David Bednar and Matt Brash led all relievers with 4 SV+HLD’s this past week. Bednar continues to chug away and gives us a nice surprise with four saves to begin September despite not being at his best. I still wonder if the Pirates shut him down early as they have nothing to play for and he is closing in on his career high for innings pitched (just 1.2 IP away). Over the second half, Bednar’s K rate has dropped to 24% to go along with a 4.51 xFIP and 1.23 WHIP as he is showing signs of wearing down a bit to end the season.
Notes
- Griffin Jax has had an up-and-down season, with August being particularly rough on him as he allowed 10 runs over 10 innings, however 8 runs came over two outings, and if you were to take away those two brutal outings, Jax would have a 1.25 ERA. 0.80 WHIP and 36 K’s over his past 36.1 IP. His 16 holds over that timeframe are also good for the 13th most in baseball, with Jax collecting three holds over the past week as well.
- Julian Merryweather didn’t pick up his first hold until June 2nd of this season, but since then he has 16 of them, good for 7th most in baseball since June began. Walks are an issue still, but there’s plenty of swing-and-miss stuff here for him to be effective, and he’s been able to stay healthy finally, which has been the one thing holding him back in the past.
- It’s easy to forget how good Tyler Kinley was last season and really how good he has been since late in the 2021 season. Over his past 57.1 IP, Kinley has a 2.20 ERA (3.38 xFIP), 1.08 WHIP, and 21.5% K-BB rate, numbers we will certainly take from a Colorado closer. He’s the best bullpen option for the Rockies at the moment, and should finish the season as the teams’ closer and likely open 2024 in the role as well.
- Colin Poche is tough to trust at times because of his pedestrian pitch mix and questionable underlying numbers (4.76 xFIP plus just 12.9% K-BB, 11.9% SwStr, and 26.9% CSW rates) but he has made an effort to use his slider more as the season moves along and it has had a great effect so far. Holds are also not consistent, but he does have 18 on the season, which is good for 25th most in baseball.
And if you want more daily reliever updates, please check out our Reliever Ranks series.
Injured List
| PITCHER | TIER | INJURY (SURGERY DATE). NOTES |
|---|---|---|
| Félix Bautista | 1 | UCL. Likely out for the season, but hasn’t been ruled out yet. |
| Edwin Diaz | 1-2 | Knee. Making great progress and wants to pitch this season. Throwing bullpens now. |
| Erik Swanson | 2 | Back. Expected to miss 15 days only, and already progressed to mound work. |
| JoJo Romero | 2 | Knee. Patellar tendinitis could keep him out for the rest of the season. |
| Jason Adam | 2 | Oblique. Obliques are tricky, and this likely could keep Adam out for a while. |
| Josh Sborz | 3/4 | Hamstring. Had been pitching very poorly, this may be an attempt to give him a break and reset. |
| Blake Treinen | 3/4 | Shoulder. Rehab paused, likely out for the season. |
| Brock Stewart | 3/4 | Elbow. Still throwing bullpens, and could return by the end of the season. |
| Joe Kelly | 4/5 | Forearm. Could return early next week if everything checks out. |
Why is Hader still.so high? He is good but he has 3 saves since Aug 1.