Graham Ashcraft News: Second blown save Thursday

Ashcraft blew the save Thursday against Atlanta after allowing two runs and two hits and one walk in the ninth inning. He struck out one.

Closer Emilio Pagan worked each of Cincinnati's past two games, which opened the door for Ashcraft to receive his second save opportunity of the season. However, Ashcraft failed to convert in both instances, and he's given up six runs over his last seven outings after opening the season on a nine-inning scoreless streak. The right-hander owns a 2.95 ERA and 19:9 K:BB over 18.1 innings and should continue to see high-leverage work, but his shakier 1.36 WHIP could give manager Terry Francona some trepidation the next time he needs to choose an arm if/when Pagan is unavailable for a save situation.