Athletics lefty reliever Jerry Blevins has been designated for assignment and is presumably available, leaving me to wonder which contenders have a need. For now I'll define a contender as any team five games out in the division or wild card at worst. That generously leaves 24 teams to consider. Note that I haven't included minor league southpaw starters who could be promoted to the big league pen, like Charlie Furbush was with the Tigers. The lefties on each team's active or Triple-A roster or DL list:
AL East
- Yankees (1): Boone Logan. Pedro Feliciano aiming for July return. Randy Flores and Andrew Sisco at Triple-A.
- Rays (2): J.P. Howell, Cesar Ramos. Jake McGee and R.J. Swindle at Triple-A.
- Red Sox (2): Rich Hill, Franklin Morales. Felix Doubront is on the DL but will be used as a starter. Hideki Okajima could remain in the organization if he clears waivers. Also have Andrew Miller, Randy Williams, and Tommy Hottovy at Triple-A.
- Blue Jays (2): Luis Perez, Marc Rzepczynski. Willie Collazo, Sean Henn, Wil Ledezma, and Rommie Lewis at Triple-A.
- Orioles (2): Mike Gonzalez, Clay Rapada. Alberto Castillo, Mark Hendrickson, Chris George at Triple-A.
AL Central
- Indians (2): Rafael Perez, Tony Sipp. Nick Hagadone at Triple-A.
- Tigers (2): Charlie Furbush, Daniel Schlereth. Brad Thomas on the DL with elbow inflammation. Ramon Garcia, Matt Hoffman, Fu-Te Ni at Triple-A.
- White Sox (3): Will Ohman, Chris Sale, Matt Thornton.
- Royals (2): Tim Collins, Everett Teaford. Blaine Hardy at Triple-A.
AL West
- Rangers (2): Darren Oliver, Arthur Rhodes. Beau Jones, Michael Kirkman, Zachary Phillips at Triple-A.
- Angels (2): Scott Downs, Hisanori Takahashi. Scott Kazmir on DL with lower back stiffness. Barret Browning, Horacio Ramirez at Triple-A.
- Athletics (3): Craig Breslow, Brian Fuentes, David Purcey.
- Mariners (1): Aaron Laffey. Cesar Jimenez, Royce Ring at Triple-A.
NL East
- Phillies (2): Antonio Bastardo, J.C. Romero. Juan Perez, Mike Zagurski at Triple-A.
- Marlins (2): Randy Choate, Mike Dunn. Victor Garate, Dustin Richardson at Triple-A.
- Braves (3): Eric O'Flaherty, George Sherrill, Jonny Venters. Yohan Flande, Jose Lugo at Triple-A.
- Mets (3): Tim Byrdak, Pat Misch, Michael O'Connor. Justin Hampson, Taylor Tankersley at Triple-A.
NL Central
- Cardinals (2): Trever Miller, Brian Tallet. Rich Rundles, Raul Valdes at Triple-A.
- Reds (1): Bill Bray. Aroldis Chapman on DL with shoulder inflammation. Tom Cochran, Jeremy Horst, Joseph Krebs, Dontrelle Willis at Triple-A.
- Brewers (0): None, though Danny Ray Herrera could join the active roster soon. Zach Braddock, Manny Parra, Mitch Stetter on DL. Sam Narron, Chase Wright at Triple-A.
- Pirates (1): Joe Beimel. Dan Meyer, Daniel Moskos, Garrett Olson, Justin Thomas, Tony Watson at Triple-A.
NL West
- Giants (3): Jeremy Affeldt, Javier Lopez, Dan Runzler. Justin Dowdy, Geno Espineli at Triple-A.
- Rockies (1): Matt Reynolds. Rex Brothers, Eric Stults at Triple-A.
- D'Backs (1): Joe Paterson. Tom Layne, Jordan Norberto at Triple-A.
The Yankees, Red Sox, Orioles, Tigers, Royals, Brewers, Mets, and Diamondbacks strike me as a few clubs looking light on lefty reliever depth, though unproven or journeyman pitchers step up every year. Plus, some teams are comfortable with their right-handers' abilities to retire left-handed hitters.
