Bullpen Notes
8/8
LAB REPORTS
Bullpen Notes🗒️(8/8)
ATL: Victor Mederos and Danny Young gave up runs. Neither guy should be rostered.
NYY: Brent Headrick started the 8th with a 4-2 lead and allowed a solo homer and single while getting two outs and a hold. Paul Blackburn came in and got the final out and a hold. David Bednar pitched the 9th with a 5-3 lead and allowed a walk and a run scoring single but picked up the save. Bednar is a top of the line closer and they are trying to figure out the 7th and 8th with Cruz, Headrick, and Blackburn.
BOS: Justin Slaten struggled in the 6th coming in with a guy on and the team down 3-2. He allowed a walk, a double steal, and a double that scored two runs. After getting out of the inning they used Raymond Burgos for the second day in a row to pitch the final three innings. Slaten could be getting close to cut territory since they have other options to cover his innings in holds situations.
ATH: Luis Medina pitched a perfect 7th inning with the score 6-2. Seth Johnson started the 8th and got two outs but put runners on second and third. Hogan Harris came in to get the final out of the inning and he was eligible for a save. With a 7-2 lead he returned for the 9th and allowed 4 guys to reach and one run to score but would end up getting out of it and picking up the save. Harris remains the only guy I would roster in this bullpen.
PHI: Brooks Raley pitched the 6th and had a guy on when he came in. He also started the 7th with the score 4-2 and walked a batter. Jonathan Bowlan was brought in and he was perfect picking up a hold. José Alvarado started the 8th and walked a couple batters before allowing a two out double that tied the game and he was charged with a blown save. Orion Kerkering got the final out of the inning. Jhoan Duran allowed a two out single in the 9th but sent the game to extras. They used Chase Shugart in the 10th and allowed a the ghost runner to score. After they tied it they let Shugart pitch the 11th and he got a couple outs but gave up a two run dong. He would end up with the loss. Bowlan continues to be the best pitcher outside of Duran in the bullpen so he might be the add for holds. Kerkering would be the other option right now.
TOR: With the game tied in the 6th and one out they turned to Spencer Miles. He allowed the first two he faced to reach before giving up a sac fly and triple that scored two runs. He would get out of the inning. They used Waldron in the 7th and Fisher in the 8th with the team down 4-2. After tying it they used Varland in the 9th and 10th and he allowed the ghost runner to score in the 10th but picked up the win. They kept him in for the 10th since they had a lead but it wasn't a save situation. Lazaro Estrada pitched the 11th with a 7-5 lead and picked up the save. Varland is the closer and Rogers the guy for holds. Everyone else in the bullpen is inconsistent at best.
WSN: Max Kranick entered with one on and one out in the 6th and a 2-0 lead. He got the final two outs but allowed a two run dong. That tied the game up and he was charged with a blown save. Yovanny Cruz pitched the 7th with a 6-2 lead and he put a couple guys on but didn't allow a run. He seems to be locked into the 7th right now but has pitched pretty well. With the meat of the lineup coming up in the 8th and a 6-2 lead they went with Clayton Beeter. He allowed a two out walk but nothing else. They opened the game up in the bottom of the inning and went with Tom Cosgrove in the 9th. Orlando Ribalta was also up if they hadn't scored. I wouldn't have expected Beeter in this situation due to the lead but it was the best part of the lineup. It appears that the committee approach will continue here but Beeter is the best option for saves.
KCR: John Schreiber pitched the 7th with a 4-3 lead. He allowed a couple two out walks but picked up a hold. With the middle of the lineup coming up in the 8th and a 6-3 lead they went with Steven Cruz who allowed a two out double but also picked up a hold. That left the 9th for Nate Pearson who allowed a lead off double but picked up the save. They no longer have a lefty in the bullpen so some of the matchups could be interesting. Pearson has at least worked his way into the conversation for the 9th. Cruz did face the better part of the lineup and was good but they keep doing this with him. Unfortunately I probably have to include Pearson into the closer mix with Cruz. I still prefer Cruz but if he is going to play the fireman role over the closer role it will hurt has saves value.
MIN: Yoendrys Gomez and Andrew Morris had pitched back to back nights so the bullpen was shorthanded. With a 3-3 score in the 6th Travis Adams pitched a perfect inning. In the 7th they went with Kody Funderburk who allowed a one out single but nothing else. Jeff Hoffman was on for the 8th and he allowed a lead off single, stolen base, and another hit after an out that put them down 3-2. Same old Hoffman. I wouldn't roster him as he isn't taking over the 9th or even the 8th. Gomez is the man to roster for saves and Morris for holds.
MIL: Chad every inning Patrick got an out in the 5th and pitched the 6th with the game tied. Abner Uribe pitched the 7th against the meat of the order and he allowed a two out walk. In the 8th with the score still tied they went with the win machine Aaron Ashby. He pitched a perfect inning and ended up picking up his 13th win after they took the lead in the bottom half of the inning. Trevor Megill pitched a perfect 9th with a 3-2 lead and picked up the save. He continues to be one of the best closers in the game after that slow April. Uribe is still the best option for holds.
BAL: They were down 2-1 in the 7th and used Rico Garcia who pitched a perfect inning. In the 8th with the same score they went with Grant Wolfram who got a couple quick outs and allowed a three run dong that put them down 5-1. Kitty and Cano are the two guys to roster in the bullpen.
TEX: We finally saw a good night for the bullpen with a lead. Peyton Gray got a couple quick outs in the 6th before allowing a double and a walk. He would get out of the inning and retuned for the 7th. He got a couple quick outs again and gave up a double. Chase Silseth got the final out and returned for the 8th. He allowed a one out double and an intentional walk before getting a double play that ended the inning. Gray and Silseth both picked up holds. They did have Latz up in the bullpen before tacking on a couple runs and using Cal Quantrill for the 9th. Gray and Silseth seem to be their preferred options for holds with Ahlstrom somewhat in the mix.
CLE: They went with Colin Holderman in the 6th with a 2-1 lead, two outs, and a runner on first. He was awful hitting two batters to load the bases before allowing a double and single that scored four runs. Erik Sabrowski got the final out and the score was 5-2. Holderman was charged with three runs, a blown save, and a loss. Tim Herrin pitched the 7th and started the 8th allowing a single before being pulled for Matt Festa who would allow that runner to score. The bullpen has not been good lately and it is costing them games. Smith is a stud in the 9th and Gaddis is the best option for holds.
CWS: With a 5-2 lead they turned to Jordan Hicks in the 7th. He allowed a one out dong, a single, and a double before being pulled for Sean Newcomb who would get the final two outs. Both guys picked up holds. Bryan Hudson pitched the 8th allowing a lead off single and picking up a hold. Grant Taylor pitched the 9th and picked up the save. We return to the is Grant Taylor the closer part of the month since he did pick up a one inning save. My answer to that remains he is the best pitcher in the bullpen but they have yet to commit to him closing and we are 116 games into the season. It is still a committee but he is the guy to roster just expect to see him outside the 9th quite often.
COL: Lots of bullpen work in this one with a lead. Juan Mejia allowed an inherited run to score in the 5th to make it 5-3. Jimmy Herget got two outs in the 6th and allowed a run to make it 7-4. Parker Mushinski got out of the 6th and battled through the 7th after allowing two singles to lead off the inning. Brennan Bernardino pitched the 8th against the meat of the order and allowed a dong to cut the lead to 7-5. Him and Mushinski picked up holds. With an 8-5 lead in the 9th they went with Jordan Romano who allowed a lead off single that would come around to score and make the game 8-6. He would pick up the save. Romano is getting more inconsistent with each outing but he is still the closer here and the only guy in the bullpen I would consider rostering.
SFG: Keaton Winn was on in the 6th with one out and the bases loaded. He walked a run in before striking out the next two. Trent Harris and Reiver Sanmartin gave up six runs in the 7th to put the game out of reach. Winn can be cut if you have him for saves. He is a weak holds option at best. Dylan Smith is the closer here until he lets one get away. Go out and add him.
SDP: They had a 3-1 lead when they went to Jeremiah Estrada in the 7th inning. He gave up a walk and a single that were mixed between a couple outs. Adrian Morejon came on to face a lefty and walked him to load the bases but got the next guy out. Morejon returned for the 8th against the top of the order and a man reached on an error but he got out of the inning. Both Estrada and Morejon picked up holds. With the same 3-1 lead Mason Miller was on for the 9th. He hit a guy who would end up scoring on a two out single but he picked up the save. This is how the bullpen should look when they have a lead.
ARI: Jonathan Loáisiga gave up a lead off homer in the 8th with a the score 0-0. He would allow two more hits in the inning but no more runs. Down 1-0 they used Gerardo Carrillo in the 9th where he allowed a two out walk and he returned for the 10th and got a couple outs before walking a guy and being pulled for Brandyn Garcia. Garcia allowed single that scored the ghost runner and the loss was charged to Carrillo. They mentioned how good Loáisiga was against lefties so that should answer the question to who faces lefties if Garcia is closing. I really think it is Garcia as the closer and maybe Ginkel is the next up. Justin Martinez did throw a good inning and could be back in a couple weeks. I would think he would replace Ginkel and maybe even Garcia late in the game in Sept.
LAD: In a weird way it seemed like they actually tried to win this one. Evan Phillips got the final out of the 6th with the score 0-0 and two on. Alex Vesia walked a couple guys in the 7th and kept the score at 0-0. They went with Kyle Hurt in the 8th with a 1-0 lead and he got two outs before allowing a single and walking the bases loaded. Tanner Scott got the final out of the inning and both guys picked up holds. The slider-less Edwin Díaz had the 9th and allowed back to back triples to blow the save. He would get the next three outs and sent the game to the 10th and he picked up a win. Jack Dreyer had the 10th and got a double play to that kept the ghost runner from scoring. Pretty much the same story as last night. They are going to give Diaz every chance to get himself right for the postseason. As bad as tonight was he did a nice job holding the runner at third and getting it to the 10th. Scott would be next in line if a move is made.
SEA: Michael Rucker took the loss in the 6th. He allowed a couple unearned runs that made it 3-1 after an error to start the inning. Seranthony Domínguez and Andrés Muñoz both got into the game and didn't allow any runs but they still ended up losing.
TBR: They had a bullpen game today after Jax was scratched. Legumina, Booser, Wells, and Matz got the game to the 7th inning with a 3-1 lead and Matz picked up the win. Garrett Cleavinger pitched the 7th and allowed a solo dong to start the inning. He would get a couple outs and let another guy on before Kevin Kelly got the final out of the inning. Kelly would return for the 8th and allow a lead off single but a double play ended that inning. Both guys picked up holds. They turned to Baker in the 9th and he allowed a lead off single but got the next two hitters with the last one grounding into a double play. That is now 23 saves in a row for Baker and he broke Fernando Rodney's team record for most consecutive saves. The three guys in the 7th, 8th, and 9th are the three to roster here.
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