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In leagues of a certain depth, who's in line for saves is always a subject of maximum interest since the number of pitchers capable of delivering them at any given moment is finite, limited to the number of teams in the sport itself.
And two of those teams have spent the better part of this season reducing that number further, refusing to commit to any one pitcher in the role.
Officially, they still haven't committed. But actions speak louder than words, and their actions suggest they do have clear choices for the ninth inning, whether Fantasy owners have bought into it or not.
Those teams, of course, are the Phillies and the Astros, and they kick off this latest look at the changing closer landscape.
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From the time Seranthony Dominguez strung together six straight hitless appearances to begin his big-league career, Fantasy owners have said, "If only." Well, "If only" has come to pass.
It may have taken Hector Neris flaming out so completely that he was optioned to the minors — twice. It may have taken Edubray Ramos landing on the DL with a shoulder impingement. Nevertheless, here we are: Dominguez has handled five consecutive save opportunities for the Phillies — and two have been of a more traditional variety, meaning a clean inning from start to finish.
The last save chance was of the four-out variety, which isn't so oddball. If nothing else, it showed the Phillies were reserving Dominguez for that purpose rather than him just happening into it. It wasn't the cleanest appearance, but still, Dominguez has been more reliable than anyone else the Phillies have tried in the role.
It'll be interesting to see if Ramos factors whenever he returns, or if veteran Pat Neshek, himself back from a DL stint, gets involved. But for now, there's an exciting pitcher closing games for an exciting team. And that's exciting news.
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I don't know why Fantasy owners have been so slow to come around to the idea of Hector Rondon closing for the Astros. He remains just 41 percent owned in CBS Sports leagues even though he has handled six of the team's past seven opportunities, registering a four-out save Tuesday.
Granted, those opportunities have been surprisingly few and far between, but nonetheless, he has handled every single one since mid-June. And then there's the fact he has a 1.44 ERA ... and well more than a strikeout per inning ... and had a couple fine seasons as a closer for the Cubs. At this point, he'd have to give the Astros a reason to remove him from the role.
I understand it may not take much. Apart from Ken Giles, the Astros have a number of relievers who are good enough to close, even though they've shown little inclination to try Chris Devenski, Brad Peacock or Collin McHugh in the role. But if Rondon sticks, as good as we think the Astros are, those saves could pile up quickly.
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Each of the Giants' past two saves have gone to the same pitcher: Will Smith, who boasts a 1.11 ERA, 0.70 WHIP and 12.6 strikeouts per nine innings this season.
Granted, he's a lefty, which is normally an impediment to those seeking ninth-inning duties since lefties are often employed situationally. But in Tony Watson, the Giants have another lefty to fill that purpose.
Watson himself seemed like the better bet to close when things imploded the way they did for designated fill-in Sam Dyson, but that's not the way it played out. Smith worked a clean ninth Friday after Watson had already worked the eighth, and then Smith bailed out Mark Melancon, who entered in a non-save situation but promptly made it one, on Sunday.
Seems like the others have eliminated themselves from contention, right? No official declarations have been made, but if I had to pick, Smith is looking like the front-runner to handle the role until Hunter Strickland returns from a broken hand in August.
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General manager Ross Atkins already declared that Roberto Osuna will be the Blue Jays closer when he returns from his 75-game suspension Aug. 5, which I guess means we can count on him to return on that date despite the legal mess he finds himself in.
Thing is we can't count on Ryan Tepera to return before then. He's on the DL with right elbow inflammation, which is just the sort of non-specific injury that has the potential to drag on for weeks. He hadn't exactly cemented the role before going down either, so I'd have no hesitations about dropping him for, say, Tyler Clippard, who got the first save in his absence Friday and has comparable numbers.
Seung-Hwan Oh has actually been the Blue Jays best reliever, though, and of course has experience closing from his time with the Cardinals. I wouldn't be surprised if he and Clippard go back and forth in the role for a while, making this situation one best avoided, especially since there's an expiration date for it.
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This one is pretty straightforward. Shane Greene is on the DL with a strained shoulder, which doesn't sound too terribly serious, and Joe Jimenez has been tabbed to replace him.
Thing is the Tigers have long viewed Jimenez as someone with closer potential, and seeing as Greene has an ERA over 4.00, there's a chance he may not get the job back. With a 2.56 FIP, 1.15 WHIP and 10.1 strikeouts per nine innings, Jimenez has him beat in those areas as well.
The 23-year-old didn't exactly put his best foot forward in his first chance filling in Monday, blowing the save while issuing three walks and a hit, and there's a chance Greene is back before Jimenez has a chance to solidify anything. But a changing of the guard will eventually happen here, whether because of this injury, a trade or something else.
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Seeing as the Royals had no worthy choice for the role upon trading Kelvin Herrera to the Nationals in mid-June, this situation has been surprisingly stable.
Or maybe stable isn't the right word. Settled? Er ... decisive? Bottom line is we have a pretty good idea who'll get the next save chance because it's probably the same guy who has gotten the past two. And that guy is Wily Peralta.
The former Brewers starter? The former Brewers starter. He shows pretty good strikeout potential working in short relief, and that may be just enough to sustain him. Of course, the high walk rate may not be a product of sample size. He issued 5.4 walks per nine innings working primarily in relief for Triple-A Omaha, where he also compiled a 4.37 ERA. At Triple-A.
So yeah, stable isn't the right word. I'm not saying Kevin McCarthy would be decidedly better, but I bet the door is open again at some point.
