Closing Time 6/27: Ranking the Top 30 Closers Every Tuesday

I was expecting to drop Raisel Iglesias down the list this week, but I think it’s worth giving him some more time to right the ship. Through 12 innings in June, Iglesias has a 5.25 ERA and 1.42 WHIP with a…17/1 K/BB ratio? The poor ratios are due in large part to a bloated .433 BABIP, as his 1.61 xFIP suggests he’s pitched much better in June.

He’s posted a stellar 18.3% SwStr rate this month so far as his changeup has taken over as his primary offering and remains his best out pitch. It looks like we are just some bad luck away from peak Raisel Iglesias, so now may be the best time to buy low.

 

Notes

 

• Craig Kimbrel continues to turn back the clock as the Phillies’ closer, and it’s looking more and more like he won’t be sharing that role with José Alvarado anytime soon. Alvarado has not been his pre-injury self since returning, as he is once again having trouble with his command while Kimbrel has a 1.42 ERA, 0.63 WHIP and 38.9% K-BB rate over his last 19 innings. Things can always change in a matter of days when it comes to closer situations, but for now Kimbrel feels like a safe bet to lead the Phillies in saves moving forward.
• A week after it looked like Clay Holmes may get the closer role back for himself in New York, the Yankees wind up with four different relievers picking up saves over the past week. Holmes is still the strong favorite for saves here and should be the one you want to roster, but we should expect Michael King, Wandy Peralta and Tommy Kahnle to mix in every now and again as well.

 

• Scott McGough had another three saves this week and now has five over the past 16 days as he continues to dominate the Arizona closer shares. Since the third week of the season, McGough has been one of the best relievers in all of baseball, with a 32.4% K rate, 0.74 WHIP and 2.80 xFIP over his last 36.1 IP. Another week or two with these types of numbers and getting the lions share of the save opportunities will likely see him rise up the ranks even more.
• Jordan Hicks has been great as the Cardinals’ closer over the past two weeks, and his fall this week has less to do with him and more to do with others moving up the list. While other bullpens gain more clarity, this St. Louis bullpen remains a bit of a mystery as to what happens once Ryan Helsley returns. It feels like you can never completely rule out Giovanny Gallegos from save chances as well, so things could get murky here rather quickly. That said, I still would want to take a chance on Hicks because if he can keep the role, he can certainly be a difference maker.

 

• We are finally at the point where Hunter Harvey can be called the Nationals’ closer, and while he is their best reliever and closing option, it’s still hard to rank him in the top 25 right now as the overall closer situations throughout baseball right now are actually pretty solid. Harvey also hasn’t exactly been lights out lately, with a 4.05 ERA and 1.50 WHIP to go along with just a 4/3 K/BB ratio in June.

 

And if you want more daily reliever updates, please check out our Reliever Ranks series

 

Rank	Pitcher	Change
1	Félix BautistaT1	-
2	Emmanuel Clase	-
3	Josh Hader T2	-
4	Alexis Díaz	-
5	Devin Williams	-
6	David Bednar	-
7	Jhoan Duran	-
8	Ryan Pressly	-
9	Camilo Doval	-
10	Jordan Romano	-
11	Paul Sewald T3	-
12	Craig Kimbrel	+9
13	A.J. Puk	-1
14	Raisel Iglesias	-1
15	Carlos Estévez	-1
16	Will Smith	-1
17	Scott Barlow	-1
18	Alex Lange	-1
19	Kenley Jansen	-1
20	Pete Fairbanks	-
21	Clay Holmes T4	-2
22	Scott McGough	+4
23	Adbert Alzolay	-
24	David Robertson	-
25	Evan Phillips	-
26	Jordan Hicks	-4
27	Hunter Harvey	+UR
28	Kendall Graveman T5	-1
29	Justin Lawrence	-1
30	Trevor May	-