Welcome to a new series here at RotoWire. Every Monday and Friday, I'll take a look back at the previous series and wrap up everything you need to know about the rapidly changing closer market.
These articles will contain five parts:
Who Earned Saves This Week/Weekend? A division-by-division look at who picked up saves in the previous series, as well as "true" blown saves and a few quick notes.
Closers I'm Worried About: A breakdown of a handful of closers whose jobs seem the most tenuous, as well as a look at the setup men who could be about to step up.
Bullpen Deep Dive: A closer look at a bullpen where everything is even more up in the air than usual, focusing on key stats and usage trends.
Injury Round-Up: A quick look at any currently injured closers and their progress toward a return to action.
Closer Grid: A snapshot of the RotoWire Closer Grid, which can also be found here.
Who Earned Saves This Weekend?
| American League East | Saves | "True" Blown Saves* | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baltimore | Rico Garcia (6) | none | Andrew Kittredge pitched the eighth inning prior to Garcia's save Friday. Yennier Cano was available but did not pitch. |
| Boston | Aroldis Chapman 2 (29) | none | |
| New York | David Bednar (30) | none | |
| Tampa Bay | Bryan Baker (37) | none | |
| Toronto | Louis Varland (29) | none |
*A pitcher can earn a blown save if he enters in what is technically a save situation prior to the ninth inning
Welcome to a new series here at RotoWire. Every Monday and Friday, I'll take a look back at the previous series and wrap up everything you need to know about the rapidly changing closer market.
These articles will contain five parts:
Who Earned Saves This Week/Weekend? A division-by-division look at who picked up saves in the previous series, as well as "true" blown saves and a few quick notes.
Closers I'm Worried About: A breakdown of a handful of closers whose jobs seem the most tenuous, as well as a look at the setup men who could be about to step up.
Bullpen Deep Dive: A closer look at a bullpen where everything is even more up in the air than usual, focusing on key stats and usage trends.
Injury Round-Up: A quick look at any currently injured closers and their progress toward a return to action.
Closer Grid: A snapshot of the RotoWire Closer Grid, which can also be found here.
Who Earned Saves This Weekend?
| American League East | Saves | "True" Blown Saves* | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baltimore | Rico Garcia (6) | none | Andrew Kittredge pitched the eighth inning prior to Garcia's save Friday. Yennier Cano was available but did not pitch. |
| Boston | Aroldis Chapman 2 (29) | none | |
| New York | David Bednar (30) | none | |
| Tampa Bay | Bryan Baker (37) | none | |
| Toronto | Louis Varland (29) | none |
*A pitcher can earn a blown save if he enters in what is technically a save situation prior to the ninth inning and blows the lead. For fantasy purposes, we don't really care about blown saves where a reliever was clearly being used as a setup man and coughed up the lead. What matters to us is when a reliever was genuinely being given a chance to save the game but blew it. Therefore, for the purposes of this article, I'm only going to report blown saves of that variety.
| American League Central | Saves | "True" Blown Saves | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago | none | Grant Taylor (6) | |
| Cleveland | Cade Smith (33) | none | |
| Detroit | none | none | |
| Kansas City | Nate Pearson (3), Craig Kimbrel (1) | none | See "Bullpen Deep Dive" below. |
| Minnesota | none | none |
| American League West | Saves | "True" Blown Saves | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Athletics | Elvis Alvarado (3), Hogan Harris (13) | none | Hogan Harris pitched the eighth inning prior to Alvarado's save Saturday, though not to face a pocket of lefties as you might expect. Two of the three hitters due up hit right-handed. Alvarado was unavailable for Harris' save Sunday after pitching on back-to-back days. |
| Houston | none | none | |
| Los Angeles | Ryan Watson (2) | Ben Joyce (1) | Joyce's blown save came in the 10th inning Friday and did not involve him giving up an earned run. With Samy Natera Jr. hitting the injured list with back spasms Thursday, Joyce stands alone atop the Angels' closer depth chart. The Angels haven't wanted to use Joyce on back-to-back days so soon after his return from a 15-month absence due to shoulder surgery, so he was unavailable for the save Saturday, which went to Watson (over Jose Fermin, who'd thrown 22 pitches Friday). |
| Seattle | none | Andres Munoz (8) | |
| Texas | Jacob Latz (26) | none |
| National League East | Saves | "True" Blown Saves | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Atlanta | Raisel Iglesias (27) | none | |
| Miami | Calvin Faucher (2) | Pete Fairbanks (4) | Fairbanks may have been unavailable for Faucher's save Saturday, having just thrown 25 pitches the day before. |
| New York | none | none | |
| Philadelphia | none | none | |
| Washington | none | none |
| National League Central | Saves | "True" Blown Saves | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago | none | Jacob Webb (5) | See "Closers I'm Worried About" below. |
| Cincinnati | none | none | |
| Milwaukee | Trevor Megill (24), Aaron Ashby (2) | none | Megill was unavailable for Ashby's save Saturday, having pitched on back-to-back days. With Abner Uribe (forearm) on the injured list, Ashby looks like Megill's top deputy, though that won't last long, as Uribe is about to begin a rehab assignment. |
| Pittsburgh | none | none | |
| St. Louis | none | none |
| National League West | Saves | "True" Blown Saves | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arizona | Kevin Ginkel (2) | none | See "Closers I'm Worried About" below. |
| Colorado | none | none | |
| Los Angeles | Tanner Scott (19) | none | Scott now has all three of the Dodgers' saves since Edwin Diaz (neck) returned to the injured list. |
| San Diego | Mason Miller (32) | none | |
| San Francisco | none | Sam Hentges (3) | Dylan Smith (3) and JT Brubaker (2) are the only Giants on the active roster with a save this season, but Smith pitched in the eighth prior to Hentges' blown save Saturday while Brubaker didn't make an appearance despite the fact that he hadn't pitched since Thursday. |
Closers I'm Worried About
Jacob Webb, Cubs: Webb leads the Cubs in saves this season with nine and probably doesn't deserve to lose his job, even with Daniel Palencia returning from the 60-day injured list Friday. Webb has a 2.65 ERA on the season and went nearly two months without giving up a run, tossing 24.2 scoreless innings from June 24 through August 21.
Webb did get the Cubs' first save chance after Palencia's return, getting the ball for the ninth inning with a two-run lead Saturday in Seattle, but Palencia might not have been available after pitching the day before. It's noteworthy, though, that Palencia also had a late-season injury last year and found himself pitching earlier in games after his return, and his first game back this time around saw him pitch in the seventh inning with a three-run deficit.
That suggests there's a path to Webb retaining primary closer duties for the Cubs the rest of the way, but he hurt his chances of that by blowing the save chance, giving up three hits and three runs including a walk-off homer off the bat of Randy Arozarena. That ended Webb's scoreless streak at 24 appearances and may have given manager Craig Counsell the excuse he needs to hand the closer job back to Daniel Palencia.
Worry-o-meter: 4 out of 5
Setup man to stash: Daniel Palencia. He's only just made it back from his third stint on the injured list in the last 12 months, as a shoulder strain last September and a lat strain this April preceded his flexor strain this June. It's possible that he simply throws too hard (averaging 99.4 mph on his four-seamer) to hold up long-term. But if he can stay healthy for the final month of the season and shows no lingering effects of his latest injury, he has the potential to be one of the better closers in baseball. Since the start of last season, he owns a 2.82 ERA and 1.18 WHIP backed by a 28.4 percent strikeout rate and 7.6 percent walk rate.
Brandyn Garcia, Diamondbacks: Garcia may never have officially been the Diamondbacks' closer, with the Diamondbacks saying they'd play the matchups in the ninth inning after removing Paul Sewald from the closer role in late July, but he sure looked like one for most of the last month. From July 25 through August 22, Garcia had four saves while the rest of the Diamondbacks bullpen had none.
Garcia opened the ninth inning Sunday against the Reds with a two-run lead and retired the first two batters he faced, but he was pulled for Kevin Ginkel to face the right-handed Dane Myers after giving up a two-out single to Sal Stewart. It was a move that seemed a bit unfair to Garcia, but it's in line with how a manager would use his bullpen if he was indeed playing the matchups rather than viewing Garcia as the dedicated closer.
Garcia has been very good this season, with a 2.43 ERA and 0.84 WHIP backed by a 30.5 percent strikeout rate and 6.4 percent walk rate. He even has a 64.6 percent groundball rate, helping him to a 2.28 SIERA, a figure which ranks fifth among all relievers (min. 30 innings). He looks like he'd very much belong in a dedicated closer role, but his lack of experience in the ninth inning combined with the depth of the Diamondbacks bullpen means that Torey Lovullo could continue to play the matchups if he wants to, something that would unlikely be to the left-handed Garcia's benefit.
Worry-o-meter: 3 out of 5
Setup man to stash: Possibly Justin Martinez, though it's unclear whether he'll get many high-leverage looks down the stretch after returning from Tommy John surgery last Tuesday. Six relievers pitched in the game which ended up being saved by Ginkel on Sunday, but Martinez was not one of them despite the fact that he hadn't pitched since Friday. Either the Diamondbacks are treating him extremely cautiously following his return from surgery, or they don't yet trust him in a high-leverage spot.
Martinez had just taken over full-time closer duties shortly before arm troubles popped up in late April last season, and his triple-digit heat and 29.0 percent career strikeout rate would make him a good fit for the job, but the Diamondbacks have enough capable alternatives that they can afford to ease him back into action. Among those alternatives, none seem likely to fully boot Garcia from the ninth inning, but Ginkel (3.76 ERA, 3.44 SIERA), Jonathan Loaisiga (2.58 ERA, 3.64 SIERA) and Juan Morillo (2.28 ERA, 2.91 SIERA) all have at least one save this season and could add to their total down the stretch.
Bullpen Deep Dive
Kansas City Royals
| 2026 Stats | Saves | ERA | WHIP | SIERA | K% | BB% | K-BB% | Stuff+ | Location+ | gmLI* |
| Steven Cruz | 5 | 4.17 | 1.21 | 3.43 | 26.2% | 9.2% | 17.0% | 108 | 97 | 1.00 |
| Nate Pearson | 3 | 2.48 | 1.19 | 4.54 | 20.1% | 12.7% | 7.5% | 105 | 89 | 1.28** |
| Craig Kimbrel | 1 | 4.15 | 1.23 | 4.30 | 21.9% | 11.3% | 10.6% | 110 | 92 | 1.14*** |
*gmLI is the average Leverage Index when a pitcher enters the game. 1.0 is average; closers typically sit north of 1.50.
**This figure shows only Pearson's leverage index during his 13 appearances with the Royals. The rest of his stat line includes his 16 appearances with the Astros as well.
**This figure shows only Kimbrel's leverage index during his five appearances with the Royals. The rest of his stat line includes his 33 appearances with the Mets and Rays as well.
Has there been another closer change in Kansas City? Carlos Estevez has been sidelined since late March with first a bruised foot and then a rotator cuff strain, and nobody who's been given the chance to replace him has been able to keep the job. Lucas Erceg got the first crack and picked up 12 saves, but he struggled to a 6.23 ERA and has been sent to the minors. Alex Lange was the next man up and managed to get 10 saves, but his last came nearly a month ago (July 25), and his 5.86 ERA means he's unlikely to get another chance any time soon.
It looked like Steven Cruz was staking his claim for the job, recording five of the team's seven saves from July 22 to August 20. He's hardly been dominant this season, but his 4.17 ERA, 1.21 WHIP and 26.2 percent strikeout rate were at least much better than what the previous candidates could offer.
The Royals' bullpen usage in their weekend series against the Tigers suggests things are changing again. On Friday, Cruz was called on to get the last out of the seventh inning after John Schreiber ran into trouble, getting out of the inning with a one-run lead after giving up an RBI single. He then stuck around to pitch a clean eighth inning before Nate Pearson got the ball in the ninth for the save. On Saturday, veteran Craig Kimbrel picked up the save. Pearson was unavailable after pitching on back-to-back days, and Cruz may have been unavailable as well after throwing 20 pitches the night before. Pearson then got the eighth inning with a two-run lead Sunday, with Cruz pitching the ninth despite the fact that the Royals had extended the lead to four.
It looks like a committee at the moment, with Pearson perhaps ahead of Cruz at the moment. Pearson does have past pedigree as an elite starting pitcher prospect but couldn't stay healthy enough to establish himself as a starter. He never really had much success as a reliever prior to this year, either, and his underlying numbers don't support his strong ERA this season.
It's hard to have much faith in Pearson making the job his own, and Cruz has the more impressive numbers this season, but the Royals may choose to give Pearson the chance anyway as an audition for next season or to market him as a potential trade candidate over the winter. Estevez could also reclaim the job in a few weeks, as he got into game action at the Royals' Arizona complex over the weekend.
Injury Round-Up
Samy Natera Jr., Angels: Natera had been splitting save chances with Ben Joyce and arguably deserved the closer role all to himself, as he owns a 2.00 ERA, 0.85 WHIP and 40.4 percent strikeout rate in 27 innings in his rookie season. He hit the injured list Thursday with lower-back spasms, leaving Joyce as the closer by default, but back spasms are presumably something he should be able to return from fairly quickly, so he could be back in a battle for saves with Joyce before too long.
Edwin Diaz, Dodgers: Diaz struggled to a 12.91 ERA and 2.74 WHIP in nine appearances after returning from surgery to remove loose bodies from his elbow, a performance that was even worse than his 10.50 ERA and 2.33 WHIP in seven outings prior to his three-month absence. He then landed back on the injured list Tuesday, but it's apparently nothing to do with his elbow and is instead due to neck inflammation. His MRI was clean, so he might be back soon if all goes well, but he's expected to spend some time in lower leverage once he returns. That means Tanner Scott should be safe in the closer job for a few more weeks, but a healthy and effective Diaz could reclaim the job before the end of the regular season.
Devin Williams, Mets: Williams has been on the injured list for two weeks with a right shoulder strain, with no sign of movement toward a return. With the Mets well out of the playoff race, there will be no need to rush Williams back at the tail end of a lost season, but there haven't been suggestions from the club just yet that he's been ruled out for the year. Kodai Senga has stepped into the closer role in his absence, picking up four saves.
Ryan Helsley, Orioles: Helsley has been out since early July with elbow discomfort, but he resumed throwing nearly a month ago and seemingly still has time to make it back before the end of the season. Andrew Kittredge has been the lead option for saves in his absence, with Rico Garcia and Yennier Cano also in the mix.
Carlos Estevez, Royals: Estevez has been out nearly all season due to first a bruised foot and then a strained rotator cuff, but he's been throwing since mid-July and recently got into game action at the team's Arizona complex. If he avoids further setbacks, he should make it back sometime in September and could end the year back in the closer role, though the Royals won't necessarily feel forced to give him save chances given that they're likely to decline his club option for next season. As discussed above, Nate Pearson may be the leading closer candidate at the moment, and giving him an extended audition down the stretch may be the wisest course of action.
Closer Grid
This article will be published every Monday and Friday this season, taking a look back at the previous series' top closer news. For more closer updates, check out the RotoWire Closer Grid, which changes daily.
Here's how the whole thing looks as of Monday evening:
*part of a committee
Questions about any of the closers covered above or any relievers you're considering picking up off the waiver wire? Let me know in the comments below.
