Barlow (2-3) pitched a hitless ninth while walking one and striking out a batter to pick up the win over the Nationals on Sunday.
Barlow set down the Nationals on 17 pitches with the game tied up 2-2 in the ninth and wound up with his second win after the Royals walked it off. The 30-year-old has allowed a run just once over his last 13 outings but has just two saves and both his wins this month. Barlow has now pitched on consecutive days and likely should have the day off Monday against the Cardinals. He now owns a 3.86 ERA, 1.19 WHIP and 29:11 K:BB over 21 innings.
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Royals' Scott Barlow: Handed third loss
Rotowire
Barlow dropped to 1-3 in Monday's 8-5 loss to the Tigers in 10 innings after allowing three runs (two earned) on two hits and two walks with three strikeouts across 1.2 innings.
After keeping the game tied in the ninth inning, Barlow saw his scoreless streak end at 10.2 innings after he yielded a three-run double to Javier Baez in the top of the 10th. Barlow has a 4.26 ERA, 1.26 WHIP and 27:10 K:BB through 19 innings this season, and he's generally pitched well of late, though save chances remain sparse while pitching for the 14-35 Royals. He's converted six of his seven save opportunities to date.
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Royals' Scott Barlow: Nails down sixth save
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Barlow picked up the save Wednesday with a perfect inning against the Padres, including one strikeout.
Barlow made quick work of the Padres in the ninth, as he needed just seven pitches to retire the side. The closer has worked 10 straight outings, and 10.2 innings, since he last allowed a run April 19. All seven earned runs Barlow has allowed came in an eight-day span in April. The righty has 24 strikeouts in 17.1 innings this season.
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Royals' Scott Barlow: Clean inning for fifth save
Rotowire
Barlow struck out one in a perfect inning to earn the save in Tuesday's 5-4 win over the Padres.
Barlow's pitched 9.2 consecutive scoreless innings, and he hasn't allowed a baserunner in his last three outings. Saves remain hard to come by -- he hadn't converted one since April 29, though the Royals hadn't produced a save opportunity in that span. The right-hander's recent work should keep him in place as the primary closer. He's bounced back from a rough start to the year to get his ERA down to 3.86 with a 1.22 WHIP, 23:8 K:BB and five saves in 16 appearances (16.1 innings) this season.
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Royals' Scott Barlow: Picks up win Thursday
Rotowire
Barlow (1-2) pitched a perfect inning and earned the win Thursday over the White Sox.
Barlow kept the game tied at 3-3 in the top of the ninth inning, and Freddy Fermin delivered a walkoff single for the Royals a half-inning later. After some shaky work in mid-April, Barlow has strung together 7.2 scoreless innings over his last seven appearances. He has a 12:2 K:BB in that span, and the stretch has trimmed his ERA to 4.40 through 14.1 innings overall. He's 4-for-5 on save chances with a 20:8 K:BB this season.
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Royals' Scott Barlow: Picks up fourth save
Rotowire
Barlow gave up two hits and struck out one in a scoreless ninth inning Saturday to record his fourth save of the season in a 3-2 win over the Twins.
He was dialed in, firing 14 of his 15 pitches for strikes, and after giving up a pair of one-out singles he retired Byron Buxton and Trevor Larnach to secure Kansas City's seventh win of the year. A couple implosions have tainted Barlow's ratios, but he remains the preferred option in the ninth inning over Aroldis Chapman despite his 6.10 ERA, 1.74 WHIP and 13:7 K:BB through 10.1 innings.
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Royals' Scott Barlow: Secures save No. 3
Rotowire
Barlow picked up a five-out save Tuesday against the Diamondbacks, allowing a double and a walk while striking out two in a scoreless outing.
Barlow was called upon to relieve Aroldis Chapman with the tying run in scoring position and one out in the eighth. He went on to strike out Alek Thomas and Gabriel Moreno to escape the jam. He made things interesting again in the ninth after surrendering a leadoff double and a two-out walk but got out of it unscathed after Christian Walker grounded out to end the game. Barlow has now picked up back-to-back save chances and seems to be settling in after a pair of rough outings during the first month of the year. The 30-year-old now sits at a 6.75 ERA, 1.71 WHIP and a 12:7 K:BB over 9.1 innings.
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Royals' Scott Barlow: Notches second save
Rotowire
Barlow earned the save against the Angels on Saturday, striking out two batters in a perfect inning.
Aroldis Chapman hasn't been scored upon this season, leading many to assume that he would take over as Kansas City's closer, but the left-hander was used in the seventh inning of a tie game Saturday. Meanwhile, after the Royals scored five runs in the top of the ninth inning to take the lead, Barlow was called upon to close things out, and he did so with a pair of punchouts while retiring the side in order on 12 pitches. Barlow has been very shaky this season while Chapman has been outstanding, but the former appears to still have traction as the Royals' closer given the relievers' usage Saturday.
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Royals' Scott Barlow: Shaky stretch continues
Rotowire
Barlow (0-2) took the loss Sunday versus Atlanta, allowing a run on two hits and striking out two over one inning.
Barlow has hit a bit of a rough patch over the last week, taking two losses and a blown save over his last three outings. Sunday's appearance wasn't in a save situation, but the right-hander gave up the tiebreaking RBI single to Vaughn Grissom in the ninth inning. Barlow has surrendered five runs (four earned) with a pedestrian 6:4 K:BB across 5.2 innings this season. He's also just 1-for-2 in save chances, though the Royals haven't given him many opportunities to function in a closer role.
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Royals' Scott Barlow: Notches first save
Rotowire
Barlow earned a save over the Giants on Friday. He allowed a hit and a walk while striking out two batters over a scoreless inning.
In this third appearance of the season, Barlow finally got a save opportunity. He gave up a leadoff triple to Joc Pederson and issued a two-out walk but slammed the door by striking out Blake Sabol. Barlow has tossed three shutout frames to begin the year.
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Royals' Scott Barlow: Looking ready for season
Rotowire
Barlow has allowed one earned run on six hits and a walk while striking out eight over eight innings during spring training.
Barlow is doing well in Cactus League play, and he should be at the head of a closer committee once the regular season starts. He matched his career high in innings pitched with 74.1 last season while posting a 2.18 ERA and 1.00 WHIP with 24 saves, six holds and a 7-4 record. Barlow has been known to work more than just the ninth inning, and the presence of lefty Aroldis Chapman on the roster could make this a matchup-based approach. In any case, if Barlow continues to pitch well, he'll be considered for the most important moments in games.
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Royals' Scott Barlow: Could use two-seamer this season
Rotowire
Barlow is working on a two-seam fastball to add to his pitch mix, Anne Rogers of MLB.com reports.
Barlow enters the year as the Royals' expected closer, though the offseason addition of Aroldis Chapman could create a committee. Rogers reports Barlow's two-seamer has been applauded by Royals hitters during camp, so the 30-year-old righty will likely continue to develop it as a fourth pitch to go with his four-seamer, slider and curveball. Barlow went 24-for-28 in saves with a 2.18 ERA, 1.00 WHIP and 77:22 K:BB across 74.1 innings in 2022.
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Royals' Scott Barlow: Avoids arbitration with Kansas City
Rotowire
Barlow agreed to a one-year, $5.3 million contract with the Royals on Friday to avoid arbitration, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reports.
Barlow has worked as Kansas City's closer for the past season and a half, and he was effective in 2022 with a 2.18 ERA, 1.00 WHIP and 77:22 K:BB over 74.1 innings. He went 24-for-28 in save chances and should enter 2023 with a firm grip on the closer role, though it's possible new manager Matt Quatraro opts for a more committee-oriented approach.
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Royals' Scott Barlow: Picks up seventh win
Rotowire
Barlow (7-4) earned the win Monday over the Guardians. He struck out one in a perfect inning.
Barlow kept the game tied at 2-2 in the ninth inning, and the Royals took the lead on a Drew Waters home run in the 10th. Over his last 12.1 innings, Barlow hasn't been charged with a run, yielding just four hits and six walks while striking out 15. The Royals' closer lowered his ERA to 2.18 and WHIP to 1.00, and he's added a 77:22 K:BB with 24 saves and six holds in 74.1 innings this year.
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Royals' Scott Barlow: Earns save Sunday
Rotowire
Barlow struck out one in a perfect ninth inning to earn the save in Sunday's win over the Mariners.
Barlow pitched in a non-save situation Friday against Seattle, but he picked up his third save in his last four appearances during Sunday's series finale. The right-hander has yet to allow a run over nine innings in September, converting four of five save chances while striking out 11 in 9.1 scoreless innings.
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Royals' Scott Barlow: Records 23rd save
Rotowire
Barlow picked up the save in Wednesday's 5-2 victory over the Twins, allowing one hit while striking out one over one inning.
Barlow has kept the opponent off the board in nine of his last 10 appearances and has not allowed an extra-base hit over 7.1 innings during his last seven outings. The righty has been stellar at home with a 1.57 ERA over 40 innings compared to a 3.38 ERA over 29.1 innings away from Kansas City.
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Royals' Scott Barlow: Registers five-out save
Rotowire
Barlow struck out three without allowing a baserunner over 1.2 innings to earn the save in Tuesday's 5-4 win over the Twins.
Jose Cuas began the eighth inning but plunked two of the three batters he faced. Barlow was able to escape the two-on, one-out situation unscathed and then added a perfect ninth inning for the save, his 22nd of the year. He's given up two hits and three walks while striking out eight over 6.1 scoreless innings in September, though he took one blown save for allowing an inherited runner to score. Barlow now has a 2.37 ERA, 1.01 WHIP and 70:19 K:BB through 68.1 innings this year.
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Royals' Scott Barlow: Charged with blown save
Rotowire
Barlow allowed two inherited runners to score on a hit and two walks while striking out two in two-thirds of an inning, taking a blown save Friday versus the Red Sox.
Dylan Coleman made a mess of things in the eighth inning and Barlow wasn't able to escape the jam. He walked in a run with the bases loaded and allowed an RBI single to J.D. Martinez. Barlow hadn't seen a save chance since Sept. 4, as the Royals went just 2-7 in their previous nine games. Barlow hasn't been charged with a run in September, covering 4.2 innings in five appearances this month. He owns a 2.43 ERA, 1.04 WHIP and 67:19 K:BB through 66.2 innings this season. He's added 21 saves, four blown saves, six holds and a 6-4 record.
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Royals' Scott Barlow: Snags win over Guardians
Rotowire
Barlow (6-4) pitched a perfect inning and earned the win Wednesday over the Guardians.
Barlow kept the deficit at one run in the top of the ninth inning, and he didn't issue a walk or record a strikeout. The Royals then rallied for two runs to make him the winning pitcher. Barlow has allowed five runs in 17.1 innings since the start of August, though he's kept runs off the board in his last three appearances. The 29-year-old right-hander has posted a 2.49 ERA, 1.02 WHIP and 65:17 K:BB through 65 innings while adding 21 saves and six holds as the Royals' primary closer this year.
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Royals' Scott Barlow: Picks up 21st save
Rotowire
Barlow earned the save Sunday, striking out one in a perfect ninth inning of a 5-2 win in Detroit.
Barlow had no trouble with the bottom three hitters in Detroit's lineup Sunday and retired the side in order on 11 pitches. It was his 21st save of the season and first since Aug. 22. The 29-year-old has been used sparingly recently as Sunday's outing was his first appearance in the last five days. For the season, he has a 2.57 ERA, 1.02 WHIP and 63:16 K:BB in 63 innings and will continue to close out games for the Royals.
