Bullpen Report: May 5, 2014

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May 5, 2014

• John Axford did not pitch well last night and lucky for Cody Allen owners he did not pitch well this evening either, getting the loss against the Twins. Axford has a blown save and a loss in his last two outings and his seasonal ERA/FIP/xFIP is now 4.85/6.59/5.29. Not good. In the same game Cody Allen threw a scoreless inning with two strikeouts, continuing his great start to the season. We have known for a while that Allen is the better pitcher but it’s finally time that he starts seeing save opportunities. No switch has been made yet but my guess is that something is imminent. I can’t imagine Allen is still unowned in any active leagues, but he is a must have for any fantasy team. Allen won’t be sitting on your waiver wire but you still might be able to snag him in a trade, netting a possible top-ten closer at a discounted price.

• Daisuke Matsuzaka had a forgettable eighth inning tonight, allowing four guys to reach base and three to score without recording an out. Kyle Farnsworth relieved Dice-BB and finished the inning, striking out a batter while issuing a walk. Farnsworth isn’t a particularly compelling ninth inning option for the Mets or for fantasy teams, but he’s the guy right now and it doesn’t look like Matsuzaka or anyone else is breathing down is neck.

• Casey Janssen pitched an inning in a rehab assignment today, allowing two singles, a popup and two groundouts. In place of the recently removed Sergio Santos, Brett Cecil notched his second of the season. Aaron Loup pitched a scorless seventh and Steve Delabar a scoreless eighth tonight as well. As Colin mentioned, all three could see save opportunities until Janssen is back in Toronto but it looks as though Cecil will be getting the looks for now. However, provided Janssen comes out of his rehab assignment without any additional setbacks, the job could he his upon arrival.

• Mark Melancon blew his first save tonight as he fills in for injured closer Jason Grilli. Melancon’s job isn’t in jeopardy but depending on how he performs in lieu of Grilli he could finish the season as the ninth inning option in Pittsburgh. That still remains a possibility as Grilli isn’t close to returning. Grilli played catch today, but has not yet thrown off a mound as he rehabs from an oblique injury. Melancon and his 2.26 SIERA are probably the best option for saves even when Grilli is back but Melancon will need to avoid outings like this to really pad his save totals this season.

• Quick Hits: Joe Nathan picked up save number six tonight, closing out a shutout of the Astros and Trevor Rosenthal pitched around a hit and a walk for a scoreless ninth and his ninth save of the year.

Closer Grid:

Closer First Second DL/Minors
Arizona Addison Reed J.J. Putz Brad Ziegler
Atlanta Craig Kimbrel Jordan Walden David Carpenter
Baltimore Tommy Hunter Darren O’Day Brian Matusz
Boston Koji Uehara Junichi Tazawa Edward Mujica
CHI (NL) Hector Rondon Pedro Strop Justin Grimm Kyuji Fujikawa
CHI (AL) Matt Lindstrom Ronald Belisario Daniel Webb Nate Jones
Cincy Jonathan Broxton Sam LeCure J.J. Hoover Aroldis Chapman
Cleveland John Axford Cody Allen Bryan Shaw
Colorado LaTroy Hawkins Adam Ottavino Rex Brothers
Detroit Joe Nathan Joba Chamberlain Al Alburquerque Joel Hanrahan
Houston Chad Qualls Josh Fields Anthony Bass Jesse Crain
KC Greg Holland Wade Davis Aaron Crow
LAA Joe Smith Ernesto Frieri Kevin Jepsen Dane de la Rosa
LAD Kenley Jansen Chris Perez Brian Wilson
Miami Steve Cishek A.J. Ramos Mike Dunn
Milwaukee Francisco Rodriguez Will Smith Brandon Kintzler Jim Henderson
Minnesota Glen Perkins Jared Burton Casey Fien
NY (NL) Kyle Farnsworth Daisuke Matsuzaka Jose Valverde Bobby Parnell
NY (AL) David Robertson Shawn Kelley Adam Warren
Oakland Luke Gregerson Jim Johnson Sean Doolittle
Philly Jonathan Papelbon Antonio Bastardo Mike Adams
Pittsburgh Mark Melancon Tony Watson Justin Wilson Jason Grilli
St. Louis Trevor Rosenthal Carlos Martinez Kevin Siegrist Jason Motte
SD Huston Street Joaquin Benoit Alex Torres
SF Sergio Romo Santiago Casilla Jeremy Affeldt
Seattle Fernando Rodney Danny Farquhar Tom Wilhelmsen
TB Grant Balfour Joel Peralta Jake McGee
Texas Joakim Soria Alexi Ogando Jason Frasor Neftali Feliz
Toronto Brett Cecil Steve Delabar Aaron Loup Casey Janssen
Wash. Rafael Soriano Tyler Clippard Drew Storen

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





 

When he's not focusing on every team's bullpen situation, Ben can be found blogging at Ben's Baseball Bias and on Twitter @BensBias

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Brett
9 years ago

I was just making this same comment on the Fake Teams closer rankings. I think it may be time to move Gregerson out of the Oakland closer spot. (Even as a red-highlighted closer.) Yes, Gregerson has the last save recorded by an Athletic. But that was April 20, believe it or not. Then on April 22 he blew a save and took the loss after giving up two runs when he entered the 9th with a 1 run lead. He hasn’t seen a save opportunity (or anything that looks like normal closer usage) since then:

4/25 – pitched the 8th inning with the game tied, and got the win when Oakland scored 7 runs in the 9th
4/26 – tie game going into the 8th, but Doolittle allowed four straight singles (and two runs) to start the inning. Gregerson came in and allowed the two inherited runners to score (charged to Doolittle) before closing out the inning. (Oakland scored 3 in the 9th to only lose by 1.)
4/30 – pitched the 8th inning with a 12-run lead (allowed the only Rangers run of the game)
5/3 – pitched the 8th inning with a 6-run deficit
5/4 – came in with two outs in the 7th with a 1-run lead. pitched a full inning, getting pulled with two outs in the 8th.

I’m not an A’s fan, and I don’t particularly want to be inside Bob Melvin’s mind. But I think Johnson is the guy again already, they just haven’t had a chance to show it. Since getting a hold in the April 20th game where Gregerson got his last save, Johnson has finished the game in his last four appearances. Granted, three of those were in losses, before getting the win in Sunday’s extra-innings game. But if I were to bet, I’d say Johnson pitches the next time there’s a save situation for Oakland.

2
Kevin
9 years ago
Reply to  Brett

^This^

I dropped Gregerson for Johnson three bullpen reports ago and haven’t thought twice about it again. I guess the lack of opportunities hasn’t cleared this up but they clearly seem to be using Johnson in the “closer” role.

0
DividedByZero
9 years ago
Reply to  Kevin

Then there’s last night’s line for Johnson. When down by 1 in the top of the ninth
0.2IP, 25PC, 2H, 4R, 0ER, 2BB, 1K

The error was Johnson’s throwing error when trying to field a bunt. Meanwhile, Doolittle showed some life by striking out 4 straight batters before getting replaced by Gregerson.

I’d say the situation is still a mess.

0