Welcome Back, Hector

I never thought I'd ever write this, but I'll be very happy to see Phillies closer Hector Neris back in the bullpen today. Neris served the last game of this 3-game suspension on Saturday night, which featured an edge-of-your-seat 2-inning save from Nick Pivetta.

Neris was suspended for intentionally throwing at David Freese after giving up a 3-run homer to the previous hitter on July 16 against the Dodgers.

When I see Neris come into a game, there's no sense of calm or thinking "not to worry," a phrase often uttered by my dad late in games. But with Pivetta closing things out, it makes me want to go all Curt Schilling and cover my head with a towel. It was like that last night. But Pivetta got the job done.

There's not much to instill confidence with this bullpen. Between all the injuries and things like multiple innings from outfielder Roman Quinn, it's understandable. But believe it or not, Hector's return brings stability back to the bullpen. Go figure.