Other than the New York Yankees having to shake up their bullpen depth chart due to an injury, fantasy baseball managers generally got a break from the usual mayhem that goes hand in hand with managing closers and late-inning high-leverage relievers. Well, that is unless you consider the fact that the defending World Series champs don’t have a closer something to worry about…

This week, we saw Justin Martinez back as the Arizona Diamondbacks’ closer. He picked up his first save in over a month on Sunday. Washington Nationals closer Kyle Finnegan was used in back-to-back games over the past week and seems to have recovered from his arm fatigue.

If you’re looking for a good resource for holds, familiarize yourself with Brendon Little. The Toronto Blue Jays reliever has 10 on the season and hasn’t given up a run in his last 14.1 IP.

We’ve got a lot more ground to cover this week and several late-inning high-leverage relievers that we need to talk about. Now more than ever, it’s really important that you check out our 2025 Fantasy Baseball Closer Grid on a regular basis. We update the grid as news happens. 

(Stats quoted in this article are current as of the morning of June 4th, 2025)

 

 

 

Los Angeles Dodgers

The Dodgers are a team without a designated closer. Manager David Roberts has announced that the pitcher who has the best matchup will be getting the ball in the ninth inning moving forward. Former Dodgers closer Tanner Scott has been struggling lately. He has a 12.68 ERA and three blown saves in his last eight games spanning seven innings pitched. The Dodgers recently learned that their former closer, Evan Phillips, would need Tommy John surgery, but they also do have several relievers with MLB closer experience on the IL right now, including Kirby Yates, Michael Kopech, and Blake Treinen. The Dodgers are hoping that Alexis Diaz, whom they recently acquired from the Reds, can regain the form that has helped him record 75 saves in his career thus far. For now, Alex Vesia is a good option for Roberts late in games, especially if he’s facing left batters (.188 BAA). Vesia has two saves and 11 holds this season. If there are a bunch of right-handed hitters coming up, Roberts might opt for Ben Casparius (.145 BAA), who could be a sneaky roster add for you. He has a 4-0 win/loss record and seven holds on the season.

 

 

 

New York Yankees

What’s old can sometimes be new again, and Devin Williams, who started the season as the Yankees’ closer but was removed from the role due to poor performances, is once again the Yankees' closer. Manager Aaron Boone said that Williams would “do most of the closing” on the Talkin' Yanks podcast. He also suggested that Fernando Cruz (whom I am very high on), Mark Leiter, and Jonathan Loaisiga would also continue to pitch in late-inning high-leverage situations.

One other Yankees reliever to take note of is Ryan Yarbrough. I call him a reliever because he’s probably eligible at that position, but he has recently been inserted into the Yanks’ starting rotation. If you play in a league that forces you to start at least one or more relievers, check to see if Yarbrough is available. In his five starts, he has won all three of his decisions and pitched to a 2.08 ERA. He has 24 strikeouts and just five walks during that time span.

 

 

 

Atlanta Braves

Braves closer Raisel Iglesias’ 2025 struggles have been well documented. He has a 5.64 overall ERA and has given up at least one earned run in six of his last appearances for a 7.56 ERA during that time span. Braves manager Brian Snitker has been getting heat for sticking with Iglesias, but unfortunately, some of his other options haven’t been pitching well lately either.  Pierce Johnson, who has 16 career saves, has given up a run in three of his last six appearances (7.20 ERA). Daysbel Hernandez has given up at least a run in two of his last three appearances. There are some bright spots in the Braves' bullpen. Dylan Lee seems like a logical choice to be the next man up. He’s had his ups and downs lately, but he has an overall 2.52 ERA and a save this season, and he also has 21 career minor league saves. Veteran reliever Aaron Bummer has a 2.00 ERA and 20 strikeouts and just 4 walks in his last 18 IP. He also has a modest five save total in his career.  

 

 

 

Seattle Mariners

I’m sure you’ve heard the saying that a batter can fail 70% of the time and still make the Baseball Hall of Fame. However, if an MLB closer has a bad week, he might be on the unemployment line. Andres Munoz has been one of the best MLB closers this season. He’s tied with Kansas City Royals closer Carlos Estevez for the AL league lead in saves with 17, but Munoz has hit a mini speed bump. Heading into Wednesday’s action, Munoz had given up five hits and four earned runs in his last two appearances (2 IP). We shouldn’t overreact to this little blip. Manager Dan Wilson isn’t panicking. However, the fact that Munoz hadn’t given up a run in his first 24 appearances spanning 23.2 IP makes this mini-slump stand out. Munoz is obviously in no danger of losing his job, but the Mariners have a couple of live arms in Matt Brash and Gabe Speier in their bullpen. Brash hasn’t given up a run since his return from Tommy John surgery on May 3rd. He has four big league saves under his belt. Speier has a 2.01 ERA this season to go along with seven holds. He’s been used both in late-inning and middle-inning situations. He’s been especially effective against left-handed batters (.139 BAA).