Mother Nature vultures a save from Luke Jackson

June 12, 2019

Atlanta Braves – Anthony Swarzak owners owe Mother Nature a tip of the cap, as Swarzak officially earned a save after rain ended Tuesday’s game before the ninth inning began. Luke Jackson was ready to pitch the ninth before the rain halted play and eventually ensured the Braves’ 7-5 win over the Pirates. Meanwhile, the Braves recalled A.J. Minter from the minors prior to Tuesday’s tilt. Brian Snitker said that Jackson will remain the closer but that Minter, who earned a hold on Tuesday, will return to a late-inning role. 

Updated hierarchy: Jackson | Swarzak | Minter.

Minnesota Twins — Taylor Rogers was unavailable on Tuesday due to back stiffness, so when the Twins took the lead in the bottom of the eighth, Trevor May came out for the ninth and earned his first save of the season. It’s noteworthy that Blake Parker didn’t feature in Tuesday’s win; it appears Rogers has taken the lead in the hierarchy, since if healthy he would have closed out Tuesday’s win. We’ll monitor how Rocco Baldelli deploys Rogers, Parker and May in the coming days.

Updated hierarchy: *Rogers | Parker | May.
* = closer-by-committee

Boston Red Sox — The Red Sox bullpen disappointed yet again in Monday’s loss, and Alex Cora addressed the issue prior to Tuesday’s contest. Matt Barnes is still the most likely candidate for saves at this point, but Brandon Workman, Heath Hembree and Marcus Walden may all get a chance depending on matchups and what Cora wants. Another Sox reliever to watch is Mike Shawaryn, who has been impressive in his three relief appearances this season.

Hierarchy remains: *Barnes | Workman | Hembree.
* = closer-by-committee

Oakland A’s — Liam Hendriks struck out the side to earn a hold on Tuesday in Tampa. Hendriks is a better late-inning option than Joakim Soria, who has allowed an earned run in each of his last four appearances.

Updated hierarchy: Treinen | Trivino | Hendriks.

Texas Rangers – Chris Woodward made it official on Tuesday that no one is the closer and Shawn Kelley, Jose Leclerc, Chris Martin and Jesse Chavez could close in any game, though Kelley is likely to remain the preferred choice. 

Hierarchy remains: *Kelley | Leclerc | Martin.
* = closer-by-committee

VULTURE SAVE WATCH
Today
1. Nick Wittgren – Brad Hand, reportedly on the Dodgers’ trade radar, threw 26 pitches in two innings of work last night. Cleveland is off on Thursday and Hand hasn’t been overworked lately, but he still has a chance to sit out today’s game.
2. Blake Parker – Taylor Rogers is still day-to-day and may not be available tonight.

Tomorrow
1. Kelvin Herrera – Alex Colome needed 39 pitches to get the final five outs of Tuesday’s win. The White Sox are off today, which played into last night’s usage, but Colome may still get an extra day of rest on Thursday.
2. Wily Peralta – If Ian Kennedy pitches today, that will be two games in a row for him.
3. Ty Buttrey/Justin Anderson/Cam Bedrosian – The Angels are off today after exhausting their bullpen last night. Closer Hansel Robles needed 35 pitches to complete a five-out save and has thrown 55 pitches over the last two days. Buttrey tossed 34 pitches in his second straight night of work while Anderson threw 30 pitches last night. Tuesday’s opener, Cam Bedrosian, may sneak a save chance on Thursday if the Angels want to get everyone some extra rest.

Chris Martin, Jacob Webb pick up random saves

June 11, 2019

Texas Rangers – In a game that featured blown saves by the leaders of both Texas and Boston’s committees (Shawn Kelley and Matt Barnes), it was Chris Martin who eventually locked down the save in the 11th inning.

Hierarchy remains: *Kelley | Leclerc | Martin.
* = closer-by-committee

Atlanta Braves – Jacob Webb retired the last hitter in the 8th with the Braves up by three runs. When they tacked on three more in the bottom of the inning, Webb stayed on for the 9th and picked up his second save of the year.

Hierarchy remains: Jackson | Swarzak | Newcomb.

VULTURE SAVE WATCH
Today
1. Zack Britton/Seth Lugo – The Mets and Yankees play a doubleheader, meaning if a closer gets burned in the first game, he may not be available in the second.

Tomorrow
1. Archie Bradley – Greg Holland threw 21 pitches last night; another long outing tonight and he likely won’t be available tomorrow.

Tyler Chatwood records save for Cubs

May 26, 2019

Chicago Cubs — Tyler Chatwood pitched a scoreless ninth yesterday for his first save with the Cubs.  Manager Joe Maddon recently said that Chatwood was not the answer in the ninth inning, but that he would give him a chance if other guys were unavailable.  Steve Cishek had pitched in two of three so Maddon stayed true to his word and sent Chatwood out there because he was available.  Chatwood gave up a couple of hits but benefited from a double play in locking down the save.  Chatwood has mostly been used as a multi-inning reliever so we will wait and see if he starts to see more time as a more traditional back end of the bullpen reliever.

Hierarchy remains: *Cishek | Kintzler | Brach.
* = closer-by-committee

Baltimore Orioles — Josh Lucas (not this Josh Lucas) pitched the final three innings in an Orioles’ win to pick up his first career save.  Although Lucas would have been credited with a save regardless of the score since he pitched the last three innings, it was a 3-run game and a regular save chance in the 9th.  Lucas has been the long relief man so he won’t crack the hierarchy yet but anybody who has success in the Orioles’ bullpen has a chance to move up quickly.

Hierarchy remains: Givens | Fry | Armstrong.

Texas Rangers — The Rangers again went with Shawn Kelley in a save opportunity yesterday, but unfortunately, he could not get the job done.   The blown save probably won’t change the Ranger’s ninth-inning plans right away, but Jose Leclerc struck out the side yesterday in another impressive outing and could see a save chance on Sunday with Kelley likely unavailable.  Kelley has done a good job closing for the Rangers even with yesterday’s blown save but Leclerc is still the best long term option.

Updated hierarchy: *Kelley | Leclerc | Martin.
* = closer-by-committee

VULTURE SAVE WATCH
Today
1. Hector Rondon – Roberto Osuna and Ryan Pressly have both pitched in two straight and each has thrown over 35 pitches in those two outings.
2. Justin Anderson – Hansel Robles and Ty Buttrey have both pitched in back-to-back games and both went more than one inning yesterday.
3. Joakim Soria – Blake Treinen has pitched in two straight, throwing 43 pitches, and Lou Trivino has pitched in two straight and three of four.
4. Jose Leclerc – Shawn Kelley has pitched in two straight and four of five.

Monday
1. Jared Hughes – If Raisel Iglesias pitches today, it would be two of three and the Reds have a doubleheader on Monday.
2. Robert Gsellman/Jeurys Familia – If Edwin Diaz pitches today, it would be two straight games, three of the last four, and six of the last eight.
3. Kyle Crick – The Pirates have a doubleheader on Monday so if Felipe Vazquez pitches on Sunday, he would be unlikely to pitch in both games even if both were save chances.

Shawn Kelley secures third straight save since returning from injured list

May 25, 2019

Texas Rangers — For the third straight game, it was Shawn Kelley and not Jose Leclerc who got the ninth inning for the Rangers. Chris Martin pitched a clean eighth inning ahead of Kelley. Manager Chris Woodward had recently said that he wanted Leclerc to take over the closer role again, and we still think the Rangers’ long-term plan is to use have Leclerc close, but Kelley’s usage the past four days has been enough to move him up to the top of the hierarchy.

Updated hierarchy: *Kelley | Martin | Leclerc.
* = closer-by-committee

Philadelphia Phillies – Pat Neshek will go on the IL today because of a sore shoulder. The Phillies got an impressive effort from their bullpen last night, including lefty Adam Morgan, who pitched the eighth inning ahead of Hector Neris.

Updated hierarchy: *Neris | Dominguez | Morgan.
* = closer-by-committee

San Diego Padres – As was predicted in the Vulture Save Watch, Craig Stammen got the call to protect a two-run lead in the ninth inning. He closed out the Blue Jays to earn his second save of the year. Kirby Yates should be available now after two days of rest.

Hierarchy remains: Yates | Stammen | Warren.

Baltimore Orioles — Mychal Givens entered a 6-6 game in the ninth inning and promptly gave up a two-run walk-off bomb. This is Givens’ third straight appearance where he took the loss, ballooning his ERA to 5.64. Givens still has some job security mostly due to how bad the rest of Baltimore’s bullpen is, but three losses in a row is cause for concern. 

Hierarchy remains: Givens | Fry | Armstrong.

Arizona Diamondbacks — Arizona cruised to a large lead last night and turned to Zack Godley to pitch the final three innings. Godley didn’t give up a run to secure his second save of the year. Godley’s only other save came in the 13th inning, and he is more of a long reliever than a high-leverage option.

Hierarchy remains: Holland | Bradley | Lopez.

Houston Astros — The scoreless streak is over. Ryan Pressly gave up a leadoff homer to stop his record streak at 40 consecutive appearances. Pressly still earned his 11th hold on the year, while Roberto Osuna closed it out for his 13th save. There isn’t a better 1-2 punch in the majors right now than Pressly and Osuna. 

Hierarchy remains: Osuna | Pressly | Rondon.

VULTURE SAVE WATCH
Today:
1. Shawn Armstrong — The struggling Mychal Givens has pitched in back-to-back games, throwing 44 pitches in that time. Meanwhile, Paul Fry has gone in three straight. 
2. Victor Alcantara — Both Shane Greene and Joe Jimenez have pitched in two straight and three of four. 
3. Seranthony Dominguez — Hector Neris has thrown 45 pitches over the past two days. 

Sunday:
1. Sean Newcomb — Luke Jackson was rested last night, but he had pitched in two of three prior to that throwing 62(!!) pitches in that span. 
2. Brandon Kintzler — Today would be back-to-back and three of four for Steve Cishek.
3. Nick Wittgren — Although he has kept his pitch count low, today would be three straight for Brad Hand. 
4. Lou Trivino — Blake Treinen threw 27 pitches last night, so a long outing today would make him unavailable on Sunday.

Jose Leclerc continues to excel in the late innings

May 22, 2019

Texas Rangers — We expected Chris Martin to get a day off on Tuesday, and it was the just-activated Shawn Kelley who closed out the Rangers’ 5-3 win, though that wasn’t what the team truly envisioned heading into the night. Jose Leclerc pitched what manager Chris Woodward saw as a higher-leverage spot in the eighth inning against the Mariners’ 9-1-2 hitters, who he set down in order. Leclerc has now retired the last 16 batters he has faced and has turned this bullpen into a committee, at least until he wins back the role outright. That should be very soon.

Updated hierarchy: *Martin | Leclerc | Kelley.
* = closer-by-committee

Los Angeles Dodgers – Julio Urias returned to the active roster Tuesday, and manager Dave Roberts said he won’t hesitate to use Urias in high-leverage situations right away. The timing is good for the Dodgers, as Pedro Baez took a comebacker off his right leg at 103 mph. Fortunately for Baez, X-rays were negative. The Dodgers plan to assess where Baez is at over the next couple days, but hopefully Baez can avoid a stint on the injured list.

Updated hierarchy: Jansen | Urias | Floro.

Atlanta Braves – Jacob Webb pitched the eighth inning ahead of Luke Jackson, who allowed a couple of infield singles as part of a four-hit, three-run blown save against the Giants. Manager Brian Snitker thought that Jackson’s breaking ball let him down in what was his second straight blown save. Sean Newcomb will be the most likely benefactor if Jackson loses his grip on the ninth inning, though Jackson’s teammates didn’t seem to think Jackson was to blame for Tuesday’s loss.

Updated hierarchy: Jackson | Newcomb | Webb.

Miami Marlins — Tayron Guerrero pitched the eighth inning ahead of Sergio Romo, striking out two of the three hitters he faced. Guerrero, who hit 101.1 on the radar gun last night, now has an eighth-inning hold in each of his last two appearances. We’ll move him ahead of Nick Anderson, who bounced back from a rough outing on Saturday with five strikeouts over two innings to earn an extra-innings win on Tuesday.

Updated hierarchy: Romo | Conley | Guerrero.

Cincinnati Reds — Amir Garrett struck out three of the four batters he faced during Tuesday’s eighth inning in the Reds’ 3-0 win over the Brewers. Garrett has put together eight straight scoreless appearances in an impressive month of work and should continue to pitch in high-leverage spots.

Updated hierarchy: Iglesias | Hughes | Garrett.

Philadelphia Phillies – Juan Nicasio had a chance to pick up his second save in as many nights on Tuesday, but the Cubs erased a 2-1 deficit to earn a 3-2 victory in the ninth. Hector Neris had appeared in three of the last four games while Pat Neshek warmed up on Monday after pitching Sunday, which kept him out of Tuesday’s game. Seranthony Dominguez meanwhile threw 32 pitches on Monday. 

Hierarchy remains: *Neris | Neshek | Dominguez.
* = closer-by-committee

New York Yankees – David Hale, who the Yankees called up prior to Tuesday’s game, pitched the final four innings of last night’s 11-4 victory over the Orioles. Hale earned the team’s championship belt but it is unlikely he will earn any more saves this season. 

Hierarchy remains: Chapman | Britton | Ottavino.

VULTURE SAVE WATCH
Today
1. Robert Gsellman – Edwin Diaz has pitched in two straight and three of four. Jeurys Familia was booed off the mound last night in a six-pitch outing in the eighth, his second straight appearance. The Mets don’t have Thursday off, so Mickey Callaway may be wise to rest Familia as well and give Gsellman a save chance.
2. Lou Trivino – Blake Treinen has gone in two straight and three of four.
3. Sean Newcomb – Luke Jackson threw 26 pitches last night during his blown save.
4. Adam Warren – Kirby Yates has pitched in two straight and Craig Stammen has thrown in three consecutive days. The Padres do have Thursday off.

Tomorrow
1. Sean Newcomb – If Luke Jackson pitches again today, he should have Thursday off.
2. Adam Conley – If Sergio Romo appears today, that will be two straight outings for him.