As this article is being written there is still more than 24 hours until the expiration of MLB’s trade deadline at 4:00pm ET on July 30th and while there’s already been plenty of activity, there’s probably a lot more trading yet to be done. The Astros have added a couple of key pieces to their bullpen which is now one of the deepest in baseball. The Mariners made a curious trade and the Cubs have begun to break down their 2021 roster.  We’ll analyze what’s happened thus far, and Fantasy Alarm will continue to cover any trade activity that takes place after this article is released. We’ll post an updated closer grid should additional relievers get traded before Friday at 4:00pm ET.  

Kendall Graveman Traded from the Mariners to the Astros

Graveman, who had been highly effective as the Mariners’ closer was surprisingly traded to the Astros on Tuesday. Graveman has a .079 BAA right-handed hitters and hadn’t given up a run in his last 12 appearances for the Mariners. He is now likely going to have a role as the Astros’ set up man behind closer All-Star closer Ryan Pressly. The trade was very unpopular among many Mariners players, some of whom said they felt betrayed, while others were brought to tears. This is a trade that could potentially upset the chemistry of a Mariners team that is fighting for a playoff spot. 

Mariners Bullpen Moving Forward

Paul Sewald is likely to take over as the Mariners’ primary closer with Drew Steckenrider, Anthony Misiewicz and Erik Swanson backing him up and potentially pitching in late inning high leverage situations from time to time.

Yimi García, Traded from the Marlins to the Astros

The Astros have been busy solidifying their bullpen this week. They acquired former Marlins closer Yimi García who along with Graveman, gives them three pitchers who have saved at least 10 games this season. Garcia took over as the Marlins’ closer after Anthony Bass struggled to start the season. He saved nine games and had a 1.31 ERA in his first 21 games but in 18 appearances since then he’s pitched to a 6.32 ERA. Opposing hitters have been getting around on his fastball in those 18 appearances, posting a .435 BAA and .913 SLG against during that time span. By comparison, opposing hitters batted .125 with a .350 SLG against his fastball in Garcia’s first 21 appearances.

Marlins Bullpen Moving Forward

Anthony Bender and Dylan Floro should both pitch in high leverage situations for the Marlins moving forward. 

Bender entered Wednesday’s action with 2 W, 5 H, 1 S, and a 2.27 ERA. He’s had more success against left-handed batters (.271 BAA) than right-handed batters (.156)

Floro hasn’t given up a run in 20 home appearances spanning 18.2 IP but has pitched to an ugly 4.84 ERA on the road.

Andrew Chafin, Traded from the Cubs to the A’s

Chafin had been considered the Cubs’ closer in waiting but instead he’ll be pitching in high leverage situations for the A’s moving forward. Opposing hitters are batting just .154 against him and they’re chasing his pitches outside the strike zone at the highest rate of his career (36%).

The A’s used a committee approach in managing their bullpen to start the season but Lou Trivino has developed into their primary closer and leads the team with 16 saves. Jake Diekman started the season as a co-closer and has seven saves and eight holds on the season. Chafin could get the occasional save opportunity, but we consider him as the second man up in the A’s bullpen.

Cubs Bullpen Moving Forward

Craig Kimbrel is expected to be traded ahead of the deadline. One rumor has him being dealt to the Dodgers. If he is traded, expect Ryan Tepera and Keegan Thompson to both pitch in late inning high leverage situations. However, Tepera has more career closer experience compared than Thompson and hasn’t given up a run in six July appearances. 

Other Closers And Relievers Who May Be On The Move

In previous articles we’ve mentioned that Rangers closer Ian Kennedy will likely be traded, and that still can happen, but for now it looks as if the Rangers’ next man up, Joely Rodríguez, is in the process of being traded to the Yankees along with Joey Gallo. The trade hasn’t been officially announced as this article is being written, but Josh Sborz (currently on paternity leave), Spencer Patton and Joe Barlow could all pitch in late inning high leverage situations at some point this season for the Rangers if both Kennedy and Rodriguez are moved.

Pirates closer Richard Rodríguez, Tigers relievers Gregory Soto and José Cisnero and Diamondbacks closer Joakim Soria could all be trade targets. Also, with the Nationals in sell mode, Brad Hand and Daniel Hudson could also be available via the trade market. Should either get moved Nationals reliever Kyle Finnegan’s role would likely be increased. On a smaller scale, Orioles relievers Paul Fry and Tanner Scott could also be moved as well. 

If you've been a subscriber here at Fantasy Alarm, you've seen the Fantasy Baseball Closer Grid before. If you're new, it's very simple. We not only list who the closer is for each team, but we then go another two-deep into the bullpen to let you know who would be next in line to accrue saves should there be an injury or a change, as well as which relievers you may want to target if your league scores for holds. This isn't about how the teams' depth charts always reads, so keep that in mind. Sometimes the heir-apparent is an obvious one, but in many cases it is not. We look for things like skill set, contact rates, pitch-command, pitch-mix, how many lefties are in the bullpen, who has worked as a closer before and who has the experience in high-leverage situation among other things.

GREEN will be those with strong talent, abundant opportunities and a high-level of job security. The tier below will be in YELLOW followed by ORANGE and lastly RED to indicate who may have the job right now but could lose it with one bad hiccup. 

UPDATED: 7.30.2021