Each week during the fantasy baseball season, I take a look at the relief pitcher landscape to aid with waiver wire and trade decisions. This past week, we were haunted by injuries to big-name relievers.
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- Fantasy Baseball Lineup Assistant
- MLB Prop Bet Cheat Sheet
Fantasy Baseball Saves + Holds League Advice
Saves + Holds Leaders
| Player | Team | SV+H |
| Erik Sabrowski | CLE | 9 |
| Tony Santillan | CIN | 8 |
| Mason Miller | SDP | 8 |
| Riley O’Brien | STL | 8 |
| Paul Sewald | ARI | 7 |
| Juan Morillo | ARI | 7 |
| Graham Ashcraft | CIN | 7 |
| Hogan Harris | ATH | 6 |
| Abner Uribe | MIL | 6 |
| JoJo Romero | STL | 6 |
| Gregory Soto | PIT | 6 |
| Emilio Pagan | CIN | 6 |
| Lucas Erceg | KCR | 6 |
| Trevor Megill | MIL | 6 |
| Jakob Junis | TEX | 6 |
| Matt Strahm | KCR | 6 |
| Ryan Helsley | BAL | 6 |
| David Bednar | NYY | 6 |
Takeaways
- Tony Santillan, Mason Miller and Riley O’Brien are in a three-way tie for second in saves plus holds and haven’t allowed an earned run yet. O’Brien added three wins in his first 13 innings.
- The Arizona Diamondbacks had questions about who would close out games coming into the season, but Paul Sewald has taken control. He has a 2.16 ERA, 0.48 WHIP, seven saves and an 11.8 K/9 across 8.1 innings. It’s a small sample size, but this is the best he’s looked since 2023.
- Trevor Megill has the worst ERA (9.00) of the leaders. His xERA (5.28), FIP (2.52), xFIP (4.40) and K/9 (11.3) all paint a different picture, but suggest he’s deserved better results.
- Cincinnati consistently puts players on the saves plus holds leaderboard. Last season, they ranked in the top six in the league in holds, and they’re currently number three this season.
Saves + Holds Reliever Rankings
Here are my updated top 40 relievers for saves plus holds leagues:
| Rank | Player | Team | Change |
| 1 | Mason Miller | SDP | – |
| 2 | Abner Uribe | MIL | +5 |
| 3 | Aroldis Chapman | BOS | +2 |
| 4 | Andres Munoz | SEA | – |
| 5 | Riley O’Brien | STL | +5 |
| 6 | Cade Smith | CLE | – |
| 7 | Kenley Jansen | DET | -2 |
| 8 | Robert Suarez | ATL | +8 |
| 9 | Ryan Helsley | BAL | -4 |
| 10 | Jason Adam | SDP | +9 |
| 11 | Lucas Erceg | KCR | – |
| 12 | Emilio Pagan | CIN | +5 |
| 13 | Tanner Scott | LAD | +17 |
| 14 | Matt Strahm | KCR | +4 |
| 15 | Paul Sewald | ARI | +9 |
| 16 | Jeff Hoffman | TOR | -1 |
| 17 | Tony Santillan | CIN | +16 |
| 18 | Erik Sabrowski | CLE | +9 |
| 19 | David Bednar | NYY | +1 |
| 20 | Trevor Megill | MIL | +3 |
| 21 | Bryan Baker | TBR | – |
| 22 | Ryan Walker | SFG | – |
| 23 | Brad Keller | PHI | UN |
| 24 | JoJo Romero | STL | +8 |
| 25 | Juan Morillo | ARI | +4 |
| 26 | Pete Fairbanks | MIA | -1 |
| 27 | Jakob Junis | TEX | +11 |
| 28 | Bryan King | HOU | – |
| 29 | Alex Vesia | LAD | +2 |
| 30 | Luke Weaver | NYM | +4 |
| 31 | Devin Williams | NYM | -17 |
| 32 | Dennis Santana | PIT | +3 |
| 33 | Matt Brash | SEA | +3 |
| 34 | Graham Ashcraft | CIN | UN |
| 35 | Gregory Soto | PIT | UN |
| 36 | Hunter Gaddis | CLE | UN |
| 37 | Will Vest | DET | – |
| 38 | Jordan Romano | LAA | -12 |
| 39 | Rico Garcia | BAL | UN |
| 40 | Camilo Doval | NYY | – |
Biggest Risers
Tanner Scott (RP – LAD) | +17
Tanner Scott is the obvious choice to replace Edwin Diaz as the Dodgers’ closer. He led the team with 23 saves last season after signing a four-year, $72 millon contract. He’s pitched to a 0.93 ERA, 0.62 WHIP, four holds and an 8.4 K/9 over 9.2 innings.
Brad Keller (RP – PHI) | Unranked
Brad Keller hasn’t been perfect, but he has been solid enough to step in for Jhoan Duran. He has a 3.86 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, four holds and an 8.6 K/9 over 9.1 innings.
Keller’s xERA of 2.34 and xBA of .208 should give managers confidence compared to the other options in the Phillies’ bullpen.
Biggest Fallers
Devin Williams (RP – NYM) | -17
Devin Williams started the season with five scoreless outings before falling apart in the last three.
Over his past 1.1 innings (three appearances), he’s allowed seven earned runs on six hits, including one home run and four walks, while picking up four strikeouts. Luke Weaver picked up the save on Wednesday against the Twins.
Injuries
There were too many high-end relievers placed on the injured list (IL) within the last week.
Edwin Diaz (RP – LAD) | Healthy Rank: 2
Replacement Options:
Jhoan Duran (RP – PHI) | Healthy Rank: 3
Replacement Options:
Raisel Iglesias (RP – ATL) | Healthy Rank: 8
Replacement Options:
Daniel Palencia (RP – CHC) | Healthy Rank: 12
Replacement Options:
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