Bullpen Depth Charts: Relievers To Stream 4/6

Welcome back to our Relievers to Stream for Wins and Saves series! This will bring you up-to-date bullpen depth charts every morning for the day’s games and makes for a great tool for those of you looking to stream saves or wins. This series runs 7 days a week, so be sure to check in every morning to get your daily bullpen fix!

Notes

• The Braves, Nationals, Rockies, and Diamondbacks were off on Monday, so all four teams should have fresh bullpens for Tuesday. This is especially true of the Nationals, who will be playing their first game of the season.
• Cleveland and the Royals are the only two teams without a game today. With both of their bullpens proving to be some of the toughest to predict saves thus far, we will have to wait another day before hopefully finding some clarity on either situation.
  

• Randy Dobnak picked up his first save of the season for the Twins, but to say he earned it would be incredibly generous. Dobnak entered the game with a 15-1 lead and gave up five earned runs across three innings of work to pick up his second career save.
• Though the game was already well out of reach, Gregory Soto pitched a clean inning, while Bryan Garcia allowed two earned runs. This can only help Soto’s case for the bulk of the team’s save opportunities moving forward, as the two of them have each received one save opportunity in the early going.

• Rafael Dolis closed out the game in a non-save situation for the Blue Jays, but it was Jordan Romano, and not Julian Merryweather, who began to warm up in the bullpen when Dolis ran into some trouble. It may very well be a closer-by-committee moving forward, but this speaks to the idea that Romano might still be the preferred option in the ninth, despite Merryweather already collecting two saves.
• With the Royals holding onto a 3-0 lead heading into the ninth, it was Jesse Hahn who came in to get the save. That now makes two saves from two different relievers in the Royals bullpen, with neither of them being the presumed closer Greg Holland. Holland did begin to warm up when the first two batters walked and singled, but nothing came of it as Hahn quickly escaped trouble. This situation has become something of a mess for save speculation, as it is truly anyone’s guess as to who will get the next chance.

• Triston McKenzie made his season debut as a long reliever, pitching 3.2 innings of one-run ball. This was an expected move, with the Indians attempting to manage his workload early. He will likely join the starting rotation within the next couple of weeks.
• Aroldis Chapman made his season debut in a non-save situation after being suspended for the first two games of the year. He looked sharp, striking out three batters swinging, while also giving up a walk.
  

• Amir Garrett got the save in his first appearance of the season, but not before allowing a home run to Bryan Reynolds, the first batter he faced. It took him 25 pitches to get through the inning, so he may be unavailable tonight should another save opportunity arise. Look for Sean Doolittle or Lucas Sims to get the call in this scenario.
• Alex Reyes picked up the first save of the season for the Cardinals, after being dubbed the closer over Jordan Hicks and Giovanny Gallegos to start the year. Hicks pitched a scoreless sixth and Gallegos pitched a scoreless seventh and eighth. This should still be a situation to monitor long-term.

• A day after picking up a win, José Alvarado got his first save of the year, despite giving up one run on three hits. Closer Héctor Neris was unavailable in this one after pitching in each of the team’s first three games, though it is noteworthy that Alvarado got the nod over Archie Bradley. Alvarado, who has struck out seven batters through three innings thus far, will likely be unavailable tonight after pitching in back-to-back games and throwing 24 pitches yesterday.
• Devin Williams gave up an earned run in 2/3 of an inning yesterday. While largely insignificant, it is somewhat noteworthy after he allowed just one earned run in 27 innings over the entire 2020 season.

• With Craig Kimbrel unavailable after pitching each of the past two nights, it was Alec Mills who slammed the door shut in the ninth for his first save of the year. Mills, who was slated to open the season as a long reliever after being beaten out for the team’s last spot in the rotation, was a very surprising choice for the save chance over Brandon Workman.
• Mike Mayers picked up his first save of the season despite serving up a solo shot to Kyle Tucker to make things interesting. Raisel Iglesias was unavailable after recording five outs and the win on 30 pitches Sunday night.

• Entering the game in relief of Dustin May, David Price allowed three earned runs in two innings, giving up four hits, two walks, and a homer. Price has now given up five runs in two relief appearances, making it much less likely that he joins the starting rotation any time soon.
• Michael Kopech struck out five across two innings of shutout ball, allowing one hit and one walk. Through two relief appearances thus far, Kopech has looked nothing short of dominant, striking out eight batters through four scoreless innings.

• Jake McGee earned his second save of the young season, working through the heart of San Diego’s lineup to do so. McGee has now thrown three scoreless innings in the team’s first four games, and he seems firmly entrenched as the team’s closer.
• With Luke Weaver on the mound for Arizona, this could be an opportunity for the first reliever after him to pick up a win. In 12 starts last year, Weaver failed to make it five innings in exactly half of them, and didn’t complete six innings once the entire season.