Brad Hand

Brad Hand pitched a perfect ninth inning with two strikeouts against the Mets on Monday to record his first save of the season.

Fantasy Impact

Corey Knebel was reportedly unavailable because of flu-like symptoms, but the Mets also had two lefties due up in the ninth inning which played perfectly for Hand. The one-time dominant closer looked every bit the part on Monday, but don't expect him to suddenly see save chances often absent a Knebel injury. He may be called upon when there are several lefties due up but, for the most part, managers can consider this a one-off.

Brad Hand pitched a scoreless inning on Tuesday against the Tigers, walking one. He earned the win in relief.

Fantasy Impact

Hand almost certainly won't see save opportunities with the Phillies, but he should be an integral part of the team's bullpen. As his velocity has waned a bit, so, too, have his ratio stats, and he's no longer someone to draft for ERA and WHIP help. Unless something drastic changes before the season, feel free to leave Hand undrafted.

Per Jeff Passan, the Phillies have signed Brad Hand to a 1-year, $6M contract.

Fantasy Impact

Joe Girardi named Corey Knebel as the closer over the weekend, but the team has been active in bolstering their bullpen by signing Familia, and now Hand. The veteran lefty had 21 saves last season with Washington before being moved to the Blue Jays and Mets later in the year. Knebel likely still has first crack at the closer role, but Girardi and the Phillies have been known to use a by committee approach.

Brad Hand is on the Mets' radar as the team searches for a lefty reliever, according to Jon Heyman.

Fantasy Impact

The Mets boast a fairly strong slate of relievers, but with the departure of Aaron Loup, they lack a left-handed thrower, let alone a reliable one. Hand struggled overall last year, with a 3.90 ERA (and far worse ERA indicators) and a 1.27 WHIP, though he had more success in his brief time with the Mets (2.70 ERA). Assuming he lands with New York, Hand has no chance to become the closer with Edwin Diaz fully entrenched, and his ratios aren't good enough to be considered helpful in anything other than perhaps deep NL-only leagues. In other words, you can largely ignore him for fantasy purposes if he finds his way to New York.

Reliever Brad Hand has been claimed off of waivers by the Mets from the Blue Jays.

Fantasy Impact

Hand joins a Mets' bullpen that ranks 11th the majors in terms of ERA, allowing him the opportunity to bolster an already effective stable of relievers. Hand currently sports a 4.21 ERA and a 1.27 WHIP across 51.1 innings pitched in 2021.