Bullpen Report, Tuesday, September 15, 2015
Tonight’s bullpen report is going to be a wrap up of the last two nights of action.
Freddy Galvis bombed one off of Jonathon Papelbon on Monday night, and for all the vitriol spewed at Papelbon, it was only his first blown save of the year. It put him in line for the win, which he got when the Nats pushed one across in the 11th inning. Doug Fister, yes, Doug Fister, picked up the first save of his career. It was his first outing in 13 days. He’s not cracking the grid at this point.
Greg Holland has some issues. Kelvin Herrera gave up three earned runs on three hits and a walk on Monday night. He’s given up six earned in his past two outings. And his velocity is down too a bit. It’s looking like things could be better in the Royals pen right about now. They have a big lead in the AL Central, do they rest up Holland and Herrera, who have thrown 116.3 and 147.7 innings respectively since Opening Day 2014, including last October? That’s something you want to keep an eye on if you have these guys in your playoffs. Holland sat 91.3 mph on Tuesday, hitting 94. He gave up a hit and a walk, but no runs, earning save 31. He even generated three whiffs on his seven sliders. By him pitching Tuesday, it doesn’t look like he’ll get a long breather, but if his results aren’t there, that can hurt you in a H2H playoff. Frankly, I’d stay away depending on what other options are out there.
Erasmo Ramirez twirled a wonderful gem against the Yankees Monday, not giving up his first hit until the eighth inning. With a little help from newly-minted late-inning stud Alex Colome, the ball was handed to Brad Boxberger with a one-run lead in the ninth. It happens from time to time, but this was one of the nights when the Box stunk. He gave up a three-run shot to Slade Heathcott, allowing many to breathlessly whisper, “Slade Heathcott” for the first time since May. Boxberger’s velocity has been on the decline, and he has 10 losses to go along with his 34 saves. Colome looks to be a seventh-eighth inning guy, so I don’t see Boxberger relinquishing the role at this point, barring an injury. Boxberger was given a blow on Tuesday night after pitching three of the previous four games, opening the door for Brandon Gomes to earn his first save.
Chris Hatcher and Jim Johnson are flipping spots on the grid in light of Hatcher getting the save opportunity on Monday night. He nailed it down for his third of the year.
Glen Perkins could be back as early as Friday. There is no guarantee that he’ll slide back into the closer role, as manager Paul Molitor hasn’t said which way he’ll lean. Maybe he has, but I haven’t seen it. If you see it, please post in the comments. I’d hold on to Kevin Jepsen for now.
Of Note: Tyler Clippard had the night off on Monday, as Addison Reed continued his strong work since joining the Mets at the end of August, picking up hold number 11. He hasn’t given up a run as a Met, and is rocking a solid 25.7% K%-BB%. Jeurys Familia picked up save 41. David Robertson couldn’t hold a four-run lead on Monday against the A’s, as he gave up four(two earned), allowing the game to continue for a total of 14 innings. Zach Britton(33), Andrew Miller(33), Shawn Tolleson(32) and Santiago Casilla(33) earned saves on Monday night. Aaron Sanchez was shaky in Atlanta, surrendering four hits to the Braves in 1.3 innings and taking the loss. Brett Cecil continued his dominance, as he hasn’t given up an earned run since the end of June. I don’t think he’d get a save opportunity over Sanchez, but you never know. I’d have him on my team to help with ratios anyway over Sanchez. For the Braves, Arodys Vizcaino got back on track with a perfect ninth to earn the win, and the Braves bullpen had their first game in 2015 where they didn’t give up a run. That’s a lie, it just feels like the truth. They didn’t give up a run though, that part was true. Bruce Rondon filled up his line with one of everything except a home run. He put up an ERA of 9.00 for the night and got a save, his fifth of the year. Mark Melancon(46) and Trevor Rosenthal(44) earned saves on Tuesday 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.
Jansen wasn’t used for the save on Monday, and even though the Dodgers plowed through 11 pitchers in their 16 inning marathon last night, Jansen again wasn’t one of them. Is there a reason for this? I’ve looked around for any news on Jansen but can’t find any explanation.
Jansen pitched poorly on the 13th (Sunday), but, as far as I can tell, he just hasn’t pitched the last two games for rest purposes. Rotoworld says, “Regular closer Kenley Jansen had thrown 33 pitches the night before and Monday would have marked three days in a row of work, so manager Don Mattingly opted to give him a night off.” Rotowire concurs: “Hatcher likely only received the call for the save chance because Kenley Jansen was unavailable after pitching the last two days.” I assume yesterday Jansen didn’t pitch because Mattingly just wanted to give him an extra day of rest.
Plus this:
https://twitter.com/markasaxon/status/644059513130217472