Archive for Jose Alvarado

Desperation’s a stinky cologne remains one of many personal favorite movie quotes, courtesy of Super Troopers. With Boston’s bullpen under constant scrutiny due to usage and performance, it appears a new sheriff will occupy the ninth inning when healthy enough to return:

According to sources, the Red Sox plan on using Nathan Eovaldi as their closer when he returns from the Injured List. https://t.co/cxrS0ZErV0

— Tom Caron (@TomCaron) July 2, 2019

Nathan Eovaldi made three appearances as a reliever in last year’s World Series working eighth innings giving up three hits, one earned run and a walk with six strikeouts. Signed to be a starting pitcher, and even speaking to this prior to agreeing to a free agent deal to return to Boston, the lack of clarity at the end of games along with his injury concerns prompt this move. However, it remains to be seen how often Eovaldi will be able to work as a reliever. Perhaps he gets a Seth Lugo type usage pattern of requiring necessary days off after working and will Eovaldi be able to handle work on consecutive days? As of now, plan on Brandon Workman potentially working the ninth until the All-Star break but if Eovaldi’s been dropped and desperate for saves, stashing him now makes sense for the second half.

It’s been a remarkable year for Josh Hader. He’s already saved 20 games, owns a ridiculous 52.4 strikeout percentage (78 strikeouts of 149 total batters faced) and only one blown save this year with three holds as well. Last night, Hader only recorded a hold working the eighth inning and giving up a two run home run to Eugenio Suarez. Like three outcome hitters, it seems like Hader also produces three outcomes, a strikeout, a walk or a home run. Hader’s only yielded 15 hits all season in 41.2 innings but seven have been home runs. Relying almost exclusively on his fastball, Hader allows hard contact if he misses his spot with batters swinging from their heels to produce contact. This results in Hader’s 24.4 swinging strike percentage with only a 58.3 contact percentage against, but also his 19.4 home run per fly ball rate of the 61 percent of fly balls he generates. Suffice it to say, fantasy owners will accept Hader’s propensity to give up a home run for the strikeouts and saves. In fact, the homer by Suarez snapped a 11.1 inning scoreless streak by Hader and it’s the first home run (and hit) he’s allowed since June first.

After Milwaukee extended the lead back to three runs, they decided to sit down Hader rather than deploy him for a second inning. Jeremy Jeffress entered for the save chance giving up a single to Jose Iglesias then with two outs, Iglesias moved up on defensive indifference and scored on a single by Phillip Ervin before Jose Peraza grounded out to end the game. With a need for the bridge to firm up leading to Hader, the Brewers need Jeffress to round into form. With this outing, he’s allowed a run in four of his last five contests and in five of his last seven growing his ERA from 2.52 to its present 4.18. This, along with the reemergence of Matt Albers as detailed by Al Melchior in yesterday’s Bullpen Report, will continue to evolve. Especially with Milwaukee in on most relievers rumored on the trade block.

As for the Reds, a tough night for David Hernandez from a performance and personal standpoint. People often do not account for the human side from a player’s perspective. As a former teammate of Tyler Skaggs, Hernandez took the mound and did not pitch well in his high leverage moment. Not only did Hernandez suffer his second blown save, also his fourth loss allowing three hits, three earned runs and two walks. This tweet from Reds beat writer R. Trent Rosencrans seemed to encapsulate the night for Hernandez:

David Hernandez stood tall, answered every question about his outing. He took blame. Called it awful, said his mechanics are off. The whole 9. When asked about former teammate Tyler Skaggs, he got emotional and couldn't speak. It was a tough day for him way beyond the game

— C. Trent Rosecrans (@ctrent) July 2, 2019

With deference to the Angels, Skaggs family and the baseball community, thoughts and prayers to all. It should also be noted both Amir Garrett and Raisel Iglesias were not available for last night’s game leaving the Reds shorthanded against the slew of left-handed hitters in the Brewers lineup. This culminated in the game for Hernandez giving up an RBI single to Christian Yelich and a sacrifice fly to Mike Moustakas. Due to the recent fluidity of the Cincinnati bullpen, the high leverage moments remain in flux with Michael Lorenzen and Iglesias sharing recent save chances along with the potential for Garrett to face lefties in the ninth going forward.

Never to be overlooked in the world of fluid bullpens, Jose Alvarado resurfaced in Tampa Bay recording his first save since May 26th working around a double by Jonathan Villar striking out two in a scoreless ninth. It’s Alvarado’s seventh save of the season and an encouraging outing. He’s struggled with command and wild pitches so far but if Alvarado can right the ship, he shores up the Rays bullpen. With Diego Castillo slated to rejoin the team in Baltimore after the All-Star break, perhaps the team will add to its depth without needing to make a trade. Emilio Pagan locked down his sixth hold firing a clean eighth inning with two strikeouts. He also faced Renato Nunez, Pedro Severino and Hanser Alberto, who fare better versus southpaws paving the way for the Alvarado save chance. Pagan’s ability to work multiple innings and in high leverage moments at the team’s need probably caps his save opportunities but he’s an invaluable member of this bullpen. His last save occurred on June 21st and Pagan could receive another save prior to the break hence his position in the closer grid, even though it’s tenuous based on usage patterns.

Nothing frustrates fantasy owners more than a closer getting work in during a blowout. Case in point, Craig Kimbrel pitching in Pittsburgh last night. Kimbrel entered a game which the Cubs trailed by 10 runs and proceeded to allow a lead-off home run in the eighth to Jose Osuna along with a double to Adam Frazier and a two out, two run home run to Josh Bell. All told, Kimbrel yielded three hits and three earned runs with two strikeouts. It’s merely a blip in terms of his role as the closer and Chicago used Daniel Descalso to pitch the seventh. So, getting work in may make sense, but it rarely goes great when a closer works in situations without meaning.

With a very limited slate on Monday night, there’s no need for quick hits with most situations already covered. Have a safe and Happy Fourth of July!

In the moment Jose Alvarado owners yearned for, a save chance, things did not go as planned in New York. Alvarado last recorded a save on April seventh against the Giants on the road. He’s also registered five holds and two losses in 12 outings since. After Diego Castillo retired the Yankees in order in the eighth with two strikeouts, Alvarado entered to face Luke Voit, a known southpaw killer. Voit hit his 11th home run, and second off a lefty, leading off the inning. Alvarado allowed a single to Gary Sanchez, another hitter who fares better versus lefties, before striking out Kendrys Morales. But, a Gleyber Torres double put the go ahead run at second base. Struggling a bit with command, Alvarado uncorked a wild pitch after intentionally walking Clint Frazier scoring the tying run. Read the rest of this entry »

During a night, which mostly went to plan with the shrinking herd of closers, a newly muddled, yet reported time share will ensue in Atlanta. Arodys Vizcaino flirted with disaster walking lead-off hitter Peter O’Brien, then allowing a double to Martin Prado. Vizcaino recovered to strikeout Curtis Granderson and Brian Anderson prior to issuing a walk to Neil Walker before inducing Starlin Castro to fly out to left field. This preserved a shutout win for the Braves, but no relief to Vizcaino owners in the WHIP department. He’s working about two MPH below his numbers from last year with his fastball and slider, plus reports suggest the health of his shoulder will need to be managed. A.J. Minter should not be on many waiver wires after this weekend, even in a shared role, he provides potential upside. Read the rest of this entry »

A somewhat wild Friday evening will leave some fantasy owners sleepless about Seattle. Hunter Strickland will undergo an MRI on Saturday after experiencing tightness in the back of his shoulder. It could be inflammation, but resulted in Strickland blowing his first save of the year after convincing his manager to leave him in. Strickland allowed two hits, including a three-run home run to Mitch Moreland, and a walk in one-third of an inning. Roenis Elias finished the ninth inning getting a strikeout versus the two hitters he faced. If Strickland does land on the injured list, this could signal a committee approach in Seattle until Anthony Swarzak returns.

Hard to say which right-handed reliever will emerge, but Matt Festa or Cory Gearrin could get save chances along with either Zac Rosscup or Elias if facing a left-handed lean in the final stanza. Plan accordingly. Read the rest of this entry »

With Hurricane Florence nearing landfall, please be safe if in its path. Bullpens continue to be volatile as the season approaches the final 16 games for most teams. Some good news regarding the return of injured relievers Aroldis Chapman and Brandon Morrow could cheer up their owners, but in varying degrees. Chapman threw an encouraging side session according to reports detailed in this article by Bryan Hoch. With the Yankees heading home, Chapman will meet the team to throw another side session and the simulated game hoping to return to action next week. This would allow the Yankees to reset their bullpen hierarchy and return Dellin Betances to the eighth inning where he dominates. Stay tuned. As for Morrow, he threw 35 pitches in a bullpen session and details it in this video courtesy of Jessie Rogers. Given the delay in Morrow’s return along with how well Pedro Strop’s pitched, there’s no guarantee Morrow would return to the ninth inning if he makes it back.

One day after recording his first major league save, Yoshihisa Hirano allowed a two-run walk-off home run to D.J. LeMahieu. Baseball’s an unforgiving game. This snapped Hirano’s eight game scoreless streak and became the first earned runs he’s yielded since August 21st. On a positive note, it seems as though Hirano’s the new preferred option in Arizona’s fluid bullpen, so he should bounce back from this outing. Hirano does not own any glaring splits within his batted ball profile, just the occasional gopher ball which occurred in Colorado last night. He’s working in a setup role, but Brad Ziegler did secure his seventh hold with Arizona last night. Ziegler’s been scoreless his last eight (6.2 innings) and owns a 1.31 ERA his last 20 appearances.

Save number eight for Jose Alvarado in a clean outing with two strikeouts. Alvarado’s given up only one hit his last 12 games (9.2 innings) with 16 strikeouts versus only three walks. In the second half, Alvarado’s worked 20.2 innings with a 1.30 ERA and has a 1.14 ERA over his last 37 contests dating back to June 12th. While our chart will still consider this a committee, Sergio Romo’s only pitched once over the last 15 games for Tampa Bay. It’s probably too late to handcuff Romo with Alvarado, but keeper league owners and those preparing for drafts next season should not ignore Alvarado’s recent surge in performance.

Not akin, but worth noting, Atlanta used Jonny Venters for the save on Wednesday despite A.J. Minter’s last outing being on Monday. Minter’s been battling back soreness and may not have been available, so his owners should track this closely. As for Venters, he remains one of the best comeback stories of 2018 notching his third save of the year, and second since joining the Braves with a 1.66 ERA in 20 games. Dan Winkler garnered the win in relief walking one and striking out one.

After intimating a committee in Minnesota following the Fernando Rodney trade, it’s been Trevor Hildenberger working as the primary closing option. Hildenberger notched his sixth save last night giving up a hit and striking out during a 1.1 inning appearance. He’s been scoreless his last seven games and converted six straight save chances. Teammate Taylor Rogers struck out the only batter he faced extending his scoreless streak to 19.2 innings spanning 18 games. During his streak, Rogers has seven holds, two saves and 18 strikeouts.

Former Twins reliever, Ryan Pressly, recorded his first save with Houston firing a clean ninth inning with a strikeout. Flying below the radar due to Roberto Osuna’s arrival, Pressly’s been scoreless his last 15 outings with a win, seven holds and this save in them. As an Astro, Pressly owns an impressive 0.96 ERA, 1.50 FIP, 0.54 WHIP, 25:1 K:BB, 59 percent ground ball rate, a swinging strike percentage of 16.9 and 64.1 percent contact allowed. If anything were to happen with Osuna in the future, keep Pressly in the memory bank.

In a pivotal match-up with the Cubs, the Brewers bullpen thrived on Wednesday night. Corey Knebel allowed his first hit since his recall on September second but struck out two in 1.1 innings of work. Knebel’s retired 20 of 21 hitters faced over his last six outings with 12 strikeouts. Josh Hader did yield a hit while striking out the side. He faced 10 hitters in three innings in Chicago with nine strikeouts and raised his season total to 130 strikeouts in 74.2 innings. For perspective, Jake Arrieta has 127 strikeouts in 159.2 innings this year. Jeremy Jeffress did not get a save chance when Milwaukee added to its lead in the ninth inning, but he did throw a clean ninth with a strikeout as he remains entrenched as the primary closer in a surging bullpen.

Quick Hits: A return to action for Kenley Jansen, a clean inning with a strikeout. It’s been a week since he pitched in a live game and has been scoreless his last five appearances with six strikeouts.

A much needed scoreless outing by Shane Greene with only a walk against him. Greene’s struggled of late giving up runs in three of his last five contests.

Felipe Vazquez held on for his 22nd consecutive save, and 32nd of the season, allowing three hits, an earned run and striking out two in St. Louis. Vazquez now owns the longest save streak in the National League this year, breaking a tie with Jansen, and owns a 1.36 ERA over his last 39.2 innings with 56 strikeouts.

Once again, a non-save appearance for Will Smith and he yielded two hits and an earned run to take the loss. This snaps a four game scoreless streak for Smith who lacks a save in September.

Save number nine for Kirby Yates despite giving up two hits, including a home run, with a strikeout. Yates has converted nine of 10 save chances since the Brad Hand trade, including his last four in a row. Hopefully he will be able to mitigate the gopher ball which plagued him in late August.

While Boston continues to audition pitchers for the eighth inning, Craig Kimbrel’s rounding into form. Kimbrel notched his 39th save and has only allowed one hit over his last eight appearances (31 total batters faced). He’s only given up one run over his last nine games and struck out 25 in his last 13 appearances.

Benefiting from Hirano’s walk-off home run, Wade Davis won his third decision of the year throwing a clean ninth inning with two strikeouts. Davis has only yielded one earned run his last 12 games on five hits and two walks with 17 strikeouts.

Still no clarity in the White Sox bullpen but, Hector Santiago recorded his second save in extra innings. Juan Minaya gets his second win working two innings giving up a hit and a walk with two strikeouts. Ian Hamilton pitched a clean eighth inning and Jace Fry struck out two in the ninth. It seems like they prefer Minaya’s ability to work multiple innings, so hone in on the Hamilton to Fry bridge but nothing’s guaranteed with this bullpen.