Still Andrew Miller time for the Yankees

April 18, 2015

New York Yankees — Joe Girardi might still call it a closer committee in the Bronx, but Andrew Miller is the one running all the meetings. Dellin Betances took care of business in the seventh and eighth last night before giving way to Miller, who earned his third save with three strikeouts.

Hierarchy remains: *Miller | Betances | Carpenter.
* = closer-by-committee

Chicago Cubs — Neil Ramirez left Wednesday’s game with right shoulder discomfort, and Friday’s MRI revealed inflammation, but no structural damage. Later that day, Joe Maddon went to Brian Schlitter with two on and a two-run lead in the seventh, and Schlitter immediately gave up the go-ahead home run — right after a would-be strikeout pitch that wound up leading to Maddon’s ejection. We might have gone to Jason Motte instead, but Maddon (correctly) noted that Schlitter is great at inducing ground balls (not to mention scatological puns). Three-run homers tend to weigh on the mind, however, and we think Motte will have the edge when the next late/close opportunity arrives.

Updated hierarchy: Rondon | Strop | Motte.

Texas Rangers — Tanner Scheppers, recovered from his sprained ankle, immediately returned to high-leverage work for the Rangers, holding on through a rocky eighth inning in relief of Shawn Tolleson. One place Scheppers won’t be used anytime soon is the Double-A Texas League, which fined and suspended him after he was ejected from a rehab appearance for throwing behind a batter in defense of a teammate.

Updated hierarchy: Feliz | Scheppers | Tolleson.

New York Mets — The Mets sent Rafael Montero down to the minors to stretch him out for a planned spot start on April 28; if the outing goes well, Montero could challenge Dillon Gee for the fifth starter role. Manager Terry Collins used the move to advocate a new roster format that would allow teams to deactivate players, as in the NFL and NBA. Jerry Blevins, who got the eighth-inning hold in Friday’s game, is in line for more high-leverage work.

Updated hierarchy: Familia | C.Torres | Blevins.

Boston Red Sox — Junichi Tazawa, who has yet to give up a run this season, has gained the edge over Alexi Ogando in the Boston bullpen.

Updated hierarchy: Uehara | Mujica | Tazawa.

Minnesota Twins — Brian Duensing is headed to the disabled list for the first time in his career, with a strained intercostal muscle. Paul Molitor sees fellow lefty Aaron Thompson, who pitched two scoreless innings in a tie game on Friday, sliding into Duensing’s role.

Updated hierarchy: Perkins | Fien | Thompson.

San Diego Padres — It’s been Dale Thayer, not Shawn Kelley, getting high-leverage work ahead of Benoit and Kimbrel for the Padres.

Updated hierarchy: Kimbrel | Benoit | Thayer.

Toronto Blue Jays – Things continue to be unsettled in the Jays’ pen; last night, Roberto Osuna pitched the fifth and sixth and Brett Cecil gave up three runs on two homers in the eighth. Miguel Castro continues to look like the best Toronto reliever to own — he pitched a scoreless ninth in the losing effort.

Hierarchy remains: *Castro | Osuna | Cecil.
*closer-by-committee

St. Louis Cardinals — Kevin Siegrist got a save for pitching the final two innings of a 5-1 win on Friday. And if you read this, you must really love bullpens.

Hierarchy remains: Rosenthal | Walden | Belisle.

VULTURE SAVE WATCH
1. Joba Chamberlain, Detroit Tigers — Joakim Soria got a late win on Friday and has now pitched on three of the last four days, and six of the last eight. Meanwhile, Detroit’s penchant for shutouts has left Joba with one appearance all year.
2. Carlos Torres/Jerry Blevins, New York Mets — Jeurys Familia (five outings in six days; 62 pitches) has to take a break sometime.
3. Casey Fien, Minnesota Twins — Glen Perkins has pitched in three straight and four of five.

Jason Grilli best choice for saves in Atlanta

April 6, 2015

San Diego Padres — Craig Kimbrel has moved to San Diego in a blockbuster trade and will immediately step into the closer’s role. With Kevin Quackenbush possibly going to AAA, Shawn Kelley may move into his job.

Updated hierarchy: Kimbrel | Benoit | Kelley.

Atlanta Braves — With the Opening Day salary dump of All-Star closer Craig Kimbrel, the Braves will turn to one of their closer retread insurance policies: Jason Grilli and Jim Johnson. Grilli has the edge, if you want any piece of this action. With Josh Outman starting the year on the DL, Luis Avilan will complete the relief dream team. Long-term, Shae Simmons could be the answer if he can return from Tommy John surgery. Braves GM John Hart also mentioned Juan Jaime as an option down the line.

Updated hierarchy: Grilli | Johnson | Avilan.

Colorado Rockies – In a surprising bit of news, Walt Weiss named Boone Logan the team’s primary 8th inning reliever. Logan is no LOOGY — he’s shown his whole career that he can get both lefties and righties out — and he had an excellent spring, posting a 1.04 ERA and 13 strikeouts in 8.2 IPs. The odd thing is that righty Adam Ottavino has been even MORE dominant (0.00 ERA, 15 Ks, 8.1 IPs), and just a few weeks ago, Weiss said that Ottavino would be the guy when closer LaTroy Hawkins is unavailable. Both things can be true, of course — this might be one of those situations where the 8th inning guy isn’t the one to get the call on nights when the closer is unavailable. But it certainly bears watching, as Hawkins, already no one’s pick to keep his job all year, had a pretty rough spring. In other Rockies bullpen news, John Axford’s son was bitten by a rattlesnake, and the righty is likely to miss a few games to start the season.

Updated hierarchy: Hawkins | Ottavino | Logan.

Texas Rangers – Tanner Scheppers will start the season on the DL, elevating Shawn Tolleson into the set-up role. Roman Mendez slides up to take the 7th inning. Scheppers should be back in a week or two.

Updated hierarchy: Feliz | Tolleson | Mendez.

Washington Nationals – With no timetable on Casey Janssen’s return, the Nationals are expected to use a trio of relievers — Aaron Barrett, Matt Thornton, and Blake Treinen — to get the big outs ahead of Drew Storen. Thornton is more of a LOOGY at this point, and while he could get matchup-based holds here and there, it’s more likely that Barrett or Treinen is elevated into a save spot on when Storen is unavailable. Matt Williams hasn’t given any indication of his favorite so far.

Updated hierarchy: Storen | Barrett | Treinen.

New York Mets – Vic Black, still fighting off a sore shoulder, will open the season on the disabled list. Black is expected to rejoin the team after the first road trip of the season, but in the meantime, Carlos Torres will pick up the slack.

Updated hierarchy: Mejia | Familia | Torres.

VULTURE SAVE WATCH
1. Grant Balfour, Tampa Bay Rays – With every bullpen well rested and ready for the season, the Vulture Save Watch opens 2015 populated with relievers who are in the mix for 9th inning chances, but not their team’s projected first option. In Tampa, that’s Grant Balfour…
2. Andrew Miller, New York Yankees – …in New York, that’s Andrew Miller…
3. Chris Hatcher/JP Howell, Los Angeles Dodgers – …and in Los Angeles, that’s Chris Hatcher and JP Howell. We think, anyway.

Craig Kimbrel traded in Opening Day blockbuster

April 5, 2015

San Diego Padres — Craig Kimbrel has moved to San Diego in a blockbuster trade and will immediately step into the closer’s role. With Kevin Quackenbush possibly going to AAA, Shawn Kelley may move into his job.

Updated hierarchy: Kimbrel | Benoit | Kelley.

Atlanta Braves — With the Opening Day salary dump of All-Star closer Craig Kimbrel, the Braves will turn to one of their closer retread insurance policies: Jason Grilli and Jim Johnson. Grilli has the edge, if you want any piece of this action. With Josh Outman starting the year on the DL, Luis Avilan will complete the relief dream team. Long-term, Shae Simmons could be the answer if he can return from Tommy John surgery. Braves GM John Hart also mentioned Juan Jaime as an option down the line.

Updated hierarchy: Grilli | Johnson | Avilan.

2015 NL West preview

March 8, 2015

Arizona Diamondbacks – It’s safe to say that the closer spot was not a pillar of strength for 64-98, last-place Arizona Diamondbacks last season. The young and talented Addison Reed got worse in his switch from the American League to the National League, netting 32 saves but finishing an up-and-down season with a 4.25 ERA, and he’s recently come down with a bout of shoulder soreness that will keep him from throwing until mid-March. At this point, he looks fine to start the season, though righties Brad Ziegler and Evan Marshall or lefty Oliver Perez could step in if necessary. Holds seekers can also keep an eye on David Hernandez, who should be ready by May 1 after missing all of last year due to Tommy John surgery.

Starting 2015 hierarchy: Reed | Ziegler | Perez.
Holds candidates: Ziegler, Perez.

Colorado Rockies – Yes, the Rockies still employ a closer that began his major league career (1995!) before some of our faithful Closer Monkey readers were born! I’m looking at YOU, LaTroy Hawkins. At 42, Hawkins will be the oldest active player in the big leagues this year, which will be his 21st and final season in Major League Baseball. Don’t let his age fool you. Hawkins had a solid year in Denver last season, collecting 23 saves and a 3.31 ERA. Still, keep an eye on the other late-inning relievers, including heir apparent John Axford, and last year’s up-and-down set-up duo, Adam Ottavino and Rex Brothers.

Starting 2015 hierarchy: Hawkins | Axford | Ottavino.
Holds candidates: Axford, Ottavino.

Los Angeles Dodgers – Andrew Friedman took his big-thinking mindset away from the small-market Tampa area and to sunny southern California, and when he arrived, he took a wrecking ball to a Dodgers team that won two straight division titles. Most important to the Closer Monkey is the injury to the electric Kenley Jansen, who will miss the first month of the season, with no clear replacement behind him. Brian Wilson is gone, leaving two recent acquisitions — Joel Peralta and Dustin McGowan — to duke it out with Brandon League for save chances. We think it’ll either be Peralta or League to start the season, with McGowan getting a look if they both struggle in the spring.

Starting 2015 hierarchy: | Peralta | League | McGowan.
Holds candidates: League, JP Howell.

San Diego Padres – Another NL West team in transition was the San Diego Padres, who added Matt Kemp, Justin Upton and James Shields in a busy offseason. A much stronger lineup should present the team with more hold and save opportunities — assuming they actually have more leads — so consider a mid-round investment in closer Joaquin Benoit, who was excellent last year in his first season in the National League (1.41 ERA, 11 saves). Holds-chasers should take a look at Kevin Quackenbush, who could also inherit the closer role if Benoit struggles. The Padres also added Shawn Kelley from the Yankees and Brandon Maurer, a former starter with a big arm, from the Mariners.

Starting 2015 hierarchy: Benoit | Quackenbush | Vincent.
Holds candidates: Quackenbush, Vincent.

San Francisco Giants – The defending World Series champions got a scare during the early going of spring training after closer Santiago Casilla was hit in the left shin by a batted ball. Reports indicate Casilla should be OK, but he will need to shake off a bruised shin and should be good to go on Opening Day. Behind Casilla is setup man Sergio Romo, who is dealing with shoulder soreness, of course. Manager Bruce Bochy says Romo should be fine. Romo, when healthy, and Jeremy Affeldt will be the most likely bullpen arms to pick up holds.

Starting 2015 hierarchy: Casilla | Romo | Affeldt.
Holds candidates: Romo, Affeldt.

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Jonathan Broxton might be worth an add

August 20, 2014

Cincinnati Reds — It’s time to worry about Aroldis Chapman. The fireballing righthander is day-to-day with an “achy” shoulder, which we learned about after Chapman walked all four men he faced on Sunday. Jonathan Broxton would be the beneficiary of any extended rest for the closer, and with the team’s playoff hopes dwindling by the day, there is little to be gained by pushing their star to pitch through pain. In other news, Jumbo Diaz has moved ahead of Sam LeCure to enter our hierarchy for the first time, and J.J. Hoover picked up his tenth loss of the year, tying the team record for relievers.

Updated hierarchy: Chapman | Broxton | Diaz.

Detroit Tigers — Almost a week after Joe Nathan made an obscene gesture at Detroit fans, he struggled again in a save situation, giving up a run on two hits and a walk. Nathan’s seat remains boiling lava hot.

Hierarchy remains: Nathan | Chamberlain | Alburquerque.

Tampa Bay Rays — Lately it has seemed that Grant Balfour pitches only when the Rays are losing. Though that wasn’t the case when he entered the game on Tuesday night, it certainly was when he left, three runs and no outs later. Of Balfour’s 14 pitches, only two were strikes — and one of those was lined for a hard-luck triple. Grant’s struggles (he leads all relievers in walks) make Joel Peralta relevant again, if only by default.

Updated hierarchy: McGee | Boxberger | Peralta.

New York Yankees — The Yankees have had to cobble things together at almost every position, but the bullpen had remained a strength — until recently. Aside from the still-otherworldly Dellin Betances, no Yankee reliever has pitched well since the All-Star break. After a lights-out April and May, Adam Warren has struggled recently, and he saw more than a week go by between his last two outings. Shawn Kelley’s stats aren’t much better, but he seems to be the reliever that Joe Girardi trusts most in the seventh these days.

Updated hierarchy: Robertson | Betances | Kelley.

Toronto Blue Jays — John Gibbons just keeps going to Dustin McGowan early these days, summoning him in the fourth last night. Brett Cecil has a narrow edge over top prospect Aaron Sanchez right now.

Updated hierarchy: Janssen | Loup | Cecil.

VULTURE SAVE WATCH
1. Dellin Betances/Shawn Kelley, New York Yankees — David Robertson has pitched on three of the last four days, and he threw 20 pitches while picking up the loss on Tuesday. Betances has pitched in each of those games too, but he had an easier time last night. Kelley is better rested still.
2. Kevin Jepsen, Los Angeles Angels — Both Huston Street and Joe Smith have pitched in four of the last five games. Jepsen got a vulture save Monday and might earn a second today.
3. Brad Boxberger, Tampa Bay Rays — Jake McGee threw 35 pitches on Tuesday.
4. Kevin Quackenbush, San Diego Padres — Joaquin Benoit’s shoulder troubles continued on Tuesday, so we’ll keep Quack here until we hear different.