Adbert Alzolay ascends in Cubs’ bullpen while Jordan Hicks records a save

June 18, 2023

Chicago Cubs — Adbert Alzolay picked up his 4th save of the season by striking out a pair in a scoreless 9th inning yesterday.  Mark Leiter Jr. pitched the 7th and 8th inning ahead of Alzolay.  Alzolay has eight straight scoreless appearances and has recorded three of the last four saves for the Cubs.  He also has a sparkling 1.97 ERA and 0.88 WHIP on the season.   We will move Alzolay to the top of this committee and see if he can separate himself from the rest of the pack.

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

Arizona Diamondbacks – Scott McGough got the last two outs yesterday to pick up his third save of the season.  McGough has recorded two of the last three saves for the Diamonbacks and has not allowed an earned run in his last fourteen appearances.  Andrew Chafin was likely unavailable yesterday after pitching in the previous two games but he hasn’t recorded a save since May 29th and may not be at the top of this committee for much longer.

Updated hierarchy: *Chafin | McGough | Castro.
* = closer-by-committee

St. Louis Cardinals – In their first save chance since Ryan Helsley was placed on the injured list, the Cardinals used Giovanny Gallegos in the 8th inning. That left Jordan Hicks for the save opportunity in the 9th inning and he struck out the side for his first save since 2019.  Hicks struggled to start this season but is rounding into form with 13 strikeouts in just 6.2 innings in June.  Gallegos was used in the higher leverage situation yesterday and should be the primary source for saves while Helsey is out but if Hicks can keep throwing pitches like this, he might steal some save chances.

Updated hierarchy: *Gallegos | Hicks | VerHagen.
* = closer-by-committee

Miami Marlins – A.J. Puk has pitched six scoreless innings since his return in early June and has recorded all three of the Marlins save.  Puk has eliminated any concerns of a committee in Miami. 

Updated hierarchy: Puk | Floro | Scott.

Philadelphia Phillies — Jeff Hoffman picked up the 12th inning save for the Phillies yesterday.  Also, Seranthony Dominguez was placed on the IL.  Gregory Soto should see more time in the later innings while Dominguez is out.

Updated hierarchy: Kimbrel | Alvarado | Soto.

Chicago White Sox – Jesse Scholtens picked up an extra inning save for his first career save.  The entire White Sox hierarchy got a second day off after pitching in back-to-back games.

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

San Francisco Giants – Tristan Beck pitched the final four innings in the Giants 15-0 romp of the Dodgers yesterday to pick up a save.

Hierarchy remains: Doval | Ty. Rogers | Ta. Rogers.

VULTURE SAVE WATCH
Today
1. Justin Topa (SEA) – Paul Sewald and Andres Munoz have both pitched in two straight and three of four.
2. Dylan Floro (MIA) – AJ Puk has pitched in two straight and three of four.
3. Jose Alvarado (PHI) – Craig Kimbrel has pitched in three of four.
4. Chris Martin (BOS) – The Red Sox have a doubleheader today…
5. Michael King/Wandy Peralta (NYY) – …against the Yankees.

Monday
1. Nick Martinez (SD) – If Josh Hader pitches today, it will be two straight.
2. Mark Leiter Jr./Michael Fulmer (CHC) – If Adbert Alzolay pitches today, it will be two straight. Same for Mark Leiter Jr.

Liam Hendriks earns his first save of the season

June 7, 2023

Chicago White Sox – After giving up a leadoff homer, Liam Hendriks bounced back to retire the next three Yankee hitters he faced on Tuesday to earn his first save since returning from chemotherapy. He’s pitched the ninth in each of his last two appearances, earning a win and a save, and looks to be back in his usual role as White Sox closer. 

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

Miami Marlins – A.J. Puk was activated from the IL on Tuesday. We’ll move him back to the closer’s role but we’ll slap an asterisk on this hierarchy until we see just how quickly the Marlins use Puk in high-leverage situations.

Updated hierarchy: *Puk | Floro | Scott.
* = closer-by-committee

Seattle Mariners – Andres Muñoz returned from the IL on Tuesday in a big way, striking out two in a 1-2-3 eighth inning to preserve a 4-1 lead. Manager Scott Servais said he doesn’t plan to use Muñoz on back-to-back days for a while, but it’s a good sign that Muñoz immediately got the ball in a high-leverage spot and was successful.

Updated hierarchy: Sewald | Muñoz | Topa.

Philadelphia Phillies – Seranthony Dominguez has secured an eighth-inning hold in each of Craig Kimbrel’s last two saves, including last night’s 1-0 win. We’ll swap him with Gregory Soto, who got the seventh inning in his last appearance.

Updated hierarchy: Kimbrel | Dominguez | Soto.

VULTURE SAVE WATCH
Today
1. Grant Anderson (TEX) – Will Smith has pitched in two straight and Josh Sborz threw 25 pitches last night.

Tomorrow
1. Kendall Graveman/Joe Kelly/Reynaldo Lopez (CHW) – If Liam Hendriks or anyone else in the White Sox hierarchy pitches today, that’ll be back-to-back appearances. Lopez has not pitched since Saturday.
2. Chris Devenski/Ben Joyce (LAA) – If either Devenski or closer Carlos Estévez pitch today that will be back-to-back and three of four.
3. AJ Minter/Nick Anderson (ATL) – If Raisel Iglesias pitches today that will be two straight and four of five. If Minter goes on Wednesday, that’ll be two straight and three of four.

Justin Lawrence records second straight save for Rockies

June 4, 2023

Colorado Rockies — Justin Lawrence picked up his second straight save and this was a little more conventional.  Lawrence came on to get the last out of the 8th inning with the Rockies up 3 and stuck around to pitch the 9th and close out the win.  Pierce Johnson has really struggled recently ( 7 earned runs over his last 4 appearances) and since Lawrence got the save chance over him yesterday, we will move Lawrence to the head of this committee.  We will see if Lawrence and his devastating sweeper can take over this job for good or if Johnson will stay in the mix.

Hierarchy remains: *Lawrence | Johnson | Bard.
* = closer-by-committee

New York Yankees – After Wandy Peralta gave up a single, triple, and walk without recording any outs to start the 7th inning, the Yankees brought on Michael King.  King gave up a single to the first batter he faced but then recorded three straight outs against the Dodgers’ very dangerous top of the lineup.  King stuck around and pitched a scorless 8th inning with a pair of strikeouts and that left Clay Holmes for the 9th.  Holmes responded with a scoreless 9th inning to pick up his 6th save of the season.   Holmes has started to settle in, as he has only allowed one earned run in his last 14 appearances, and we will see if he can work his way back to the top of this committee.

Updated hierarchy: *King | Holmes | Peralta.
* = closer-by-committee

Pittsburgh Pirates — The Pirates traded Robert Stephenson to the Rays.  Dauri Moreta, who picked up the win yesterday, and Yohan Ramirez should see more time in the later innings moving forward.

Updated hierarchy: Bednar | Holderman | Moreta. 

Toronto Blue Jays – Jordan Romano got the day off after pitching in two straight, and that left Erik Swanson for the save chance yesterday.  Swanson pitched a scoreless inning for his first save of the season and should continue to be the back up for Romano when he is unavailable. 

Hierarchy remains: Romano | Swanson | Garcia.

Miami Marlins – George Soriano pitched the last three innings of the Marlins blowout win yesterday to record his first save.   Soriano gave up a run and six baserunners in those three innings and will not be a factor in the Marlins’ normal late inning plans.

Hierarchy remains: Floro | Scott | Chargois.

Tampa Bay Rays — Jason Adam pitched a scoreless 9th inning for his 8th save of the season.  Adam is the reliever most likely to record saves while Pete Fairbanks is out but it’s still the Rays so don’t be surprised when somebody else gets a save.

Hierarchy remains: *Adam | Poche | Kelly.
*=closer-by-committee

VULTURE SAVE WATCH
Today
1. Chris Martin (BOS) – Kenley Jansen pitched both games of the doubleheader yesterday, throwing a total of 43 pitches.
2. Joe Kelly (CHW) – Kendall Graveman and Reynaldo Lopez have both pitched in two straight.
3. Peter Strzelecki (MIL) – Devin Williams has pitched in two straight and three of four.
4. Dauri Moreta (PIT) – David Bednar and Colin Holderman have both pitched in two straight.
5. Pierce Johnson (COL) – Justin Lawrence has pitched in three straight.

Monday
1. Chris Martin/John Winckowski (BOS) – Kenley Jansen could get two days off after yesterday’s heavy workload.
2. Bryan Abreu (HOU) – If Ryan Pressly pitches on Sunday, it will be two straight and three of four.

Pete Fairbanks tweaks hip during warmup

May 29, 2023

Tampa Bay Rays – Pete Fairbanks’ hip “locked up” during his warmup on Sunday and he limped to the dugout for further tests. An IL stint isn’t a certainty, but if he needs to miss some time, watch this space for an alert. In his absence, Jason Adam picked up a 2-inning save and will be the committee leader if Fairbanks needs to miss time.

Hierarchy remains: *Fairbanks | Adam | Poche.
* = closer-by-committee

Chicago White Sox – Liam Hendriks returns to the big leagues today. We’ve touched on his medical journey following his cancer diagnosis, and perhaps most notable is how far ahead of schedule he is in terms of his return to baseball. Whether he pitches in high-leverage spots right away isn’t really the story here, but of course, we will dutifully track his usage and update this hierarchy when appropriate. Welcome back, Liam.

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

Miami Marlins – After pitching in three straight, Dylan Floro wasn’t going to appear on Sunday, and with Tanner Scott and Matt Barnes used bridging the gap to the 9th, that left JT Chargois for the save. It wasn’t the most inspiring outing, (3 baserunners, 0 Ks), but Chargois has had a fine season (2.79 ERA, 0.83 WHIP) so we’ll focus on the fact that he got the job done.

Updated hierarchy: Floro | Scott | Chargois.

Arizona Diamondbacks – Andrew Chafin came on in a tight spot during the 7th, meaning the 9th was again left to Miguel Castro, who converted for his 5th save. Chafin still has more saves on the year, but Castro has four of the last six, so consider them basically co-closers at this point.

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

St. Louis Cardinals – After yesterday’s loss, Ryan Helsley now has four blown saves — as many as he had all of last season. Meanwhile, Giovanny Gallegos’ strong start (2.08 ERA, 0.97 WHIP), coupled with his success whenever Helsley has needed a day off (still more often than most closers) has meant that the two actually have the same number of saves on the season with six. We’re not asterisking this yet, but it could happen soon.

Hierarchy remains: Helsley | Gallegos | VerHagen.

VULTURE SAVE WATCH
Today
1. Aroldis Chapman – Scott Barlow has gone back to back.
2. Colin Holderman – Same for David Bednar…
3. Giovanny Gallegos – …and Ryan Helsley.

Tomorrow
1. Yennier Cano – If Felix Bautista goes today, it’s back to back.
2. Jason Foley – Same for Alex Lange…
3. Justin Topa – …and Paul Sewald.
4. Tyler Rogers – Camilo Doval threw 29 pitches on Saturday; if he goes again today, he might need Tuesday off.

Marlins’ Dylan Floro taking hold of closer role

May 19, 2023

Miami Marlins – With A.J. Puk out, Dylan Floro has collected the past three saves for the Marlins, doing so in just a five-day stretch this week, including on Thursday. It sure seems like this is Floro’s job at this point, at least until Puk returns.

Updated hierarchy: Floro | Scott | Barnes.

New York Yankees – The Vulture Save Watch called an off-day Thursday for Michael King, but Wandy Peralta also got the night off after he worked in two straight, leaving Ron Marinaccio to close out the ninth on seven pitches for his first save. This is a pretty fluid situation that we’ll continue to monitor.

Hierarchy remains: *King | Peralta | Holmes.
* = closer-by-committee

Chicago White Sox — Liam Hendriks plans to throw live batting practice Friday and if that goes well, he’ll return to the majors “soon thereafter.”

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

Seattle Mariners – Andres Munoz has resumed a throwing program as he works his way back from shoulder inflammation. If all goes well in his rehab, he could be back relatively soon, though Seattle will certainly take it slow with the talented right-hander.

Hierarchy remains: Sewald | Topa | Brash.

VULTURE SAVE WATCH
Today:
1. Adam Ottavino (NYM) – David Robertson has gone in two straight.
2. Tanner Scott (MIA) – Dylan Floro has also pitched in two straight.
3. Tyler Rogers (SF) – Camilo Doval pitched in three straight earlier this week and could use more time off Friday.

Saturday:
1. Tyler Rogers (SF) – An outing Friday would be four of five for Camilo Doval.
2. Brusdar Graterol (LAD) – If he goes Friday, that would be three of five and five of seven for Evan Phillips.