The Dark Knight Rises Again

Sunrise over Gotham City, it awakens knowing the Dark Knight is staying put.

Friday morning, Jon Heyman of Fancred reported that the Brewers were the mystery team that had claimed right-hander Matt Harvey off of revocable waivers from the Reds.

The two sides had until 1:30 PM on Friday afternoon to work out a deal, but ultimately, the two sides couldn’t find the common ground required to make it work.

Reds’ general manager Nick Krall confirmed to reporters on Friday that Harvey would be remaining with the team for the remainder of the season, explaining, "We made an organizational decision, and we couldn't come to an agreement that made sense for us… We felt that it made more sense to keep him and gain positive momentum for our club for the end of this season and heading into next season, and he's been a positive influence on that club, so that was our decision-making process."

While that sounds nice, it’s very surprising that they weren’t able to work out a deal and come away with something for the impending free agent. It’s especially so, when you consider the fact that any team acquiring him wouldn’t have to take on any salary at all, as the Mets already assumed the remainder of the $5.625 million owed to him for this season when he was dealt to the Reds in the deal for Devin Mesoraco.

The Dark Knight Rises

Harvey has been pitching very well with the Reds, and he didn’t let the trade talks impact his performance on the field on Friday. After it was clear that he was going to remain in Cincinnati, Harvey went out and dominated against the Cubs at Wrigley Field, racking up six strikeouts over 5 ⅓ innings of one-run ball.

While Harvey certainly would have helped to improve a Brewers’ rotation that is still trying to overcome the losses of Brent Suter and Jimmy Nelson, there are other fish in the sea. That’s assuming that they still want to keep their line in the water.

For now, they’ll continue to roll with veteran southpaw Wade Miley holding down the fifth and final spot in the starting rotation. He wasn’t great on Friday, and allowed a parade of baserunners, but was able to limit the Pirates to just two runs over his five innings, despite the 10 hits and a walk he gave up.

He’s probably their best in-house option at the moment to continue occupying that spot. Zach Davies is still trying to get himself straightened out in the minor leagues, but is expected to rejoin the Brewers in early September. Jordan Lyles has struggled out of the bullpen since coming over from the Rockies and there really aren’t any MLB-ready reinforcements ready to make the leap from Triple-A Colorado Springs.

I expect that Brewers’ general manager David Stearns and company will be working the phones furiously over the next couple of days in an effort to at least add one more worthwhile arm to the mix.

As for the Reds, perhaps they’ll consider trying to re-sign the 29-year-old Harvey as a free agent after the season, and will use these next six weeks as a way to continue selling him on their organization. Given the fact that he has revitalized his career there, it’s certainly in the realm of possibility.

Closing Time

Fantasy owners were dealt a major blow this week when one of baseball’s elite closers hit the disabled list. On Friday, we learned that Yankees’ left-hander Aroldis Chapman received a platelet-rich plasma injection in his ailing left knee and won’t even be re-evaluated for another two weeks.

The Yankees are still hopeful that he’ll be able to return in time to help them down the stretch, but that doesn’t appear to be a given at this stage.

In the meantime, there’s an opening at the back end of one of the finest bullpens in all of baseball, and where there’s opportunity, there are saves to be had, provided you speculate correctly.

The prevailing wisdom, prior to Friday at least, was that primary setup man Dellin Betances would assume the closer’s mantle. That still could be the case, but if we put any trust in what we saw in Friday’s battle against the Orioles, perhaps Yankees’ skipper Aaron Boone prefers to go in a different direction.

On Friday, after getting six strong innings from starter CC Sabathia in his return from the disabled list, Boone went with his preferred seventh-inning option, David Robertson, in what was then a 2-2 ballgame. He allowed a couple of unearned runs to score in the frame, then the Yankees struck back to re-tie the game with two of their own in the top half of the eighth.

It’s there, that the more telling decision was made. Boone then turned to Betances to come on with the score knotted up at 4-4 and the 4-5-6 hitters coming up for the Orioles. It’s possible that Boone just wanted to use his best reliever in the highest-leverage situation of the game, which is completely understandable. Perhaps he also though was trying to keep Betances in the eighth inning role that he has grown accustomed to and flourished in.

The score remained tied at 4-4 heading into the home half of the ninth inning. Now, most managers typically won’t turn to their closer in this situation, opting to wait for their team to take the lead first. So Boone giving the ball to Chad Green there doesn’t indicate anything, to me at least.

It’s what happened next that fantasy owners need to take note of. The Yankees struck for three runs on a pair of homers in the top half of the 10th inning, then with a lead to protect it was former Orioles’ closer Zach Britton that came on to lock down the save. He allowed a two-out homer to Chris Davis, but was able to convert the save chance, his first as a member of hte Yankees.

Could Boone have simply been throwing Britton a bone, given the fact that he was facing his former team in his old stomping grounds? Absolutely. But if I’m speculating on saves and need to throw my support behind one hurler in the Yankees’ bullpen to accrue saves while Chapman is sidelined, my money’s on Britton.

American League Quick Hits: Chris Sale (shoulder) has yet to resume his throwing program. With a runaway lead in the American League East, the Red Sox have no reason to rush their star southpaw back, so they’ll continue to take every possible precaution… Tommy Pham missed his third straight game with a dislocated ring finger on his right hand… The Rays were forced to place Mallex Smith on the 10-day disabled list with a viral infection. Smith had to be hospitalized on Friday, but the Rays believe his stay there will be brief…  Mark Trumbo is leaning toward undergoing season-ending surgery on his ailing right knee… Aaron Sanchez (finger) will return to the Blue Jays’ rotation on Saturday against the Phillies… Gary Sanchez (groin) began his minor league rehab assignment with the Gulf Coast League Yankees on Friday… Jesse Hahn underwent a successful procedure to have his right elbow repaired, but will not require Tommy John surgery… Bartolo Colon landed on the 10-day disabled list with a lower back strain. There’s a chance this could be the end of the line for the 45-year-old hurler… James Paxton (forearm) threw a successful bullpen session prior to Friday's game against the Diamondbacks. He’s expected to rejoin the rotation next weekend against the Athletics… Mike Leake (illness) will return to the Mariners' rotation on Sunday against the Diamondbacks…. George Springer missed his fourth straight game with his quad injury. He’s still considered day-to-day… Joey Gallo was forced to leave Friday’s game with an apparent ankle injury, but not before clubbing his 34th home run of the season… Kendrys Morales homered for the fifth straight game, powering the Blue Jays past the Phillies. He’s hitting .476 with six bombs and nine RBI in his last five games… Neil Walker crushed a go-ahead solo homer in the 10th inning against the Orioles… Luke Voit homered twice and drove in four runs to lead the Bombers in that win… J.D. Martinez went 3-for-5 and drove in his 110th run in a loss to the Rays… Willy Adames homered, stole a base and scored three times to lead the charge for the Rays… Matt Chapman clubbed a three-run homer, his 18th of the year, leading the A’s in a rout over the Twins… Yonder Alonso homered twice and drove in three runs as the Indians fell to the Royals.

Mike Trout made his long-awaited return to the Angels on Friday, going 2-for-3 with a triple and a walk… Marwin Gonzalez crushed a grand slam as the Astros blasted the Angels… Rougned Odor belted a game-tying two-run homer off of Giants’ closer Will Smith with two outs in the ninth inning on Friday, ultimately leading the Rangers to a come-from-behind victory… Ryan O’Hearn and Hunter Dozier slugged back-to-back home runs off of Indians’ closer Cody Allen, propelling the Royals to an improbable walk-off win…

National League Quick Hits: Giants vice president of baseball operations Brian Sabean said in an interview on KNBR 680 AM in San Francisco on Thursday that Buster Posey's right hip surgery is "imminent" and the recovery time is "six-plus months."... Jason Heyward was held out of the Cubs’ lineup again on Friday as his left ankle continues to bother him… Reds’ general manager Nick Krall also confirmed Friday that Billy Hamilton will not be traded before the waiver deadline…The Diamondbacks signed Japanese right-hander Shumpei Yoshikawa to a minor league contract. He’s the first hurler to skip playing the in NPB entirely since Junichi Tazawa signed with the Red Sox in 2008… Jeff Samardzija experienced renewed soreness in his injured right shoulder after his rehab start with Double-A Richmond on Thursday…  Eugenio Suarez clubbed a game-tying solo homer of of Pedro Strop in the ninth inning on Friday, though the Reds went on to lose in the 10th… David Bote provided the game-winner, with a walk-off homer in the home half of the 10th inning… Daniel Murphy clubbed his first home run as a member of the Cubs in that win… Alec Mills struck out eight over 5 ⅔ innings of one-run ball in his first big league start...Jason Vargas struck out eight over six shutout innings in a victory over the Nationals… In his return from the disabled list, Jay Bruce blasted a two-run homer to power the Mets to victory… Dan Straily fired six scoreless innings in a victory over the Braves… Rich Hill racked up eight strikeouts over six shutout innings as the Dodgers defeated the Padres… Andrew McCutchen homered, singled, walked twice and stole two bases in Friday’s loss to the Rangers...Orlando Arcia delivered a walk-off RBI single in the 15th inning as the Brewers outlasted the Pirates in a wild game at Miller Park…. Prior to the game, the Brewers optioned struggling closer Corey Knebel to Triple-A Colorado Springs.