Hoping you all had a nice Monday, enjoying my birthday. Here are a few quick updates from the weekend before we get into tonight’s action:

• Since being removed from the closer’s role, Addison Reed has made a few adjustments, leading to increased velocity on his slider. He’s put up zeroes in his last four appearances and he might be inching his way back into saves in Arizona.  Brad Ziegler has been a little shaky of late, and while he’s still closing in Arizona at the moment, it might not be long before a change is made as Chip Hale hinted at using Reed in the ninth again. This situation has now been upgraded to Code Red.

Read the rest of this entry »

• I mentioned A.J. Ramos last night but failed to note that Steve Cishek was on the losing end of the game, allowing the go ahead run on three hits and a walk. Cishek’s ERA/FIP/xFIP pitching line now stands at 8.22/4.91/4.76 with nine walks and 13 strikeouts in 15.1 innings. There has been chatter on Cishek regaining the role again, but I still feel Ramos’ job is relatively safe at the moment. Sure, the Marlins could try to save money on Ramos via arbitration and give Cishek the job but Dan Jennings, regardless of his exact title now, wants to win games and unless something changes, using Cishek in high leverage spots doesn’t give them the best chance.

Read the rest of this entry »

• Darren talked about Neftali Feliz yesterday and now we know that he’s no longer the closer. The exact roles haven’t been redefined, but a 5.51/4.19/4.48 ER/FIP/xFIP line from Feliz can’t be tolerated in the ninth inning any longer. It’s not a velocity issue, as Feliz is in line with last year in that regard and more a simple regression. Although Feliz had a 1.99 ERA last year it was all smoke and mirrors with peripheral stats suggesting his ERA should be 4.00+. He’s now regressed and finds himself out of the closing mix for now, and possibly the rest of the year. Shawn Tolleson should be the insta-add now as he’s been the most effective reliever on the Rangers. However, with no defined roles of yet, they could look to Keone Kela or even the recently called up Tanner Scheppers. I would highly recommend using some FAAB budget or a waiver claim on Tolleson, with Kela as more speculation.

Read the rest of this entry »

• After some struggles this year, Addison Reed’s (7.20/3.64/4.43 ERA/FIP/xFIP) hold on the closer’s role has loosened. While Chip Hale thinks that Reed will get the job back, he will be used in earlier innings for now as he works through “mechanical changes.” Expect Brad Ziegler to get the first save opportunity that arises, so if he’s available on the wire be sure to get in your claims ASAP. Additionally, Dan Hudson could see some higher leverage work as well with Reed displaced and everyone moving up a step. Hudson is kind of toiling in between relieving and possibly starting but he struggled today, allowing two runs, ballooning his ERA to 6.00. Evan Marshall who figured to play a more prominent role in the pen is now pitching in AAA. Other intriguing names are Randall Delgado who looks a bit better out of the pen and Enrique Burgos, who’s control might prevent him from being trusted much but has massive swing and miss stuff, showing it off today with two strikeouts in 1.2 innings. Oliver Perez blew the lead and received the loss today, but with his 6.52 ERA he’s still likely more of a LOOGY long term.

Read the rest of this entry »

With many leagues now using saves plus holds (SVHD) as a category, some people now spend less time on the hellish closer carousel. I’m in a 15-team FSWA league that uses SVHD and very much enjoy not having to race to the wire to add someone newly named to the closer’s role or agonizing over how much FAAB to spend on someone that may not hold on to a newly acquired ninth inning gig.

Read the rest of this entry »

• Steve Cishek’s blow up last night was the last straw as Mike Redmond has removed him from the closer’s role.  Cishek’s seasonal struggles have been well noted in the Bullpen Reports this year. His velocity has been up and down this season and he’s just been too hittable all season long. Roller coasters are fun at an amusement park but when it involves your closer, a change needs to be made. There has been no news on who specifically will replace Cishek and the Marlins figure to mix and match/use a committee for now, until someone takes the job fully. In the mix should be Bryan Morris, Mike Dunn (L),  A.J. Ramos and potentially Rafael Soriano as he and the Marlins are “very much engaged” in talks. As Darren speculated in last night’s BR, based on their seasons thus far you would expect A.J. Ramos to receive the first chance but until we see what he does we won’t really know. It’s possible that Redmond might leave Ramos in the familiar eighth inning and play the matchups with Morris and Dunn. Still, the safe speculation is Ramos, Dunn and Morris, and in that order.

Rafael Soriano wasn’t necessarily bad last year as he had a 3.19/3.08/3.92 ERA/FIP/xFIP line but he also wasn’t impressive enough to find a contract this season, yet. He did save 32 games though, and if the Marlins sign him they could prefer Soriano’s closing experience while keeping the rest of the bullpen in their familiar roles. By the time this is published, the Marlins won’t have a save opportunity to speak about but we’ll be sure to keep you up to date on their bullpen situation along with any additional Soriano rumors. I recognize Cishek isn’t injured or in the minors, but for now I’m placing him in the last column on the closer grid.

Read the rest of this entry »

With Jake McGee currently on a rehab assignment and Sean Doolittle reportedly set to begin one soon, Brad Boxberger and Tyler Clippard may not be seeing much of the ninth inning soon. Ignoring the whims of managers and whether McGee and Doolittle will resume their role as closer, should they? Read the rest of this entry »

For a change, this week’s pair of recommendations are not the result of injury. One of them could be usable in more than just deep leagues, depending on your specific format, while the other is truly for the deep leaguers.

Read the rest of this entry »

I guess I missed that internet meme turned actual thing with “may the fourth be with you” last night so tonight I hope everyone enjoyed themselves on Cinco de Mayo. My roommate made Guacamole, so if that counts as celebrating then I did. Anywho, back to the bullpens…

• After allowing a lead-off solo shot to Chris Davis to start the ninth inning, Jeurys Familia retired the next three batters for his league leading 11th save of the year. After tonight’s outing Familia is supporting a 1.88/3.20/2.14 ERA/FIP/xFIP line with a 58.6% GB% and 17 strikeouts against just three walks in 14.1 innings pitched. It’s impossible for Familia to hold a .107 BABIP all season long but Familia is showing he is more than just the fill-in closer for the Mets. I could see Familia out performing some of the ROS projections a tad, but expecting an ERA far below 3.00 isn’t necessarily reasonable. Still, he should continue to see save opps for the Metropolitans while striking out over a batter an inning without anyone breathing down his neck.

Read the rest of this entry »

• The Yankees bullpen, which has been nearly perfect this season, blew the one-run lead in the eighth inning tonight with Chris Martin and Dellin Betances allowing three runs between them. Betances, who allowed an unearned run and still maintains a sparkling 0.00 ERA, received his first blown save of the season. Martin received the loss after allowing two hits to start the inning. Although Martin’s ERA ballooned to 3.86 after tonight’s outing, he still supports a 1.67 FIP and 2.36 FIP with 13 strikeouts against two walks in 11.2 innings pitched. Not bad for the third best guy in the pen. The ROS projections for Martin aren’t too promising given his unsuccessful recent history but he’s also hasn’t been particularly lucky this season with a 72.7 LOB% and.258 BABIP. Martin hasn’t allowed a home run yet, and he likely won’t go all year without giving one up but his GB% is 54.8%, so it’s not as if fly balls keep on just missing. He’s far away from saves with Andrew Miller and Betances crushing everyone right now but Martin should be a hold machine with an above average strikeout rate, valuable in most, if not all, deep leagues.

Read the rest of this entry »