Fantasy Baseball Relief Pitcher Roundup: 8/17

Welcome to the RP Roundup, my daily fantasy baseball article reviewing every reliever performance from the previous day.

STL 2 – CIN 1

St. Louis Cardinals
Luis Gastelum – W (3)	1.0 IP	0 H	2 K	4 Whiffs	64% CSW
Gordon Graceffo – HLD (5)	1.0 IP	0 H	1 K	2 Whiffs	38% CSW
George Soriano – HLD (18)	1.0 IP	0 H	1 K	2 Whiffs	33% CSW
Ryne Stanek – HLD (23)	1.0 IP	1 H	1 K	1 Whiffs	35% CSW
Riley O’Brien – SV (31)	1.0 IP	0 H	3 K	1 Whiffs	43% CSW

Luis Gastelum — Four-Seamer down 1.0 MPH (93.2 vs. 94.2 season avg). That’s now 10 K’s over his past 5.1 IP, allowing just one hit and one walk (no runs) over the four-game span. The fastball still worries me, but as long as he doesn’t need to rely on it, he may be fine.
George Soriano — Four-Seamer down 1.1 MPH (95.5 vs. 96.6 season avg).
This was the best Riley O’Brien has looked in some time, as the stuff was not down and the command was solid. Perhaps there is enough in the tank for a strong finish here.

Cincinnati Reds
Luis Mey	2.0 IP	1 H	1 BB	3 K	6 Whiffs	34% CSW
Pierce Johnson	1.0 IP	1 H	0 BB	1 K	1 Whiffs	23% CSW
Sam Moll	1.0 IP	0 H	0 BB	1 K	1 Whiffs	25% CSW

Luis Mey — Sinker down 1.0 MPH (97.5 vs. 98.5 season avg). The velocity is down a bit, but the command is up as Mey now holds a 13/1 K/BB ratio over 8.2 innings since returning from AAA. This will work
Sam Moll — Four-Seamer up 1.0 MPH (93.6 vs. 92.6 season avg).

STL 5 – CIN 6

St. Louis Cardinals
Peter Strzelecki	3.0 IP	1 ER	2 H	0 BB	4 K	6 Whiffs	26% CSW
Justin Bruihl – L (1)	0.0 IP	0 ER	1 H	0 BB	0 K	0 Whiffs	17% CSW

The Cardinals got a bit greedy here, trying to get three shutout innings from Peter Strzelecki, although he was one out away before Myers hit a game-tying home run. The breakers carried him, but the fastballs (sinker and four-seamer) remain a liability.

Cincinnati Reds
Brock Burke	1.1 IP	1 ER	2 H	1 BB	3 K	6 Whiffs	27% CSW
Zach McCambley	1.0 IP	0 ER	1 H	0 BB	2 K	2 Whiffs	33% CSW
Emilio Pagán – W (5)	1.0 IP	0 ER	0 H	1 BB	2 K	6 Whiffs	41% CSW

Emilio Pagán shut things down in the 10th inning here and picked up the win, but the command was not great (and he didn’t even throw a splitter).

BAL 6 – TBR 7

Baltimore Orioles
Cam Sanders	2.0 IP	0 ER	0 H	0 BB	3 K	6 Whiffs	42% CSW
Yennier Cano – L (3)	0.0 IP	3 ER	3 H	0 BB	0 K	2 Whiffs	27% CSW
Josh Walker – BS (1)	1.0 IP	0 ER	1 H	1 BB	0 K	1 Whiffs	9% CSW
Rico Garcia	1.0 IP	0 ER	0 H	1 BB	2 K	3 Whiffs	32% CSW

Yennier Cano was singled out on three groundballs (two infield hits), and while this was extremely bad luck, this will happen with Cano from time to time as he doesn’t have swing-and-miss ability and generates a ton of groundballs.
Rico Garcia may have found his stuff again, as the fastball velocity and shape were back to April standards, and the offspeed stuff looked good too. The command was questionable, but it’s good to see this fastball again.

Tampa Bay Rays
Casey Legumina	0.2 IP	0 ER	2 H	0 BB	1 K	2 Whiffs	25% CSW
Tyler Wells – BS (1)	1.0 IP	3 ER	3 H	0 BB	0 K	1 Whiffs	33% CSW
Kevin Kelly	1.0 IP	0 ER	2 H	0 BB	1 K	3 Whiffs	22% CSW
Cam Booser – W (1)	1.1 IP	0 ER	2 H	1 BB	3 K	7 Whiffs	41% CSW
Bryan Baker – SV (35)	1.2 IP	0 ER	1 H	0 BB	2 K	7 Whiffs	48% CSW

Tyler Wells got got by his former team here, but both home runs were under 360 feet and outs or doubles in other ballparks.
Bryan Baker — Four-Seamer down 0.9 MPH (95.8 vs. 96.7 season avg). Baker only threw 7 of 21 pitches over the plate here (3 of which were middle-middle changeups), but the stuffs still excellent, even down a MPH.

MIA 5 – PHI 6

Miami Marlins
John King	1.0 IP	2 ER	1 H	3 BB	2 Whiffs	24% CSW
Victor Vodnik	1.0 IP	0 ER	0 H	2 BB	3 Whiffs	19% CSW
Cade Gibson	1.0 IP	1 ER	2 H	0 BB	2 Whiffs	26% CSW

Victor Vodnik — Slider usage 75% (+48 pts vs. 27% usual); Four-Seamer usage 16% (-35 pts vs. 51% usual). 24 sliders and 3 changeups over this 32-pitch outing. Seems a bit extreme.

Philadelphia Phillies
Jonathan Bowlan – HLD (10)	1.0 IP	2 ER	3 H	1 BB	2 K	3 Whiffs	26% CSW
Brooks Raley – HLD (15)	0.2 IP	1 ER	1 H	0 BB	0 K	2 Whiffs	33% CSW
Orion Kerkering – HLD (14)	0.1 IP	0 ER	0 H	0 BB	1 K	2 Whiffs	60% CSW
Jhoan Duran – SV (27)	1.0 IP	1 ER	2 H	0 BB	0 K	0 Whiffs	30% CSW

Jonathan Bowlan got two outs before back-to-back singles, and a walk brought up Sanoja, who sliced a ground ball down the first base line for a double (that was originally a foul ball). The command wasn’t great here for Bowlan, but I’m not too concerned with this one outing.
Jhoan Duran — Splitter usage 80% (+35 pts vs. 45% usual); Four-Seamer usage 0% (-27 pts vs. 27% usual). Crazy that a guy who throws 100 MPH doesn’t even mix in one fastball.

DET 8 – PIT 5

Detroit Tigers
Kyle Finnegan	0.2 IP	1 H	1 BB	1 K	6 Whiffs	26% CSW
Drew Sommers – HLD (9)	1.2 IP	0 H	0 BB	3 K	7 Whiffs	40% CSW
Kenley Jansen – SV (16)	1.0 IP	0 H	0 BB	2 K	1 Whiffs	62% CSW

Kenley Jansen — Sinker up 1.1 MPH (94.9 vs. 93.8 season avg). Ayy, we’ll take this, and it’s nice seeing the velocity boost this late in the season nonetheless. Notice who was setting things up for him here though, as Drew Sommers may have taken over that primary setup role.

Pittsburgh Pirates
Isaac Mattson	2.0 IP	1 ER	2 H	2 BB	1 K	3 Whiffs	17% CSW
Yohan Ramírez	1.0 IP	3 ER	2 H	3 BB	0 K	2 Whiffs	20% CSW
Kirby Yates	1.0 IP	0 ER	0 H	0 BB	1 K	1 Whiffs	25% CSW
Gregory Soto	1.0 IP	0 ER	2 H	0 BB	3 K	3 Whiffs	47% CSW
Camilo Doval	1.0 IP	0 ER	0 H	1 BB	0 K	2 Whiffs	25% CSW

Gregory Soto — Sinker up 1.1 MPH (97.5 vs. 96.4 season avg). This may be the best stuff we’ve seen from Soto in some time, as the sinker and slider looked great, but we are still missing the sweeper that was a difference-maker for him back in April.

ARI 1 – BOS 11

Arizona Diamondbacks
Dennis Santana	0.1 IP	0 ER	0 H	0 BB	0 K	0 Whiffs	0% CSW
Ildemaro Vargas	1.0 IP	0 ER	1 H	0 BB	0 K	0 Whiffs	25% CSW

Dennis Santana made his Diamondbacks debut here and threw just three sinkers (which graded out poorly).

Boston Red Sox
Alec Gamboa	1.1 IP	0 H	1 K	0 Whiffs	21% CSW
Greg Weissert	1.0 IP	1 H	1 K	2 Whiffs	38% CSW
Jovani Morán	1.0 IP	0 H	1 K	3 Whiffs	38% CSW
Wyatt Olds	1.0 IP	0 H	2 K	4 Whiffs	50% CSW

Greg Weissert — Sinker up 1.0 MPH (94.9 vs. 93.9 season avg). We’ll take it.
Jovani Morán — Four-Seamer up 2.1 MPH (94.8 vs. 92.7 season avg). Good, good.
Wyatt Olds made his MLB debut here, and the fastball/slider combo is definitely on my radar. This Red Sox organization has been producing quality relief prospects at a high rate in recent years, a lot of whom are in other organizations now, but Olds may be the next in line.

SDP 1 – NYM 2

San Diego Padres
Kyle Hart	2.0 IP	0 ER	3 H	0 BB	3 K	5 Whiffs	28% CSW

There’s no question about Kyle Hart’s sweeper (and splitter vs. righties), just comes down to the fastball.

New York Mets
Jonathan Pintaro – HLD (1)	1.1 IP	1 H	1 BB	0 K	1 Whiffs	21% CSW
Nate Lavender – HLD (5)	0.2 IP	0 H	0 BB	0 K	0 Whiffs	0% CSW
Daniel Duarte – SV (2)	1.0 IP	0 H	0 BB	2 K	3 Whiffs	43% CSW

Daniel Duarte got the save chance here with Senga off, and the sweeper/cutter approach is working for him, so let’s keep riding with it.

ATH 5 – KCR 9

Athletics
Hayden Juenger	2.1 IP	0 ER	0 H	0 K	1 Whiffs	24% CSW
Scott Blewett	2.0 IP	1 ER	3 H	3 K	4 Whiffs	36% CSW
Seth Johnson	1.0 IP	2 ER	3 H	1 K	1 Whiffs	27% CSW

Meh.

Kansas City Royals
Connor Thomas – HLD (1)	1.0 IP	0 ER	1 H	0 BB	1 K	2 Whiffs	36% CSW
John Schreiber – HLD (12)	1.0 IP	0 ER	0 H	0 BB	0 K	0 Whiffs	22% CSW
Nate Pearson – HLD (2)	1.0 IP	0 ER	0 H	1 BB	0 K	2 Whiffs	28% CSW
Lucas Erceg	0.0 IP	1 ER	1 H	2 BB	0 K	0 Whiffs	21% CSW
Steven Cruz – SV (5)	1.0 IP	0 ER	0 H	0 BB	0 K	0 Whiffs	38% CSW

Steven Cruz got the save here, but there is a lack of swing-and-miss with no quality secondary pitch. He has the edge on Nate Pearson for now, but it’s not crazy to think Pearson is the better long-term option.

ATL 2 – MIN 4

Atlanta Braves
Victor Mederos	1.0 IP	0 H	0 BB	1 K	2 Whiffs	30% CSW
Tyler Kinley	0.2 IP	0 H	1 BB	1 K	4 Whiffs	28% CSW
Ray Kerr	1.1 IP	1 H	0 BB	0 K	3 Whiffs	19% CSW

Ray Kerr has a good curveball from the left side, and the fastball is likely good enough to pair with it. This bullpen’s just too deep at the moment for him to break through.

Minnesota Twins
Taylor Rogers	0.2 IP	0 H	0 BB	0 K	0 Whiffs	9% CSW
Travis Adams – W (3)	2.0 IP	0 H	0 BB	3 K	2 Whiffs	39% CSW
Jeff Hoffman – HLD (15)	1.0 IP	1 H	1 BB	1 K	2 Whiffs	20% CSW
Yoendrys Gómez – SV (18)	1.0 IP	0 H	1 BB	0 K	1 Whiffs	26% CSW

Yoendrys Gómez — Four-Seamer up 1.7 MPH (97.4 vs. 95.7 season avg). The fastball remains up since the Hoffman trade, although the command was less than ideal here, and Baldwin just missed tying the game up.

CHW 5 – CHC 7

Chicago White Sox
Tyler Schweitzer	1.2 IP	0 ER	2 H	1 BB	2 K	2 Whiffs	25% CSW
Trevor Richards	1.1 IP	0 ER	2 H	0 BB	1 K	2 Whiffs	26% CSW
Jordan Hicks – BS (2)	1.1 IP	1 ER	1 H	3 BB	2 K	6 Whiffs	30% CSW
Hagen Smith – L (1)	0.0 IP	1 ER	1 H	0 BB	0 K	0 Whiffs	25% CSW

Jordan Hicks — Sinker up 1.2 MPH (100.2 vs. 99.0 season avg). Hicks finally got a chance to close out a game, and well, maybe this is the reason they hadn’t turned to him in the ninth yet, as all of a sudden his command disappeared on him. Prior to this outing, Hicks had allowed just five walks over his previous 20.1 IP.

Chicago Cubs
Ryan Rolison – HLD (6)	0.2 IP	0 ER	0 H	1 BB	0 K	1 Whiffs	27% CSW
Ryan Zeferjahn – BS (3)	1.0 IP	2 ER	2 H	1 BB	1 K	1 Whiffs	21% CSW
David Peterson	1.1 IP	0 ER	0 H	1 BB	1 K	4 Whiffs	23% CSW
Jacob Webb – W (5)	1.0 IP	0 ER	0 H	2 BB	2 K	6 Whiffs	41% CSW

Jacob Webb — Four-Seamer up 1.0 MPH (95.2 vs. 94.2 season avg); Four-Seamer usage 9% (-38 pts vs. 47% usual); Changeup usage 68% (+32 pts vs. 36% usual). I keep reading that Daniel Palencia will get the closer role back when he returns, but you’ve got to imagine he’ll be on a short leash given how great Webb has been. He has not allowed a run over his past 22.2 innings with a 0.93 WHIP and 27.3% K rate.

LAD 11 – COL 5

Los Angeles Dodgers
Alex Vesia	1.0 IP	0 ER	0 H	0 K	2 Whiffs	30% CSW
Evan Phillips	1.0 IP	0 ER	0 H	1 K	0 Whiffs	17% CSW
Edwin Díaz	1.0 IP	3 ER	4 H	0 K	3 Whiffs	17% CSW

I’m getting deja vu here, as this was almost the same exact stat line Edwin Díaz posted in Coors before landing on the IL in April. Díaz now holds a 12.91 ERA, 2.74 WHIP, and 19.6% K rate in nine games since returning from the IL, but according to Dave Roberts, there are no better relief options in his bullpen at the moment.

Colorado Rockies
Juan Mejia	1.0 IP	3 ER	5 H	0 BB	0 K	3 Whiffs	27% CSW
TJ Shook	2.0 IP	1 ER	2 H	1 BB	1 K	2 Whiffs	29% CSW
Troy Johnston	1.0 IP	0 ER	0 H	1 BB	0 K	1 Whiffs	14% CSW

Blegh.

If you’re looking for potential relievers to stream today, check out RP Streamers

Also, if you’re looking for the detailed list or ranking of Relievers, check out my weekly RP Ranks

AL East

AL Central

AL West

NL East

NL Central

NL West

Fantasy Baseball Relief Pitcher Roundup: 8/17

Rick Graham

AL East

AL Central

AL West

NL East

NL Central

NL West

Fantasy Baseball Relief Pitcher Roundup: 8/17

Subscribe to the Pitcher List Newsletter

Your daily update on everything Pitcher List

Rick Graham