Reliever Ranks – 6/3

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

 

• Thursday’s slate consisted of 12 games, including an Angels/Yankees doubleheader due to Wednesday’s rainout in New York.
• The Astros, A’s, Diamondbacks, Guardians, Phillies, Pirates, Red Sox, and Royals had yesterday off, so their bullpens should be good to go today for the most part.
• All 30 teams are in action today, and the Cardinals and Cubs play a doubleheader tomorrow.

 

• There were several minor callups yesterday, including Jimmy Lambert, Caleb Ferguson, Jhonathan Diaz, Yennier Cano, and Jeremy Beasley.
• In addition, Michael Grove, Mike Mayers, Robert Gsellman, and Riley O’Brien were optioned to the minors.

 

Yesterday’s Performances

 

Rays 3, Rangers 1

• A plethora of relievers picked up holds for the Rays in this low-scoring affair. Corey Kluber went six innings, and Kevin Cash played mix-and-match with five arms to close out the Rangers. The only pitcher to throw a full inning was Ryan Thompson, who picked up his third save with a 1-2-3 ninth. The four hurlers who picked up holds were Jason Adam, Brooks Raley, Shawn Armstrong, and J.P. Feyereisen. Tampa has dipped into its bullpen considerably the past two days, so they may lean on Shane McClanahan a bit more than usual tonight.

• Rangers starter Taylor Hearn only lasted four innings before giving way to Garrett Richards in the fifth. Richards, Brock Burke, and Brett Martin all pitched well, not giving up a run over the last five innings of the game. As the Rangers were playing from behind, they were able to rest Joe Barlow and Matt Bush, who should be good to go tonight.

 

Tigers 3, Twins 2

• The Tigers rallied off the Twins bullpen in the bottom of the eighth for a come-from-behind victory in Detroit. Much of the credit should go to their bullpen, which held the Twins scoreless after starter Alex Faedo left after five innings. Andrew Chafin and Jason Foley covered the sixth and seventh while Alex Lange, who pitched the eighth, earned the victory. Gregory Soto closed the game with his tenth save of the season.

• Chris Archer went five innings for Minnesota and left with a 2-1 lead. Sometimes closer Jhoan Duran did his part, pitching two scoreless innings and earning his sixth hold. Emilio Pagán, on the other hand, blew the save and took the loss after giving up a two-run shot to Daz Cameron.

 

Yankees 6, Angels 1 (Game 1)

• New York rode Nestor Cortes, who earned his fifth win, for seven innings. Clarke Schmidt came on in the eighth and surrendered the only run for the Angels before Aaron Boone turned to Wandy Peralta to close out the eighth and the game. As Peralta came in with runners on, he earned his first save of the year.
• The Yankees got to Shohei Ohtani early and often in the first game of Thursday’s doubleheader. Ohtani couldn’t make it out of the fourth inning, giving up four runs, three via the long ball. The Halos bullpen fared a bit better. After José Quijada got out of the fourth, recent callup, Jhonathan Diaz came on and pitched the last four innings.

 

Yankees 2, Angels 1 (Game 2)

• Jameson Taillon took a perfect game into the eighth before Jared Walsh doubled to lead off the inning. Walsh would score for the Angels’ only run, but Taillon finished the inning and got the win. Clay Holmes picked up a save, but not before loading the bases on a walk and two hit batters with two out. The Yankees survived the doubleheader without taxing their pen.
• The Angels’ starter, Reid Detmers, was pitching well, but Joe Madden pulled him with one out in the fifth. From there, the Halos churned through five relievers, most of whom were successful. It wasn’t until the bottom of the eighth, after they fell behind, that New York scored on a two-out single by pinch-hitter Anthony Rizzo off Archie Bradley. The Angels made it through the two games without using Raisel Iglesias or Ryan Tepera. Still, they did have to employ several other key arms in this one, including Aaron Loup, Jimmy Herget, and Oliver Ortega, who took the loss.

 

Blue Jays 8, White Sox 3

• Alek Manoah continued his hot start, pitching into the eighth inning before getting into a bit of trouble. Adam Cimber came on and got the last out of the eighth to earn a hold, but not before allowing the inning’s third run to come across for the Chisox. The Blue Jays answered with four runs of their own in the bottom of the inning, and Trent Thorton finished what was no longer a close game.
• Chicago used four hurlers in relief of Johnny Cueto, who went six innings and allowed four runs (three earned). Tanner Banks threw a scoreless seventh, but Reynaldo López struggled in the eighth. After two doubles, a walk, and a hit batter to start the inning, Lopez left the bases loaded for Aaron Bummer. Bummer looked like he may get out of the inning without further damage; however, a single by Santiago Espinal plated two more and ended his night. Jimmy Lambert got the last out of the game, but not before Toronto scored another run.

 

Marlins 3, Giants 0

• Sandy Alcantara cruised through seven scoreless innings en route to his sixth win, giving the Marlins pen a much-needed rest. Steven Okert earned his seventh hold with a scoreless eighth, and Tanner Scott closed the game out for his second save of the season.
• Giants’ starter Alex Wood got into the sixth inning with only one run allowed before a one-out single by Jorge Soler sent him to the showers. Perhaps sensing the urgency of the situation, Gabe Kapler turned to his closer, Camilo Doval, to keep the deficit at one. However, that didn’t happen as Doval allowed two more runs to come in off a Jesús Aguilar double and a Miguel Rojas single. Doval has now pitched four times in the last five days and thus may not be available tonight. Sam Long covered the last two frames for San Francisco.

 

Reds 8, Nationals 1

• Graham Ashcraft twirled a gem for the Reds, going seven innings with only a Josh Bell HR for a blemish. Art Warren and Joel Kuhnel each pitched a scoreless inning to close the game.
• The Nationals starter, Joan Adon, had a tough first inning allowing a three-run jack to Joey Votto before breaking a sweat. After that, he settled down and pitched into the sixth, at which point Erasmo Ramírez relieved him. Ramirez returned for the seventh and promptly gave up an HR to Matt Reynolds and a couple of base hits. Josh Rogers followed and wasn’t much better surrendering another dinger, this time to Kyle Farmer. Fortunately for the Nats, Paolo Espino got through the ninth unscathed.

 

Brewers 5, Padres 4

• The Padres were cruising with a three-run lead heading into the ninth behind Sean Manaea and relievers Robert Suarez and Luis Garcia, who earned holds. In came Taylor Rogers, who’s been great this year, to close it out. But things didn’t go as planned for the Friars, as a base hit, two HBPs, and a triple later, the score was tied. It was the day of the HBP, by the way. Nabil Crismatt came in to try and salvage the game, but Andrew McCutchen walked it off with a base hit to center.
• Adrian Houser started for the Brewers and went five innings, surrendering one run. San Diego got to Brent Suter for two in the sixth and added another off Peter Strzelecki in the eighth. Strzelecki ended up with the win as he was the pitcher of record when the Brew Crew mounted their comeback.

 

Mariners 7, Orioles 6

• It took ten innings, but the Mariners finally prevailed over the Orioles, with Diego Castillo pitching the last two innings for the win. Matt Festa earned a hold despite giving up three runs in a third of an inning after reliever Chris Flexen. He was followed by Paul Sewald, who blew a save opportunity in the sixth inning. You gotta love baseball official scoring! Oh, and Andrés Muñoz pitched too – a clean eighth inning. How boring.
• Baltimore worked its bullpen hard in relief of Jordan Lyles, who couldn’t get an out in the sixth inning. Cionel Pérez entered and faced three batters before giving way to Joey Krehbiel. Krehbiel subsequently lasted one batter before leaving with a shoulder injury. The fourth hurler of the inning, Bryan Baker, finally finished the sixth. After Dillon Tate got them five outs, the O’s turned to their closer Jorge López in the bottom of the eighth. He was still on the hill in the tenth when he allowed the inherited runner to score and took the loss despite not allowing an earned run.

 

Cubs 7, Cardinals 5

• Keegan Thompson pitched into the sixth for the Cubs and improved his record to 6-0. Rucker and Effross followed and held the Cards scoreless while earning holds for themselves. Mychal Givens almost gave the game away in the ninth but held on to close it out.
• Cardinals starter Matthew Liberatore only lasted 3.1 innings before being forced out after giving up three dingers and four runs. Nick Wittgren and T.J. McFarland followed, and neither could stop the bleeding. Kody Whitley finally slowed the Cubs’ offense getting the last two outs for the Cards.

 

Braves 13, Rockies 6

• It was one of those Coors Field nights in Denver. Braves starter Ian Anderson surrendered five runs in six innings and won. He was followed by a solid bullpen effort from Jesús Cruz, Darren O’Day, and Dylan Lee. Only Cruz gave up another solo run.
• Austin Gomber had a night he’d like to forget as he was touched for nine runs in his five innings of work. Travis d’Arnaud was not nice to him, taking him deep twice. Ty Blach didn’t offer much resistance either, allowing four runs over the next three innings. At least Robert Stephenson, who pitched the ninth, came out unscathed.

 

Dodgers 2, Mets 0

• In contrast to the Braves/Rockies slugfest, it was a good old-fashioned pitcher’s duel in Los Angeles. The Dodgers got another strong performance from Tony Gonsolin, who went six innings, giving up nary a run and earning the victory. He was followed by Brusdar Graterol and Daniel Hudson, who picked up holds. Craig Kimbrel came on for the ninth and set the Mets down in order for his 11th save.
• Los Angeles put runners on base against Mets starter Taijuan Walker but were only able to cash in two runs over his 5.2 innings of work. Colin Holderman and Chasen Shreve relieved Walker, and both held the Dodgers scoreless.

 

 

 

Also, if you’re looking for a detailed list or ranking of RPs, check out Rick Graham’s weekly pieces:

The Hold Up 5/26: Ranking the Top 100 Relievers for Holds

Closing Time 5/31: Ranking the Top 40 Closers

Top 100 Relievers for Save+Hold Leagues: 5/27

Photos by Icon Sportswire | Adapted by Doug Carlin (@Bdougals on Twitter)