• Judging by save totals, Rafael Soriano has had another solid year as he added to his total with save number 34 tonight. However, a little dive into the numbers shows a different story. Soriano’s strikeout rate has tumbled from 9.18 K/9 last year to a mediocre and career low (since his rookie year) 6.79 K/9 this season. Unsurprisingly it’s reflected in his 3.79/3.91/4.17 ERA/FIP/xFIP and 3.86 SIERA which are closer to the marks of an OK reliever, not a top notch closer. Still, saves are saves and Soriano should hold onto the ninth inning for the remainder of the year but the mantra of never paying for saves rings true both in real life and fantasy baseball.

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• Casey Janssen nailed down his 24th save tonight against the Yankees. Sergio Santos was only brought in for one out but he did the job, striking out Alex Rodriguez for his third hold of the year. Janssen’s job isn’t in danger but Santos is pitching pretty well since coming back from injury (3.10 SIERA) and should be first in line if anything were to happen to Janssen. In the meantime, holds or saves+ holds leagues should take note as Santos remains a solid option in that category, particularly in any AL-Only leagues.

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• Rafael Betancourt recorded his 16th save of the year and his first since returning from the disabled list. Betancourt faced the minimum and it looks like he’s back to his the ninth inning job in Colorado. Rex Brothers pitched quite well while Betancourt was out, but barring any injury I’d expect Betancourt to hold onto the job for the remainder of the year.

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• Danny Farquhar’s solid run at closer for the Mariners continued tonight as he earned his fifth save of the year. Although his ERA remains less than ideal at , his 2.07 SIERA is the ninth best mark in the league and the only guys  who can best him are the four relievers mentioned above along with Jason Grilli, Mark Melancon and Koji Uehara. That’s some impressive company and speaks well to Farquhar’s ability. I don’t need to say you should pick him up if he’s available in your league but if you’re in need of saves, strikeouts or ERA, Farquhar is a guy that could give you top tier production without the cost. Also, if you’re looking for a pre-season closer sleeper for next year’s drafts, Farquhar is your man.

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• As Dave Cameron predicted, Danny Farquhar has regressed and he’s now yet to allow a run in his last eight appearances, including tonight’s scoreless inning for his third save. Farquhar’s 4.95 ERA is certainly misleading as his 1.88 FIP and 2.04 xFIP paint a different picture. Although he’s barely warmed his closer’s seat, I’m going to go out on a limb and change the Mariners to yellow. Farquhar doesn’t have much of a track record in the majors but he has shown some great skills (13.62 K/9) and has done an admirable job in place of Tom Wilhelmsen. Also, considering Wilhelmsen is getting stretched out  to pitch in the rotation, I like Faruhar’s chances of holding onto the job over Yoervis Medina and Oliver Perez.

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• Bobby Parnell and his ailing neck have been placed on the 15-day DL. It was initially not expected to be too serious, but at the moment there isn’t necessarily a timeline for Parnell’s return and surgery remains an option as well. As we mentioned last night, David Aardsma and LaTroy Hawkins are expected to get looks for saves as the Mets mix and match at closer. After Aardsma blew the Mets last save chance, Hawkins was called on for the save tonight and he delivered, pitching around two hits for his first save of the year.  Hawkins hasn’t been anointed closer but expect him to receive the next opportunities until he gives the Mets a reason to make a change.

If the Mets are to mix and match,  the matchup may dictate a Scott Rice opportunity in the ninth. Rice walks way too many batters (5.18 BB/9) but he kills worms at a fantastic rate (58.6% ground ball rate) and he holds lefties to a .222 wOBA. That number rises to an absurd .418 wOBA against right handed hitters making the chances of Rice seeing extended time at closer likely nil (especially if Hawkins keeps converting his chances) but Parnell’s injury certainly makes Rice an intriguing saves + holds option in deep or NL-Only leagues.

• With Tom Wilhelmsen sent to the minors, Carter Capps is coming to Seattle. Capps was a sneaky preseason pick for saves in but the season hasn’t quite gone according to plan as a 6.37 ERA in 35.1 innings brought him a ticket to Tacoma. Capps’ 6.37 ERA is quite unsightly but with a .388 BABIP and 19.6% HR/FB his 3.56 xFIP illustrates he wasn’t pitching quite that terribly. Capps allowed only two earned runs in 11 innings in AAA but actually had worse ratios there than he did struggling in the majors. Capps is currently low on the Mariners bullpen totem pole but he certainly has a chance to make some noise and pitch in more higher leverage innings.

• Josh Fields hasn’t had much success at the major league level thus far in his career, but he looked quite impressive last night recording his first save of the year for Houston. The Astros’ closer situation is very fluid right now  but striking out all four batters you see for the save is a good way to receive the next opportunity. Josh Fields is likely the man right now but Jose Cisnero is still lurking behind.

• Not a bad evening for the back of the Braves bullpen. Jordan Walden and Craig Kimbrel each tossed a perfect inning while striking out the side. Even without Johnny Venters the Braves pen has remained top notch with the best bullpen ERA in baseball (2.41).

Closer Grid:

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

• The Biogenesis fallout today didn’t have too much of an effect on the Bullpen Report but it did snag one victim of note, Philadelphia Phillies lefty and set up man Antonio Bastardo.  Bastardo wasn’t in the initial Biogenesis rumors but he was handed a 50 game suspension today, effectively ending his season. Bastardo was gaining some traction as Papelbon has been more pedestrian this year but any hopes of him sneaking saves for the Phillies will have to wait until 2014 now.

It’s slim pickings as far as Bastardo’s replacements are concerned but one name to keep an eye on is fellow lefty Jake Diekman. Diekman’s numbers (3.72/4.13 FIP/xFIP; 7.11 K/9) aren’t great, but as a lefty in the late innings for Philly, he could be in line for a holds boost.

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• “I wish they all could be California girls beards.” The Beard returns, this time to LA as Brian Wilson signed with the Dodgers today. The deal is worth $1 million with incentives. Wilson will start in the minors but should be in LA by mid-August, at which point he should be used as a righty in late innings, setting the table for Kenley Jansen. I’m not sure what to expect from Wilson but the Dodgers weren’t the only interested team, so he certainly showed something enticing during his throwing sessions. We’ll have to see how Wilson looks like before making any conclusions but Wilson certainly has a good chance of pitching in big spots in LA and should be monitored by those in hold leagues. And if it doesn’t work out, I guess Wilson just wasn’t meant for these times.

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• By now you have heard the news, Jose Veras has been shipped out of Houson to Detroit. Veras was closing games for the Astros but in Detroit he will be relegated to setup duty as Joaquin Benoit will continue to pitch in the ninth, something he’s done quite well going 10/10 on save opportunities. When Benoit needs a break, I’d put Veras second in the pecking order ahead of Drew Smyly. Smyly has been the better pitcher this year and even  fares well against opposite handed hitters with a .281 wOBA against right-handed batters this year. However, Veras comes with the Closer Experience™ label that  Jim Leyland seems to prefer, and this could also allow Smyly to throw multiple innings on occasion.

As far as the Astros side is concerned, Mike Petriello had a great breakdown on what Houston’s bullpen will look like following the trade. I also agree with Mike that Jose Cisnero will take over the ninth in Houston and rather than echo all of his points, I suggest you read his take. Setting up Cisnero should be lefty Wesley Wright who has a pretty solid 3.55 xFIP on the year, but has struggled against right-handed batters his whole career (.369 wOBA against righties in 126.1 IP). Placing whoever is behind Wright might be anyone’s guess at the moment. Previously I might have said Hector Ambriz but he was sent to AAA today with Josh Zeid and Chia-Jen Lo getting the promotion to Houston. Although he just got the call, with names like Travis Blackley, Brett Oberholtzer and Josh Fields my money is on Josh Fields seeing some of the more higher leverage innings that are left. Acquired from Philadelphia in the Hunter Pence trade, Fields is a tall right-hander with some swing and miss stuff (10.92 K/9 in AAA this year), the Astros should be curious to see what he has.

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When you’re a team that’s going absolutely nowhere in 2013 like the Houston Astros, this is exactly how it’s supposed to work. You pick up a decently effective reliever like Jose Veras on a reasonably-priced contract, you let him inflate his value by making him your Capital-C Closer, and then you trade him to a contender for a potentially useful prospect.

Yet while most of the baseball world will focus on what Veras can do to help the Detroit Tigers get to October, his departure creates a hole in the Houston bullpen. There’s suddenly a hole at closer for the Astros, and that means that fantasy owners have the rare opportunity to pick up free saves off the waiver wire. With apologies to Wesley Wright, who has pretty harsh platoon splits and might be on his way out the door as well, that man is likely to be Jose Cisnero. Who is he, and is he likely to be valuable in any way other than saves? Read the rest of this entry »