In this week’s Closer Report, the Cubs lost breakout closer Daniel Palencia to the injured list with a shoulder injury. And the Tigers will once again lean on Will Vest in the ninth inning with Kyle Finnegan sidelined. That and more as we run down the last week in saves around the league.
Fantasy Baseball Closer Rankings
Tier 1
Aroldis Chapman – Boston Red Sox
Andrés Muñoz – Seattle Mariners
Chapman struck out four batters in one inning against the Diamondbacks on Sunday for his 29th save of the season. He then surrendered a run on two hits on Wednesday against the Athletics, the first hits he’s allowed over 17 appearances since July 23. What the 37-year-old left-hander is doing in his 16th season is incredible, posting a 1.14 ERA, a 0.67 WHIP, and an 81/14 K/BB ratio across 55 1/3 innings.
Muñoz converted back-to-back saves against the Cardinals on Monday and Tuesday with a pair of scoreless innings. The 26-year-old right-hander is up to 34 saves with a 1.63 ERA, 1.05 WHIP, and a 71/25 K/BB ratio across 55 1/3 innings. Setup man Matt Brash has posted nearly identical numbers behind Muñoz, recording 21 holds with a 1.73 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, and a 52/16 K/BB rate over 41 2/3 frames.
Tier 2
Jhoan Duran – Philadelphia Phillies
Edwin Díaz – New York Mets
Robert Suarez – San Diego Padres
Duran recorded three more saves for the Phillies this week, giving him a career-high 28 to go with a 1.86 ERA, 1.11 WHIP, and a 70/18 K/BB ratio across 63 innings. Meanwhile, Díaz made one appearance this week, locking down a save against the Reds on Friday as he worked around two walks and a hit with two strikeouts.
Suarez surrendered a run against the Rockies in Colorado on Saturday but was able to hold on for his 36th save. After making a scoreless appearance in a non-save situation on Monday, he gave up a go-ahead, two-run homer against the Reds on Tuesday, pitching for the third time in four days. Behind Suarez, Mason Miller made three scoreless appearances. He’s now posted a 1.17 ERA with a 29/6 K/BB ratio across 15 1/3 innings since joining the Padres on August 1.
Tier 3
David Bednar – New York Yankees
Pete Fairbanks – Tampa Bay Rays
Kenley Jansen – Los Angeles Angels
Carlos Estévez – Kansas City Royals
Ryan Walker – San Francisco Giants
Abner Uribe – Milwaukee Brewers
Emilio Pagán – Cincinnati Reds
Cade Smith – Cleveland Guardians
Tanner Scott – Los Angeles Dodgers
Bryan Abreu – Houston Astros
Raisel Iglesias – Atlanta Braves
Jeff Hoffman – Toronto Blue Jays
Will Vest – Detroit Tigers
Dennis Santana – Pittsburgh Pirates
Bednar surrendered a run in a non-save situation against the Astros last Thursday, then bounced back with back-to-back saves against the Blue Jays, including three strikeouts in a four-out save on Saturday. He’s up to 22 saves, five with the Yankees, with a 2.47 ERA, 1.10 WHIP, and a 76/16 K/BB ratio over 54 2/3 innings.
Fairbanks had a rough series at home against the Guardians, giving up two runs on Thursday before giving up a run to take the loss on Saturday. He bounced back in Chicago on Tuesday, tossing a scoreless inning for his 25th save of the season. Meanwhile, Jansen pitched two clean outings to convert two saves. And in Kansas City, Estévez locked down three saves, giving him 39 with a 2.45 ERA across 62 1/3 innings.
Walker had a rough outing on Saturday against the Cardinals, giving up three runs to blow a save chance and take a loss without recording an out. He recovered with a scoreless outing on Tuesday against the Diamondbacks to convert his 15th save. Rookie right-hander Joel Peguero has stepped up in a big way as the Giants have had to overcome some injuries in the bullpen. Peguero has tossed 12 1/3 scoreless innings with an 11/1 K/BB ratio while working his way into high-leverage situations.
With Trevor Megill still on the 15-day injured list, Uribe continues to operate as the Brewers’ closer. He picked up a save with a clean inning against the Pirates on Friday. Megill threw a live batting practice session on Tuesday and is aiming to return next week.
Pagán has a busy week on the mound, making four appearances in five days. Only one was in a save situation. He converted his 27th save of the season with a clean inning against the Padres on Tuesday. In Cleveland, Smith also pitched four of five days, picking up three saves to give him 12 on the season with a 3.20 ERA, 1.10 WHIP, and a 90/19 K/BB ratio across 64 2/3 innings.
Scott took the loss against the Orioles on Friday, giving up a walk-off homer in the ninth inning. He was then charged with a blown save on Saturday before bouncing back with a save against the Rockies on Monday. Abreu also hasn’t been at his best, giving up eight runs over his last five outings. He surrendered two against the Blue Jays on Tuesday to blow the save before recovering with a save on Wednesday.
Iglesias continued his strong second half with two scoreless outings, picking up a pair of saves to give him 25 with a 3.62 ERA, 1.01 WHIP, and a 64/12 K/BB ratio across 59 2/3 innings. And Hoffman made two scoreless appearances this week, picking up a win against the Astros in the tenth inning on Tuesday.
Vest should take the primary share of all the save chances in Detroit after Kyle Finnegan landed on the 15-day injured list with a right adductor strain. Vest saw no save chances this week. He tossed a scoreless inning in a non-save situation against the White Sox on Sunday. Santana also didn’t see a save chance, instead pitching two scoreless innings in a pair of non-save situations.
Tier 4
Andrew Kittredge/Brad Keller – Chicago Cubs
Shawn Armstrong – Texas Rangers
Jose Ferrer – Washington Nationals
JoJo Romero/Riley O’Brien – St. Louis Cardinals
Calvin Faucher/Ronny Henriquez/Tyler Phillips – Miami Marlins
In a tough blow to the Cubs’ bullpen, Daniel Palencia’s breakout season may have been cut short as he was placed on the 15-day injured list with a right shoulder strain. The 25-year-old right-hander had converted 22 saves with a 3.00 ERA over 51 innings. Brad Keller and Andrew Kittredge should be in the mix for saves to fill in for Palencia. Kittredge got the save chance on Wednesday against the Braves, tossing a clean inning with one strikeout, while Keller picked up a hold with a scoreless eighth inning.
In Texas, Armstrong is up to eight saves after converting two this week. Meanwhile, Ferrer made three scoreless appearances this week, picking up two saves to bring him to eight on the year with a 3.89 ERA over 69 1/3 innings.
The Cardinals continue the matchups game in the late innings, with O’Brien picking up a save this week. Romero still leads the team with seven. It’s even messier in Miami, where Lake Bachar converted the team’s only save this week.
Tier 5
Keegan Akin – Baltimore Orioles
Justin Topa/Cole Sands – Minnesota Twins
Sean Newcomb – Athletics
Andrew Saalfrank/Jake Woodford – Arizona Diamondbacks
Jordan Leasure/Mike Vasil – Chicago White Sox
Victor Vodnik – Colorado Rockies
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