Alex Wilson, Tommy Kahnle beginning to emerge from committees

August 3, 2015

Pittsburgh Pirates – Three batters into his appearance, Mark Melancon got ejected for hitting Tucker Barnhart. Joakim Soria entered and picked up his first save as a Pirate. Should Melancon be suspended — and we don’t think he will, since the HBP didn’t seem intentional at all — Soria would pick up any save chances.

Hierarchy remains: Melancon | Soria | Watson.

Detroit Tigers – Alex Wilson’s grip on the closer role got a little tighter yesterday, as he pitched a clean 9th inning in a Tigers victory. It was a 5-run game, but his main competition, Bruce Rondon, was summoned to pitch the 8th, which gave the appearance that Wilson is ahead in the pecking order.

Hierarchy remains: *Wilson | Rondon | Alburquerque.
* = closer-by-committee

Toronto Blue Jays – Since declaring that Roberto Osuna and Aaron Sanchez would share the 8th and 9th innings, John Gibbons hasn’t made any effort to actually turn this into a committee. Osuna has pitched the 9th inning in each of his last three appearances, including yesterday afternoon, when he also got the last out of the 8th inning. We won’t remove the asterisk yet, but we’re growing curious as to why Gibbons ever called this a committee.

Hierarchy remains: *Osuna | Sanchez | Hawkins.
* = closer-by-committee

Seattle Mariners – Tom Wilhelmsen picked up an 11th inning save on Sunday after Carson Smith and Fernando Rodney had already pitched. He’s not likely to get more save chances, but we’ll bump him up to the hierarchy for his efforts.

Updated hierarchy: Smith | Rodney | Wilhelmsen.

Colorado Rockies – We’re three days into the Colorado closer committee, and looking more and more like Tommy Kahnle is Walt Weiss’s first choice. He got the last four outs of a four-run victory on Saturday, and then was held out of Sunday’s game, while Justin Miller and Rafael Betancourt pitched the 6th and 7th innings. Scott Oberg eventually blew it and took the loss. We’ll continue to monitor the situation.

Hierarchy remains: *Kahnle | Betancourt | Miller.
* = closer-by-committee

Texas Rangers – Bullpen help came at just the right time for the Rangers, who placed Tanner Scheppers on the DL just a day after sending Keone Kela to the minors for some extended rest. With Shawn Tolleson unavailable after pitching four straight, newcomers Jake Diekman and Sam Dyson were summoned to close out the 9th inning. Diekman walked the only batter he faced on four pitches, but his mere usage suggests he’ll get more high leverage chances going forward; Dyson, meanwhile, was able to do the job, nabbing his first save as a Ranger.

Updated hierarchy: Tolleson | Dyson | Diekman.

New York Mets – Tyler Clippard picked up his first save as a Met on Sunday night, pitching a scoreless 9th inning. As mentioned in yesterday’s Vulture Save Watch, Jeurys Familia had pitched in three straight.

Hierarchy remains: Familia | Clippard | Parnell.

VULTURE SAVE WATCH
1. Drew Pomeranz, Oakland A’s – Edward Mujica has pitched in three straight.
2. Sam Dyson, Texas Rangers – After going four days in a row from Wednesday through Saturday, it’s possible that Shawn Tolleson needs a second day off.
3. Carter Capps/Mike Dunn, Miami Marlins – AJ Ramos threw 23 pitches yesterday in a blown save, and has thrown 68 pitches over the last four games. Carter Capps also left yesterday’s game with elbow discomfort, so if they both can’t go today, it might mean a save for Mike Dunn.
4. Pedro Strop, Chicago Cubs – Hector Rondon threw 29 pitches yesterday and has pitched on four of the last five days.

Carson Smith struggling, Tommy Hunter records save for Cubs

August 2, 2015

Seattle Mariners — Carson Smith had another rough outing on Saturday night, as he blew a one run save opportunity and took the loss.  Despite Smith’s recent troubles, manager Lloyd McClendon said he would be out there again if there was a save on Sunday.  Former closer Fernando Rodney struck out the side in the 8th last night and now has three straight perfect appearances.

Hierarchy remains: Smith | Rodney | Nuno.

Chicago Cubs – Tommy Hunter had an impressive debut for the Cubs.  Jason Motte originally got the call to close out a three run lead, but gave up a lead-off double and a deep fly ball that Jorge Soler made a leaping catch for an out.  Joe Maddon decided that was enough and went to his newest arm in the bullpen.  Hunter retired both batters he faced, and hit 99 on the radar gun, for this first save of the season.

Updated hierarchy: Rondon | Strop | Hunter.

Texas Rangers – The Rangers sent Keone Kela down to Double-A yesterday.  Kela has been one of the best relievers out of the Rangers bullpen so far this season but they want the rookie reliever to get some extended rest.  Newly acquired Sam Dyson should be used in the 7th and 8th innings alongside Tanner Scheppers.

Updated hierarchy: Tolleson | Scheppers | Dyson.

Oakland A’s — Eric O’Flaherty has been designated for assignment.  Fernando Rodriguez could see more time in the later innings moving forward.

Updated hierarchy: Mujica | Pomeranz | Rodriguez.

Boston Red Sox — Jean Machi recorded his first save of the season last night.  He got the last out of the 8th with the Red Sox up 3 and then stayed on for the 9th after they added two more in the bottom of the 8th.

Hierarchy remains: Uehara | Tazawa | Ogando.

VULTURE SAVE WATCH
1. Tanner Scheppers, Texas Rangers – Shawn Tolleson has pitched in four straight games
2. Tyler Clippard, New York Mets – Jeurys Familia has pitched in three straight
3. Joaquin Benoit, San Diego Padres – Craig Kimbrel has also pitched in three straight
4. Jim Johnson, Los Angeles Dodgers – Kenley Jansen has pitched in two straight, throwing a total of 50 pitches

Kevin Jepsen and Mark Lowe get dealt on Deadline Day

August 1, 2015

Colorado Rockies — As we predicted Friday morning, John Axford lost his job as Rockies closer after a string of five straight miserable appearances. Walt Weiss said that he had not yet decided who would take over, but name-checked Tommy Kahnle, Rafael Betancourt, and Justin Miller, who had six saves at AAA Albuquerque this season. A 7-0 loss to St. Louis on Friday night didn’t exactly clear anything up.

Updated hierarchy: *Kahnle | Betancourt | Miller.
* = closer-by-committee

Seattle Mariners — Carson Smith can breathe a little easier today; Mark Lowe, his most talented competition for high-leverage work, was sent to Toronto in a deadline deal. Fernando Rodney and his 5.57 ERA move up by default, with Vidal Nuno holding down second in line, at least until Charlie Furbush can return from the disabled list (biceps tendinitis) in mid-August.

Updated hierarchy: Smith | Rodney | Nuno.

Minnesota Twins – Although the Twins have foundered as of late, losing 9 of 13 since the All-Star break, the team has hung onto the second wild card position. Their acquisition of Kevin Jepsen should help strengthen a suspect bullpen that has relied on the lackluster duo of Casey Fien and Blaine Boyer to bridge the gap to Glen Perkins. Joining Jepsen in high-leverage use will be erstwhile starter Trevor May, a rookie with swing-and-miss stuff.

Updated hierarchy: Perkins | Jepsen | May.

Tampa Bay Rays — After all the rumors, the only Tampa reliever to get dealt at the deadline was Kevin Jepsen, who will head to the Twins. Steve Geltz (45 K in 48.2 IP, 0.88 WHIP) returns to the hierarchy at second in line. Jake McGee coughed up a lead in the eighth Friday night, but his role should remain secure.

Updated hierarchy: Boxberger | McGee | Geltz.

Toronto Blue Jays — Seventh innings will be crowded at the Rogers Centre, with word that the Blue Jays acquired strikeout machine Mark Lowe from Seattle on Friday. We’ll wait and see where Lowe fits into the pecking order of second-tier relievers that includes LaTroy Hawkins, Bo Schultz, and Brett Cecil.

Hierarchy remains: *Osuna | Sanchez | Hawkins.
* = closer-by-committee

Detroit Tigers — Bruce Rondon pitched the eighth inning on Friday in a road game, meaning that Alex Wilson was probably in line to get a second straight save chance if the Tigers had regained the lead.

Hierarchy remains: *Wilson | Rondon | Alburquerque.
* = closer-by-committee

VULTURE SAVE WATCH
1. Carter Capps, Miami Marlins — In his second straight day of work (and his second inning of the game), A.J. Ramos got rocked for four runs. Throwing 35 pitches means he’ll need Saturday off.
2. Tanner Scheppers/Keone Kela, Texas Rangers — Shawn Tolleson, fresh off being run over by Kela during BP, has pitched in three straight.
3. Jason Motte/Pedro Strop, Chicago Cubs — Hector Rondon has kept busy since returning to the closer role, seeing work on three straight days.
4. Josh Fields, Houston Astros — Luke Gregerson has also gone in three straight, as has Pat Neshek, who took the loss on Friday night.
5. Aaron Sanchez, Toronto Blue Jays — It’s possible that Sanchez gets the next Toronto save chance.
6. Rafael Betancourt/Justin Miller, Colorado Rockies — We’re not sure what Walt Weiss will do with his team’s next save chance.

Tommy Kahnle, Rafael Betancourt, and Justin Miller in new Colorado closer committee

July 31, 2015

Colorado Rockies — As we predicted this morning, John Axford has lost his job as Rockies closer after a string of five straight miserable appearances. Walt Weiss said that he had not yet decided who would take over, but name-checked Tommy Kahnle, Rafael Betancourt, and Justin Miller, who had six saves at AAA Albuquerque this season.

Updated hierarchy: *Kahnle | Betancourt | Miller.
* = closer-by-committee

MLB Trade Deadline Day: Joakim Soria traded. Could a Craig Kimbrel or Aroldis Chapman trade be next?

July 31, 2015

Detroit Tigers — After closer Joakim Soria was traded to the Pirates Thursday, the Detroit bullpen was left in disarray. We originally made an educated guess that Bruce Rondon would get the first shot for the Tigers, based mostly on his advanced stats, dissected in our alert sent right after the trade, and the general hype surrounding him. Then, on Thursday, manager Brad Ausmus gave Alex Wilson the initial shot, and he recorded five outs (against the likes of Manny Machado, Adam Jones and Chris Davis) for his first big-league save. Wilson said after the game that it’s been his dream to close in the majors for a while now, so he wants it and the Tigers have a clear vacancy. As we posted last night, Ausmus was non-committal after the game, but did offer Wilson a lot of praise. We’ll move Wilson to the top of this very volatile committee for now; Al Alburquerque and Neftali Feliz are also lurking in the background, too.

Updated hierarchy: *Wilson | Rondon | Alburquerque.
* = closer-by-committee

Colorado Rockies — Closer John Axford is in what he calls the “ABSOLUTE WORST” stretch of his career now after blowing his fourth straight save Thursday night. He walked in the winning run, throwing just eight of his 25 pitches for strikes in a rough 9th inning. Manager Walt Weiss offered his support for Axford after the game, saying the closer has had a tough week. No kidding. Axford is on the hottest of seats, and if he’s pulled from the closer’s role (which may happen as early as Friday), we expect a committee approach, with Tommy Kahnle in line for the first crack, and Rafael Betancourt and Boone Logan other potential options.

Updated hierarchy: Axford | Kahnle | Betancourt.

Pittsburgh Pirates — Soria had the job in Detroit, but he likely won’t be unseating Mark Melancon anytime soon. Melancon has only allowed 7 runs in 47.2 innings (1.32 ERA) in what has been an excellent season to this point. His velocity is still down across the board, though, which may be causing his pedestrian K/9 numbers (6.2 Ks per 9 IP this year, versus 9.0 Ks per 9 IP in 2014). So if he tires or falters down the stretch, Soria is there to back him up.

Updated hierarchy: Melancon | Soria | Watson.

San Diego Padres — The Padres are expected to “own the last day” before the non-waiver trade deadline, which comes at 4 pm on Friday. Among the many names being discussed is closer Craig Kimbrel, who may have recorded his 30th and final save for San Diego Thursday night. The Yankees are the team most linked to Kimbrel, which would give New York a killer bullpen, but may also kill his value if he’s relegated to a set-up role behind Andrew Miller. Watch out for the Astros, too. If Kimbrel is shipped out of town, expect Joaquin Benoit to get the first crack at closing in San Diego — but Benoit might well be moving too.

Hierarchy remains: Kimbrel | Benoit | Maurer.

Cincinnati Reds — The Reds could deal Aroldis Chapman, whose contract expires after the 2016 season. The Diamondbacks have an offer on the table for Chapman, and the Yankees, Giants and Astros are also rumored to be in the mix. The Reds’ asking price is reportedly very high, so they may wind up holding onto Chapman until the offseason or next year’s deadline.

Hierarchy remains: Chapman | Hoover | Badenhop.

Oakland A’s — Former closer Sean Doolittle threw off a mound Thursday for the first time since going on the disabled list with a left shoulder strain. He threw 26 pitches in a bullpen session and said he was “pretty happy” with the movement on his pitches. Doolittle still hopes to pitch again this season.

Hierarchy remains: Mujica | Pomeranz | O’Flaherty.

St. Louis Cardinals — The Cardinals emerged victorious over the Rocks Thursday — no thanks to Seth Maness, who allowed the tying run in the sixth, or Kevin Siegrist, who allowed two runs in the eighth to put Colorado ahead before Axford coughed it up in the ninth. The newly acquired Steve Cishek pitched a clean seventh, and deserves a spot in the Cardinals hierarchy.

Updated hierarchy: Rosenthal | Siegrist | Cishek.

Washington Nationals — In a game that resembled a potential setup for Game 1 of the playoffs, Max Scherzer went seven scoreless innings for the Nationals, demoted closer Drew Storen pitched a clean eighth inning for his first hold of the season, and the newly acquired Jonathan Papelbon pitched the ninth for his first save with Washington. Expect a similar look the rest of the way for the Nats bullpen.

Hierarchy remains: Papelbon | Storen | Janssen.

New York Mets — What’s wrong with Jeurys Familia? He has been dynamite all season, but since the All-Star Break, he’s allowed 6 ER in 5.1 IP and blown two saves. He took the loss Thursday, yielding three hits, including a three-run bomb to Justin Upton. (In a roundabout way, maybe he’s showing the Mets they need to trade for Upton.) In other news, new Met Tyler Clippard picked up his first hold for New York, working a scoreless eighth inning.

Hierarchy remains: Familia | Clippard | Parnell. 

VULTURE SAVE WATCH
1. Anyone, Detroit Tigers — The first few days in the post-Soria era will be worth watching in Detroit. So far, Alex Wilson has seemed to ascend to the ninth-inning role? But Rondon, Albuquerque and Feliz are also there, too.
2. Tommy Kahnle, Colorado Rockies — John Axford has been struggling and threw 25 pitches Thursday, so manager Walt Weiss could turn to Kahnle if the situation calls for it. Rafael Betancourt and Boone Logan are also options.
3. Joaquin Benoit/Brandon Maurer, San Diego Padres — If Craig Kimbrel is traded Friday, Benoit would be in line for the save chance. If both go, Maurer is next in line.
4. J.J. Hoover, Cincinnati Reds — The bullpen picture in Cincinnati isn’t perfectly clear, but if Aroldis Chapman is dealt, Hoover should inherit the closer role.