Carlos Estevez notched his 30th save on Sunday against the Cleveland Guardians after tossing a perfect 9th inning.
This is the first time Estevez has saved 30 games in a year and this is the first year he has been a full-time closer — and he has stepped up.
“He’s done a heck of a job for us this year,” said Nevin of Estévez. “... If you look at his numbers compared to every good closer in this league, he's right there with them -- and even better than most. He's done a great job, he’s been a leader in that bullpen.”
The 30-year-old veteran is playing his first year in Anaheim after spending his first six in the Majors with the Colorado Rockies.
During his time with the Rockies, Estevez pitched well in a middle relief role, sometimes coming in to close out games.
Estevez never had more than 11 saves in Colorado but averaged around 10 holds a year in middle relief.
This year, Estevez came to Anaheim with the expectation of being the team's closer, and he stepped up.
Earning his first All-Star nod in his career, Estevez has pitched 58 innings with a 3.41 ERA, 30 saves and only 3 blown saves.
His strikeout numbers went way up this year after averaging just around 9 K/9 with the Rockies, as Estevez is currently sitting at 11.5 K/9 with the Halos.
Estevez credited his improvement to Pedro Martinez, who has given him wisdom for the last few years.
“He’s like that with every young Dominican, he lets you know, ‘Hey, I’m here, whatever you need, I’m right here,’ which is great,” said Estévez. “… He always has advice to give you, when things are going good or when things are going bad, and that’s the best part of having a Hall of Famer like that telling you stuff.”
Many things have gone wrong this year for the Halos, but Estevez's emergence has solidified the closing position for next year and possibly longer if the Halos want to extend him.
More must-reads: