Bullpen Report: Sunday, May 17

Happy Victoria Day long weekend! Here’s the bullpen report for Sunday with some Saturday tidbits sprinkled in.

The Giants decided that they wanted pretty much everyone in the bullpen to get a hold today. After Chris Heston struggled against the Reds, Yusmiero Petit shut them down for three innings, and he ended up with the win after Javier Lopez, George Kontos, Jeremy Affeldt and Sergio Romo paraded in from the pen to each earn a hold. Santiago Casilla ended the game in delicious fashion, striking out the side on nine pitches. He’s not known as being a strikeout guy, as his 9.8% K%-BB% is exactly in line with his career mark. It was his ninth save on the season.

Zach Britton continued on with his quietly dominant 2015 campaign. His 3.21 ERA isn’t indicative of how well he’s pitched for the Orioles this year, and has been inflated by a .361 BABIP. You’d expect a higher than average BABIP from someone with a higher GB%, and at 75.7%, Britton definitely falls in that category. One big difference in his numbers so far this year is the 27.1% K%-BB%, which is way above his career mark of 7.7% and roughly double what he posted last year. Against the Angels, he sandwiched two singles between a pair of groundouts and a game-ending strikeout to snag his eighth save.

The Rangers called up Ross Ohlendorf and Tanner Scheppers on Sunday, and they were both put to work immediately in a close game. Ohlendorf struck out one in his inning of work, and Tanner Scheppers retired six Indians on 18 pitches. Neftali Feliz was up in the Ranger pen with a 4-1 lead, then sat down. By the time you read this we’ll know if there is something physically wrong with Feliz. Shawn Tolleson started warming when the lead was still 4-1, well before the Rangers pushed ahead another run to eliminate the save opportunity. The Rangers bullpen is the reddest red possible right now. If there is something wrong with Feliz and a DL stint looms, don’t hesitate to run out and pick up Tolleson. He gave up a single to the molten-hot Jason Kipnis and struck out two in his scoreless frame.

Of Note: Jake McGee touched 99 and was dominant in his first inning of the year Sunday, coming on in the seventh inning against the Twins, striking out two. Pat Neshek got his ninth hold and Luke Gregerson earned his tenth save as they nailed down the win for Collin McHugh. Mark Melancon hit 92 mph on Sunday and pitched another scoreless inning. The Pirates pen is back to green. Kenley Jansen was activated and Pedro Baez was placed on the DL in a corresponding weekend move. Jansen pitched a perfect ninth, striking out one in his return. Sergio Santos had a shaky Sunday for the Dodgers, look for him to be getting the short end of the stick when Baez returns.

Notes from Saturday: Cody Allen shut down the Rangers in the ninth for his sixth save, and looked good doing so. He struck out one in a clean inning. He was afforded the opportunity after the Rangers pen frittered away the lead. Keone Kela gave up a run on three singles. Shawn Tolleson bailed him out by striking out Nick Swisher to end the seventh, then wriggled out of a bases loaded jam that he got himself into. Neftali Feliz capped his three-run ninth by giving up an absolute bomb to Jason Kipnis. Tolleson would be next in line if changes happen in Texas. Jason Grilli and his 5.11 ERA gave up one of the three-run cushion he had in the ninth and got his eleventh save. He’s sporting a 2.51 FIP, but the .367 BABIP and 64.1% LOB% make the ERA ugly. The Cubs moved Travis Wood to the bullpen, and he earned his first career save on Saturday. He’s obviously not the closer for the Cubs now, but Joe Maddon won’t hesitate to use him in pretty much any role necessary, and hasn’t ruled out a return to the rotation down the road.

Closer Grid:

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