Archive for Angels

Adam Conley did not have a save opportunity on Sunday against the Phillies, but nonetheless, I have moved him to the head of the Marlins’ closer committee in the grid. Don Mattingly, like many managers, will sometimes use his closer with a four-run lead in the ninth inning, and that’s what he did on Sunday. With a 6-2 lead, Conley retired the first two batters, but he allowed a hard-hit Aaron Altherr double followed by Roman Quinn’s RBI single. The lefty could have limited the damage to the lone run if Starlin Castro had not been eaten up by a Cesar Hernandez grounder, but the error allowed the Phillies to cut the lead to 6-4. Then the rally ended when Conley struck out Rhys Hoskins.
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Torey Lovullo did not have to wait long to test out his new closer committee. One night after Lovullo told reporters that he was replacing Brad Boxberger with a group of relievers, the Diamondbacks’ bullpen worked on preserving a one-run lead against the Rockies with two outs in the seventh inning. That’s when Zack Greinke departed with a runner on second base. Lovullo began with lefty Andrew Chafin, who was set to face Gerardo Parra and Charlie Blackmon. Chafin failed to get the final out against both pinch-hitter Chris Iannetta and Blackmon, as he walked them both. Brad Ziegler had to come in against DJ LeMahieu and do what Brad Ziegler does — get a ground ball out.
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As is usually the case, the selection of streamable starting pitchers is much heavier on risk than reward, but there is actually a widely-available starter who looks like a pretty safe bet to help your rotation. It’s Felix Pena, who is unowned in at least 85 percent of the leagues on ESPN, CBS and Yahoo and more than 75 percent of Fantrax leagues. In a column I wrote just last week, I made the case for viewing Pena as Patrick Corbin Lite.
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With attention shifting to football for many fantasy owners, remaining vigilant with baseball will be important when projecting roles for next season. For example, Ty Buttrey notched the first save of his career last night for the Angels striking out one in a clean outing. His role continues to grow in high leverage and Buttrey’s been scoreless in eight of his nine appearances this season. He, along with Jose Alvarez own the best peripheral numbers in the Angels bullpen over the last 30 days. As for Buttrey, he’s pitched 9.1 innings since his promotion with a 0.96 ERA, 1.97 FIP, 1.07 WHIP, 10:3 K:BB, 16.9 swinging strike percentage, an ERA- of 23 and limiting contact to 65.5 percent. Keep in mind, Blake Parker recorded the previous two saves for the Angels but has not pitched since September third. This could just be a preview of next year for Buttrey, but if he moves into a share of the closer role, he’s an intriguing pickup for the remainder of the season. Read the rest of this entry »

For a pitcher who has been ignored by the vast majority of fantasy owners this season, we’ve given Felix Pena quite a bit of attention here at RotoGraphs. Back in July, both Jeff Zimmerman and Paul Sporer noted Pena’s somewhat limited sleeper appeal. More recently, Jeff pointed out Pena’s declining fastball velocity and strikeout rate in his analysis of most-dropped players.
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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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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 »

Arizona did not deploy Brad Boxberger until the 11th inning for a save opportunity, but Boxberger failed to convert it for the second straight outing. Boxberger allowed an unearned run to score but it’s the three walks which raises eyebrows, not the end result. Leadoff walks never end well for closers and Boxberger started the inning with one to Gregory Polanco. Then he handed out a free pass to Josh Bell along with an intentional walk to Austin Meadows after a sacrifice bunt to load the bases. Had Jake Lamb made a better throw to home, perhaps it’s a moot point, but Boxberger’s walked five over his last six innings giving up three home runs and six earned runs in these appearances. As a result, Boxberger’s walk percentage has risen to 12.1 percent and his WHIP to an uncomfortable 1.37 through 26.1 innings.

It’s important to note, Boxberger’s only thrown 27.2 innings total across all levels in 2016 and 37 innings last year due to injuries. Fatigue could be a factor as the All-Star break looms. Arizona will let him continue in the role not wishing to increase arbitration to Archie Bradley, but in the midst of a pennant chase in the wide open National League West may eventually force their hand. Bradley’s only yielded one earned run in 10.1 innings in June despite his 4:4 K:BB in them. Yoshihisa Hirano‘s on a 21 game (18.1 inning) scoreless streak but mostly works in the seventh inning as a setup pitcher. Andrew Chafin’s also pitching well tossing 23 scoreless outings of his last 25 giving up only two earned runs his last 17.1 innings (1.04 ERA). Whether or not the Diamondbacks make a change remains to be seen, but Boxberger’s officially under watch as innings accrue. If the walks and home runs persist, he could be on the outside looking in for save chances in July. Read the rest of this entry »

Although Bruce Bochy listed Sam Dyson and Tony Watson as his “primary options” to close with Hunter Strickland headed to the disabled list, could Mark Melancon work his way into at least a time share? While it’s not out of the realm of possibilities, keep in mind Dyson worked the three previous games prior to last night so he received a much needed day off. Melancon stepped in to record his first save, one year and one day since his last one before missing the majority of last season. For one night, San Francisco’s blueprint went exactly as planned with Madison Bumgarner firing eight shutout innings and Melancon locking down the save. Read the rest of this entry »

For the second game in a row, an Angels reliever made the ninth inning a little too interesting. On Saturday, closer Blake Parker blew a one-run lead in an eventual 3-2 extra-innings loss to the Rangers. When the Angels pulled into the ninth inning of Sunday’s series finale with a two-run lead, Mike Scioscia turned to Justin Anderson to get the save. Anderson was one pitch away from retiring the side, but Ronald Guzman sat on an inside full-count fastball to give the Rangers a baserunner. Then he walked Joey Gallo on a pitch that appeared to catch the corner of the strike zone and loaded the bases with a third straight full-count walk, this time to Shin-Soo Choo. Scioscia stuck with Anderson, who stranded all three runners by inducing a shallow fly ball from Isiah Kiner-Falefa.

In all likelihood, Parker sat out Sunday’s game due to having pitched on both Friday and Saturday, though he threw all of four pitches in the first of those appearances. It’s probably too early to read anything into Anderson getting the save chance on Sunday, but this situation bears monitoring.
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