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 Week?
| American League East | Saves | "True" Blown Saves* | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baltimore | Ryan Helsley (7) | none | |
| Boston | none | none | |
| New York | David Bednar 2 (9) | none | Bednar allowed two runs (one earned) Tuesday but held on for the save. He's 9-for-10 on save chances with a decent 3.55 ERA, but that comes with a 1.66 WHIP. |
| Tampa Bay | Bryan Baker (7), Cole Sulser (1) | none | Sulser's save Tuesday came with Bryan Baker unavailable, having pitched on back-to-back days. Ian Seymour pitched the seventh |
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 Week?
| American League East | Saves | "True" Blown Saves* | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Baltimore | Ryan Helsley (7) | none | |
| Boston | none | none | |
| New York | David Bednar 2 (9) | none | Bednar allowed two runs (one earned) Tuesday but held on for the save. He's 9-for-10 on save chances with a decent 3.55 ERA, but that comes with a 1.66 WHIP. |
| Tampa Bay | Bryan Baker (7), Cole Sulser (1) | none | Sulser's save Tuesday came with Bryan Baker unavailable, having pitched on back-to-back days. Ian Seymour pitched the seventh inning in that game, with Kevin Kelly pitching the eighth. |
| Toronto | Louis Varland (4) | none | Jeff Hoffman pitched the seventh inning prior to Varland's save Tuesday, with Tyler Rogers pitching the eighth. Despite the Blue Jays saying that multiple pitchers would earn save chances after Hoffman was demoted from the closer job, it's now been Varland who has the team's last four saves. |
*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 | Bryan Hudson (1), Seranthony Dominguez (7) | none | With Dominguez seemingly unavailable Monday, Grant Taylor got the opportunity to try for a five-out save but came up one out short, turning the ball over to Hudson for the final out. |
| Cleveland | Cade Smith (7) | none | |
| Detroit | Kyle Finnegan (1) | Kenley Jansen (3) | See "Closers I'm Worried About" below. |
| Kansas City | Lucas Erceg (7) | none | |
| Minnesota | none | Eric Orze (2) |
| American League West | Saves | "True" Blown Saves | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Athletics | Mark Leiter Jr. (3), Jack Perkins (3) | none | Leiter recorded just one out to pick up the save Wednesday after Joel Kuhnel recorded the previous five. Perkins, Hogan Harris and Justin Sterner all may not have been available, having pitched on two of the previous three days. Assuming Perkins was indeed unavailable Wednesday, his save Thursday means he now has the A's last three saves he was available for, making him look like more of a closer than a mere committee leader. |
| Houston | none | none | |
| Los Angeles | none | none | Drew Pomeranz has given up runs in five straight outings and picked up what was technically a blown save Monday, though it wasn't a real save chance as it came in the seventh inning. |
| Seattle | Andres Munoz (6) | none | |
| Texas | Jacob Latz (2) | none | Latz now has the Rangers' last two saves. |
| National League East | Saves | "True" Blown Saves | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Atlanta | none | none | |
| Miami | Calvin Faucher (1) | Tyler Phillips (1) | Pete Fairbanks allowed four of the five batters he faced Monday to reach base. Phillips came in to try to clean up his mess and failed to do so, picking up the blown save in the process. Faucher's save Wednesday came after Fairbanks was placed on the injured list with nerve irritation. |
| New York | none | none | |
| Philadelphia | none | none | |
| Washington | Gus Varland (3) | none | See "Bullpen Deep Dive" below. |
| National League Central | Saves | "True" Blown Saves | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago | Hoby Milner (1) | none | Milner's save required just one out Wednesday after Ben Brown recorded the previous five. Milner was brought in to face lefty Gavin Sheets, who was replaced by righty Ramon Laureano, but Milner struck him out anyway. |
| Cincinnati | none | none | See "Closers I'm Worried About" below. |
| Milwaukee | Jake Woodford (1) | none | Woodford's save was of the three-inning variety. |
| Pittsburgh | none | Dennis Santana (2) | |
| St. Louis | George Soriano (1), Riley O'Brien (8) | none | Soriano's save Monday came with O'Brien, JoJo Romero and Ryne Stanek all seemingly unavailable. |
| National League West | Saves | "True" Blown Saves | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arizona | none | none | |
| Colorado | none | none | |
| Los Angeles | none | none | Alex Vesia pitched the sixth inning with a two-run deficit Monday. Tanner Scott followed him in the seventh. |
| San Diego | none | none | Mason Miller allowed his first runs of the season Monday, giving up a pair of runs after entering the ninth inning with a four-run lead. |
| San Francisco | none | Ryan Walker (2) |
Closers I'm Worried About
Kenley Jansen, Tigers: Jansen blew the save Wednesday in Atlanta, giving up two runs without retiring a single batter. He was then passed over for a save chance in favor of Kyle Finnegan on Thursday in a situation where most closers would have been available. He'd only thrown 11 pitches the day before, and his last appearance before that (which was also a blown save) came five days earlier.
Was the decision to turn to Finnegan on Thursday due to a desire to keep the 38-year-old Jansen from pitching on back-to-back days, something he's only done once this season? Possibly, but there's a good chance it could signal a shift in the Tigers' ninth-inning plans. Jansen has now given up four runs across his last two appearances, has a 2:3 K:BB across his last three and has struck out just three batters in his last six outings, none of which saw him retire the side in order. He now owns a 6.14 ERA and 1.64 WHIP on the year.
Remember that the Tigers were hesitant to outright name Jansen the closer after they signed him in December. While he's certainly been used like a closer in the first month of the season, the Tigers could be quick to pull the plug given that they apparently weren't all that committed to him in the first place. Jansen already got the three saves he needed to pass Lee Smith for third on the all-time leaderboard. Will he get 18 more to reach 500 for his career, or will the Tigers move on? It's up in the air at this point.
Worry-o-meter: 4 out of 5
Setup man to stash: Kyle Finnegan. He was the one who got the save instead of Jansen on Thursday, and with his 113 career saves, he should be quite comfortable in the ninth inning. That should give him the edge over Will Vest, who has 28 career saves. Vest's 6.17 ERA is also much worse than Finnegan's 0.57 ERA. It's worth noting, though, that Finnegan owns a poor 12:10 K:BB on the season, and his ERA estimators (5.07 xFIP, 5.10 SIERA) are quite poor as a result, so while recent usage suggests Finnegan is the Tiger to pick up, he might struggle to keep hold of the job if a change is indeed made.
Emilio Pagan, Reds: Pagan's only appearance this week saw him pitch the ninth inning with a four-run lead Thursday against the Rockies. While that wasn't a save situation, he nearly created a save situation for someone else, as he allowed two runs to score and gave up three hits before eventually shutting the door.
Pagan has now allowed runs in two of his last three appearances and hasn't struck out a batter over that stretch. For the season, he owns a 5.40 ERA, and that looks more or less deserved according to his ERA estimators (5.68 xFIP, 5.02 SIERA). He's striking out a career-low 17.2 percent of opposing batters, while his 10.3 percent walk rate ties his career high. The 35-year-old has also seen a loss of velocity this season, with his fastball dropping from 95.8 to 94.3 mph.
Reds manager Terry Francona does like to pick a veteran with closing experience and stick with him, but Pagan's performance may force him to deviate from that plan. Between Pagan's age and his declining velocity, it seems unlikely that he'll suddenly revert to his 2025 form, when he posted a 2.88 ERA and 0.92 WHIP while striking out 30 percent of opposing batters. And unfortunately for him, this year-to-year inconsistency is nothing new for Pagan, who's never finished with an ERA below 4.00 in consecutive seasons.
Worry-o-meter: 3 out of 5
Setup man to stash: Tony Santillan. He's a clear second on the team in leverage index, and he saved seven games for the Reds last year while Pagan was unavailable. He has one this season to go with a 1.98 ERA, though that number does overstate how well he's pitched, as his 4.04 xFIP and 3.69 SIERA trail well behind. His 28.3 percent strikeout rate is strong, but his 13.2 percent walk rate is poor. He's hardly been a dominant reliever, so others like Connor Phillips and Graham Ashcraft could get their chance in the ninth inning if a change is made, but Santillan's usage suggests he'll get the first opportunity.
Bullpen Deep Dive
Washington Nationals
| 2026 Stats | Saves | ERA | WHIP | SIERA | K% | BB% | K-BB% | Stuff+ | Location+ | gmLI* |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clayton Beeter | 2 | 3.48 | 1.26 | 5.08 | 19.6% | 17.4% | 2.2% | 101 | 94 | 2.06 |
| Gus Varland | 3 | 2.84 | 1.34 | 3.08 | 25.5% | 5.5% | 20.0% | 100 | 104 | 1.97 |
| PJ Poulin (L) | 0 | 4.11 | 1.37 | 5.10 | 15.2% | 12.1% | 3.0% | 93 | 97 | 1.18 |
| Paxton Schultz | 1 | 3.60 | 1.20 | 3.24 | 22.7% | 2.3% | 20.5% | 94 | 117 | 0.99 |
*gmLI is the average Leverage Index when a pitcher enters the game. 1.0 is average; closers typically sit north of 1.50.
The Nationals aren't the most attractive team for speculating on saves, but they've been more competitive than expected, ending April with a 15-17 record. They've also spread their saves around, with seven saves split among four different pitchers. (Orlando Ribalta, who doesn't feature on the above chart because he was optioned two weeks ago, picked up a 10th-inning save the day before he was sent down.)
Closer committees on bad teams generally aren't worth spending much time on, but this situation is worth monitoring given that it might not be a committee for much longer. Clayton Beeter entered the year as the primary option for saves, though he looked more like a committee leader than a true closer. He's currently out with forearm soreness but seems to have avoided a serious injury. He didn't pitch well enough to deserve high-leverage looks before getting hurt, though, and his sky-high walk rate is nothing new. Last year, he walked an almost identical 17.3 percent of opposing batters, though that did at least come with a 31.7 percent strikeout rate.
In Beeter's absence, Gus Varland has emerged as the top option for saves, and given how much better he's pitched than most of the Nationals' other relievers, it's possible he claims the closer job fully and keeps hold of it. He isn't necessarily missing a closer's amount of bats, but he at least can boast an above-average strikeout rate, a mark which looks even better next to his strong walk rate. Stuff models don't love his repertoire, but average stuff might be all he needs to be the Nationals' closer going forward.
Injury Round-Up
Kirby Yates, Angels: Yates has made three rehab appearances as he works his way back from knee inflammation but hasn't pitched since last Saturday. He's allowed seven runs in three rehab innings but does have a 5:1 K:BB. The rest of the Angels' bullpen has been so poor that he has a chance of stepping right into the closer job once healthy, but it's not clear when he'll be ready to return.
Ben Joyce, Angels: Joyce struck out one and walked one in a scoreless inning of work in his first rehab appearance Wednesday. His rehab assignment is likely to be a long one, as he's been out since last May following shoulder surgery. Like Yates, he's a candidate to close once healthy, but that's more due to the lack of alternatives in the Angels' bullpen than his own profile. His 21.0 percent strikeout rate, 11.4 percent walk rate and 4.24 SIERA in 49 career innings aren't closer material.
Josh Hader, Astros: There have been few updates on Hader since he began throwing live batting practice in mid-April, though no news of setbacks is good news. He's eligible to return from the 60-day injured list in late May, but it's unclear whether he'll be ready to go when first eligible. Once he's fully recovered from biceps tendinitis, he should regain his closer job from Enyel De Los Santos, who's stepped into the primary closer role but owns a 5.56 ERA and 1.50 WHIP on the year.
Raisel Iglesias, Braves: Iglesias is expected to return from shoulder inflammation when first eligible Tuesday. Robert Suarez has filled in as the closer in his absence but will likely retreat to a setup role once Iglesias is healthy.
Daniel Palencia, Cubs: Palencia began a rehab assignment Friday as he works his way back from a lat strain. He's been out just shy of three weeks and might not need more than one rehab outing before he's ready to go.
Edwin Diaz, Dodgers: Diaz underwent surgery to remove loose bodies from his elbow April 22. He's feeling good after the surgery but won't be back until sometime after the All-Star break. Tanner Scott has the only Dodgers' save in his absence but is also being used prior to the ninth inning, so the team is probably using a committee, with Alex Vesia and Blake Treinen also likely to see save chances.
Ryan Helsley, Orioles: Helsley was placed on the injured list Friday with right elbow inflammation. He's pitched well this season, saving seven games with a 2.53 ERA, showing no signs of underlying health issues. His return timeline is not yet clear. In his absence, Rico Garcia, Anthony Nunez, Andrew Kittredge or Yennier Cano could see save chances
Pete Fairbanks, Marlins: Fairbanks hit the IL with nerve irritation in his hand Tuesday, an issue he's dealt with previously in his career. He missed three weeks due to the same problem in 2024, so a similar timeline could be possible this time around. Calvin Faucher picked up the first save in his absence, though Anthony Bender and Tyler Phillips could also be in the mix.
Jhoan Duran, Phillies: Duran threw a bullpen session Thursday as he works his way back from an oblique strain which has kept him out for two weeks. The Phillies are optimistic that he'll be ready to return soon, though it's unclear if he'll need a rehab appearance. The Phillies have yet to generate a save chance in his absence, but Brad Keller is probably the best bet to pick up a save should an opportunity arise before Duran returns.
Carlos Estevez, Royals: Estevez hit the IL with a foot contusion after getting hit by a line drive in his season debut. His significantly reduced velocity both in that appearance and throughout spring training is arguably a bigger concern, but his velocity was reportedly improved in a live batting practice session Tuesday. Lucas Erceg remains the closer in his absence but has been unconvincing, so Estevez could get the chance to reclaim his job once healthy.
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 Friday 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.
