Brentz earned the save against the Astros on Tuesday, pitching a scoreless ninth inning during which he allowed two walks and struck out two batters.
Brentz recorded his first career save Aug. 5, but despite his lack of high-leverage experience the Royals elected to bring him in to preserve a two-run, ninth-inning lead against baseball's top scoring team. He didn't make things easy for himself -- the southpaw threw only nine of 20 pitches for strikes and issued two free passes -- but he survived the wildness to notch the save. Brentz has been one of Kansas City's best relievers this season, posting a 3.21 ERA and 10.6 K/BB while collecting 12 holds despite a troublesome 5.7 BB/9. He appears to be near the top of the list for save chances among the team's closer committee.