Welcome back to the newest 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
- With 11 games playing through on Monday, eight teams were able to give their bullpens a rest, including TOR, BOS, MIN, HOU, NYM, ATL, WAS, and STL.
- Philadelphia Phillies recalled lefty Cristopher Sanchez and righty Connor Brogdon from AAA Lehigh Valley
- Miami Marlins placed Richard Bleier on the 15-day injured list.
- Chicago Cubs placed David Robertson on the Covid-IL.
Yesterday’s Performances
- Liam Hendriks picked up his second blown save of the season after coming into the game for the White Sox in an effort to clean up the mess left by Tanner Banks in what started off as a three run lead. Banks ultimately allowed two runs to score before handing the ball over to Hendriks with runners left on first and second. After loading the bases, Hendriks left a pitch for Josh Naylor to crush for a grand slam, before getting Franmil Reyes to ground out and end the inning, sending the game into extras. Expect Hendriks to get an immediate opportunity to redeem himself on Tuesday as he only threw nine pitches in this one.
- Emmanuel Clase would also be credited with his second blown save opportunity of the season, allowing the White Sox to score an unearned run off a walk and a hit in the tenth. Clase would be bailed out by the Guardians’ bats in the following inning, walking away from the game with his first win on the season and allowing Trevor Stephan to record his first save of the year after striking out two of the three batters he faced to end the game.
- Thanks to some lopsided victories/defeats, Philadelphia, Seattle, Tampa Bay, Los Angeles (AL), Chicago (NL), and San Diego were mostly able to rest their higher leverage arms on Monday, with the notable expection being the Angels going with Ryan Tepera early on with the score still close in the sixth inning. Tepera would go on to record his eighth hold on the year, scattering a walk and hit through an inning and a third, striking out three along the way.
- The Arizona bullpen as a whole pitched admirably on Monday, combining for three and a third scoreless innings and recording the win (Kyle Nelson), two holds (Noe Ramirez, Ian Kennedy) and the save (Mark Melancon) in the process. The four relievers combined for just two strikeouts, both of which came from Nelson. After throwing 26 pitches in his blown save Saturday, Melancon only needed six pitches on Monday and should still be available on Tuesday if needed.
- Though the final score showed just a three run difference, there was no save opportunity for the Giants on Monday. Jake McGee gave up three runs (two earned) in the top of the ninth to bring the score a bit closer, but found a way to finish things off to seal the victory for San Francisco. Still, after McGee needed 26 pitches in this one, Jarlin Garcia would be expected to be used out of the pen when Gabe Kapler needs a lefty out of the pen Tuesday.
- Felix Bautista was the first man up for Baltimore, pitching a perfect seventh inning while striking out two. Bautista recorded the six hardest thrown pitches of the game, registering his 4-seamer as high as 101.4 mph. Though he pitched here with a five run lead, keep an eye on Bautista’s usage as he could end up being a sneaky good option for holds while providing added strikeouts.
- Clay Holmes recorded the final two outs of the eighth inning on just four pitches. Holmes would be credited with the win after the Yankees would break the scoreless tie in the bottom half of the inning, setting up Aroldis Chapman to record his seventh save of the season allowing just one hit in his scoreless ninth. The outing marked Holmes’ second straight outing, but also second straight credited win. Though Monday ended up on a positive note for Chapman, between his 20 pitches and recent struggles, don’t be surprised to see Aaron Boone go with another option in the ninth on Tuesday, like a Chad Green who hasn’t pitched since May 2nd.
- David Bednar pitched the final inning for the Pirates in their win over the Dodgers on Monday, albeit it coming in with a five run cushion after scoring an additional two runs in the bottom of the eight inning. Bednar still tried to make it interesting by giving up a lead off home run to Edwin Rios before retiring the next three batters in order. Anthony Banda and Wil Crowe each recorded a hold, combining for two scoreless innings while the game score was a bit closer.
- Despite the return of Lou Trivino for the Athletics, Dany Jiménez continues to get the late inning opportunities for Oakland, recording all three outs of Monday’s final inning by way of the strikeout on his way to his fifth save on the year. Jiménez did walk two on his outing, leading to a whopping 27 pitches thrown after throwing 19 the day before, setting him up for an obvious rest day Tuesday (and possibly Wednesday), despite the double header scheduled. Expect Trivino or A.J. Puk to be used in the final innings of Tuesday’s games.
Photos by Icon Sportswire | Adapted by Doug Carlin (@Bdougals on Twitter)