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Fantasy Baseball Relief Pitcher Rankings – 8/21/24 Depth Chart

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

Scott McDermott
Fantasy 8/21/2024

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

 

Transactions and Schedule

 

  • It was a full slate on Tuesday night and no significant weather to report, so the ‘pens were busy.  There are fifteen games on the docket Wednesday as well.
  • The Héctor Neris era in Chicago has come to an end, as the Cubs released him today.  He’s already cleared waivers so may sign with another team soon.  Jack Neely, who came over from the Yankees in the Mark Leiter Jr. deal, has been called up to fill the roster spot.
  • Grant Holmes was getting some starts for the Atlanta Braves but has been reassigned to the bullpen as they look to finish the season with a five-man rotation.
  • The Orioles recalled lefty Cade Povich and righty Dillon Tate from the AAA Tides, with Keegan Akin moving to the paternity list and Zach Eflin going to the IL with an inflamed shoulder.
  • Jordan Montgomery will not be starting for the Diamondbacks on Wednesday, but it remains to be seen whether a replacement starter or bullpen game will take his place.

 

Yesterday’s Performances

COL 3 – WSH 1

HD: Tyler Kinley (14)

SV: Angel Chivilli (1)

  • Victor Vodnik, we hardly knew ye?  After picking up a save on Sunday, the Rockies opted for Angel Chivilli instead with a two-run lead in the ninth.  Vodnik’s been spotty, to say the least, but Chivilli carries a 15.3% strikeout rate and a 5.02 ERA so he’s not exactly lights out either.
  • The surprise move didn’t have to do with workload, either, as Vodnik had made two appearances and thrown 35 pitches in the last four games and Chivilli also made two appearances with 36 pitches.  We’ll just have to wait and see but this might be going to a committee (and both pitchers are right-handed).
  • So how’d Chivilli do?  Well, James Wood struck out on four pitches to kick things off and then it got a little rocky from there (truly sorry for that), with a walk and a single putting the winning run at the plate with one out.  The Nats pinch-hit Keibert Ruiz and he popped out to the catcher on an 0-2 changeup, then José Tena grounded out to short on a 94.5 mph sinker, and Chivilli got his first Save.

 

ARZ 3 – MIA 1

HD: Ryan Thompson (23), A.J. Puk (12)

SV: Justin Martinez (4)

  • Coming off two walk-off losses (one on a two-out error), Justin Martinez has had a tough week.  But while he can have trouble finding the zone (10 walks in his last 14.1 innings) his stuff is absolutely electric, with a 100-mph sinker and a 90-mph splitter that’s in the realm of Ghost Fork nastiness.
  • Martinez was called into action with a two-run lead and he looked absolutely dominant, getting an out with a first-pitch sinker that hit 100.8.  He then got Kyle Stowers to swing and miss on a splitter that bounced in front of the plate.  Two pitches and one umpire-reviewed ground ball later, the game was finished, and look for Martinez to start vaulting up the closer ranks if he can keep the walks down.

 

CLE 9 – NYY 5

W: Tim Herrin (5-0)

L: Tim Mayza (0-2)

  • The Yankees and Guardians had identical three-run, six-hit lines going into the ninth inning.  Clay Holmes, he of ten blown saves, came on to preserve the tie.  He looked sharp against the bottom half of Cleveland’s lineup, though, striking out three with a walk.
  • The Guardians countered with their own closer in Clase, and he’d steamroll through the frame in eight pitches (though no K’s).  It’s a minor quibble with someone so good but Clase’s K-rate is a bit down of late, 6.0 K/9 in his last 15 innings.
  • Jake Cousins was brought in for the top of the tenth, and faced the number-nine hitter in Brayan Rocchio.  Rocchio executed a perfect bunt, however, which died right on the third-base line for a hit.  That moved the inherited runner to third with no outs.  Cousins eventually struck out one of the league’s best contact hitters in Steven Kwan, though, and then got Josh Naylor to ground into a double play.
  • Clase was asked to pitch a second inning for the first time in almost a year.  A Juan Soto grounder to second moved the winning run to third with one out, but Clase (after walking Judge) got a pop-up and a grounder to wiggle out of the jam.
  • Cousins also came back, eventually throwing 35 pitches, but avoided serious trouble and kept the ghost runner from scoring.
  • The Yankees again threatened against Tim Herrin, as Austin Wells hit a ball that was caught against the wall in right but moved the runner to third.  Herrin struck out the next batter and another long fly-out pushed the game into the twelfth.
  • With Luis Gil pulled after three innings, the Yankees were running out of arms.  Tim Mayza, who owned a 7.71 ERA going into this appearance, gave up an RBI double to Lane Thomas and gave Cleveland a 4-3 lead.
  • Rocchio then proved he’s the best bunter in the history of baseball with another perfect dead roller for a hit.  That forced the Yanks to put in the last reliever on their roster, Michael Tonkin.  He tried to work around José Ramírez but threw a 2-0 mistake and surrendered a hit to make it 5-3.  The wheels fell off from there and Cleveland ran away with the win.

 

PHI 1 – ATL 3

W: Grant Holmes (2-0)

HD: Joe Jiménez (21)

SV: Raisel Iglesias (29)

  • 3-1 was a popular score on Tuesday, as a returning Reynaldo López struck out ten Phillies in five innings and outdueled Zack Wheeler.
  • Grant Holmes, designated for the ‘pen today, responded well and needed just 24 pitches to throw two perfect innings.  With Atlanta scoring on a Marcell Ozuna homer in the bottom of the sixth, Holmes would qualify for the Win.
  • Iglesias got the ball in the ninth and had his usual routine outing, throwing a perfect frame without a strikeout.

 

MIL 3 – STL 2

HD: Nick Mears (13), Jared Koenig (7)

SV: Devin Williams (5)

  • This marks Williams’ eighth appearance this year and fifth straight save, though it was a dicey one—with a one-run lead, he’d give up a single and a double, then IBB Lars Nootbaar to load the bases with one out.  But he’d recover and strike out the next two batters.
  • Through those eight appearances, Williams looks as dominant as ever with a 1.13 ERA and 14-2 K/BB ratio, but his WHIP jumped from 0.57 to 0.88 after allowing three baserunners.

 

DET 1 – CHC 3

HD: Tyson Miller (10), Drew Smyly (8)

SV: Porter Hodge (2)

  • Oh look, another 3-1 game.  The Cubs welcomed back Javy Baez with a standing ovation in Chicago before their pitchers handed him a golden sombrero.
  • With Neris gone, Jorge López was thought to be the heir apparent for Saves, but Porter Hodge has a 30.4% K-rate and 2.15 ERA and came on instead (after Drew Smyly, who struck out the side in the eighth).  Hodge allowed a hit but was otherwise solid, throwing 10 of 15 pitches for strikes.

 

BOS 6 – KCR 5

W: Zack Kelly (5-2)

L: Kaleb Ort (1-1)

HD: Luis Garcia (13)

SV: Kenley Jansen (24)

  • In a topsy-turvy game, Boston’s leadoff hitter turned out to be the game-winning run after a homer in the eighth off reliever Kaleb Ort.
  • Making his fourth appearance in five games, Kenley Jansen closed things out from there, getting three fly ball outs in a 1-2-3 outing.

 

TBR 1 – OAK 0

SV: Edwin Uceta (1)

  • The Rays only needed two pitchers all night, as Shane Baz is finding his groove and got his first win in 2024.
  • Edwin Uceta relieved Baz with two outs in the eighth, and is becoming ascendant in the closer role with a 34.3% K-rate and a sub-one ERA.  The Rays are in a bit of a committee but with an impressive outing in his first Save, Uceta has the goods and could lock down this role the rest of the way.

 

CHW 1 – SFG 4

HD: Sean Hjelle (4), Tyler Rogers (27)

SV: Ryan Walker (2)

  • Here’s another new closer with a chance to have a great finish.  With Camilo Doval in the minors, Ryan Walker has put together a great season in a setup role with 82 K’s in 65.1 IP and a 2.07 ERA.  And he’s been tremendously consistent: his WHIP over his last 30 appearances (.88) is near-identical to that of his last 15 (.93), which is nearly identical to that of his last seven (.91).
  • Yes, it was the White Sox, but the Giants entrusted Walker with the ball in a 4-1 game.  And he delivered, striking out Andrew Benintendi in five pitches, then doing the same to Andrew Vaughn in three pitches, and again to Gavin Sheets in three pitches.  An exceedingly impressive performance against Chicago’s only MLB-worthy bats.

 

MIN 5 – SDP 7

W: Tanner Scott (8-5)

L: Steven Okert (3-2)

SV: Robert Suarez (29)

  • The Padres are going to the playoffs, and it’s largely due to their bullpen.  With the game tied 3-3, Minnesota took the lead on a two-run single off Tanner Scott, who to this point had been lights out for San Diego.
  • But the deficit would not last long, as a 3-run dinger by Jurickson Profar (who might be getting a few MVP votes at the end of the season) made it 6-5 Pads, and they’d get an insurance run after that.
  • That was more than enough for Suarez, who had an efficient nine-pitch outing.  He did yield a couple of hard-hit balls but both went for outs, and then he got Trevor Larnach to whiff on a down-and-away fastball to lock it down.

 

The best of the rest…

  • That’s two losses in his last two appearances for Andrés Muñoz, who gave up a three-run homer to Jason Heyward in the eighth inning to put the Dodgers ahead 6-3.  He walked two (though one was intentional), and his outing could have been worse if not for Mookie Betts getting thrown out at home.  That left Daniel Hudson to pick up an easy Save.
  • With Seranthony Domínguez working the last two games, Craig Kimbrel came in with a four-run lead in the ninth, so wasn’t eligible for the Save (Yennier Cano did get his 29th Hold ahead of him).  Kimbrel retired the two batters he faced, getting one K.
  • In another four-run game, the Pirates went to their one-two punch of Aroldis Chapman and David Bednar, sealing the shutout win against the reeling Rangers.

 

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

 

Scott McDermott

Scott lives in Virginia Beach with his wife, two daughters, and a couple of furballs. When he’s not dissecting box scores and pondering over the optimal starting lineup for the Cincinnati Reds, he covers fantasy baseball for Pitcher List. He’s also the author of the award-winning book series 'Election 2064', available on Amazon.

2 responses to “Fantasy Baseball Relief Pitcher Rankings – 8/21/24 Depth Chart”

  1. HT says:
    August 21, 2024 at 9:53 AM

    Mason Miller is in a Committee?

    Reply
  2. Clark says:
    August 21, 2024 at 12:18 PM

    They said last night that Vodnik is dealing with shoulder soreness so it’s absolutely due to injury.

    Reply

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