It has been an interesting week for bullpen situations. On the one hand, it seems like news has been quiet, and most of the saves leaders over the last week are the usual suspects, like Kirby Yates , Blake Treinen , Aroldis Chapman , Roberto Osuna , Sean Doolittle and Raisel Iglesias . That being said, there has been some notable bullpen news since last week. Nearly a quarter of the league has had something noteworthy happen, so let’s take a closer look.
The Phillies have gotten four saves in the last seven days, by three different relievers. Héctor Neris had two of them, and he is clearly the Phillies reliever you want, but I don’t think Pat Neshek is going away. He has two saves in his last three appearances, and he has six saves+holds this month. Neshek isn’t striking anyone out but he also isn’t walking anyone. While he can be effective in real life pitching that way, he is never going to be valuable for fantasy outside of deep or NL-only leagues.
José Leclerc has officially worked his way back into a late-inning role, working a scoreless eighth Tuesday to earn a hold. Shawn Kelley returned from the IL to earn the save Tuesday and followed with another Wednesday. My guess is Kelley will keep closing so long as he is effective, but two consecutive blown saves would land Leclerc back in the ninth inning. If I had to pick one to lead Texas in saves the rest of the way, it would be Kelley. I think he will be good enough, and while Leclerc has gone 5.1 consecutive innings without allowing a walk, I don’t necessarily trust it will continue.
Luke Jackson has blown consecutive games and three of his last seven chances. Sean Newcomb picked up the pieces Sunday to earn the save. Newcomb’s WHIP is awfully high for my liking, but he has gotten by so far by not allowing any home runs. My guess is the newly-acquired Anthony Swarzak gets the next save chance, but the Braves have enough lefties that they could make Newcomb their closer if they wanted. A.J. Minter has yet to allow a run since his demotion to Triple-A, and he could be back in the bigs sooner than later.
Swarzak’s trade to Atlanta clears the way for Roenis Elías to close. That being said, his last save went 2.1 innings, so he probably won’t be used like a conventional closer. Brandon Brennan will likely get the saves on days when Elias is unavailable or has pitched earlier in the game.
Mets manager Mickley Callaway said Wednesday night he is going to be willing to use Edwin Díaz to get more than three outs at a time, joining a growing list of MLB managers. That should pave the way for somebody to pick up a handful of saves when Diaz is unavailable, but we have no way of knowing who. Juerys Familia blew the save in the eighth inning Tuesday, and with his 6.50 ERA and 1.89 WHIP, it seems like now is the time to throw him in less critical innings. Robert Gsellman probably has the best chance to pick up saves until Familia starts throwing better, but Gsellman routinely throws multiple innings himself, meaning he may not be available when opportunities arise, either.
The Red Sox seem hellbent on making sure none of their relievers are usable for fantasy. Their only save since last week went to Brandon Workman , after Matt Barnes faced the heart of the order in the eighth inning. Workman appears to have replaced Ryan Brasier for the time being, though Barnes is clearly their relief ace. I would rather own Workman than Pat Neshek , but that’s basically where I draw the line.
Has Steve Cishek pitched well enough to remain the closer when Pedro Strop returns? My guess is no, but I’m not nearly as confident in that call as I was a month ago.
Just when I was ready to write off Emilano Pagan, he picked up a win Wednesday. I still think he is clearly third in Tampa Bay’s bullpen, behind both José Alvarado and Diego Castillo . Castillo allowed three runs and three walks in his last outing, but that was in Yankee Stadium. I think he’ll be fine.
Blake Parker may be the third-best reliever in Minnesota’s bullpen, he still hasn’t blown a save this season. Mike Morin got the save Wednesday with Parker and Taylor Rogers unavailable. I still think I would rather own Trevor May than Morin in a deep league or a saves+holds league, but Morin is probably worth keeping an eye one.