Welcome back to the latest 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
- 14 teams had Monday off: ATL, BAL, CLE, COL, CWS, DET, HOU, KC, NYM, OAK, SEA, TB, TEX, WAS.
- Caleb Smith rejoins the Arizona bullpen after being activated from the IL while Tyler Holton was optioned to AAA and Chris Devenski was released by the club after clearing waivers.
- The Boston Red Sox shuffled their bullpen by designating for assignment both Hirokazu Sawamura and Austin Davis, replacing them with Kaleb Ort and Zack Kelly
- The Angels reinstated Aaron Loup and Ryan Tepera after returning from their trip up north.
- The Yankees reinstated Clay Holmes from the injured list, optioning Luke Bard to make room in the bullpen.
Yesterday’s Performances
BOS 2 – MIN 4
- Pitching in his second straight game, Jorge López was even more efficient on Monday as he recorded his 23rd save over the year. Lopez threw just nine pitches (six for strikes) as he struck out one through his perfect frame. Teammates Griffin Jax and Jhoan Duran set him up nicely , each picking up two strikeouts of their own and recording a hold while first man up Caleb Thielbar was credited with the win after relieving starter Dylan Bundy in the fifth and collecting four outs in perfect fashion, needing just 15 pitches on the night.
- The Red Sox’ new additions got thrown right in and faired fairly well in a losing effort as Zack Kelly and Kaleb Ort combined to pitched the final three innings without giving up a run and striking out four. This was after a team-effort collapse of the fifth inning however, with starter Brayan Bello walking the first two batters to start things off before being relieved by Matt Strahm, who did record two outs but left the bases loaded for John Schreiber. Schreiber promptly allowed all his inherited runners to score off a double to Gio Urshela before finally closing out the inning with a Jake Cave strikeout. This inning could easily be used to represent the entire Red Sox season.
STL 13 – CIN 4
- The Reds threw the definition of a bullpen game on Monday with eight different pitchers seeing time on the mound, all of which recorded at least three outs but only three walked away without adding any earned runs to the box score. Alexis Díaz was one of the few bullpen arms saved in this one, further cementing him on the clear favorite for save opportunities in Cincinnati.
LAD 3 – MIA 2
- Tanner Scott was the first man up for the Marlins, striking out the side in the seventh inning while the score was still tied at two a piece. Though most fantasy managers would have preferred to see their closer be saved for the ninth inning, it was a pleasant sight to see Scott walk away with three K’s for just the fourth time this season.
- Chris Martin picked up his first save of the year after coming in to clean up the 10th inning. After pitching a perfect ninth inning to force the extra frame, Craig Kimbrel returned for the tenth and though he was able to retire one batter, he walked two and left runners on second and third before being lifted for Martin. Martin retired the only two batters he faced to end any threat of a walk off. Though on the surface one may see this as more Kimbrel struggles, there’s something to be said about Dave Roberts putting his faith back into his closer to send him back out for another inning. Kimbrel should continue to get a mix of save and non-save opportunities as the regular season winds down.
CHC 4 – TOR 5
- Brandon Hughes pitched a scoreless ninth for the Cubs after getting the final out of the eighth as well. Since the All-Star Break Hughes has only allowed runs to score in four of his 19 appearances while striking out 26 through 19.2 innings of work. Unfortunately Hughes’ good work was undone thanks to a walk off single in the 11th, giving Mark Leiter Jr. the loss.
- Yimi García was gifted the win, his third of the season, after pitching two scoreless extra inning. Closer Jordan Romano pitched a clean ninth to push the tie game into extras, pitching for the first time in the past four days. Romano needed 20 pitches in this one so he’s not immune for getting another day of rest on Tuesday despite just getting the whole weekend off.
PIT 5 – MIL 7
- After recording another save on Sunday, Devin Williams added to his collection with his fifth win of the year on Monday, striking out two and walking one in the process. He needed 26 pitches in this one and when you combine that with the fact that he saw time on the mound in two of the previous three days it should provide a late inning opportunity for Matt Bush or Taylor Rogers on Tuesday.
- Will Crowe was saddled with the loss for the Pirates, giving up not one but two home runs, including recent call up Garrett Mitchell’s first career long ball in the eighth, which tied things up at five a piece. The second came in walk-off fashion as Keston Hiura played hero for the Brewers in the bottom of the ninth. Crowe did not record an out in the final frame.
NYY 3 – LAA 4
- Ryan Tepera and Aaron Loup returned from the restricted list as the Angels travelled back home. Tepera was thrown right back into action, being the first man up and making quick work of the Yankees in a 1-2-3 seventh inning, though his perfect outing would be broken up after giving up Aaron Judge’s 50th home run after coming back out in the eighth. Tepera would still walk away with his 16th hold and will continue to be a viable option for that category the rest of the way. Jimmy Herget picked up his fourth save of the season, holding down the fort and recording the final two outs of the Anegls’ victory over the Yankees. That’s two straight save opportunities converted for Herget and enough to place him at the top of whatever committee the Angels are using at the moment.
- Clay Holmes returned to action on Monday, pitching a perfect seventh inning and striking out one. This was clearly just an opportunity to get Holmes back n the mound after spending the last two plus weeks on the IL. He should return to high leverage situations as they present themselves in short order.
PHI 7 – ARI 13
- Brad Hand received some mop up duty as the Phillies took a beating at the hands of the Diamondbacks on Monday. After picking up the last save chance the Phillies had this past Thursday, Hand again pitched the ninth inning though the situation was a bit different. Though Hand only threw 14 pitches, his predecessors José Alvarado and Andrew Bellatti combined for 61 pitches, providing David Robertson with a clear opportunity to on Tuesday.
- Caleb Smith returned to the Arizona bullpen and was put right to work, throwing two scoreless innings and pitching around two walks while striking out three. Though Smith won’t necessarily enter the mix for save in Arizona, he could provide added innings as needed, though they may not always be of the stable variety.
SD 6 – SF 5
- Manager Bob Melvin announced that he prefers to utilize Nick Martinez as his closer while Josh Hader continues to work through his recent struggles so it came as no surprise to see Martinez pick up his seventh save late Monday night. Martinez didn’t make it look pretty however, coming into the game with two outs, two runners on base, and a four run lead in the eighth inning and promptly allowing back-to-back singles and allowing all three inherited runners to score, cutting the Padres’ lead down to one. Perhaps it was Melvin sticking to his earlier comments or perhaps it was just faith in his reliever to right the ship, but either way Martinez returned for the ninth and shut down the Giants’ 1-2-3 hitters in order to preserve the victory and record the save. Though Martinez should undoubtedly receive at least one day of rest on Tuesday, setting up Luis Garcia to pitch the ninth if needed, he should return to close out games in short order.
Bullpen Depth Charts
Also, if you’re looking for a detailed list or ranking of RPs, check out Rick Graham’s weekly pieces:
The Hold Up: Ranking the Top 100 Relievers for Holds Every Thursday
Closing Time: Ranking the Top 30 Closers
Top 100 Relievers for Save+Hold Leagues
Photos by Icon Sportswire | Adapted by Doug Carlin (@Bdougals on Twitter)