Bullpen Report: August 16, 2012
• Dale Thayer looks to be the closer to own in San Diego for the foreseeable future. Padres’ manager Bud Black indicated today that “Street’s injury is going to be past the 15 days.” At this time there doesn’t appear to be an exact timetable for Street’s return, although Corey Brock suggests it “won’t likely come before September.” Thayer has earned six saves in eight chances this season and sports a 3.51 ERA (4.12 xFIP) with a 3.33 K/BB. He’s available in 80 percent of Yahoo! leagues.
• Alfredo Aceves dished a clean ninth inning tonight, fanning each of the three Orioles he faced en route to his 24th save of the year. Aceves needed just 15 pitches to to lock down the game for the Red Sox in what was arguably one of the right-hander’s best outings this season. Maybe Aceves has been reading all of our Bullpen Reports regarding Bailey’s return, and felt the need to show us he still has what it takes to hold down the ninth in Beantown. However, I still believe that Andrew Bailey, who has just one not-so-hot appearance since his return from the disabled list, will reclaim the closer’s role in Boston after being eased back into the big league routine.
• For the second time in a week, Terry Collins was forced to pull Frank Francisco in the ninth inning after failing to get the job done. Tonight, Francisco entered in a non-save situation, but after surrendering three earned runs on four hits and a walk, the righty was lifted in favor of Jon Rauch. Rauch fanned the only batter he faced and earned his third save of the season as the Mets clipped the Reds, 8-4. Like we always preach here at the Bullpen Report, it’s difficult to guesstimate who will be next in line for saves. But for the Metropolitans, it appears that Frank Francisco is working himself out of the ninth inning discussion while Jon Rauch is throwing his name back into the mix.
• Grant Balfour earned his second consecutive save tonight since becoming the head of the closer-by-committee monster in Oakland. Balfour made quick work of the Royals in the bottom of the ninth — needing just 15 pitches to lock down his ninth save of the season. The “closer from down under” is now 9-of-11 in save opportunities in 2012 with a 2.62 ERA (0.98 WHIP) and a less-than-stellar 2.09 K/BB. Balfour is available in 57 percent of Yahoo! leagues.
For those of you who play daily fantasy games like FanGraphs: The Game, or just like to stream players, here is a matchup you may be able to exploit.
A Pitcher for Tomorrow: Carlos Marmol (CHC) vs. CIN
It may be surprising to some that Carlos Marmol’s last blown save came on April 24th against the Cardinals, and even more surprising that he’s saved 13 consecutive games since. His ratios have been far from perfect since that blown save, but Marmol could be an affordable option in daily leagues tomorrow for owners looking to grab some strikeouts and a potential save.
Closer Grid:
[Green light, yellow light, red light: the colors represent the volatility of the bullpen order.]
In addition to contributing to the RotoGraphs blog, you can find Alan at his own site, TheFantasyFix.com and follow his nonsense on Twitter @TheFantasyFix.
I’m still confused why Jim Johnson is yellow? A few epic fails over a couple of weeks aside, he’s still pretty lockdown!