As we close out the first half of the fantasy baseball season, the Arizona Diamondbacks, unfortunately, find themselves in the all-too-familiar position of trying to replace an injured 2025 MLB closer. 

It’s unlikely to happen, but the Yanks might be able to help the Diamondbacks find a replacement. However, they’re dealing with a Luke Weaver problem of their own. He hasn’t been the same since he returned from the IL, and Weaver’s issues are helping Devin Williams hold onto his role as the New York Yankees’ closer. 

Speaking of 2025 MLB closers holding on to their jobs, Raisel Iglesias, who lost his role as the Atlanta Braves’ primary closer due to his ineffectiveness, has been pitching well of late. He recorded the last save by a Braves reliever back on June 24th, and the way he’s been pitching lately, he’s likely to get the team’s next save opportunity.

The Los Angeles Dodgers have been slumping, and they have an ineffective closer of their own in Tanner Scott. Scott has given up a combined three earned runs in his last two appearances. The Dodgers do have a lot of talent in their bullpen and a lot of talented relievers on the IL, so don’t expect manager Dave Roberts to have too much patience with Scott. The Dodgers didn’t exhibit much patience with former Cincinnati Reds closer Alexis Diaz, who was called up from the minor leagues on Tuesday and sent back down on Wednesday with starting pitcher Tyler Glasnow being reinstated from the IL. 

We’ve got lots of bullpen-related content to cover in this article, and you should also be sure to also check out our updated 2025 Fantasy Baseball Closer Grid. Here’s what else you need to know:

(Stats quoted in this article are current as of the morning of July 10th, 2025)

 

 

 

Arizona Diamondbacks

It seems like we talk about a late-inning high-leverage Arizona Diamondback reliever being placed on the IL every week in this column. Shelby Miller is the latest Diamondback 2025 MLB closer to succumb to injury. He was placed on the IL retroactive to July 6th due to a forearm strain. This latest injury twist comes at a bad time for the Diamondbacks. Their bullpen has already been decimated by injuries, but without all of these injuries to their relievers, they could have dangled a healthy Miller, who is a free agent at the end of the season, as an inexpensive trade option for a playoff contender needing a boost to their bullpen. The Diamondbacks are still in the running for an NL wild card spot and are likely to be buyers instead of sellers at the July 31st MLB trade deadline. We’ll talk about possible late-inning high-leverage relievers who could be on the move at the trade deadline in future articles. Still, it should be noted that Kevin Ginkel got the first save for the Diamondbacks in the “post Shelby Miller” era. Manager Torey Lovullo has used Ginkel as his closer in parts of previous seasons, and he has 15 career saves, so installing him as the team’s primary closer makes sense. Oddly, right-handed batters have a .347 BAA, the right-handed Ginkel has an 11.70 ERA when pitching at home. Frankly, his 5.73 road ERA isn’t very good either. We introduced you to Kyle Backhus in last week’s article. He has a 1.86 ERA and 1.034 WHIP in limited action (9.2 IP) and has 17 career minor league saves. Jalen Beeks’ 4.39 ERA isn’t pretty, but if you take away the eight runs he gave up to the Marlins on consecutive days (June 28th and 29th), his season-long ERA would be 2.70. Beeks has some closer experience (16 career saves) and, unlike Ginkel and Backhus, he can get right-handed batters out (.207 BAA). John Curtiss is another Diamondbacks late-inning high-leverage reliever who has closer experience (2 big league saves, 45 minor league saves). The 32-year-old veteran was only recently promoted from the Diamondbacks’ Triple-A affiliate and has a 3.18 ERA in 5.2 IP. The majority of his five appearances have been in the seventh and eighth innings of games. We’ll have to watch the Diamondbacks’ bullpen usage and Miller’s status carefully in the coming days. 

 

 

 

Boston Red Sox

Keep an eye on the Red Sox’s bullpen depth chart. Red Sox 2025 MLB closer Aroldis Chapman has had a phenomenal season. At 37 years of age, he’s still throwing heat and has a 1.25 ERA and 15 saves. However, he’ll be a free agent at the end of the season, and the Sox could get a nice return for Chapman from a playoff contender looking to add depth to their bullpen. Jordan Hicks, whom the Red Sox acquired from the San Francisco Giants in the Rafael Devers trade, has been used in late-inning high-leverage situations since being reinstated from the IL. He picked up a save last Sunday, but Hicks hasn’t been perfect. He’s given up one earned run in each of his last two appearances, and with the Sox in the hunt for a wild card spot, they’d have to be confident that Hicks could be a reliable late-inning option before they move Chapman. Keep that in mind before adding Hicks to your fantasy baseball team’s roster.

 

 

 

New York Yankees

Yankees closer Devin Williams is another late-inning high-leverage reliever who will be a free agent at the end of the season. With the Yanks in need of starting pitching and a third baseman, and Williams pitching much better than he did at the beginning of the season, he could be an enticing trade option for a team like the previously mentioned Diamondbacks. It sounds crazy, but the Yanks could offer Williams in a package deal that would include the Bronx Bombers getting slugging third baseman Eugenio Suarez in return. That might work if only Luke Weaver could get out of his funk. Since returning from the IL, Weaver has a 10.29 ERA and has given up four home runs in seven IP spanning eight appearances. When asked about his recent slump, Weaver can’t explain why he’s not performing up to par, but perhaps his scoreless 1.2 IP on Wednesday night could be the start of a good stretch for the former Yankees closer.