Estevez retired all three batters he faced with two strikeouts to earn the save Wednesday against the Pirates.

EDGE Analysis

The right-hander pitched a scoreless ninth Tuesday in a blowout victory in his first appearance of May, which gives him back-to-back scoreless appearances after he gave up six runs in his previous four outings. Estevez has converted six of eight save chances and has an ugly 5.06 ERA over 10.2 innings this season, but a 0.84 WHIP and 13:0 K:BB are encouraging, and his status as the Angels' closer should be stable for now.

Estevez (0-1) blew the save and took the loss Tuesday, allowing three runs on three hits with two strikeouts over two-thirds of an inning against Philadelphia.

EDGE Analysis

Each of the three hits against Estevez went for extra bases, with Nick Castellanos hitting a solo homer and Johan Rojas bringing in Bryson Stott -- who reached on a ground-rule double -- on a two-run homer to give the Phillies the lead. Estevez has now surrendered one or more runs in three of his last four appearances, a stretch that ballooned his ERA from 0.00 to 6.23 and resulted in a pair of blown saves. While his closing job seems to be safe for now, Matt Moore and Luis Garcia would be the names to know if Estevez begins to cede ninth-inning work.

Estevez allowed a run on two hits in one inning Monday. He struck out one batter and earned a save over the Phillies.

EDGE Analysis

Estevez entered a 6-4 game and found himself in a jam with two on and one out. He gave up one run but still preserved the 6-5 victory. Estevez has converted five of his six save chances this season but has coughed up three runs in his last three appearances. Before that, he had a five-inning scoreless streak to open the 2024 campaign. Estevez owns a 3.38 ERA with a perfect 8:0 K:BB through eight innings.

Estevez struck out two in a perfect ninth inning to pick up the save in a 7-4 win over the Orioles on Tuesday.

EDGE Analysis

Estevez struck out Jackson Holliday and Adley Rutschman while getting Gunnar Henderson to ground out to retire the side in order. Tuesday was his first appearance in a week since blowing a save against the Rays. Outside of that outing, Estevez has been very reliable as the team's closer and doesn't face much competition for the job with Robert Stephenson (elbow) out for the year and Jose Soriano in the rotation. He now has four saves to go along with a 2.57 ERA, 0.57 WHIP and 7:0 K:BB in seven innings thus far.

Estevez gave up two runs on three hits in the ninth inning Tuesday to blow his first save of the season in a 7-6 extra-innings loss to the Rays. He struck out one.

EDGE Analysis

Called upon to protect a 3-1 lead, Estevez got two quick outs before the wheels fell off, with a Jose Caballero triple tying up the game. The Angels then had multiple other chances to put the game away before eventually falling in 13 innings. The runs were the first Estevez has allowed this season, and he's gone 3-for-4 in converting save chances with a 5:0 K:BB over six innings.

Estevez earned a save over the Red Sox on Saturday, striking out one batter in a perfect inning.

EDGE Analysis

Estevez had only a one-run lead to work with when he entered to face the heart of Boston's order in the ninth frame, but he handled the pressure with aplomb, retiring all three batters he faced on 15 pitches. That earned him his third save of the campaign, and so far he's been excellent with just one baserunner and zero runs allowed over three frames. Estevez struggled in the second half of last season but appears to have the closer role locked up for the Halos in 2024 given how he's performed so far.

Estevez allowed a hit in a scoreless inning and picked up a save over the Marlins on Monday.

EDGE Analysis

Estevez allowed a leadoff single but had no trouble working around it to finish off the 7-4 win. He's fired two scoreless frames to notch a pair of saves so far in 2024, but he's yet to strike a batter out. Estevez registered an 11.3 K/9 with 31 saves during the 2023 campaign.

Estevez picked up the save Sunday against the Orioles. He pitched a clean inning with no strikeouts.

EDGE Analysis

Estevez calmly retired all three Orioles batters he faced Sunday to earn his first save of the season and 57th of his career. The 31-year-old reliever entered 2024 on the hot seat following the Angels' signing of Robert Stephenson over the winter. However, with Stephenson (shoulder) slated to be out until late April, Estevez should have no issue being the main saves target in the team's bullpen for now.

Angels manager Ron Washington recently confirmed that Estevez will be the team's closer, Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com reports.

EDGE Analysis

General manager Perry Minasian said in January following the signing of Robert Stephenson that he still viewed Estevez as the favorite to serve as the club's closer, and Washington has now given his stamp of approval. Estevez had a dominant first half in 2023, which netted him an All-Star nod before he regressed to a 6.59 ERA in the second half. Stephenson -- who signed a three-year, $33 million contract -- will be a threat to overtake Estevez after his dominant run with the Rays last season. Worth noting, though, is that Stephenson is dealing with a bit of shoulder soreness.

Angels general manager Perry Minasian said Tuesday that Estevez remains the team's closer on paper even after the Robert Stephenson signing, Taylor Blake Ward of The Sporting News reports.

EDGE Analysis

Minasian did note, however, that the closer decision will ultimately be up to manager Ron Washington. Estevez was an All-Star in 2023 while notching 31 saves for the Angels, but he posted a 6.59 ERA after the All-Star break. Even if Estevez does indeed begin the season with the closer job, Stephenson will be a threat to usurp him.