18 Jun

closing time

There were rumblings about Craig Kimbrel the last couple years. He was getting hit, coughing up runs. Was the former Mississippi Braves star headed toward the sudden crash-and-burn that strikes many relief pitchers? Nah. Forget that. Kimbrel converted his 13th straight save opportunity Thursday night in the Chicago Cubs’ 2-0 win against the New York Mets. He hasn’t allowed a run in seven appearances this month. He hasn’t allowed a hit since May 26, eight games ago. He is 19-for-21 in save chances this season with a 0.64 ERA and 47 strikeouts in 28 1/3 innings. In the bigger picture, he moved into the top 10 in all-time saves with No. 367, matching the total of former Jackson Mets hurler Jeff Reardon. They are two of the four Mississippi connections in the top 10. Former Generals star Billy Wagner is No. 6 with 422 and Mississippi State product Jonathan Papelbon is ninth at 368. There are three other former Jackson area Double-A players in the top 23: Randy Myers (Mets) at No. 13 with 347, Todd Jones (Generals) at No. 22 with 319 and Rick Aguilera (Mets) at No. 23 with 318. (Note: Lee Smith, No. 3 all-time with 478 saves, actually pitched in two games for the 1998 Generals during his final pro season.) P.S. Former State star Brandon Woodruff surrendered a grand slam Thursday for the first time in his career, covering over 360 innings. Not surprisingly, it happened at Coors Field. Colorado’s C.J. Cron hit an opposite-field shot on a 98 mph fastball as part of the Rockies’ five-run first inning en route to a 7-3 win over Milwaukee. “The margin of error here is just so razor thin,” Woodruff said in an mlb.com piece. Woodruff is 5-3 despite a 1.94 ERA, which ranks fifth in the big leagues.