Reliever Ranks – 9/29

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

 

• Every team took the field on Wednesday.
• Ten teams have a scheduled day off Thursday (ARI, STL, PIT, CIN, WSN, NYM, ATL, HOU, TOR, NYY). The remaining 20 teams will play straight through the regular season without another off day, pending inclement weather.

 

• The Baltimore Orioles sent Joey Krehbiel to the minors and recalled Keegan Akin. The latter will replace the former as a holds option.
• Phil Bickford was placed on the 15-day IL by the Los Angeles Dodgers with right shoulder fatigue. David Price will enter the chart as the bulk reliever.
• The San Francisco Giants placed Jarlín García on the Paternity Leave List. Sean Hjelle was recalled in a corresponding move and will take over as the team’s long reliever.

 

 

CIN 3 – PIT 4

• The Reds turned to Reiver Sanmartin and Fernando Cruz for a scoreless inning apiece. In extras, Alexis Díaz was saddled with his first loss when he gave up a walk-off single to Kevin Newman that scored the zombie runner. Cincinnati won’t participate in a game on Thursday.
• Chase De Jong forced the Pirates into free baseball by surrendering two long balls in the ninth and watching three runs score to tie the game. He was tagged with his third blown save. Yohan Ramirez was the benefactor of the meltdown as he earned his third win when the offense walked it off. The Pirates don’t play on Thursday.

 

TBR 1 – CLE 2

• Tyler Glasnow made his 2022 debut and, as expected, only covered a trio of innings. That forced seven Tampa Bay relievers into action. They were lights out during regulation as Garrett Cleavinger, Calvin Faucher, Brooks Raley, Colin Poche, Jason Adam, and Pete Fairbanks all posted scoreless outings. Javy Guerra was unable to continue the roll in the 10th as he allowed Amed Rosario to walk it off with a single that scored the zombie runner. Seven members of the bullpen have pitched on back-to-back days so it’s anyone’s guess who closes out a potential save today.
• The Cleveland arm barn outclassed the Rays’ pen. Sam Hentges and Eli Morgan combined to pitch a scoreless seventh. The latter covered a scoreless eighth as well. Emmanuel Clase pitched the ninth with the score tied. James Karinchak was the winning pitcher (second win) as he struck out the side in order prior to the walk-off. Clase has now pitched on consecutive days but he tossed just 21 pitches in that time and could be available for a third straight day as has been the case in the past.

 

KCR 1 – DET 2

• A lack of offense kept the Royals bullpen from having any impact. Amir Garrett pitched a perfect seventh and Carlos Hernández appeared for a scoreless eighth. The latter fired the fourth-fastest pitch of the day – a 100.1 mph four-seamer.
• The scheduled Tigers starter was scratched late forcing the team into a bullpen game. Will Vest opened, serving up a solo shot to MJ Melendez. Daniel Norris and Garrett Hill covered the next four frames. Norris earned his first win while Hill nabbed his first hold. José Cisnero (fourth hold), Andrew Chafin (19th hold), and Alex Lange (20th hold) set up for the closer with three scoreless frames. Gregory Soto pitched a flawless ninth to secure his 29th save. He used only 10 pitches to do so and will be good to go again today.

 

ATL 2 – WSN 3

• With the starter unable to survive four frames, many Atlanta relievers appeared. They were absolutely unhittable. Jesse Chavez, Dylan Lee, Raisel Iglesias, A.J. Minter, and Kenley Jansen posted 5.1 perfect innings to close out regulation. Unfortunately for them, it was still tied. In the 10th, Jackson Stephens let CJ Abrams walk it off with a zombie-runner-scoring single. Atlanta has an off day on Thursday.
• The Nationals turned to Hunter Harvey for a scoreless seventh that earned him his fifth hold. Carl Edwards Jr. pitched the eighth but permitted an unearned run that resulted in his third blown save. Kyle Finnegan not only pitched the ninth but he also survived the zombie apocalypse in the ninth to grab his sixth win. He will have enough time to recover because the team has Thursday off.

 

NYY 8 – TOR 3

• In a game that will be remembered more for the offensive exploits of Aaron Judge, the Yankees pen still shined through. Zack Britton got just one out while struggling with his control. He was still able to notch his second hold before turning the ball over to Scott Effross to finish the frame. It was Effross’ 16th hold of the campaign. Clarke Schmidt pitched a scoreless eighth for his fourth hold before Aroldis Chapman shut things down in the ninth. The big lefty fired the second-fastest pitch of the day – a 100.6 mph four-seam fastball. No game will feature the Yankees today.
• Another starter didn’t last long as the Toronto SP didn’t survive the fourth. Trevor Richards finished that frame and then went on to pitch two more perfect innings, striking out four in the process. Tim Mayza wasn’t great though as he was saddled with his first loss after serving up a historic dinger to Judge. Yimi García went on to allow another run before Adam Cimber and Yusei Kikuchi closed out the game. Cimber permitted two unearned runs on a down day for the Blue Jays’ arm barn. The team will have a chance to rest today.

 

BAL 1 – BOS 3

• Just one arm appeared out of the Baltimore bullpen. The recently recalled Keegan Akin covered three one-hit innings to close out the losing effort. He induced just five whiffs and a 22% CSW during his 37-pitch outing. Closer Félix Bautista hasn’t appeared on a mound since Saturday and may need an appearance to stay fresh.
• It’s not been a common sight this year, but the Red Sox relief corps held a lead. Ryan Brasier pitched a perfect seventh and Kaleb Ort served up a home run to Robinson Chirinos in the eighth. Matt Barnes closed things out in the ninth to record his sixth save. He has now pitched on back-to-back days and will likely cede ninth-inning duties to John Schreiber today.

 

MIA 4 – NYM 5

• In the fourth of six extra-inning games on Wednesday, the Miami arm barn was unable to tough it out. Huascar Brazoban and Tanner Scott each recorded their fourth holds but Richard Bleier was tagged with his fourth blown save for allowing two inherited runners (charged to Scott) to score. Andrew Nardi and Jeff Brigham shared the ninth. Dylan Floro surrendered a walk-off single to Eduardo Escobar in the 10th. He’s pitched on consecutive days and may turn the ninth over to Steven Okert today.
• The big guns were out in the Big Apple on Wednesday. Seth Lugo covered a pair of innings, striking out three and allowing a run in the process. Adam Ottavino and Edwin Díaz recorded flawless frames to send the game to extras. Not only did Díaz strike out the side in order but he also tossed the third-fastest pitch of the day – a 100.2 mph four-seamer. He won’t need to worry about pitching on consecutive days because the Mets don’t play today. Drew Smith was awarded his third win upon the walk-off after his perfect tenth.

 

PHI 2 – CHC 4

• Just two arms appeared for the Phillies. Both Nick Nelson and Andrew Bellatti were unscored upon in their outings.
• All of the Cubs’ arms were rewarded with decisions for securing the victory. Mark Leiter Jr. (fourth hold), Adbert Alzolay (first hold), and Brandon Hughes (eighth hold) each earned holds. Leiter Jr. was the only one to surrender a run and Hughes recorded all three of his outs via the strikeout. Manuel Rodríguez closed out the ninth for the second day in a row for his fourth save. Both he and Hughes have pitched on consecutive days so it may be Rowan Wick’s turn for a save.

 

CHW 4 – MIN 8

• It wasn’t the best of pitching days for the White Sox. Jake Diekman was the only arm to leave the game unscathed, but he recorded just one out. Both Joe Kelly and José Ruiz allowed a run in their respective innings of work. Closer Liam Hendriks has still yet to pitch since September 20th.
• The Twins’ pitching staff capitalized on the poor pitching by their opponents. Caleb Thielbar completed the starter’s fifth and pitched a perfect sixth to vulture his fourth win. Michael Fulmer may have allowed a run in the seventh, but he was credited with his 25th hold nonetheless. The final hold went to Jovani Moran, his second, for his perfect eighth. Jorge López closed out the ninth with a flawless frame of his own.

 

STL 1 – MIL 5

• The Cardinals bullpen wasn’t necessarily noteworthy but it didn’t matter much as the offense didn’t show up. Chris Stratton and JoJo Romero surrendered a combined four runs. Other than that, Steven Matz, Jake Woodford, and Giovanny Gallegos put up zeroes in their outings. St. Louis won’t play a game on Thursday.
• Matt Bush and Devin Williams were able to shorten the game to secure the Brewers’ win. Bush served up a bomb to Andrew Knizner but earned his 17th hold anyway while Williams struck out three across five outs for his 26th hold. Brad Boxberger pitched a perfect ninth up by four. Williams tossed 25 pitches and may need Taylor Rogers to close out Thursday’s game.

 

ARI 5 – HOU 2

• The Diamondbacks came away victorious in extras thanks to excellent relief work. Kevin Ginkel pitched a perfect eighth and Reyes Moronta put up a scoreless ninth to end regulation. Moronta would earn his second win when the offense took the lead in the top of the 10th and Mark Melancon held it for his 18th save in the ninth. The team will have a chance to rest on Thursday.
• Despite Rafael Montero and Ryan Pressly’s perfect frames to close out the first nine, the Astros were unable to hold on in the 10th. Will Smith permitted three runs (two earned) and was saddled with his third loss. He even needed some help from Bryan Abreu to close out the inning. The Astros are afforded an off day on Thursday.

 

OAK 1 – LAA 4

• A lot of arms appeared for the A’s as their starter exited in the fifth. Sam Selman, Norge Ruiz, and Kirby Snead were unscored upon across the next 1.1 innings. Austin Pruitt served up a homer to Taylor Ward across five outs and let Domingo Acevedo grab the final out. He used just 11 pitches so he can pitch again today.
• Someone call a priest! The Angels’ arm barn is possessed. They were at their best on Wednesday as they secured the victory over the A’s. Aaron Loup (19th hold), Jaime Barría (fifth hold), and José Quijada (10th hold) set up for three frames for the closer. Jimmy Herget pitched a perfect ninth to secure his eighth save. The right-hander has given up just one run across his last 14 appearances since August 24th, resulting in a 0.53 ERA (17 IP). He has now pitched on consecutive days and likely hands the ball to Ryan Tepera today.

 

LAD 1 – SDP 0

• It was a close affair but the Dodgers came away victorious thanks to a bullpen at its peak. Evan Phillips and Yency Almonte pushed the ball to the ninth where Alex Vesia pitched a scoreless inning. He would go on to earn his fifth win as the offense took the lead and Tommy Kahnle closed out the ninth for his first save. Phillips has pitched on back-to-back days, giving Brusdar Graterol or Craig Kimbrel a shot in the ninth today.
• The Padres bullpen was untouched during regulation. Tim Hill, Luis García, Nick Martinez, and Josh Hader combined for four hitless innings to push the game to free baseball. There, Steven Wilson allowed the zombie runner to score and was saddled with his second loss. Each of the last two games has featured Hader, so the team could turn to Robert Suarez in the ninth today.

 

TEX 1 – SEA 3

• Just one arm pitched for the Rangers in the defeat. Joe Barlow pitched a hitless eighth to drop his ERA to 3.97 (34 IP).
• The Mariners got exactly what they wanted out of their relief corps on Wednesday. Erik Swanson and Andrés Muñoz were flawless while setting up for the closer. They recorded their 14th and 22nd holds respectively. Muñoz also unleashed the fastest pitch of the day – a 101.6 mph four-seam fastball. Paul Sewald was perfect in the ninth as he locked down save number 20. He fired just five bullets in the process and will be more than ready to pitch again today.

 

COL 3 – SFG 6

• Justin Lawrence was the difference-maker out of the Rockies relief corps. He surrendered three runs in the sixth that ultimately became the difference in the game. Chad Smith covered the next five outs, recording 80% of them by way of the punchout. Ty Blach pitched the eighth against his former club and struck out the side in order. Closer Daniel Bard has yet to pitch since Friday.
• The Giants used the opener-to-bulk-reliever strategy. John Brebbia opened with a perfect frame before handing the ball over to Sean Hjelle for the next four. The towering righty not only earned his first career win, but he also induced three whiffs with a 25% CSW across 60 pitches. He allowed two runs (one earned) along the way. Shelby Miller pitched the next two frames, striking out five of the six batters he faced to record his first hold. Did the Giants put another pitcher through the cheating lab? Tyler Rogers and Yunior Marte pitched the eighth and ninth respectively.

 

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)