Bullpen Depth Charts and Closer Rankings for Week 15

It was another fun week for closers around baseball. And when I say fun, I mean in the way that Firefly Fun House is fun for children. There were multiple injuries and blowups, as well as a prominent return and a potential demotion at the closer position within the last seven days alone. And we have not even had to deal with any trades yet! As usual, I submit to you my closer rankings along with bullpen depth charts for each team. Also included is a brief synopsis of this week’s events and usage.

For those wanting to dig a bit deeper, I speculated on some closers in waiting and relievers worth adding in this piece. There will be more chaos in the weeks ahead, so check that out in conjunction with this article if you want to be proactive when evaluating your bullpens.

AL Bullpen Depth Charts and Closer Rankings

+ Injury Concern
* Part of Committee

AL East

Mychal Givens last recorded a save on June 11. Since then, he has allowed three earned runs in four innings. As I have stated before, you want no parts of this bullpen. Baltimore has won four games this month.

Alex Cora continues to play musical chairs with his relievers. Workman had a win and a save this week. The win was Workman’s fourth in 12 days. Jacob deGrom has four wins this season… Matt Barnes gave up three runs in the eighth inning on Saturday against Toronto and picked up a loss. He then doubled down when he blew a save on Wednesday against Chicago. Barnes ERA and WHIP now sit at 4.19 and 1.28, respectively. Those numbers make it hard to justify trotting him out in fantasy leagues when he is not getting saves. Despite his previous dominance, he still only has four saves on the year. Barnes, Workman, Ryan Brasier, and Marcus Walden are worth owning. But it’s anybody’s guess as to who will come through in a given week.

Zack Britton recorded a win and a save this week, but it was not exactly a pretty week for the former Oriole. Britton held on for the save despite walking three batters on Saturday. He then blew the save in the game he ended up winning. Britton is Aaron Boone’s preferred option whenever he opts to rest Aroldis Chapman, but he has very little standalone value barring a Chapman injury. Chapman had two more saves this week and now leads the American League with 23. He has been outstanding all season long.

Diego Castillo had another ugly performance last Saturday and was placed on the Injured List shortly thereafter. How long he has been dealing with the injury and the effect it has on his performance is up for debate. But the last month has not been kind to Castillo. In nine appearances since Memorial Day, he has allowed 11 earned runs in eight innings with a 6: 5 K: BB ratio. This stretch has also coincided with Jose Alvarado’s struggles and subsequent absence from the team to deal with a family matter. Alvarado was reinstated on Friday but is no sure thing given the layoff. Emilio Pagan is in the mix as well and has been the best of the three. This is a situation like the one in Boston, where multiple relievers are worth owning but none can be considered safe options on a weekly basis.

Ken Giles picked up his 12th save of the year last Saturday, though he did allow a run. Giles has allowed more earned runs (3) and walks (5) in three appearances in Fenway Park than he has in the other 25 games he has pitched in throughout North America. Take note, potential trade partners. Even given the anomaly of his struggles in Beantown, Giles has been among the best in the game this season. He ranks first among all pitchers with at least 20 innings pitched in FIP, and trails only Josh Hader in strikeout rate, swinging strike rate, and K-BB percentage. If Giles were on a better team, we would be talking about him as a potential top-5 closer.

AL Central

Friday’s game should indicate exactly why the White Sox need to keep Alex Colome even if they continue to fall out of the playoff hunt. Rick Renteria called on Kelvin Herrera with the Pale Hose up four in the ninth inning. Herrera gave up a single and a home run to the only two batters he faced before Renteria pulled the plug and brought in Colome to clean up the mess. Colome responded by retiring the next three hitters in order for his 17th save. Colome is not dominant in the traditional sense, but he is second in the Majors in WHIP and has blown just one save all year. That blown save did come this week in Boston, but he was a victim of circumstance in that game. Besides, I just established that closers struggle in Boston sometimes, so Colome gets a pass for that minor hiccup.

If what Colome experienced on Wednesday was a minor hiccup, Brad Hand’s performance the day before was anything but. Hand inexplicably melted down against the Royals. It took all of 13 pitches for Kansas City to turn a 6-3 deficit into an 8-6 advantage. We can only chalk this up as a fluke considering how dominant Hand has been this year. Even after that brutal game, Hand enters the season’s second half with stellar numbers across the board, including a 2.36 ERA, 0.93 WHIP, and 22 saves.

The Tigers went 0-for the week, totaling just nine runs over the course of six games. Shane Greene has not allowed a run in June but has just three saves for his troubles. Greene had 11 saves through the first four weeks of the season but has just 10 since. He is having the sort of season Jeurys Familia had last year in that regard. Remind me next March to draft closers on bad teams with the intent to immediately sell after an unexpectedly hot start.

In the Brad Hand blowup game, Ian Kennedy was the beneficiary, notching his 10th save of the year. It was his only save of the week, but Kennedy has been solid when called upon this season. The move to the bullpen has really resurrected his career. His fastball velocity is up around two MPH and he no longer has to face the same hitter twice, which was a major issue for him last year. His primary strength this season has been his ability to keep the ball in the yard. He has a career-low 5.4 percent HR/FB rate combined with a career-high 13.5 percent IFFB (popup) rate. The save numbers will not be there consistently in Kansas City, but Kennedy has proven himself to a reliable bullpen piece in both real life and fantasy.

Taylor Rogers blew a save last Saturday, but I will cut him a bit of slack. He had pitched two innings the day before, so I was surprised to see Rocco Baldelli extend Rogers in such a manner. After a bit of rest, Rogers is back to his old self. He retired all seven batters he faced over his last two games, picking up one save in the process. I still have him atop the Twins’ bullpen depth chart over Blake Parker. Parker did save the game that Rogers blew, but that was just his second save in the past five weeks. Parker is still useful because we know that Baldelli likes to tweak and play matchups. But this should be Rogers’ show going forward barring an extended cold spell.

AL West

Remember when I said Roberto Osuna was a good bet to lead the American League in saves at the end of the year? I suppose he still could, but the well has run dry in June. Osuna has just one save this month. Houston has struggled as a whole, but it is not as if we are talking about the Orioles here. The Astros are 13-12 in June and still have the fourth-best record in all of baseball. As Houston’s health continues to improve, they will get back to their normal dominance, which should increase Osuna’s save opportunities. He could be a buy-low target under the right circumstances, though I would wait until after this week’s series in Colorado before checking the temperature on him.

Hansel Robles did not see any save chances this week but did scuffle somewhat in his two outings, allowing a run and five hits. I would not read too much into it, but I wouldn’t blame anyone for paying a bit more attention to his next couple of games, either. I still think Robles is the guy unless the Angels acquire an upper-echelon closer via trade. Robles is finally owned in more leagues than Ty Buttrey. Sure, it happened a month too late. But at least we finally got there.

I was bummed to see Blake Treinen go on the IL last weekend. Not only because it messes me up where I own him, but because I have been beating the Liam Hendriks drum throughout the month of June. The injury may have paved the way, but Hendriks was already on his way to overthrowing Treinen. In three games since taking over as closer, Hendriks has not allowed a run and has struck out six, picking up two saves. Hendriks leads all hurlers with at least 40 innings pitched this season in ERA and is third in FIP. He also ranks inside the top-20 among all pitchers in xBA, xSLG, and xwOBA. I fully believe that Hendriks can keep this job if he pitches well, and there is no reason to believe he cannot or will not. If he is still available in your league, pick him up immediately.

Roenis Elias picked up a two-inning save on Wednesday in Milwaukee. It was another impressive showing for the southpaw, who has not allowed a hit in his last seven outings. Hunter Strickland still looms, but it would be hard to remove Elias anytime soon given his recent stretch of dominance. Plus, there is no evidence that Strickland is really any better than Elias. Strickland can also suffer another setback in his recovery. Elias is still available in over 50 percent of leagues. At the very least, I think he is a solid short-term option with the ability to hold the job for a bit longer than most people expect.

The good – Jose Leclerc pitched the ninth inning on Friday and has not allowed a hit or run in his last four games. The bad – he’s still not, you know, closing games. The ugly – he has walked four batters in his last four games. I still believe he will be given the job back at some point, but we are almost approaching the point of diminishing returns. I would not drop Leclerc, but this continues to be a quagmire for fantasy owners. Meanwhile, Shawn Kelley has 11 saves this year, including two more this week. He has not been very good lately, though, which only further frustrates the Leclerc crowd. Hopefully, Chris Woodward goes back to Leclerc soon and we can all move on and enjoy the Rangers’ surprising run of success.

NL Bullpen Depth Charts and Closer Rankings

+ Injury Concern
* Part of Committee

NL East

Luke Jackson converted both of his save opportunities this week. That should earn him a bit more confidence from Brian Snitker after Jackson had a shaky first half of June. I am still a bit nervous in leagues where I have him, however. A.J. Minter filled in for Jackson on Wednesday and made quick work of the Cubs, retiring all four batters he faced. Minter may work his way into the mix with a few more solid outings or if Jackson’s struggles recur.

As I suggested last week, Sergio Romo was given last weekend off after pitching on four consecutive days. And, as luck would have it, the Marlins had save chances on both days. Jose Quijada picked up his first career save on Saturday, but there is little to be taken from this. On Sunday, Nick Anderson recorded his first career save. The fact that Don Mattingly used Anderson after Tayron Guerrero signifies to me that Anderson would be ahead of Guerrero on the team’s bullpen depth chart if and when they trade Romo. Where Adam Conley, Quijada, or anyone else would slot in remains to be seen. Either way, it is a situation fantasy owners should avoid where possible. It’s not as if the Marlins are going to suddenly generate a ton of save chances during the season’s second half.
Edwin Diaz had an epic meltdown in Philadelphia on Thursday. Diaz allowed five runs in just a third of an inning, ceding two home runs in the process. Diaz’ ERA has tripled since May 28 and now stands at 4.94. He has allowed 34 hits in 31 innings this season after permitting just 41 over 73.1 innings in 2018. There is not much that Diaz owners can do other than hold and hope he turns it around. The good news is that the rest of the Mets’ bullpen is as much of a mess as the rest of the organization.

Diaz was only given the ability to fall on his face on Thursday because Hector Neris did so ten minutes prior. Neris entered a 1-0 game but allowed four straight hits, including a go-ahead home run by Todd Frazier. Gabe Kapler yanked Neris, so he did not even get the backdoor win following Diaz’ collapse. This was Neris’ second ugly outing in the last couple of weeks. Neris may benefit from the fact that healthy and reliable options are few and far between in Philadelphia, but I am worried about his long-term status as closer. Hopefully, he can right the ship and earn Kapler’s trust before the Phillies investigate other options, be they in-house or outside the organization.

Sean Doolittle earned one save this week, though he did allow a run in a non-save appearance on Thursday. With Doolittle unavailable on Friday, Dave Martinez dialed up the way back machine and summoned Fernando Rodney, who got the save. Rodney was called up earlier in the week and could provide some added depth to a Washington bullpen which badly needs it. He is not a threat to Doolittle by any means but could continue to pick up the odd save here or there when Doolittle is not available to work.

NL Central

Craig Kimbrel finally made his long-awaited debut in Chicago on Thursday and promptly nailed down his first save of 2019. He allowed a hit and a walk but escaped unscathed. There was some question as to whether Joe Maddon would ease Kimbrel into the closer’s role, so Thursday’s events should excite Kimbrel owners. He may encounter the occasional bump in the road, especially given the long layoff. But as we have seen throughout the year and especially in the last couple of weeks, all closers do anyway. There is no reason to wait to start Kimbrel in all leagues and formats. He is in the top-10 of my closer rankings and has the ability and pedigree to surpass that threshold over the course of the next three months.

I spent last week throwing cold water on those who were excited about Michael Lorenzen recording two saves the week before. But the events of the last few days have me a bit concerned about Raisel Iglesias. Iglesias suffered his seventh loss of the season when he let up four runs against the Angels on Wednesday. On Friday, Lorenzen recorded a five-out save against the Cubs. I suspect Iglesias was simply unavailable after throwing 30 pitches on Wednesday, but Lorenzen’s success, particularly under those circumstances, does not bode well for Iglesias. It seems clear to me that Iglesias is much more comfortable when he only pitches the ninth inning. But for whatever reason, Cincinnati hired David Bell to be their manager instead of me. As long as Bell keeps using Iglesias in high-leverage situations, I believe he will continue to have problems.

Josh Hader leads the league in xFIP, xBA, xwOBA, WHIP, swinging strike percentage, strikeout percentage, and K-BB rate. In his last seven outings, he has allowed no hits and struck out 19 hitters. Other than that, he’s pretty terrible. Simply put, he is a man among boys. He is the undisputed number-one in my closer rankings.

Felipe Vazquez did a fine Josh Hader impression on Friday night. Vazquez pitched two innings and retired all six hitters with four coming by strikeout. Vazquez remains one of the most reliable closers in all of baseball. Recent reports have suggested that the Los Angeles Dodgers have interest in Vazquez. I cannot imagine Pittsburgh being willing to part with Vazquez, primarily because he is under team control through 2023. However, a bidding war for his services would be quite interesting. Unfortunately, Los Angeles would be one of the few places where he would not be expected to close, which would suppress his value. Let’s hope it does not come to that and that he will remain in Pittsburgh for at least a couple more years.

Jordan Hicks – we hardly knew ye. Hicks had what was first diagnosed as tricep tendinitis last week. But an MRI on Monday revealed that Hicks has a torn UCL. Hicks had Tommy John surgery on Wednesday, ending his promising 2019 campaign. Carlos Martinez is expected to handle most of the closing duties in Saint Louis going forward. It seems like Martinez has been in the league forever, but he is still just 27 years old. He had a solid run in relief last year and has pitched exclusively out of the bullpen this season. Martinez should be able to be an effective closer as long as he can harness his control, which tends to get away from him from time to time.

NL West

Greg Holland had three more hitless and scoreless appearances this week, but once again had just a solitary save to show for it. He was in line for a save on Thursday when the Diamondbacks conducted a two-out rally that resulted in a four-run cushion, negating a save chance. Holland has been really unlucky in that regard this season. Fantasy owners have little recourse other than to hope that luck turns around before it’s too late.

Bud Black announced on Friday that he was considering a change at closer following another implosion from Wade Davis. Sure enough, Black called on Scott Oberg to finish off the Dodgers on Friday night, though a save was not in the balance. Oberg has been outstanding over the course of the last month or so. He is still available in 66 percent of leagues and should be added wherever available. However, I would advise a couple of words of caution here. First and foremost, he is still a Rockies pitcher, so a bit of ratio damage is likely. Secondly, this switch could turn about to be temporary. If Davis responds well and Oberg falters a bit, Black could go back to Davis down the stretch. Finally, for those in daily leagues, Oberg has pitched five of the last six days. I would expect him to get the next couple of days off.

Kenley Jansen pitched four times this week, but only tallied one save during that timeframe. Jansen has 23 saves on the year, which trails only Kirby Yates. The Dodgers are once again running away with the National League West and have the best record in all of baseball. Jansen will continue to be afforded plenty of save opportunities throughout the year.

Even Kirby Yates had a rough outing this past week. Yates served up three runs and three hits (one earned) on Sunday, which I considered a nice birthday present, as it further justified Yates remaining behind Hader in my closer rankings. I thought about dropping Yates a bit this week as a result of his poor performance, but I did not want to make things awkward when I run into Nathan Dokken at the next Fantrax HQ slumber party. So Yates gets to remain at number-two. Some might worry that Craig Stammen has two saves over the past ten days. But I am here to tell you to relax. The saves were highly circumstantial. In his other two games in that span, Stammen has allowed four runs and seven baserunners over 1.2 innings with no strikeouts. Yates owners have nothing to worry about.

Will Smith picked up two more saves this week as he continues to dominate opposing hitters in 2019. He did give up a run in a non-save opportunity on Friday night, but Smith has been stellar all season long. Smith ranks in the top-five in all of baseball in saves, WHIP, FIP, xFIP, strikeout rate, K-BB rate, and xwOBA. By nearly any measure, he is an elite pitcher. It is almost a certainty that he will be dealt out of San Francisco in the coming weeks. Here’s hoping he will land somewhere where he can continue to close and provide high-end fantasy value in the second half.

Are you find Mick’s Closer Rankings and Bullpen Depth Charts useful? For more great analysis check out his full archive.

Mick Ciallela has been writing for FantraxHQ since July 2017. He has also written for Bleacher Report. He is a lifelong sports fan and has been an avid fantasy sports player for many years. Mick was the Overall Champion of both the 2016 Football Challenge – Roto and 2017 Play 3 Football contests hosted by CDM Sports. Mick was born and raised in Mount Vernon, New York and currently resides in New London, Connecticut.

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