Jimmy Herget had 3 saves over his last 3 outings in August, but has yet to record a save in September despite posting an ERA of 1.00 and WHIP of .89 over 9 innings. Instead, Ryan Tepera and Aaron Loup have the teams past two saves, despite (mostly) struggling this season. It could be a committee the rest of the way, which is unfortunate as the Angels schedule has them playing two series each against the Rangers and Athletics as a well as a series against the Twins this weekend. Those are all winnable games, so stay tuned to how the bullpen trends here as the week progresses.
Notes
- Kenley Jansen has bounced back this past week with two perfect outings leading to two saves as the Braves continue to have confidence in the veteran closer. Lets hope he’s over his rough patch and ready to finish the season strong.
- David Bednar could return this week, bumping Wil Crowe and others out of the closer picture for the remainder of the year. Who knows how many saves the Pirates will get the rest of the way, but they do get the Cubs and Reds the next two series after the Yankees.
- Jhoan Duran has taken over as the Twins interim closer as the team fades out of the playoff picture. He’s in a similar position to Pete Fairbanks where you’re not quite sure if he is the full time closer but you still want to roster him in all formats.
- David Robertson is holding steady as the Phillies closer, and with Seranthony Domínguez allowing five earned runs his last time out, Robertson likely has a tighter grasp on the role. At this point of the season, I wouldn’t anticipate many (if any) major closer changes the rest of the way.
- Just when it looked like Craig Kimbrel was figuring things out and ready to close out games again, he goes out and blows a save against the Diamondbacks and has just 4 K’s over his last 8 IP. It’s been a tumultuous season for Kimbrel who’s role will be one to monitor as we head to the postseason.
- Gregory Soto has a 5.12 SIERA, WHIP of 1.83 and a K-BB rate of 3.3% since August began but still seems to be the favorite for saves in Detroit for the time being. He’s someone to stay away from in drafts next season if he able to hold onto the closer role through the offseason.
| Rank | Pitcher | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Edwin DiazT1 | - |
| 2 | Devin Williams | - |
| 3 | Liam Hendriks | - |
| 4 | Emmanuel Clase | - |
| 5 | Félix Bautista | - |
| 6 | Jordan RomanoT2 | - |
| 7 | Ryan Helsley | - |
| 8 | Ryan Pressly | - |
| 9 | Josh Hader | +2 |
| 10 | Pete Fairbanks | +4 |
| 11 | Paul Sewald | -2 |
| 12 | Kenley Jansen | +9 |
| 13 | Camilo Doval | -1 |
| 14 | Scott Barlow | -1 |
| 15 | José Leclerc | +1 |
| 16 | Daniel BardT3 | +2 |
| 17 | Jhoan Duran | +UR |
| 18 | Alexis Díaz | +4 |
| 19 | David Bednar | +UR |
| 20 | Clay Holmes | -10 |
| 21 | David Robertson | +5 |
| 22 | Brandon Hughes | -2 |
| 23 | Jimmy Herget | -4 |
| 24 | Craig Kimbrel | -9 |
| 25 | Gregory Soto | -8 |
| 26 | Dylan FloroT4 | +UR |
| 27 | Matt Barnes | -2 |
| 28 | Domingo Acevedo | +UR |
| 29 | Kyle Finnegan | -1 |
| 30 | Ian Kennedy | -1 |
Photo by John Cordes/Icon Sportswire | Adapted by Justin Paradis (@JustParaDesigns on Twitter)