Bullpen Report: July 27, 2019

• Greg Holland is code red after allowing two runs and blowing his 5th save last night. Holland’s 3.51 ERA covers up what has been a very mediocre season with a 4.44 SIERA and below average 13.6% K-BB%. Yoan Lopez is next up for the Diamondbacks and I would pick him up if he’s still available and saves are of need. Although a change has not been made, “Lovullo said the Diamondbacks would discuss Holland’s role prior to Saturday’s game.” That’s never what you want to hear, making a Lopez snag all the more worthwhile.

• Edwin Diaz received some good news regarding his foot with the X-rays coming back negative and Diaz set to return soon. With Diaz out last night, Seth Lugo recorded his first save of the year pitching a clean 9th with a strikeout. This firmly places Lugo next in line for the Mets, which isn’t anything we didn’t know but with Diaz available via trade, a speculative pick up of Lugo at least until the trade deadline could be worth your while. Although Lugo isn’t necessarily a shutdown relief ace pumping out 98 mph heaters, he’s been pretty terrific this year with a 2.96 SIERA and 26.1% K-BB%. So even if the Mets asking price is too high on Diaz and Lugo remains a set up option, he still would help your ratios.

• With Shawn Kelley on the IL, the first save opportunity in Texas went to Chris Marin who pitched around a couple of baserunners for his 4th save of the year. Jose Leclerc pitched a scoreless 8th and while there was speculation that he could return to the closer’s chair with Kelley down, it looks like the Rangers are going to roll with Marin instead. Martin is certainly worth owning as he seems to be the main saves candidate in Texas and although Kelley’s IL stint isn’t expected to be particularly long, there’s no guarantee he’s given the keys right away upon his return. Martin is obviously above Leclerc in the pecking order as well but Leclerc is still lurking in the background as at least the closer of the future, but whether that’s September or Opening Day 2020 we don’t yet know.

• Will Smith closed out the game in the 11th for his 25th save for the Giants. The trade winds have been a little slower than expected overall this July, and with the Giants playing well there is no guarantee that Smith is even moved. Whether or not that’s a smart decision by the Giants is up for others to decide but if Smith does stay, he should remain a top-10 closing option for the remainder of the season. If Smith is traded then he likely moves into a a set up or committee which would hurt his value. There are plenty of compelling options to replace Smith in SF if he’s traded but Sam Dyson has started to firm up that role. If you need saves and Dyson is on the wire, he’s worth a speculative add, even if the probability that Smith is traded is lower than it seemed a few weeks ago.

• Quick Hits: Carlos Martinez has a firm grasp on the 9th and nailed down his 10th save last night. It’s clear Martinez will close here on out, but of more interest is how the Cardinals will use him next year. Those who have him in dynasty leagues are probably hoping he just stays at closer for some set it and forget saves. We speculated this week that Freddy Peralta could gain more responsibility in the Brewers pen but for now it’s still Hader as he struck out a pair for his 23rd save last night. In case you missed it earlier this week, check out FiveThirtyEight’s piece on Hader’s mysterious fastball. We still have Emilio Pagan ahead in the pecking order but it’s still a committee with Colin Poche getting the save last night for his 1st save. Kenley Jansen has likely exited the elite closer’s conversation but he’s still a great option on a great team and pitched around three baserunners and an earned run for his 25th save.