians are overly cautious they may hold him out today.

For Sunday:

  1. Brad Hand (COL) — Today would be back to back for Pierce Johnson and Brad Hand, so expect them to rest Sunday if they pitch today.

Reynaldo Lopez, Andres Munoz, Dany Jimenez all secure saves on busy Opening Day for relievers

March 31, 2023

Chicago White Sox — As Chicago awaits the potential return of Liam Hendriks later this year, their ninth inning situation appears a bit cloudy. Reynaldo Lopez got the first crack on Opening Day, yielding a run on a colossal home run by Yordan Alvarez. Aaron Bummer secured the last two outs of the seventh inning and Kendall Graveman tossed a scoreless eighth to set things up. Let’s slide Lopez, who had a lot of hype in the fantasy baseball industry this spring, to the top given the usage to start 2023, but he isn’t cemented into any role just yet.

Updated hierarchy: *Lopez | Graveman | Bummer.
* = closer-by-committee

Seattle Mariners — It appears we have a committee in Seattle. The Mariners trotted out Matt Brash for the seventh inning, Paul Sewald for the eighth and Andres Munoz for the ninth on Thursday. Munoz allowed a couple of baserunners but escaped the jam to register the save. We’ll leave Sewald atop the hierarchy for now, but if Munoz sees another save or two, it will be a different story. 

Updated hierarchy: *Sewald | Muñoz | Castillo.
* = closer-by-committee

Oakland A’s — It wasn’t a traditional setup for the A’s on Opening Day. They were down 1-0 in the eighth inning when presumed closer Trevor May pitched a clean frame. After Oakland scored two runs to take the lead, Dany Jimenez came on for the ninth to secure the save. It would appear to be a committee now. We’ll see what happens next!

Updated hierarchy: *May | Jimenez | Jackson.
* = closer-by-committee

Chicago Cubs — The Cubs had a 4-run lead late on Opening Day, and deployed their late-inning arms with Brad Boxberger in the eighth and Michael Fulmer in the ninth. Both pitched scoreless frames. We gave Boxberger a razor-thin edge to start the year, but for now let’s swap this pair in the hierarchy and we’ll continue to monitor the usage moving forward.

Updated hierarchy: *Fulmer | Boxberger | Alzolay.
* = closer-by-committee

Colorado Rockies — After placing Daniel Bard on the injured list so he can deal with anxiety issues, the Rockies held a 5-run lead on Opening Day, so committee leaders Pierce Johnson and Brad Hand were not used. This situation is very fluid so stay tuned.

Hierarchy remains: *Johnson | Hand | Lamet.
* = closer-by-committee

St. Louis Cardinals — Ryan Helsley allowed only nine earned runs and held a 9-1 record in 2022, but he’s currently sitting at an 18.00 ERA and an 0-1 record in 2023 after he allowed two earned runs on 24 pitches to blow the save and take the loss Thursday. To make matters worse for the Cardinals, presumed setup man Giovanny Gallegos was not available on Opening Day as he deals with a tweaked back. He is listed as day-to-day, so the injury doesn’t seem to be serious.

Hierarchy remains: Helsley | Gallegos | Hicks.

Minnesota Twins – Jhoan Duran picked up his first save of 2023, pitching a clean ninth inning Thursday in a 2-0 win. His main competition for the closer gig, Jorge Lopez, pitched the last two outs of the seventh inning.

Hierarchy remains: *Duran | Lopez | Thielbar.
* = closer-by-committee

New York Mets – With Edwin Diaz likely out for the entire season, the Mets turned first to David Robertson, who secured the save with a clean ninth inning. Will he get the next shot?

Hierarchy remains: *Robertson | Ottavino | Raley.
* = closer-by-committee

VULTURE SAVE WATCH
Today
1. Adam Ottavino (NYM) – David Robertson got the first shot on Opening Day, and Adam Ottavino did not appear. Will it be Ottavino’s turn in Game 2?
2. Kendall Graveman (CWS) – Reynaldo Lopez nailed down the save in the first game, but his hold on the ninth inning is no sure thing, especially after allowing a long home run. Graveman looked great in the eighth and could be in line for the team’s second save opportunity.

Tomorrow
1. Hunter Harvey (WAS) – Kyle Finnegan looked rough on Opening Day, allowing three runs (two earned) on 23 pitches. The Nats are off Friday, but could Finnegan need more rest Saturday, or, perhaps, would Hunter Harvey (who pitched a scoreless eighth inning in the opener) get a chance because of Finnegan’s early struggles?