Bullpen Report: June 27, 2019

• After a longer than normal offseason for him, Craig Kimbrel is back on the Cubs as he’s getting activated and is now no longer a Cubs minor leaguer. Kimbrel didn’t join the Cubs to not pitch in the 9th inning so he immediately moves to the top of the grid with Pedro Strop and Steve Cishek behind him in the pecking order. Kimbrel showed a few signs last year of some rust but 90% of Prime Kimbrel is still an elite closing option. It’s probably smarter to wait to see how Kimbrel does before anointing him as such but he will surely have a long leash, he will get strike outs even if he’s not as effective as expected, and the Cubs should provide him a healthy dose of leads to protect.

• The trade rumors are starting to percolate with Jon Morosi going over a few relievers who could be on the market. The Pirates have yet to suggest they’re going to fully sell and as a result haven’t mentioned Felipe Vazquez as a trade piece but Morosi connects the Dodgers as someone to have interest in Vazquez. Any contending team would of course love to add a Felipe Vazquez but until he’s mentioned as available it’s hard to say anything is imminent. With that said, Vazquez would likely lose his closer’s role on the Dodgers with Kenley Jansen cemented there. And while every team would love a Vazquez, not every team has the assets to acquire but the Dodgers do have a great farm system with a few pieces MLB or near MLB ready which is likely something the Pirates would want if they were to “rebuild.”

Of more interest in the Morosi piece is Will Smith, who we have mentioned as a trade candidate since the season started. Although the Giants have been horrible, Smith has upped his game becoming not just a solid lefty option but a shutdown reliever. Will Smith ranks 3rd in the MLB in K-BB% for relievers behind Josh Hader and Ken Giles but ahead of bigger names like Edwin Diaz, Brad Hand, and Felipe Vazquez. The Giants expected to trade Will Smith this summer but they likely didn’t expect to get as big of a return as they might get given how well Smith has done. If/when Smith is traded, it will be interesting to see who replaces him. Tony Watson’s usage suggests it could be him but Sam Dyson and Mark Melancon (and his contract) are also lingering. Reyes Moronta is the closer of the future but there are too many options ahead of him at the moment. Also, while Smith gets a lot of the deserved attention, all the aforementioned names behind him in the pen are on the table too and could be moved in a deal either with or separately from Smith.

• For a while Matt Barnes was named the best reliever in Boston but wasn’t being used as the main closer. While he still might be the best reliever of the bunch he hasn’t been of late as his struggles continued last night blowing his 6th save after Jose Abreu took him deep in the 9th inning.  The Sox pen remains both a committee and a disaster with Barnes, Workman, Brasier, and others eligible for a save on a given night.

• Speaking of disasters, Raisel Iglesias had one last night in a non-save situation. Iglesias entered in a tie game in the 8th and proceeded to allow three hits, a walk, and a homer to Justin Bour culminating in four earned runs and a 7th loss. Iglesias’ seasonal line is still pretty good with a 3.68 SIERA and a healthy amount of whiffs but he has been a legitimate disaster in non-save situations. A poor outing is a poor outing and it’s hard to fully buy into Iglesias not being as good in non-save situations moving forward, but earlier this season he confessed his distaste for being used non-traditionally so it might force the Reds hand to use him as a regular closer. Iglesias’ struggles outside of the 9th make me less likely to put the Reds situation as a committee even if they have low key been trending towards that direction. I’m keeping the grid the same with Iglesias’ seat getting a tad warm.

• Quick Hits: Taylor Rogers had a four-out save and his grasp on the job is tightening. As we have mentioned, the Twins could very likely add to their pen and throw Rogers and co. back into a committee but for now he’s their guy. Roenis Elias recorded his 10th save, throwing two innings in the process and he’s proving himself as someone capable to close games or be used as a lefty and should be a decent trade target this summer because as we know everything is for sale in Seattle. A.J. Minter got the save last night with Luke Jackson and Anthony Swarzak getting a night off. Minter is still behind those two in the pecking order but he’s been pretty good of late and is helping firm the Braves pen. Liam Hendricks nailed down his 2nd save of the year with Blake Treinen on the IL. Treinen has a shoulder issue so I wouldn’t bank on a quick return and would bank on Hendricks receiving the vast majority of saves for the remainder of the year in Oakland. Sean Doolittle (17) and  Wade Davis (11) also recorded saves last night.