ATLANTA—It might be time to sound the alarm bells with the Atlanta Braves' bullpen.
For the second time in a month, closer Arodys Vizcaino has been placed on the disabled list with shoulder inflammation.
As such, Atlanta's stretched/fatigued relief corps must adjust to the loss of a bullpen anchor, while assimilating to new roles that will inevitably come in Vizcaino's absence.
(Thankfully for the Braves, the All-Star break kicks in this week.)
For instance, Dan Winkler (2.84 ERA) and A.J. Minter (3.38 ERA, 4 saves) will likely split the closer duties again, operating on a case-by-case basis.
It remains to be seen how Jesse Biddle (2.36 ERA) will be used during this period of change, given how he's arguably been the Braves' second-best reliever.
The individual numbers from above look good, but it's a different take when viewing the whole picture.
**Charting the National League, the Braves' bullpen owns bottom-6 tallies with ERA and saves.
**Atlanta's NL rankings for WHIP and strikeouts are only marginally better.
The 27-year-old Vizcaino had been enjoying his finest season in the majors, boasting strong tallies with ERA (1.65), WHIP (1.13), K-BB rate (34/12), K/9 rate (9.4) and saves (15).
Digging deeper, covering his last 13 appearances since May 16, Vizcaino didn't allow a run, while also limiting opposing hitters to .234 batting average.
At 51-41, the Braves are 1 1/2 games behind the Phillies in the National League East standings—the club's largest divisional deficit since April 29.
