Madson (arm) allowed two earned runs off three hits in his spring debut against the Diamondbacks on Tuesday, Jane Lee of MLB.com reports.

EDGE Analysis

Madson's rough first outing could very well be attributed to the bout of arm soreness that he'd been dealing with over the course of the club's camp. Throughout the remainder of his Cactus League games, he'll work to solidify his spot as Oakland's closer and set himself up to rebound from a disappointing 2016 season. During the most recent campaign, he blew seven of his 37 save opportunities while posting a 3.62 ERA and 1.28 WHIP, both of which were at their highest marks since 2006.

Madson (arm) is scheduled to make his first appearance of spring Tuesday against the Diamondbacks, John Shea of the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

EDGE Analysis

He was originally set to make his debut Thursday, but pushed it back a few days due to some general arm soreness. After some rest, the 36-year-old should be back on the mound Tuesday without any restrictions. He was the A's primary closer in 2016 (converting 30-of-37 save chances), but Madson will compete with John Axford, Santiago Casilla, and Sean Doolittle for the job in 2017.

Madson was held out of the A's game Thursday due to general arm soreness, Jane Lee of MLB.com reports.

EDGE Analysis

It doesn't seem to be too serious, as manager Bob Melvin said he's just been pushed back a few days, but it's something to watch. After converting 30 of 37 save opportunities last year, Madson isn't guaranteed the closer job in 2017 and will be competing with serviceable relievers such as John Axford, Santiago Casilla, and Sean Doolittle.

Madson, who notched a team-high 30 saves in 2016, isn't guaranteed the closer's job heading into spring training, Joe Stiglich of CSN Bay Area reports. "We have four or five guys that have closed games before, so the tough part is identifying who is going to go where as the spring goes along," Melvin said Wednesday. "... We feel we have a really good bullpen, and how that works out we're not sure yet. We'll have those conversations as spring moves along."

EDGE Analysis

The current situation doesn't appear to be any reflection on Madson, who was reasonably effective while converting 30 of 37 save chances in 2016. Rather, it appears to stem from the A's having an abundance of serviceable talent in the bullpen that also boasts closing experience, as John Axford, Santiago Casilla and Sean Doolittle have all recorded at least 22 saves in a major league season as well. Melvin may eventually arrive on a go-to arm for the majority of save situations, and plans to utilize the exhibition slate to help him reach a decision in that regard. "If I want to run somebody 1 2/3 (innings), pick up the seventh and eighth, give him the day off the next day ... we may do things a little differently this year," he said. "But at this point, we're still trying to calculate where we're going with it."

Madson allowed two runs on a walk-single to Jonathan Lucroy to blow the save in the A's 7-6 loss in Texas on Friday night.

EDGE Analysis

Madson allowed a one-out double to Carlos Beltran and walked Adrian Beltre to get into the jam. After getting a big strikeout of Rougned Odor for the second out, Lucroy hit a first pitch fastball right down the middle to end the game. The blown save was Madson's seventh blown save of the season, but he had converted nine in a row since his last blown save in late July.

Madson struck out two and picked up his 28th save in Tuesday's win over the Angels.

EDGE Analysis

Madson was shaky for much of the year, but has been stellar in his past 12 outings. Dating back to July 27, Madson owns a 12:1 K:BB with seven saves in as many chances and a 0.66 ERA over 13.2 innings.

Madson (5-4) pitched a perfect inning to earn the victory Sunday against the Athletics.

EDGE Analysis

Madson has not allowed an earned run since July 27, and he's lowered his ERA to 3.07 on the year. Despite his recent success, this is the first time in four seasons that he's had an ERA above 2.55.

Madson pitched a scoreless ninth inning on two hits while striking out one to record his 27th save of the year Sunday against the Cardinals.

EDGE Analysis

Madson hasn't allowed a run in nine August outings to lower his ERA from 3.89 to 3.13. Despite posting solid numbers, his ERA is over a full run higher than it was with the Royals in 2015, but he only needs five more saves the rest of the year to match his career high.

Madson threw a perfect ninth inning Friday against the Mariners to earn his 25th save.

EDGE Analysis

Madson's struggled through much of July, but has now put together four consecutive scoreless outing to start August. Madson was impressive on Friday, tossing a perfect inning against the middle of the Mariners lineup. Barring another month like July (6.55 ERA over 11 innings), Madson looks to be on fairly solid ground as the A's closer down the stretch.

Madson allowed a walk and a hit but still threw a scoreless ninth to pick up his 24th save in Tuesday's win over the Orioles.

EDGE Analysis

Madson has converted seven of eight saves since blowing consecutive saves July 8 and July 10 against the Astros with a nifty 8:2 K:BB in that span. Still, his 7.4 K/9 is among the worst in the closer's ranks, as is his 3.59 ERA, and he remains one of the least reliable closers in the major leagues.