A few closers took steps toward making fantasy owners more comfortable on Thursday night, but some of the bigger bullpen developments took place before the ninth inning. Still, saves are what we care the most about in fantasy, so let’s start there. Wade Davis had his third consecutive scoreless outing, and in allowing nothing more than a Freddie Freeman single, he preserved the Rockies’ 5-3 lead against the Braves. This was his first save since giving up a pair of homers and taking a loss against the Dodgers exactly one week earlier. Like Davis, Jose Leclerc worked around a leadoff hit to notch a save, as he closed out the Rangers’ 8-6 win over the Angels.

The most notable save, though, was Koda Glover’s against the Cardinals, as it was his first save opportunity since being named as the Nationals’ closer in the wake of Ryan Madson (back) going on the DL. Glover raised the degree of difficulty on his inning by allowing a two-out Jose Martinez single and then walking Matt Carpenter, which put the tying run in scoring position. The drama was short-lived, as Yadier Molina flied out on the first pitch he saw from Glover.
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• Although he’s not pitching particularly well and he’s not on a particularly good team saves are saves and Trevor Hildenberger is getting them for the Twins. Hildy closed out a 6-4 win for the Twins for his third save of the year, issuing one walk and striking out a man in the 9th inning. This situation still might be fluid but after going 3-3 on saves I’m expecting Hildenberger to receive the lion’s share of opportunities as we close out the season.

• On August 7th, Ken Giles allowed 5 earned runs without completing an inning and his role at the MLB level let alone as closer seemed to be in jeopardy. Since then he’s allowed 2 runs in 4 innings but is also 3-3 on saves, suggesting the Blue Jays are going to roll him out  for each save opportunity moving forward. Of course nobody is immune to multiple melt downs but I’d expect Giles to have a solid leash moving forward. On the season, his 6.04 ERA looks unsightly but he’s also running a 41/4 k/bb with a 3.45 FIP and 2.85 SIERA. Giles peripherals are always dominant but he’s been prone to gopheritis this year. He may not be as dominant as his line would suggest but if he can avoid the long ball, he could have a strong finish.

• Every year there are a few bullpen situations that arise that give you a heart attack on who to pick up for saves, and right now that seems to be the White Sox. Jeanmar Gomez started the ninth but was unable to finish the inning as Luis Avilan came in for the save. I’m fairly certain Gomez won’t see the next save opportunity but I’m not sure if Avilan will either. I’m calling this a full on committee with Xavier Cedeno, Juan Minaya, Jace Fry, and honestly anyone else in the pen who is scheduled to be available that night in Chicago. While I said saves are saves for Hildenberger above, this might actually be a different situation where the recommended course of action is to avoid.

• No save situation for the Cubs as it was a four run lead but Pedro Strop threw a scoreless ninth nonetheless. Strop’s done an excellent job filling in for Morrow and on the year has a 3.16 FIP and 3.56 SIERA. He’s not elite but he’s plenty good enough and closing on a top team that should provide many save opportunities for the rest of the season. How many saves go to Strop and not Morrow depends on the latter’s recovery. Right now Morrow is expected to throw from a mound this weekend but his return date to the majors is still in question. Maybe this is an optimistic Strop owner talking, but I don’t expect Morrow to be back soon and when he does return I’m not confident that he will immediately take over his old role. Strop is doing the job and so long as he’s putting up 0’s in the 9th, he should continue to rack up saves.

• Quick Hits: Another game another Edwin Diaz save as he picked up his 47th in extras against the A’s. Pairing 47 saves with an ERA under two and 103 strikeouts and counting, Diaz has been a top 10 player in fantasy this year. You can’t predict guys to get 60 saves in a season but he’s proven to be one of a few elite options for this year and likely in next year’s drafts. Seranthony Dominguez got four outs for his 13th save. The Phillies might throw a wrench or two and give some others a save chance but Dominguez is still the man to own there. Cody Allen pitched a perfect 7th and 8th innings with four strikeouts handing the ball to Hand for his 28th save, continuing what has become a committee of great options in Cleveland. AJ Minter struck out a pair and received his 11th save. He’s closing with Arodys Vizcaino is on the DL but considering this job became fluid when he was healthy, I would bet on Minter holding the job even when Vizcaino returns.

Remember when Sean Doolittle was diagnosed with a strained toe and Davey Martinez said he just needed a day off?

That was 38 days and three closers ago. Doolittle’s injury — a stress reaction in his left foot — turned out to be far more serious, and while he is back to throwing off a mound as of Tuesday, the Nationals’ bullpen has been riddled with injuries and instability. They placed Ryan Madson on the 10-day disabled list on Tuesday, as he continued to experience back soreness even after getting treatment. So with Doolittle, Madson and Kelvin Herrera all on the DL, Martinez will now turn to Koda Glover, who is just a few weeks removed from his own recovery from a shoulder injury.
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Sorry for the late entry, received a call to the bullpen to fill-in on short notice, suddenly understanding how a reliever feels. As to the action on Monday night, a small slate of games provided plenty of upheaval. For the third straight game, the Dodgers bullpen cratered giving up a late lead leading to its fourth loss in a row. Scott Alexander, who owns the last save recorded by this bullpen, served up four hits and four runs (three earned) in two-thirds of an inning resulting in his second blown save and first loss of the season. While the team tries to retool the depth in high leverage innings, neither Kenta Maeda nor Ross Stripling have worked since their starts in Colorado. Due to the past performances by Dylan Floro, Alexander and J.T. Chargois, it stands to reason Maeda or Stripling will be available in relief going forward. Do not count out Caleb Ferguson either.

Ferguson’s being prepared to work in back-to-back games and has pitched well as a reliever. In 11 outings as a reliever, Ferguson’s 3-0 with two saves, a 1.14 ERA in 23.2 innings, owns an enticing 28:3 K:BB and a respectable 0.80 WHIP. Also, Julio Urias could rejoin this group soon to add more upside in the late innings. Due to the fluidity, owning a reliever for primary saves could be tough on the Dodgers, so keep focused on how the rest of the week progresses noting how Dave Roberts deploys his new cache of options in order to determine the new hierarchy in high leverage. Read the rest of this entry »

The past week saw several closing situations change hands. Are we on the verge of seeing another one flip?

Some fantasy owners have been anticipating a change of closer with the Astros, but only because they traded for Roberto Osuna. Hector Rondon has held off Osuna so far, and even after allowing Ryon Healy’s game-tying homer on Sunday, he hasn’t done anything that would seem to merit a demotion to a setup role. He did give up four runs to the Rangers in a non-save situation just over two weeks ago, but until Sunday that had been the only real blemish on Rondon’s stat line over the past month. In his eight other appearances, he had shut out the opposition over 8.1 innings on just two hits and two walks.
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Several closer situations have flipped in recent days, and on Saturday, we got an early look at how four of them could play out in the coming weeks. The Twins’ trade of Fernando Rodney created a void, as well as one of the harder ninth-inning situations to read. Despite his recent difficulties in the setup role, Trevor Hildenberger got the first crack at a save in the post-Rodney era. Unfortunately, he stayed true to recent form, allowing multiple runs for the fourth straight appearance. Fortunately, the two-run homer he allowed to Niko Goodrum was not enough to wipe out a three-run lead against the Tigers. Hildenberger did not allow any further damage, so he was credited with his first save of the season.
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While the Rockies seek clarity in their bullpen, fantasy owners feel the same. Last night, Adam Ottavino, back from an illness which sidelined him on Thursday, allowed a hit and struck out one batter to record his fifth save of the season. Wade Davis, who suffered his sixth loss on Thursday, did not pitch. There’s no report of an impending changing of the guard, but Colorado could use both Ottavino and Davis in save chances going forward. Ottavino’s within two saves of tying a career high and allowed runs in four of his last 19 outings, has registered multiple strikeout games in 29 of 53 this season and ranks fourth among qualified relievers in the National League in ERA (1.60).

However, before any change occurs, there’s $52 million reasons to use Davis to close games. It’s tough to stomach right now for Rockies fans, especially with him giving up multiple runs in three of his last four appearances. It’s been a rough start to the second half for Davis, sporting a 1-4 record with five saves in 8.2 innings but a 13.50 ERA, 8.34 FIP and WHIP just below two (1.96). Davis feels he’s found a glitch in his delivery after watching video, so it remains to be seen if a mechanical fix can help him improve in the heat of a playoff chase. Colorado will provide him a bit more leash, but consider this a timeshare going forward, but Davis needs to improve his ERA in losses (29.57 in seven innings) and reduce traffic on the bases. Read the rest of this entry »

The Twins had a lot more trust in Fernando Rodney heading into this season than fantasy owners did. While Rodney got a $4.5 million deal from the Twins to be their closer last December, fantasy owners typically passed him over until after the first 200 picks were made (220 NFBC ADP, 239 Fantrax ADP). Several opening day closers lost their grip on the role long ago, but Rodney was the Twins’ unquestioned closer all season long.

Until now. The Twins traded Rodney to the Athletics for minor league right-hander Dakota Chalmers on Thursday night, joining an already deep bullpen where Blake Treinen, Jeurys Familia and Lou Trivino have settled into their respective late-inning roles. Holds, much less saves, could be hard to come by for Rodney with his new club.
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Something seemed off kilter with Kelvin Herrera once he arrived in Washington. Following a strong start to his season as a Royal, Herrera’s performance with the Nationals did not come close to matching. Speculation of an injury surfaced when Herrera left the mound on Tuesday and underwent an MRI on Wednesday morning. Although his MRI did not reveal any structural damage, Herrera was placed on the 10-day disabled list with a shoulder impingement. He will not throw for a few days then resume a regimen to get back on the field and, hopefully more productive for the stretch run. In 19 games with the Nationals, Herrera’s recorded a 4.76 ERA, 6.03 FIP and 1.82 WHIP in 19 games (17 innings) striking out 15 against eight walks.

Owners chasing saves have already added Ryan Madson, but if he sits on the wire and the need for saves exists, he will take over as the closer while both Herrera and Sean Doolittle work towards a return. Madson’s pitched well of late yielding only one earned runs his last 11 outings with a save, four holds and a tidy 9:2 K:BB in them. However, the bridge getting to Madson could be slippery. Newly acquired Greg Holland could be asked to pitch in high leverage after being released by the Cardinals. Plus, Washington shipped out Brandon Kintzler to the Cubs, so Sammy Solis and others will need to step up to secure leads going forward. Trusting Madson’s past track record as a closer and his recent performances seems easy, getting him to the ninth with a lead could be precarious. Read the rest of this entry »

When Kyle Barraclough had to get bailed out to prevent him from blowing his fourth straight save on Monday, that was the last straw for Don Mattingly. On Tuesday, the Marlins’ manager announced he was removing Barraclough from the closer’s role, though his replacement “was not going to be one guy.” Drew Steckenrider, who has been used consistently as the eighth-inning setup reliever, would be a strong candidate to get the Marlins’ next save chance, though a report from MLB.com beat writer Joe Frisaro cited Adam Conley and Tayron Guerrero as candidates to close as well.
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