Bullpen Report: August 19, 2014

Apologies for a more abbreviated Report tonight but I’ll be sure to hit the comment section hard throughout the day tomorrow.

• Trevor Rosenthal blew his fifth save late last night, continuing some of his recent struggles. Pat Neshek has had an incredible season thus far and is worth owning regardless of how well Rosie is pitching but he’s certainly more of a must add considering Rosenthal has allowed earned runs in his last three outings. However, Mike Matheny is still behind Rosie and it’s worth putting his struggles in some context. From July 8th to August 13th, Rosenthal allowed only two earned runs in 14.1 innings pitched with a 19/4 K/BB and since then has walked 6 batters, allowing four earned runs in 2.1 innings pitched. If Rosenthal was a starter we would chalk it up to a bad outing, but as a closer it carries more meaning, often more than is deserved.

• A rough evening for two of the league’s best closers as Koji Uehara and David Robertson both received a notch in the loss column. Robertson only recorded one out in the ninth, surrendering three runs off of a Chris Carter homer. Dellin Betances pitched a scoreless eighth with two strikeouts because of course he did. If the Yankees decide to let Robertson walk in the offseason, Betances will likely be one of the top closers in fantasy baseball next year and would likely qualify as a good keeper for 2015 if he’s getting saves with his unbelievable stuff. Koji Uehara entered a tie game in the top of the ninth but allowed a run to score.

• Quick Hits: The Mariners bullpen allowed for a save situation after a phenomenal Hisashi Iwakuma start and Fernando Rodney came in to shoot his 36th arrow of the year. Huston Street, who had the night off yesterday, came in to secure the win for the Angels, getting his 34th save overall and 10th for the Angels. A nice bounce back performance after a blown save in his last outing. Neal Cotts was on the hook for the loss against the Marlins but Neftali Feliz allowed the Mike Stanton Giancarlo Stanton walk-off after coming on to face him with two on and and two out in the ninth. Feliz owns a 2.33 ERA but a 4.94 FIP and average 92 mph fastball, indicates he’s not the closer he used to be. He’s in no danger of losing his job but when ranking relievers next year, I wouldn’t pay much attention to Feliz’ ERA and overrate his ability.

Closer Grid:

[Green light, yellow light, red light: the colors represent the volatility of the bullpen order.]