Philadelphia Phillies closer Jeanmar Gomez has not been good as of late. He's given the team more than anyone would have thought this season with 37 saves, but whether his stuff has gotten flat or he's just tired, the end of the season Jeanmar Gomez is not the same player we've seen for the majority of the year. Following a string of rough outings last week against Pittsburgh, Phils skipper Pete Mackanin said he hadn't given a thought to a change at closer, but after Tuesday night's performance, things may be heading in that direction with 11 games left on the schedule.
A week after being against it, Mackanin mulling closer change. "I'd hate to do it, but I have to consider it."
— Ryan Lawrence (@ryanlawrence21) September 21, 2016
Gomez, 28, entered the season as a middle reliever, but was named the team closer after both Dalier Hinojosa and David Hernandez didn't pan out in that role. After going 3-2 with a 2.59 ERA and 24 saves in the first half, the second half has been a different story as Gomez has a 6.39 ERA in 28 games. In nine games during September, he's allowed 10 earned runs in 6.1 innings, good for an ERA of 14.21. Last night against the White Sox, he came in with a 7-3 lead and surrendered three earned runs in two-thirds of an inning before getting pulled in favor of Michael Mariot. While Gomez most certainly won't be shut down or anything, it is definitely time to give some other pitchers an opportunity in the ninth, with the most likely option being Hector Neris.
Like Gomez, Neris hasn't had a phenomenal month of September, but unlike Gomez, he has a go to pitch to get swings and misses. Gomez is more of a ground ball pitcher while Neris has a splitter that deceives hitters nightly and could translate into a nice put away pitch in the closer role. Overall this season, Neris has a 2.47 ERA in 76.2 innings pitched, spanning 75 games, both among tops in baseball. Because he's been used so much, it seems unlikely that he'll be handed the closing spot, but he's definitely the guy next in line to get a chance.
Because Neris and Gomez have been used so much, there are a couple of other ninth inning options that Pete Mackanin could explore in Edubray Ramos and Michael Mariot. While both have limited experience in the big leagues, they have shown to have sharp breaking stuff that can be thrown for strikes, a valuable asset for someone in the ninth inning. Ramos has a 3.18 ERA in 41 games this season and hasn't allowed a run in eight of his 10 appearances this month. Mackanin has used Ramos as the seventh inning guy before going to Neris and Gomez to close out a game. Meanwhile, Michael Mariot gave up six runs on four hits in two-third of an inning against the Mets on August 27, which is why is ERA is 5.19. If you exclude that outing, he's been pretty strong, posting a 2.22 ERA in 16.2 innings. The main concern with Mariot is that he doesn't do too well with inherited runners, allowing five of nine to score this season, but that wouldn't be an issue if he were to be in a closing situation.
No matter what the Phillies decide to do with Jeanmar Gomez, he's more than likely exceeded the expectations of most during the 2016 season.
