Archive for Corey Knebel

Welcome to the 2019 RotoGraphs Bullpen Report!

As in past seasons, we will update and publish our team-by-team bullpen grid on a daily basis and provide analysis on relievers to pick up, drop or monitor. I’m unveiling the first iteration of the grid just below, and then we will begin our daily updates beginning next Friday.

With a week to go until Opening Day, Part 2, one-third of the closer situations are still very much in flux. For each of those 10 teams, I have denoted the relievers in the grid as being part of a committee. With the possible exception of the Giants, Diamondbacks and White Sox, a committee is a probable outcome for these teams once the season gets under way.
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For someone who had managed to pile up 28 saves, Bud Norris never seemed to have a firm grasp on the Cardinals’ closer role. Now he has lost his grip on the job entirely.

On Sunday, Mike Shildt named Carlos Martinez as the team’s new closer, and Norris is being moved to a lower-leverage role, albeit one that will still involve the later innings. Martinez had already been called upon to close out Wednesday’s 7-6 win over the Nationals, as Norris was unavailable, and then he recorded his first save as the team’s official closer on Sunday. His 1-2-3 ninth inning finished off a 5-2 win over the Tigers.
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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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Just one day being used in a low-leverage situation, Corey Knebel was thrust into the 10th inning of a tie game with the Rockies. To his credit, Knebel breezed through the inning, allowing only a two-out walk to David Dahl. Three of the four batters he faced were left-handed, and Knebel’s recent struggles have occurred disproportionately against right-handed batters. Craig Counsell left Knebel in for the 11th inning, and after retiring leadoff hitter Charlie Blackmon, he was set to face two tough righties, DJ LeMahieu and Nolan Arenado. The latter put the Rockies ahead with a solo home run.
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As the trade deadline approached, it seemed as if about half of the relievers on non-contending teams were rumored to get traded. There was just not enough demand to meet the supply, so many of those relievers are staying put for the time being. Just among current closers, here’s who did not get moved: Shane Greene, Raisel Iglesias, Kyle Barraclough, Fernando Rodney, Sergio Romo, Kirby Yates, Mychal Givens and Blake Parker. Some of these relievers could still get dealt if they can pass through waivers, so if you’ve been stashing the likes of Joe Jimenez, Jared Hughes or Drew Steckenrider, don’t drop them just yet.
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Joakim Soria brought some stability to the White Sox’s closer situation over the last couple of months, but now he is leaving a gaping void in the bullpen, having been traded to the Brewers on Thursday. If we were to speculate on Soria’s replacement based on usage patterns, we would need to run out and pick up Jeanmar Gomez, who has received the bulk of the recent eighth-inning setup work, particularly against right-handed batters. However, Rick Renteria suggested he will go with a committee, though he did single out a reliever who could get a chance to win the job outright — and it wasn’t Gomez.
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With Keynan Middleton and Corey Knebel being activated within the last two days, we fantasy owners needed some clarity as to whether they would be eased back into closing or be given save opportunities right away. Fortunately, both the Angels and Brewers obliged by getting themselves into save situations on Thursday night.

Things started to get real for the Angels when they jumped ahead of the Twins, 6-4, in the bottom of the sixth inning. After Jose Alvarez struck out Logan Morrison to start off the seventh inning, Mike Scioscia played the matchups, bringing in Cam Bedrosian to face Mitch Garver, and then kept him in for switch-hitter Ehire Adrianza. Shohei Ohtani homered in the bottom of the inning, but with the lead at three runs, Scioscia had to plan for a potential save in the ninth inning. He opted to bring Middleton in for the eighth inning, and he worked around two walks and a double to keep the lead at 7-4. Jim Johnson pitched a scoreless ninth inning for his first save of the season.
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Roberto Osuna was arrested in Toronto on Tuesday morning and charged with assault, and shortly thereafter, the Commissioner’s Office placed him on administrative leave. Osuna is scheduled for a June 18 court date, and meanwhile, Major League Baseball will be conducting its own investigation under the joint MLB-MLBPA Domestic Violence Policy.

With James Paxton tossing a no-hitter against the Blue Jays on Tuesday night, Toronto had no need for a closer. John Gibbons put the team’s closer situation in its proper perspective, given the seriousness of the charges against Osuna; he has yet to indicate who might fill the ninth-inning role. General manager Ross Atkins stated that Osuna could be out longer or shorter than the default seven-day leave period for an investigation, depending on how the investigation progresses. During that time, Ryan Tepera and/or Seung Hwan Oh would presumably be called upon in save situations.
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As we enter the weekend, the Milwaukee bullpen continues to be the most volatile situation to speculate for saves. The word from the Brewers today regarding Corey Knebel was unfortunately bad news. According to the Milwaukee manager, Craig Counsell, Knebel will miss “a minimum of six weeks” with his left hamstring strain. For those who missed the injury, it was a lot worse than it sounds. Knebel fell to the ground after delivering a pitch in the 9^th inning down 6 to 0 in Thursday night’s game against the Cubs.

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After a relatively calm first week for closers, the fantasy world got rocked on Thursday night. While the pitching the ninth inning of the Brewers’ series opener against the Cubs at Miller Park — a game that was firmly in the grasp of the visiting team — Corey Knebel hopped uncomfortably after making his second pitch to Tommy La Stella, then quickly fell to the mound. Knebel sustained an injury to his left hamstring, and according to multiple reports, he will undergo an MRI on Friday to determine the exact nature and severity of the issue.
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