Colorado Rockies: Yency Almonte, Tyler Kinley have bolstered depleted Rox bullpen

With both closer Wade Davis and set-up man Scott Oberg recently going on the injured list, two glaring holes quickly needed to be filled in the Colorado Rockies bullpen.

If the opening 12 games of this coronavirus-shortened season is any indication, the Colorado Rockies could have a pair of young relievers—right-handers Yency Almonte and Tyler Kinley, who have combined for just more than one year of Major League service time—could have integral roles in the future success of the depleted bullpen staff and, in turn, the Rockies season.

On Thursday in the Rox series finale with San Francisco at Coors Field, Almonte earned his first Major League win with one inning of relief (two hits, one run allowed) as Colorado rallied to defeat the Giants 6-4, thanks in big part to a five-run eighth inning.

The outing Thursday for the 26-year-old from Miami, Florida., followed his picking up another first—his initial big league save—Tuesday night by tossing a scoreless final 1.2 innings in relief of starter German Marquez in Colorado’s 5-2 victory against San Francisco at Coors Field.

Almonte’s performance included inducing a pair of double-play grounders, one in the eighth inning and the other in the ninth, to help the Rockies to their fourth straight win at the time.

In five games this season, Almonte has now retired 21 of 26 batters and has permitted just five hits and two runs for a nifty 2.35 earned run average. He has struck out nine and not issued a walk in 7.2 innings while showing the ability to endure on the mound as three of his five appearances have been for more than an inning in length.