Welcome back to the second edition of the non-closer holds league report. As mentioned last week, this will be a report of relief pitchers who are most likely to be used as set-up men in hold situations. Additionally, I will be ranking closers who are potentially on the cusp of losing their jobs and could likely fall into the weekly rankings of set-up men.
Of course, there are many teams with extremely unclear closer situations and teams with somewhat unclear closer situations. For those who fit the latter (SF, COL, MIA, MIN, CHC), I will rank the likely setup men. For those who fit the former (SEA, CIN, WAS, BAL), I will leave all relievers from that bullpen out of ranking contention.
The Tiers
Tier 1) Elite. Expected to contribute at a high level in ERA/WHIP/H/SV/K categories. Proven track record. Big arms.
Tier 2) Great. Those who aren’t quite at elite status but have a minor circumstance, lack of experience, or slight negative in their game keep them from the top.
Tier 3) Good. Will damage you here or there in one, maybe two categories (i.e. Rogers with Ks and likely overall regression) but have a proven track record or excellent team situation (Hudson with Dodgers).
Tier 4) Above Average. They might be as skilled as Tier 3 pitchers and will mostly get the job done from week to week, but could hurt ERA and WHIP with a few blow-up spots, or they might be in a very crowded pen or a poor situation.
Tier 5) Slightly Above Average. They are impactful MLB pieces and have true pluses in their game, but might also have noticeable prior/recent statistical issues elsewhere or are simply in a lousy team situation.
Tier 6) Average. Sure, they are pretty useful MLB pieces, but likely not too beneficial for fantasy purposes.
Updated Rankings
Closers At Risk
This year has been quite strange for the closer carousel, with many relievers struggling early on and many new faces getting a chance to close. As stated last week, we will highlight some presumptive closers who are at risk of losing their job. This might be due to prior performance or perhaps a very intriguing set-up man who could put pressure on a closer who commits just one or two mishaps.
This will be a weekly report. Let's dive into it (again):
With the trade and departure of Taylor Rogers (RP - SD), Tyler Duffey was the next man up and a pretty clear option to take over 9th inning duties in Minnesota. However, Duffey imploded in his first save opportunity and blew the chance. Now, Jhoan Duran (SP - MIN) appears to be waiting in the wings with his tremendous stuff and exciting potential. Duran ranks as an above-average future reliever and certainly causes Tyler Duffey's security to be lower than it already was to begin with. Sure, Duffey's 2021 season makes him a decent candidate for saves, but he allowed among the hardest contact last year and doesn't match Duran with his pure stuff. This is a foggy situation - and one to certainly keep an eye on.
The Giants' closer situation is murky, to say the least, but they have one of the best 1-2-3 punches in all of baseball with Jake McGee (RP - SF), Tyler Rogers (RP-SF), and Doval. Yes, I am fully aware Doval may not be the closer - but he did get the first chance and did close out most postseason games last year. Unfortunately for Doval, he blew his first opportunity but thankfully did bounce back in earlier inning appearances. Given his nasty stuff and attacking approach, I do expect the fireballing righty to remain the man in the ninth - but if you are in a saves only league - you have to keep an eye on McGee, Rogers, and even Dominic Leone (SP,RP - SF) for opportunities.
Yes, this one might be a little unfair, as Barnes just returned from injury on April 11. The fastball/curveball right-hander was down a few ticks (as was the case this spring) and has had a history of command issues. If Barnes' stuff is not at his best, he could very well cede the closer role to Diekman even after he regains his velocity. Diekman, who dominates lefties, was one of my players to watch this season in our first edition of this article - and given his tremendous stuff and recent ninth-inning performance striking out the side against Aaron Judge (RF - NYY), Giancarlo Stanton (OF,DH - NYY) and Joey Gallo (OF,DH - NYY), this has turned into a very interesting situation. (Keep an eye on Hansel Robles (RP - BOS) as well.)
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