Bullpen Report: Friday, July 10, 2015
Hector Rondon pitched the eighth inning against the White Sox on Friday, didn’t surrender a hit, didn’t walk a man, and yet was saddled with the loss and an earned run. After he plunked Emilio Bonifacio, a stolen base was followed by a sac bunt and a sac fly for the only run of the game. His usage by Maddon fit in with how he’s slotted on the closer grid. Justin Grimm came on for the ninth once the Cubs fell behind. The White Sox used a late inning trio of Jake Petricka, Zach Duke, and David Robertson to shut out the Cubs over three innings, striking out six and allowing only two baserunners. The save was Robertson’s 19th.
Aaron Barrett returned from the DL and was tasked with holding the lead in the seventh against Baltimore. He struck out two in a perfect inning and replaces Matt Thornton on the closer grid. Casey Janssen has hit a bit of a rough patch, as he’s given up an earned run in each of his past three appearances. It’s not like he was shelled either, he gave up a single on a dribbler to third, got Adam Jones on a lineout and was replaced by Thornton. He gave up a double that allowed Janssen’s runner to score. His velocity isn’t off, but if he continues to give up runs, whether he’s getting shelled or not, look for a shuffle with Barrett and David Carpenter moving up and bumping Janssen down. His 6.4% K%-BB% leaves soooooo much to be desired. The Nats aren’t shy about making moves at the deadline, so don’t be surprised if a name not on the Nats roster is setting up Drew Storen down the stretch. Until Matt Williams demonstrates a change in usage, Janssen will stay where he is on the grid.
Going into the bottom of the ninth with a 6-1 lead, you wouldn’t think you’d need your closer. Bruce Rondon had his second atrocious outing of the year, striking out one, but also giving up two singles and a double. That was enough for Brad Ausmus, and he called on Joakim Soria in what had become a save situation. A walk and a HBP closed the gap to one. Brian Dozier took him over the wall to score the remaining two runners, giving Soria an ugly line of four earned in zero innings. It was only his third blown save and first loss of the year. The Tigers have signed Neftali Feliz and he will be heading to Minneapolis. No word on where he’ll slot in to the late inning situation for the Tigers, but beyond Soria, there are no defined roles, so if he shows he can get the job done, he could find himself pitching in the eighth inning before too long.
Of Note: Aroldis Chapman gassed the side on 17 pitches to cement a 1-0 win for the Reds. It was his 18th save on the year. Greg Holland accomplished the same feat against the Blue Jays, and was rewarded with his 18th save. Huston Street is likely going to be held out of action through the weekend, but should be back right after the break. Look for Joe Smith to grab any available saves over the weekend. Chad Qualls returned from the DL, bumping Josh Fields off the grid. He threw one pitch and induced a double play. He should be fresh if needed Saturday. After giving up a walk-off Grand Slam on Tuesday, Brad Boxberger realized he’s been tipping his pitches. Evidently he made a correction, as he struck out two for his 22nd save on Friday night. Jake McGee and Kevin Jepsen haven’t had many appearances in the past week, and this is just a result of no situations arising for them to be used. Dellin Betances and Andrew Miller are settling back into their roles after Miller returned from the DL. They both had matching perfect innings with a couple of strikeouts. They were protecting a four-run cushion, so no holds or saves were handed out. Arodys Vizcaino topped 100 mph on Friday night, and if he can continue to throw his secondaries for strikes(all three of his outs came on his curve), he could be a valuable weapon for the Braves down the stretch. I’d like to see more whiffs from him though. Shawn Tolleson continued his outstanding 2015 campaign and snagged his 13th save of the year. Mark Melancon(29), Jeurys Familia(25), Cody Allen(19), John Axford(16) and Kenley Jansen(15) all earned saves Friday night.
Closer Grid:
[Green light, yellow light, red light: the colors represent the volatility of the bullpen order.]
Darren contributes to RotoGraphs when he isn’t watching the Braves or shoveling snow. Follow him on Twitter @shinesie.
Thornton should never have been brought in to turn Wieters around. Wieters hits lefties MUCH better than righties.