Melvin explains why Walker is now closer to Doval’s Giants in the minors

Melvin explains why Walker is now closer to Doval’s Giants in the minors originally appeared in NBC Sports Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO – Ryan Walker proved his worth throughout the season by playing multiple roles in the Giants’ bullpen. This is one of the reasons why coach Bob Melvin opted for the right-hander, as the team is closer after an erratic game Camilo Doval was optional for minors Friday.

“He’s really good,” Melvin said before Saturday’s game at Oracle Park when asked what he liked about Walker as the Giants’ closer. “He probably had our toughest role, because he was in with the guys on base all the time and often left for the next shift.”

Walker, 28, has been San Francisco’s most consistent and reliable reliever for most of this season, with a 7-3 record and a solid 2.24 ERA in a major league-leading 59 games. He also has 71 strikeouts in 60 1/3 innings.

Doval demotion to Triple-A Sacramento it was a surprise even though he struggled most of the season. Before being benched, Doval had a 4.70 ERA in 44 innings with five blown saves, including Thursday against the Nationals when he hit a game-tying three-run home run in the ninth inning.

The Giants hope Doval can regain some of his control while in the minors and return to the form that made him an All-Star with NL-leading 39 saves last season.

In the meantime, Walker will try to shore up the backfield in games without disrupting the rest of the Giants’ bullpen.

“It’s about trying to keep Tyler [Rogers] and some of the other guys in their roles,” Melvin said. “We have [Jordan] Hicks that we’ll probably use a little differently now that he’s in the bullpen, and just use a really, really good arm in the closer role for now.”

Walker has one defense in his career, on August 23, 2023 against the Philadelphia Phillies. He was credited with 21 holds this season and pitched more than one inning eight times.

Melvin has indicated he is comfortable using Walker for more than one inning if necessary, but prefers his bullpen setup to be the same.

“Tyler is really good in the eighth,” Melvin said. “If there was a day where we didn’t have Tyler and I needed to get four strikeouts or something like that, yeah, absolutely.”

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