Reliever Ranks – 9/24

Welcome back to the latest edition of our Reliever Ranks series! This will bring you up-to-date bullpen depth charts every morning for the day’s games and makes for an excellent tool for those looking to stream saves or wins. This series runs seven days a week, so check in every morning to get your daily bullpen fix!

 

Notes

 

Transaction and Schedule Notes

 

• All 30 teams take the field today after all of them played on Friday.
• The following travel day is Monday (9/26), and the ONLY following have a matchup: BAL, BOS, NYY, TOR, ATL, WSN, CIN, and PIT. The rest of the teams could push their bullpens usage through the weekend.

 

• There was a shakeup in LA, and Craig Kimbrel has been removed from his 9th inning duties. Instead, Evan Phillips will assume the role, with Alex Vesia becoming the primary setup. Kimbrel’s inability to showcase consistency and alarming walk rate make him a middle reliever.
• The Cincinnati Reds activated Graham Ashcraft, who’ll start today’s game. However, he’s returning from a stint on the IL and likely won’t last more than a couple of innings. In his two minor league rehab starts, neither appearance went into the fourth inning. Conversely, we could see bulk innings from Reiver Sanmartin or Connor Overton.

 

• The Baltimore Orioles recalled Spenser Watkins, who formerly made appearances in the rotation. Although there is no room as a starter, so he’ll slot into the long relief role and pick up multi-inning outings.
• The Oakland Athletics placed Joel Payamps on the IL and recalled Sam Selman. Tyler Cyr is slipping into Payamps’ role as a middle reliever, capable of collecting holds. He features a 94mph fastball with a changeup and cutter (which looks like a slider). Additionally, the strikeouts are there, but he gets hit pretty hard, specifically the cutter.

 

• The Tampa Bay Rays placed Ryan Yarbrough on the 15-day IL and DFA’d Dusten Knight. Two fresh relievers were promoted in their place: Calvin Faucher and Cristofer Ogando.
• The Texas Rangers placed Brett Martin on the Bereavement List and activated former closer, Joe Barlow. However, the team seems content with José Leclerc as the stopper, and Barlow moves into a middle reliever role and could be a decent pickup for holds.

 

• The following players pitched on back-to-back nights and will likely be unavailable for Saturday: Colin Poche (TBR), Reynaldo López (CHW), Emmanuel Clase (CLE), Will Smith (HOU), Aaron Loup (LAA), Hunter Strickland (CIN), Matt Bush (MIL), Carlos Estévez (COL), Craig Kimbrel (LAD), Adrian Morejon (SDP), and Camilo Doval (SFG).

 

 

CHC 6 – PIT 5

• With only four innings from Javier Assad, Chicago needed a pair of multi-inning appearances from Michael Rucker and Manuel Rodríguez. However, it was all tied up after Rodriguez allowed a Bryan Reynolds dinger in the 7th inning. Shortly after some late-inning scoring, Erich Uelmen closed down the 9th inning for his first save, although it was a scary one as he loaded the bases. For the Pirates, Wil Crowe imploded as he allowed three earned runs and failed to escape the 6th inning.

 

WSN 2 – MIA 5

• Josiah Gray was cruising until the 6th inning, where he loaded the bases and allowed three runs to cross home plate. The Nats bullpen was led by Andres Machado, Mason Thompson, and Steve Cishek, followed by shutting down the final two innings. Miami got a gem from Braxton Garrett, whose only fault was a solo shot to Lane Thomas in the 1st inning. Richard Bleier and Huascar Brazoban hurled innings after Garrett, with Bleier notching his 5th hold while allowing an earned run. Finally, Dylan Floro allowed a two-out single before slamming things shut for his 6th save.

 

MIL 5 – CIN 3

• Fresh off the IL, Eric Lauer got walloped and exited early. Luis Perdomo quieted things down for 3.1 innings while striking out four batters. His performance earned him the W. Brad Boxberger, Matt Bush grabbed holds over the next two innings, and Devin Williams collected a four-out save (with three Ks). On the flip side, the Reds’ pitching gave up hits left and right, with Milwaukee smacking 11 in total. Although, the bullpen, outside of Buck Farmer’s two earned runs, managed to scathe damage.

 

HOU 0 – BAL 6

• Dean Kremer blanked the Astros as he tossed a complete game shutout. For the Astros, the bullpen ran into troubles when Héctor Neris failed to record a single out to begin the 7th inning and allowed four runs to score. His replacement, Will Smith, managed to complete his inning but not before sprinkling two hits and allowing his own earned run.

 

ATL 1 – PHI 9

• Odorizzi was crushed in this game and put the team in an eight-run deficit as he exited. Tyler Matzek followed by making a two-inning appearance and tossing 49 pitches. Indeed, he’s getting Saturday night off. Eventually, we saw Orlando Arcia chucking 40mph pitches in the 9th inning. For Philly, Aaron Nola held the tough Atlanta bats scoreless through six innings, and Nick Nelson allowed one earned run in his two innings of work. Finally, Connor Brogdon tossed a clean 9th inning with a pair of punchouts.

 

BOS 4 – NYY 5

• Boston got five innings from Rich Hill, who left as the team trailed by three. However, New York’s lead was shortly erased as Gerrit Cole’s 6th inning fell victim to Alex Verdugo’s three-run shot. With the game tied up, the bullpen’s decided this one. In the 8th inning, Matt Strahm allowed a two-out walk to Harrison Bader, followed by a Jose Trevino RBI single. That exchange allowed Jonathan Loáisiga to earn his second win as he notched scoreless frames in the 8th and 9th inning.

 

TOR 6 – TBR 10

• In a game that saw Tampa put up runs early and often, they also hung a four-spot in the 8th inning. Furthermore, the only Blue Jay arm not to give up any runs was Adam Cimber in the 6th and 7th inning. In the 5th inning, Tim Mayza was touched up for two runs before exiting after one out, and Anthony Bass also coughed up an HR. The loss tarnished Yimi García, but only one of the four runs were earned.  For the Rays, all six Toronto runs came before the 6th inning finished. Then, Jason Adam, Javy Guerra, and Pete Fairbanks kept things in check for the final 3.2 innings.

 

CLE 6 – TEX 3

• Cody Morris earned his first big league win on the back of a five-inning, one-run performance. In the 6th, Eli Morgan couldn’t escape before giving up an earned run. Sam Hentges and James Karinchak earned holds after scoreless innings and multiple base runners. Finally, as we’ve seen 38 times, Emmanuel Clase collected the final three outs and recorded the save. It was a dreadful night for Texas for Taylor Hearn, who gave up five earned runs as Cleveland stung several hits together. The final 3.2 innings belonged to Jésus Tinoco, Joe Barlow, and Dennis Santana. The trio didn’t allow a single base runner while striking out three.

 

SDP 3 – COL 4

• The Padres only got 3.2 innings out of Sean Manaea, who struggled again. Instead, six relievers appeared and, even more importantly, kept the scoreboard empty. Steven Wilson, Pierce Johnson, Luis Garcia, Robert Suarez, and Josh Hader combined for 5.1 innings of no-run ball, pushing the game into extras. Although, in the 10th inning, Adrian Morejon couldn’t keep the inherited ghost runner from scoring. Colorado’s bullpen got a stout two-inning performance from Jake Bird, but Carlos Estévez gave up a solo HR to Juan Soto. Daniel Bard earned win #6 by shutting down the 9th and 10th inning.

 

SEA 1 – KCR 5

• Seattle scored once in the 2nd inning and then nothing more for the night. Brady Singer’s seven-inning gem was significant, but Dylan Coleman and Scott Barlow’s shutout innings played a role. Down by four runs, the Mariners bullpen had to be perfect. In the 6th inning, Matt Festa was solid as he walked one and struck out one. However, Penn Murfee’s two strikeouts weren’t enough, and back-t0-back base hits allowed a run to score. Finally, Chris Flexen was clean in the 9th inning.

 

LAA 4 – MIN 2

• Ohtani outdueled Varland. Didn’t think you’d read that in late September, huh? The Angel’s bullpen was outstanding as Aaron Loup, Jimmy Herget, and Ryan Tepera combined for five strikeouts over the final four innings of scoreless ball. Furthermore, Tepera grabbed the save this time, as it’s still a committee for saves. Additionally, the Twins bullpen wasn’t bad, either. Trevor Megill allowed a run in the 6th inning, but Caleb Thielbar was on the mound for it. The final six outs belonged to Emilio Pagán, who stuck out three batters while allowing no one to reach base.

 

DET 5 – CHW 3

• Detroit claimed victory on the back of timely hitting and a decent enough start by Eduardo Rodriguez. Additionally, the bullpen was tremendous. Alex Lange, José Cisnero, and Andrew Chafin earned holds and kept Chicago’s offense at bay in the 7th and 8th inning. Gregory Soto struck out one and scooped up save #27. For the White Sox, a fielder error aided in an unearned run for Reynaldo López, and a leadoff walk from Jimmy Lambert allowed another late run to score. Unfortunately, Tanner Banks‘ two-K outing didn’t factor much into the game.

 

NYM 9 – OAK 2

• Chris Bassitt shoved for eight innings, and Oakland’s bats didn’t really have an answer. The only other arm needed was Drew Smith, who struck out one in his lone inning. For Oakland, Cole Irvin was demolished for eight runs before the 5th inning finished. Conversely, they turned to Collin Wiles for the final four-ish innings in a game that never felt close.

 

SFG 6 – ARI 5

• Carlos Rodón ran the pitch count high and was removed halfway through the 4th inning. Then, a bunch of lower-leverage RPs made appearances. Yunior Marte struggled a bit and caused a few of Rodon’s inherited runners to score, plus one of his own. However, the bullpen settled down after that. Shelby Miller hurled 2.2 innings (49 pitches) and stuck out seven before Alex Young’s lone out (one pitch) earned him the W. Finally, Camilo Doval walked one and struck out one for his 25th save. Arizona’s bullpen was humming along as Taylor Widener, Luis Frias, and Kevin Ginkel kept the game scoreless from the 5th through the 8th inning. Unfortunately, Caleb Smith fell victim to an unearned run via a throwing error by Sergio Alcántara.

 

STL 11 – LAD 0

• The night belonged to Albert Pujols, as he swatted HR 699 and 700. Andrew Heaney served up one of those and left before the 4th inning after allowing four runs. Phil Bickford allowed the other four runs (three earned) over his 1.1 innings of work. Notably, Craig Kimbrel worked the 6th inning but was solid. But Caleb Ferguson didn’t keep the ball in the yard as the Dodgers fell WAY behind. Finally, Hanser Alberto pitched the last two innings. Zach Thompson appeared over 1.1 innings for St. Louis, and Corey Dickerson toed the rubber in the blowout.

 

Bullpen Depth Charts

 

 

Also, if you’re looking for a detailed list or ranking of RPs, check out Rick Graham’s weekly pieces:

The Hold Up: Ranking the Top 100 Relievers for Holds Every Thursday

Closing Time: Ranking the Top 30 Closers

Top 100 Relievers for Save+Hold Leagues

 

Photos by Icon Sportswire | Adapted by Doug Carlin (@Bdougals on Twitter)