Oddly, it was a mostly quiet week in bullpens around MLB this past week. That’s good, considering how busy the week was for me with exams, a full work schedule and a family wedding thrown in on Friday night! I am sorry to be a day late here, but better late than never, as they say…right?
MLB Bullpen Depth Charts
AL East
Boston continues to be a nightmare situation. Essentially, no reliever has gotten anyone out with any consistency. To the naked eye, not looking at any advanced metrics, Matt Barnes appears lost without any command; the walks are back and it has been ugly, even by his own admission. Jake Diekman and Hansel Robles are better suited for support roles but have been thrust into the closer role, where both have had their struggles. The easy solution here would seem to be Garrett Whitlock, but manager Alex Cora has steadfastly resisted that urge. Instead, Whitlock is moving to the rotation and will neither be the multiple inning option nor the closer at this time in Boston. What a headache. Unless they seek relief from outside the organization or bring up someone from AAA (Durbin Feltman, anyone?), this is going to remain a messy situation lacking clarity, similar to my daily life.
Tampa Bay continues to mix and match behind closer Andrew Kittredge, with Ryan Thompson seemingly the best bet for vulture saves and holds right now. That could change today. Thompson is a good addition in deep leagues.
AL Central
There had been some initial hand-wringing about Liam Hendriks, but the White Sox closer has converted four straight chances and hit 99 MPH on the radar gun yesterday afternoon. Aaron Bummer continues to struggle behind him, pushing Kendall Graveman and Jose Ruiz into more potential holds.
Kansas City is still a job share between Scott Barlow and Josh Staumont. Plan accordingly.
Watch for a potential changing of the guard in Minnesota. Emilio Pagan has gotten the bulk of the chances, but Jhoan Duran, who we have been touting since the season’s first week, was simply brilliant yesterday, getting five of six outs via the strikeout while sitting over 100 MPH all day. Pagan and Duran may share opportunities for now, but do not be surprised if Duran starts getting more of the job.
AL West
Ryan Pressly is back from the IL for Houston and retains the closer role. On nights he is off, Rafael Montero has put himself into the vulture save watch category.
We have an interesting situation brewing in Oakland. Lou Trivino returned and showed signs of rust this week, leading to a third save opportunity and conversion for Dany Jimenez. Looks like a committee to me, and add Kirby Snead to that discussion as well.
Seattle… good luck with this one. They have a four-headed monster there in Paul Sewald, Drew Steckenrider, Diego Castillo, and Andres Munoz. Ken Giles is due back in the coming weeks, and we learned this week that Matt Brash was being sent to AAA to work on being a reliever again after an unsuccessful month as a starter. You’re a better person than me if you can figure this one out right now.
In Texas, Joe Barlow has quietly ascended back to the closer role, which he should have had to begin with, but manager Chris Woodward had suggested he didn’t want to use him in that role at the beginning of the season. But life has a funny way of revealing to one over time what you should have done, and Woodward should have done this to start the season. Grab him off your waiver wire if an impatient manager cut him earlier.
NL East
Corey Knebel will remain closer in Philadelphia despite a rough end to his week there.
In Miami, Anthony Bender blew a second save opportunity, and restless fans are calling for Dylan Floro. People should not be so quick to give up on Bender, and they should also realize that manager Don Mattingly has other options like Tanner Scott and Cole Sulser too. Floro has no guarantee of a share of the closer role when he returns from injury.
NL Central
David Bednar and Chris Stratton continue to share the role in Pittsburgh.
St. Louis has n interesting situation brewing with the lights-out performance of Ryan Helsley thus far. Giovanny Gallegos is still getting the ninth, but that could change if Helsley continues to dominate as he did in April. Helsley is a great source of holds and strikeouts right now and could get save opps moving forward. Pay attention here.
NL West
Mark Melancon is back for Arizona, pushing Ian Kennedy and Joe Mantiply back into setup roles. Mantiply did a nice job the last two weeks and is a name to know for later, especially if the retooling Diamondbacks decide to move Melancon and Kennedy at the trade deadline.
The timeshare continues in San Francisco between Camilo Doval and Jake McGee. Look for a 2/1 split here in favor of Doval. For now; these things are always subject to change!