Greetings this morning from rural Wisconsin, where I am typing these words with a fresh cup of black coffee, some fruit, and a smile. I can hear the birds singing, feel the warm sun on my back, and hear the marching of time towards the trade deadline in nine days.
off, let’s take a look at the numbers:
- Camilo Doval leads all of baseball with 30 saves.
- Erik Swanson leads all of baseball with 24 holds.
- There are 157 players with at least one save.
- There are 263 players with at least one save opportunity.
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Fantasy Baseball Bullpen Update
AL East
The Baltimore Orioles acquired RHP Shintaro Fujinami from the Oakland Athletics this week. Before you scoff, let’s take a deeper look at Fujinami. Yes, he’s 5-8 with a Little Leaguish 8.57 ERA and 1.66 WHIP. However, you may have missed his move to the bullpen in Oakland and the success he has had there: in July, Fujinami is 2-1 in seven games pitched covering eight innings, with a tidy 2.25 ERA and .50 WHIP. He also has 10 strikeouts during that time and more importantly, no walks. The 13% walk rate he struggled with is slowly returning to Earth. Command issues have plagued Fujinami his entire career dating back to his school days in Japan, but if he is able to keep the gains he has made in the bullpen with his 100 MPH fastball, the Orioles may have added a significant piece to their bullpen, which already boasts Felix Bautista and Yennier Cano.
The New York Yankees bullpen is an interesting one to watch. Maybe not fun for my Fantasy Baseball Beat podcast cohost and friend Chris Torres, but fun for me, nonetheless. Clay Holmes is still the best bet for saves here, but we know manager Aaron Boone will mic and match on a daily basis. Holmes has 12 saves, Michael King six, and Wandy Peralta four. Much here depends on GM Brian Cashman’s stance going into the next week; do the last-place Yankees stand pat, acquire more talent for a run, or sell off pieces? It’s not like the Yankees to surrender, but who knows? Holmes is the guy for now, but King and Peralta can be counted on for the odd save as well. And don’t forget about Tommy Kahnle either.
AL Central
We continue to watch here in Chicago for the White Sox selloff, which seems like a foregone conclusion. A terribly disappointing year for the Sox, who should look to retool here by moving current closer Kendall Graveman and other bullpen arms Joe Kelly, Reynaldo Lopez, and Keynan Middleton. Not sure what they can fetch for their failed bullpen, but the Sox should move these guys, which would leave Gregory Santos as an interesting piece. With Liam Hendriks inching his way back from an elbow injury, Santos could easily find himself in the saves ix. At the very least, he should have earned a high-leverage role moving forward here. I would be surprised if the Sox traded Hendriks at this time, not only because he is injured, but because of the public relations repercussions they would experience on top of the already disastrous public relations nightmare of this season. Can you sense my bitter disappointment?
Things got a little more interesting in Kansas City this month with the trade of Aroldis Chapman to the Texas Rangers. Closer Scott Barlow figures to be on the move here soon as well. Josh Staumont is out for the season, needing to have the nightmarish thoracic outlet syndrome surgery after having neck problems all season. Taylor Clarke and Carlos Hernandez might be the two best guys left standing; we discussed last week that Hernandez could easily end up being the closer here soon. With Clarke’s struggles, and forced to bet on it, I would bet Hernandez is the guy you want here.
AL West
Texas Rangers: look at Will Smith and Aroldis Chapman. Manager Bruce Bochy stated this week that he would use both Smith and Chapman in the closing role. Smith had two saves this week and Chapman a win. We will be watching to see how the masterful Bochy deploys his bullpen. With Josh Sborz to the IL, bump Brock Burke up a notch. A name to watch in deep leagues: Alex Speas, who was recalled from AAA this week and has tremendous strikeout potential.
NL East
As discussed last week, Kyle Finnegan is again the closer in Washington with the arm injury to Hunter Harvey. I think Finnegan is still a prime trade candidate. Should that happen, Mason Thompson and Jordan Weems could see save opportunities. Finnegan gets the job done throwing his four-seam fastball a whopping 75% of the time. Buyer beware: while the 3.32 ERA is ok on paper, his xERA is 4.67 and his 23.8 K% is middling. Protect those hard-fought-for ratios my friends!
NL Central
The St. Louis Cardinals designated Genesis Cabrera for assignment this week and then traded him to the Toronto Blue Jays for a minor league catching prospect. It would seem that the Cards would be sellers at the deadline; with a potential healthy return next year of Ryan Helsley (a big if, granted), they could look to move current closer Jordan Hicks and valuable setup guy Giovanny Gallegos. Hicks is on an expiring contract while Gallegos has another year on his. Should Hicks get traded, and Gallegos stay, he would likely be the closer. Should both Hicks and Gallegos be moved, and Helsley still on the IL, veteran Chris Stratton could be the next candidate. Or he could get traded too. Isn’t this fun? Logan Gragg could be a minor league name to watch.
NL West
Arizona’s bullpen is currently in a state of flux. For the last few weeks, Scott McGough had been excellent and had placed himself ahead of competitors Miguel Castro and Andrew Chafin. However, those clearer times did not last for manager Torey Lovullo, after two massive blowups this week where McGough surrendered six runs. Enter Kevin Ginkel, who two years ago looked like he might be the best bet for saves in this bullpen. Ginkel earned two saves this week. Last night Lovullo went to Castro in the eighth inning, who entered the game with a two-run lead; when he exited the game the Diamondbacks were losing and subsequently blew the game. I am no general manager, but if Arizona wants to stay in the NL West race (they are currently second, 1.5 games behind the Dodgers, at 54-44), they may need to add some arms to the back end of their bullpen. Long story short, it appears to be Ginkel’s job for now.
The Los Angeles Dodgers added former Red Sox Ryan Brasier to their bullpen mix. Brasier seems to have new life in Los Angeles and has been effective; Evan Phillips is still the best bet to earn saves here.
San Diego: Steven Wilson is back and in the high-leverage mix. And so is Robert Suarez, who was activated this week. Josh Hader is the clear closer, but should San Diego decide to sell at 47-51 and 5.5 games out of first place, Hader could become one of the best trade chips on the market. Stay tuned here this week. Nick Martinez remains a good candidate for holds.
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