Raisel

Iglesias

Iglesias looked like he was going to pick up a two-inning win after firing a scoreless ninth. That changed with one swing of the bat, as Braden Montgomery took Iglesias deep the opposite way to give Chicago the win. Only one of the runs was earned, and Iglesias still has an excellent 1.21 ERA on the season. A disappointing ending, but it’s hard to be too concerned considering how good the 36-year-old has looked for the overwhelming majority of the season.

The 36-year-old wonder continues to show no signs of slowing down with another save and scoreless appearance here. He’s only allowed two earned runs all season and they both came in the same appearance. So, 19 of 20 appearances without a run which has helped him to a gorgeous 0.87 ERA on the season along with 24 strikeouts and just four walks in 20 2/3 innings. Right now, he’s performing like one of the best closers in the league.

Iglesias has now been solid in each of his last three outings, allowing zero earned runs over that span while striking out three and lowering his ERA on the season to 0.92. He continues to be a viable option of the the bullpen when needed.

Iglesias’ save was his 11th of the year. After the Braves signed Robert Suarez this offseason, some fantasy managers were worried about Iglesias’ role. The 36-year-old right-hander has undeniably been one of the better closer picks at this point considering he’s 11-for-11 in save opportunities and has a 0.96 ERA.

Iglesias gave up a hard liner to JJ Bleday to end the game, but it was a fine rebound performance for him after he gave up two runs and four hits in the ninth against the Red Sox on Tuesday. He improved to 10-for-10 saving games this season.

Iglesias had pitched 15 2/3 scoreless innings, allowing just eight hits, in his 15 appearances before the Red Sox got to him for three singles and a double. Fortunately, he had a three-run lead to work with. The previous time Iglesias gave up a run was 29 appearances ago on Aug. 28. He hadn’t given up two runs in an outing since last July 19.

Iglesias walked Michael Busch to start the ninth, but Michael Conforto grounded into a double play on the first pitch he saw and Pete Crow-Armstrong popped up the next. Iglesias will probably be down on Wednesday after earning a save for a second straight day. Robert Suarez pitched tonight (and wound up with the win), but since he had Tuesday off, he could close Wednesday.

Iglesias struck out one in the 13-pitch inning. He’s still yet to allow a run in 11 2/3 innings this season.

Iglesias got to work right away after he was activated from the injured list on Tuesday. He took the mound in the bottom of the ninth to close out the game against the Mariners with a one-run lead. Iglesias worked around a base hit, striking out two batters to shut the door on Seattle and end the game with his sixth save.

Iglesias landed on the injured list on April 21st, so he hasn’t been sidelined for too long. He will return to his late-inning role in the Braves’ bullpen. Given that Igleasias is dealing with a shoulder issue, we wouldn’t go ahead and drop Robert Suarez right away. It makes sense to see how Iglesias looks for a performance or two before moving on from Suarez in fantasy leagues.