Atlanta Braves relief pitcher Anthony Swarzak (shoulder) has been activated from the 10-day injured list on Friday. Swarzak missed the last two weeks due to elbow inflammation in his right shoulder. Swarzak has a 0.52 ERA since joining the Braves, so hopefully the injury doesn't slow him down.
Braves Trade Arodys Vizcaino, Jesse Biddle To Mariners For Anthony Swarzak
The Atlanta Braves have traded right-handed relief pitcher Arodys Vizcaino and left-handed relief pitcher Jesse Biddle to the Seattle Mariners in exchange for right-handed relief pitcher Anthony Swarzak. Vizcaino is out for the season with a labrum injury and will be a free agent following the season. Biddle had made 15 appearances for the Braves this season with a 5.40 ERA before getting demoted to Triple-A Gwinnett, where he was much more effective with a 3.38 ERA in four appearances. Swarzak is an intriguing piece, as he was successful in the bullpen for multiple seasons, but the past two years have not been as nice to him, as he has a 5.85 ERA in his last 44 appearances. A change of scenery may be in the best interest of Swarzak, and is the only player in this trade worth monitoring to see how the Braves deploy him.
Anthony Swarzak Blows Third Save In As Many Opportunities
The disastrous outings continue to pile up for Seattle Mariners reliever Anthony Swarzak. He entered the ninth inning protecting a two-run lead before giving up a single, which was immediately followed by a Giovanny Urshela home run to tie the game. Swarzak proceeded to give up another single before getting lifted after only recording one out. He was charged with a third run and the loss after Roenis Elias entered the game and gave up the game-winning hit. It's the sixth consecutive outing that the right-hander has given up at least one run and the third straight blown save. It's incredible that manager Scott Servais went back to Swarzak to close out a game, and we have to think this will be the last opportunity he'll get for a while.
Seattle Mariners reliever Anthony Swarzak entered the bottom of the ninth in a tie game Friday night but proceeded to give up a walk-off single to suffer his first loss of the season. The right-hander gave up the one hit and walked a pair of batters in the outing as he's now given up runs in his last five outings. Swarzak appeared to be the leading candidate for saves after Hunter Strickland went down with an injury, but his play of late has done nothing but hurt his value. He can be avoided in all formats until he turns it around and earns another shot at closing out games.
Seattle Mariners reliever Anthony Swarzak was summoned to protect the team's one-run lead in the ninth inning Friday night but failed to do so. He gave up a solo shot to Shin-Soo Choo to send the game to extras, and he has now given up a solo home run in three straight appearances. Swarzak also walked a pair in the outing without striking out a batter and it wouldn't be a surprise to see Roenis Elias hold the ball to close out the M's next save chance. Unless you're in desperation mode for saves, neither of these arms are consistently reliable in any fantasy category, and it's a sloppy situation to avoid entirely.
After the Seattle Mariners called upon Roenis Elias to close out their last two contests, they went back to Anthony Swarzak to finish off the Angels on Saturday night. He entered the game with a two-run lead, but Albert Pujols tagged him for a solo shot to get within a run before Swarzak struck out Justin Bour to end the game. It was only the second earned run given up by Swarzak on the season, but they have now come in back-to-back outings for the right-hander. It remains an unpredictable situation who manager Scott Servais intends to use in the ninth inning making it challenging to own Swarzak or Elias. Unless you're in a deep league where relievers are scarce, these two arms can be left on the waiver wire until we hopefully see some more clarity on the situation. This job may end up being a straight-up platoon until Hunter Strickland returns from the IL in the next couple of months.
It appears that the Seattle Mariners have found their new closer. Anthony Swarzak was called upon in the ninth inning to preserve the team's three-run lead, and he did just that as he earned his second save of the season. Swarzak gave up a two-out single to Whit Merrifield but that was the only blemish as he recorded one strikeout in his 11-pitch frame. Since Hunter Strickland landed on the injured list last week, it's remained a small mystery to who the leading save candidate would be moving forward. Swarzak looks like the clear-cut favorite, picking up the previous two available saves for the M's in efficient fashion. The 33-year-old isn't your prototypical power reliever, but he's a fine option in all formats to fill into one of your pitcher slots as long as the closing job is his.
Fresh off the injured list, the Seattle Mariners wasted no time in giving relief pitcherAnthony Swarzak a high-leverage situation to work out of on Tuesday. He came into the game relieving Marco Gonzales with one out and runners on the corners in a 2-1 game. He then proceeded to strike out Albert Pujols before inducing a game-ending ground ball from Jonathan Lucroy. It's a positive sign for Swarzak's fantasy outlook that the M's went with him in this tight game, especially given it was his first appearance of the season. He may not get the nod in every save situation for the club immediately, but it appears Swarzak may be the guy to own in the Mariners bullpen after this performance.
Seattle Mariners relief pitcher Anthony Swarzak (shoulder) is expected to come off the 10-day injured list on Tuesday after missing most of spring training with a lingering issue in his right shoulder. The 33-year-old was excellent for the White Sox and Brewers in 2017, but he was 0-2 with a 6.15 ERA in just 29 outings for the Mets in 2018 and dealt with a strained left oblique early in the season and shoulder inflammation late in the year. He threw a bullpen session on Sunday and believes he's ready. With closer Hunter Strickland (lat) out two months, Swarzak could become an option for saves in Seattle's committee approach. If you're desperate for saves in deeper leagues, Swarzak might be worth speculating on.
Seattle Mariners reliever Anthony Swarzak has been placed on the 10-day injured list to open the season. Swarzak has been battling right shoulder problems this spring but should be ready to roll in early April. He'll be a setup arm for the Mariners when he returns this season and could be first in line for ninth-inning duties if Hunter Strickland were to falter or miss time due to injury. As of now, Swarzak can be avoided in all formats but is worth placing on your watchlist in AL-only formats.
