Bullpen Report: August 23, 2012
• After quittin’ time on Wednesday, Aroldis Chapman saved his 23rd consecutive game — tying a franchise record held by John Franco (1988) and Rob Dibble (1991) — to up his successful save tally to 31 on the year. Chapman continues to make his case for Cy Young consideration, as he now holds a 1.31 ERA and a 16.26 K/9 (7.47 K/BB) while holding opposing batters to a .138 average.
• According to Adam Rubin, the Mets beat writer for ESPNNewYork.com, Frank Francisco and his $6.5 million salary will be the closer in Queens again in 2013. However, this news came just hours before the Rockies beat up Francisco for two runs on three hits — resulting in the pitcher giving a water cooler a beating in the dugout at the conclusion of the inning. Looking forward to more of the same next year, aren’t ya Mets fans?
• Matt Belisle notched his first save of the season tonight in a 1-0 Rockies victory over the Mets. Belisle yielded a lead-off single, but retired the next three Metropolitans in order to put the bagel on the scoreboard and secure the save. It’s likely the Rockies asked Belisle to close out the game due to Rafael Betancourt working in three of the past four days — including a 25-pitch effort on Wednesday night in Flushing Meadows. This nothing more than the elder closer getting some much needed rest — Betancourt should get the next save opportunity for the Rox.
• For those rotisserie leaguers attempting to gain some late-season ground in the ratio and/or strikeout categories, you may want to consider the Diamondbacks’ David Hernandez. On the season, the right-hander sports a 2.33 ERA (3.05 xFIP) with a 1.04 WHIP and a 3.80 K/BB. Most importantly, the reliever is in the midst of what is arguably his most efficient month. Hernandez has taken to the bump on ten occasions in August (9.2 IP) with a 0.93 ERA and a 5.33 K/BB — just about matching his May ERA with an improvement in his K/BB. Hernandez is available in 88 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: Andrew Bailey (BOS) vs. KC
Alfredo Aceves got shelled tonight, giving up five earned runs on six hits and a walk to take the loss against the Los Angeles Trouts of Anaheim. While Aceves has been pretty reliable as of late, it’s hard to imagine Bobby Valentine asking Aceves to take the hill again on Friday after his treacherous 37 pitch outing on Thursday.
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.
Hey Alan, are you related to Matt Harrison?
As for the SFO situation, I’m pretty sure Javier Lopez has passed Affeldt on the food chain. Affeldt/Lopez usage in the past few days pointing to Lopez getting more save chances and Affeldt being used more in a LOOGY situation.
I bet it’s a split between Romo/Lopez