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Fantasy Baseball Relief Pitcher Rankings – 4/29/24 Depth Chart

Breakdowns of key bullpen usage from yesterday's slate of games.

Jake Crumpler
Fantasy 4/29/2024

Welcome back to the latest edition of our Reliever Ranks series! This will bring you up-to-date bullpen depth charts every morning for the day’s games and makes for an excellent tool for those looking to stream saves or wins. This series runs seven days a week, so check in every morning to get your daily bullpen fix!

 

Notes

 

Transaction and Schedule Notes

 

 

Yesterday’s Performances

 

OAK 7 – BAL 6

W: T.J. McFarland (1)

L: Craig Kimbrel (1)

HD: Danny Coulombe (6), Jacob Webb (2), Yennier Cano (6)

SV: Lucas Erceg (1)

  • The A’s have been very conservative with their usage of Mason Miller. So, after turning to him on back-to-back days earlier this week, they made up for it by giving him the next two nights off. Lucas Erceg was the arm turned to for the save with Miller on the bench. He was the team’s best reliever last year and has taken up a setup role during Miller’s ascension. His ability to produce a solid K-rate (29.8%) while being the team’s top holds option makes him someone to roster in SV+HLD leagues. Especially because Miller won’t be available for every save opportunity.
  • A day after surprisingly blowing his first save against the lowly A’s, Craig Kimbrel did it again. In this instance, it’s clear why he began struggling all of a sudden after being lights out to start the year. Kimbrel was removed from the game with upper-back tightness, explaining why he failed to lock down saves in consecutive appearances. Kimbrel will likely need a few days off to recover and the O’s will turn to Yennier Cano in the ninth until Kimbrel has returned to health.

 

CLE 3 – ATL 4 (F/10)

W: A.J. Minter (5)

L: Emmanuel Clase (1)

HD: Cade Smith (3), Scott Barlow (7)

  • Emmanuel Clase finally slipped, but it’s hard to knock him for allowing the zombie runner to score. By recording one out, Clase was still able to lower his ERA, and it now sits at 0.63 (14.1 IP). He should bounce back strong from this performance and the Guardians’ pen will be happy to have a day off on Monday. Four different relievers have pitched in three of the past four days and two others also appeared in Sunday’s game.
  • Raisel Iglesias pitched the ninth with the game still tied. It allowed A.J. Minter to shut down the Guardians in the top of the 10th before the offense walked things off. Iglesias is looking great again this year with a 2.38 ERA (11.1 IP) though there’s a noticeable lack of strikeouts (20% K%). His SwStr% is north of 14%, so we should see his K% inch above 25% as the year wears on. Iglesias has pitched on consecutive days, so expect one of Minter, Joe Jiménez, or Pierce Johnson to record a save on Monday.

 

LAD 1 – TOR 3

HD: Yimi García (4), Tim Mayza (3)

SV: Jordan Romano (4)

  • Jordan Romano got a late start to the year but has returned to the closer role seamlessly. He has yet to blow a save and has surrendered just one earned run in his last 5.2 innings pitched. There’s no reason to think he won’t hold onto the closer role all year… Except for the fact that he declined down the stretch last year. If those issues pop up again, Yimi García would be a great option as he’s produced a 0.68 ERA (13.1 IP) and a 34% K% in what is looking to be a career year. Romano has now pitched on back-to-back days but so has García, so expect Erik Swanson to pitch the ninth if a save situation arises.

 

KCR 1 – DET 4

HD: Shelby Miller (2)

SV: Jason Foley (9)

  • Jason Foley continues to get the job done. With saves on back-to-back days, Foley is now in a five-way tie for the Major League lead. After touting increased fastball velocity to start the year, hinting at increased strikeout potential, Foley has seen his velo return back to normal. That doesn’t mean he won’t be successful. Foley produced a 2.61 ERA (69 IP) with a 19.9% K% last year. We’re likely to see that same production again as he constantly induces ground balls, but he won’t be a major contributor to the strikeout department. Andrew Chafin, Shelby Miller, or Alex Lange will be in line for the ninth with Foley requiring a rest day.

 

STL 2 – NYM 4 (F/11)

W: Reed Garrett (5)

L: Matthew Liberatore (1)

  • Reed Garrett looks to be this year’s out-of-nowhere relief breakout. Pitching in a multi-inning role, Garrett has already racked up five wins and a save while producing a 0.61 ERA (14.2 IP) and a 47.4% K%. On the last episode of In The Pen, we took a look at the advanced statistics leaderboards for relievers. Garrett was on pretty much all of them, making this breakout look legit. He should be rostered everywhere until he cools off because of his assistance in all five categories. Edwin Diaz pitched the ninth inning when this game was still tied.

 

WSN 12 – MIA 9

W: Derek Law (2)

L: Anthony Bender (2)

HD: Jordan Weems (4), Hunter Harvey (9)

SV: Kyle Finnegan (9)

  • He may not be flashy, but Kyle Finnegan sure knows how to close out a ballgame. With his ninth save on Sunday, Finnegan is now tied for the Major League lead. I don’t think this pace keeps up for four reasons. One, the Nationals aren’t likely to continue to win at a near .500 pace (13-14 so far). Two, the Nationals aren’t likely to provide save opportunities in 77% of their games moving forward. Third, Finnegan doesn’t have the skills to maintain a 2.19 ERA (12.1 IP) and will begin to struggle at some point. Lastly, Hunter Harvey is hot on Finnegan’s heels. He’s second in baseball with nine holds and has pitched to a 3.07 ERA (14.2 IP) while striking out a career-high 31.7% of batters. Finnegan has now pitched in three of the past four games, so expect to see Harvey in the ninth as he looks to record his first save.

 

TBR 2 – CHW 4

SV: Jordan Leasure (1)

  • With Michael Kopech needing to be used earlier in each of the past two games to secure rare wins for the White Sox, it was Jordan Leasure who was turned to on Sunday to secure his first save and the White Sox’s sixth win, half of which have come this weekend. Leasure looks like the closer of the future on the South Side, but he hasn’t carried over the eye-catching strikeout numbers from the minors that made him intriguing this offseason. Leasure owns a 1.59 ERA (11.1 IP) in his rookie year but has struck out just 15.2% of the batters he’s faced. This comes after he turned in a 39.7% K% and a 35.4% K% last year at Triple-A with the Dodgers and White Sox respectively. It would be different if Leasure cut back on the walks that plagued him in the minors, but those have stuck (11.4% BB%), giving him a putrid 3.8% K-BB%. His 11% SwStr% suggests a K% over 20%, but we’ll need that to be closer to 30% if we want to be hyped about Leasure’s future.

 

CIN 3 – TEX 4

HD: Josh Sborz (3), David Robertson (9), Jacob Latz (2)

SV: Kirby Yates (5)

  • It didn’t seem like the Rangers did enough to supplement a glaring weakness in the bullpen following a World Series-winning campaign. It turns out, that I was wrong. Kirby Yates and David Robertson have been difference-makers for the Rangers and have solidified the backend of the arm barn. The former boasts a pristine ERA (12 IP) and a 33.3% K%, while the latter has pitched to a 1.17 ERA (15.1 IP) with a 29.5% K% and is tied for second in baseball with nine holds. Look for the Rangers to continue to rely on them in high-leverage situations.

 

HOU 8 – COL 2

HD: Rafael Montero (4), Bryan Abreu (4)

  • Having not pitched all week and with an off day coming up, the Astros turned to their top arms to close out a series victory in Mexico. The three-headed monster of Bryan Abreu, Ryan Pressly, and Josh Hader pitched the seventh through ninth innings without any runs crossing the plate. A four-spot in the eighth took a hold away from Pressly and a save away from Hader. Despite the trio’s struggles, the Astros will turn to them in the late innings until they’re forced to go elsewhere.

 

PIT 2 – SFG 3

HD: Erik Miller (3), Ryan Walker (3)

SV: Camilo Doval (5)

  • The Pirates were forced to see Camilo Doval in every night of their three-game weekend set in San Francisco. The Giants felt comfortable turning to Doval on a third night in a row knowing they have Monday off. Doval has looked dominant again, riding his upper-90s cutter and his whiff-inducing slider to ninth-inning success. He will be a fortifying piece of many fantasy rosters.

 

MIN 11 – LAA 5

HD: Cole Sands (2), Griffin Jax (3)

  • With Jhoan Duran’s return on the horizon, the Twins continue to prepare Griffin Jax to return to his high-leverage role. He recorded two saves earlier this week, but after securing the final out of the seventh to notch his third hold, the Twins put up two insurance runs and he was able to rest for the final two frames. Jax is still worth rostering when Duran returns because of his production in the ratios and strikeout categories while vulturing saves when Duran needs a rest.

 

ARI 3 – SEA 2

W: Joe Mantiply (2)

L: Trent Thornton (1)

HD: Ryan Thompson (5)

SV: Kevin Ginkel (5)

  • Kevin Ginkel is juicing all he can out of his time as the closer. Paul Sewald is expected to return this week and he should reclaim the closer role from Ginkel. However, Ginkel has succeeded in the role, producing a 3.00 ERA (12 IP) with a 26.5% K%, although he has blown two saves. If Sewald doesn’t settle in right away, don’t be surprised to see the DBacks reimplement Ginkel in the ninth. Ginkel has pitched in consecutive games, so expect Ryan Thompson to get the ninth of Monday, unless a slew of lefties are due up, in which case Joe Mantiply will get a shot at a save.

 

CHC 4 – BOS 5

W: Kenley Jansen (1)

L: Mark Leiter Jr. (1)

  • With Adbert Alzolay removed from the closer role, it looks like Héctor Neris will be the team’s closer and Mark Leiter Jr. will be the high-leverage reliever. The former recorded the first two saves since Alzolay was demoted to the middle innings, while the latter pitched the ninth in a tie game on Sunday. Leiter blew his chance to send the game to extras, surrendering two hits and allowing the Red Sox to walk off the weekend. Leiter still touts a 0.73 ERA (12.1 IP) after the outing, so he won’t be removed from high-leverage spots any time soon.
  • Kenley Jansen pitched the top half of the ninth before the walk-off, allowing him to go home with his first victory of the year. With all of the concern regarding Jansen’s health and ability as he enters his late 30s, he’s quietly been amazing this year. The right-hander has blown just one save and sports a 1.86 ERA (9.2 IP) and has pushed his K% (33.3%) north of 30% after seeing it sit below 28% last year. Jansen is a future Hall-of-Famer for a reason.

 

Bullpen Depth Charts

 

Also, if you’re looking for a detailed list or ranking of RPs, check out Rick Graham’s weekly pieces:

The Hold Up: Ranking the Top 100 Relievers for Holds Every Thursday

Closing Time: Ranking the Top 30 Closers

Top 100 Relievers for Save+Hold Leagues

 

Jake Crumpler

A Bay Area sports fan and lover of baseball, Jake is a graduate of the University of California, Santa Cruz with a B.A. in English Literature. He currently writes fantasy articles for Pitcher List, is the lead baseball writer at The Athletes Hub, and does playing time analysis at BaseballHQ. Some consider his knowledge of the sport to be encyclopedic.

One response to “Fantasy Baseball Relief Pitcher Rankings – 4/29/24 Depth Chart”

  1. Babbo B says:
    April 29, 2024 at 4:54 PM

    Turnbull is starting tomorrow.

    Reply

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