Monday’s 11-game slate started slowly but finished with a flurry. Relievers recorded five wins and five saves, with each of the four last games decided by two runs or less. Our condensed game recaps cover the slate’s high-leverage events of interest.
In case you missed it, our Updated saves and SOLDS rankings were posted last night.
Closer CliffsNotes
- Justin Martinez (ARI) worked around a lead-off single in the top of the ninth with consecutive groundouts and secured his third save, preserving a one-run win over the Rockies. He’s recorded his team’s last three saves, but Torey Lovullo will not confirm his as his closer.
- Raisel Iglesias (ATL) retired all six batters faced, four via strikeout, and collected his second win during an extra-inning game in San Francisco.
- Josh Winckowski (BOS) collected his third courtesy of a walk-off rally in the bottom of the tenth. He retired all three batters in the top of the inning, with the “place” runner scoring on a fielder’s choice groundout.
- Julian Merryweather (CHC) took over in the seventh and worked a scoreless inning. In the eighth, he allowed José Ramírez’s lead-off double, an infield single, and a go-ahead RBI Josh Naylor chopper over the infield, resulting in his first loss.
- Touki Toussaint (CHW) earned his first win during an eventual lopsided margin against the Yankees. He took over in the top of the fifth with a runner on and two outs, stranding him. He finished with 1.1 scoreless frames, allowing a hit and a walk while striking out one.
- Jakob Junis (CIN) stranded two runners in the seventh and retired all seven batters, three via strikeout, preserving a five-run win over St. Louis.
- Emmanuel Clase (CLE) shut the door on his American League-leading 36th save. He retired the side and recorded two strikeouts while preserving a one-run win over the Cubs. This marked the second time he’s appeared over three straight days this season, and he’s converted 23 straight save chances since May 20.
- Anthony Molina (COL) allowed two hits, two earned runs, and a walk while striking out two in a combined inning, resulting in his first loss. Tyler Kinley let an inherited runner score the game-winning run on a wild pitch, then retired four straight batters in his first blown save.
- Daniel Hudson (LAD) recorded his ninth save with a clean ninth during a three-run win in Milwaukee on 10 pitches, snapping a two-game streak allowing at least a run.
- Robert Suarez (SDP) held on for his 26th save. He allowed two hits and an earned run in an eventual one-run win over the Pirates.
- Taylor Rogers (SFG) suffered his fourth loss, letting the “place” runner score on Sean Murphy’s RBI single in the top of the tenth.
- Gerson Garabito (TEX) gave up two hits and two runs (one earned) in the bottom of the tenth in Boston, resulting in his first loss and a first blown save. Walter Pennington allowed Rob Refsnyder’s game-winning RBI single.
- Chad Green (TOR) allowed Jo Adell’s lead-off home run in the bottom of the ninth, then retired the next three hitters en route to his 12th save, his sixth of the second half.
Vulture Save Options for Tuesday, August 13
- Pierce Johnson (ATL): Iglesias logged two innings on 21 pitches in Monday’s win, and Jiménez appeared in three straight.
- Hunter Gaddis (CLE): Clase’s appeared in three straight contests.
- Jason Adam (SDP): Suarez pitched in four of the previous six days, and Scott appeared in three of the last four.
Vulture Save Options for Wednesday, August 14
- Paul Sewald (ARI): If Martinez pitches tonight, it will be back-to-back outings, and Torey Lovullo may give his veteran another shot in the ninth.
- Lucas Sims (BOS): If Jansen appears in today’s game, it will be his third consecutive outing, and he should be off on Wednesday.
Three Takeaways
- Will the Rangers shed payroll through waivers?: In today’s post for The Athletic, Ken Rosenthal shared that Texas could place veteran pitchers on waivers if the team’s struggles in the second half continue. This would allow the team to save money over the last 40-plus games of the season. He mentioned Kirby Yates and David Robertson as potential candidates if this happens. It will be intriguing since players on the 40-man roster before August 31 are eligible for the playoffs.
- Closers and coach speak: In his postgame presser, manager Torey Lovullo would not confirm Justin Martinez as his team’s closer despite his recording its last three saves since August 5. Balancing roles and egos in the bullpen remains difficult throughout a 162-game season. This does not represent a slight for the rookie but rather trust in a veteran like Paul Sewald by Lovullo. Fantasy managers will reap the rewards of Martinez’s production over the last two weeks while monitoring how Sewald gets worked back into the high-leverage mix moving forward.
- Kopech’s adjustments: It’s easy throwing the White Sox under the bus, but Michael Kopech started tweaking his arsenal after allowing four earned runs against Miami in a walk-off loss on July 8. In his next 11 outings, he’s been scoreless with 17 strikeouts against two walks with a minuscule 0.36 WHIP over his last 11 innings. Although the Dodgers prefer his cutter, he’s thriving with slightly fewer four-seam fastballs in this sample. Here is his splits-by-pitch since July 9:
Link: https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/nhh8C/1/
American League – Full Recaps, August 12
Boston Red Sox – Benefiting from his team’s walk-off rally, Josh Winckowski collected his third win. He allowed the “place” runner to score in the top of the tenth on a fielder’s choice groundout while retiring the side on 11 pitches.
- Kenley Jansen tossed a clean ninth and struck out one. He threw 14 pitches (64.3 Strike%) and induced two whiffs (14.3 SwStr%) in his first outing since August 6.
- Chris Martin allowed a hit and recorded two strikeouts in a scoreless eighth.
- Bailey Horn suffered his second blown save, giving up Corey Seager’s game-tying two-run home run in one-third of the seventh.
- Zack Kelly was awarded his eighth hold, issuing a walk, which resulted in an earned run and recording a strikeout in two-thirds of the seventh.
Updated Hierarchy: Kenley Jansen | Chris Martin | Lucas Sims
Cleveland Guardians – Appearing for a third straight game for the second time this season (May 19-21), Emmanuel Clase recorded his 36th save, preserving a one-run win over the Cubs. He retired the side and recorded two strikeouts on 10 pitches (80 Strike%) with two whiffs. He’s converted 23 straight saves since May 20.
- Nick Sandlin was awarded his seventh win despite letting his only inherited runner score, giving up a double and a sacrifice fly in the top of the eighth, resulting in his third blown save.
- Peter Strzelecki allowed a walk and an earned run while striking out one in two-thirds of the eighth for his first hold.
- Scott Barlow let both inherited runners score, allowing two hits, a hit batter, and two earned runs without recording an out in the seventh.
Updated Hierarchy: Emmanuel Clase | Hunter Gaddis | Cade Smith
Toronto Blue Jays – Although he allowed a lead-off home run by Jo Adell in the bottom of the ninth, Chad Green settled in and retired the next three batters for his 12th save. He’s converted all six save opportunities in the second half but has allowed a run in two of his last three games.
- Génesis Cabrera stranded a runner and retired his only batter in the eighth, securing his seventh hold.
- Zach Pop allowed a walk and recorded two outs in the eighth, getting credit for his tenth hold.
Updated Hierarchy: Chad Green | Génesis Cabrera | Erik Swanson
National League – Full Recaps, August 13
Arizona Diamondbacks – Summoned with a one-run lead, Justin Martinez navigated around Michael Toglia’s lead-off single by inducing a double play groundball and a game-ending groundout, securing his third save with a scoreless ninth. He threw 13 pitches (7 strikes – 53.8 Strike%) and produced one whiff. He’s been scoreless over his last seven appearances with 12 strikeouts versus three walks and has recorded his team’s last three saves. He may not be the closer by name, but he’s being deployed like one.
- Ryan Thompson notched his 22nd hold and retired the side against the Rockies’ 3-4-5 lineup pocket in the top of the eighth.
Hierarchy remains: Justin Martinez | A.J. Puk | Paul Sewald
Atlanta Braves – Completing a combined shutout and collecting his second win, Raisel Iglesias fired two clean frames and recorded four strikeouts in San Francisco. He threw 21 pitches (16 strikes – 76.2 Strike%) and generated a season-high seven whiffs (33.3 SwStr%). This extended his scoreless streak to ten games. He’s recorded a win and three saves with 15 strikeouts against one walk during his last 11 innings.
- Joe Jiménez retired the side and recorded a strikeout in a scoreless bottom of the eighth.
Updated Hierarchy: Raisel Iglesias | Joe Jiménez | Pierce Johnson
Los Angeles Dodgers – Securing his ninth save, Daniel Hudson retired the side and preserved a three-run win in Milwaukee. This snapped a streak of two consecutive outings, allowing at least a run. He threw 10 pitches (70 Strike%) without a whiff against the 6-7-8 lineup pocket.
- Michael Kopech notched his fourth hold with a scoreless eighth. He allowed a walk and recorded two strikeouts on 19 pitches (10 strikes – 52.6 Strike%) with seven whiffs (36.8 SwStr%). He’s given up a hit and a walk through six outings since the trade deadline while striking out 10 of 21 batters.
- Alex Vesia nailed down his ninth hold, striking out the side in the seventh.
- Joe Kelly let his only inherited runner score in the sixth on a William Contreras home run, among his three hits in one-third of an inning.
Hierarchy remains: *Daniel Hudson | *Evan Phillips | Michael Kopech
*= closer-by-committee
San Diego Padres – Hanging on for his 26th save, Robert Suarez could not complete a combined shutout but preserved a one-run win over the Pirates. He allowed Bryan De La Cruz’s one-out single, advanced on defensive indifference with two outs, and then scored on Andrew McCutchen’s RBI single before a game-ending lineout by Bryan Reynolds. Suarez threw 19 pitches (12 strikes – 63.2 Strike%) and induced two whiffs. Even though he’s allowed a run in two of his last three outings, he’s been scoreless in seven of nine in the second half, recording three wins and converting four of five save chances.
- Tanner Scott secured his fourth hold with a scoreless eighth, giving up a hit and striking out two.
- Jeremiah Estrada collected his fourth win, working around a hit and a walk with three strikeouts in a scoreless seventh.
Hierarchy remains: Robert Suarez | Tanner Scott | Jason Adam
San Francisco Giants – Taking over in the top of the tenth, Taylor Rogers suffered his fourth loss, letting the “place” runner score on Sean Murphy’s RBI single.
- Ryan Walker worked a scoreless ninth, navigating around Marcell Ozuna’s one-out single. Walker threw 15 pitches (66.7 Strike%) and induced two whiffs while recording a strikeout.
- Tyler Rogers retired the side and struck out one in the eighth.
- Randy Rodríguez stranded two runners and retired both batters via strikeout in the seventh.
Hierarchy remains: Ryan Walker | Tyler Rogers | Jordan Hicks
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