SF Giants already have a logical replacement at closer following Randy Rodríguez's injury

SF Giants closer Randy Rodríguez was placed on the injured list earlier this week with an elbow sprain. If Tuesday night's save was any indication, Ryan Walker will step back into the closer role.

SF Giants already have a logical replacement at closer following Randy Rodríguez's injured

Giants manager Bob Melvin has not confirmed if Walker is back to being the full-time closer, but he is a logical replacement with Rodríguez out. Rodríguez had stepped briefly into that role following the trades of Tyler Rogers and Camilo Doval at the trade deadline.

Now, Walker is the only pitcher in the Giants' bullpen with any meaningful experience closing out games, so he will likely get the nod.

It is not undeserved either. Walker claimed the closer role in the second half of last season following Doval's struggles on the mound. He deservedly assumed that role at the start of this year, but faltered before being supplanted by Doval.

Not only that, but Walker fell out of favor as a leverage arm in the Giants bullpen. He endured a prolonged slump on the mound, and it felt like he might benefit from a stint in Triple-A. The Giants never pursued that option, and in fairness to Walker, it felt like he threw better than his ERA would indicate.

Overall, the right-handed reliever has pitched to a 3.57 ERA, 2.93 FIP, 1.11 WHIP, 9/0 K/9, and a 3.79 SO/W ratio. While the strikeout numbers have seen a decline due to lower chase and whiff rates compared to last year, he is not walking a lot of batters and has done well to limit the long ball.

The number that has stood out with Walker's season is a 65.2 percent left-on-base rate. Front offices tend to view that number as a function of luck, and it is lower than the league rate of 72.4 percent. Pitchers with a rate above league average tend to have better luck at keeping runners on base, whereas the opposite is true if the rate is below average. As that left-on-base rate has inched toward the league average, Walker's numbers have benefited.

The 29-year-old pitcher has been much better over the past couple of months. Since the start of July, he has pitched to a 1.80 ERA in 20 outings. This includes recording the save in an uneventful inning in a 5-2 win over the Chicago Cubs on Tuesday night. Walker has seemingly slotted back into the closer role, and he could reclaim it if he continues to throw well.

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