Cole Sands was not having quite the season I’d hoped for after last years breakout campaign, at least that was until the Twins traded away everyone else in their bullpen. Since Sands has moved back into a high leverage role (16 innings), he holds a 2.81 ERA (2.17 SIERA), 0.88 WHIP and 38.1% K rate. No other Twin reliever has a K-BB rate over 12.2% since the trade deadline, yet Sands is at 30.2%. He should start seeing save chances shortly and could be the favorite for saves heading into 2026 unless the team adds a veteran or two this off season (they probably will).
Speaking of slept on relievers, since being recalled back on June 25th, Matt Svanson holds a 1.29 ERA (2.93 SIERA) and 0.74 WHIP and 30.2% K rate over 35 innings. That’s a large sample size and the stuff backs up his performance with a 111 Stuff+ over that span. I don’t love him as a closer necessarily, but given the other options in the Cardinals bullpen, I’d give him the edge of JoJo Romero and others.
Notes
- Only one Reds reliever has a WHIP under 1.20 and K-BB rate above 20% since the All-Star break and that is Tony Santillan. He’s also the only reliever here over that span to produce an xFIP under 4.20 (3.11) as the rest of the bullpen has struggled since the break. Right now Santillan is looking like the favorite to open up 2026 in the closer role, but he could get competition from a healthy Graham Ashcraft or off season acquisition.
- Daniel Palencia continues to battle through his save chances, but the two guys in front of him continue to excel in their roles. Brad Keller has not allowed an earned run over 19.1 innings since the All-Star break, while his 0.47 WHIP and 33.8% K rate over this span are also impressive. Andrew Kittredge holds a 2.17 xFIP and 29.4% K-BB since the beginning of August and has been the teams best swing and miss reliever lately.
- Theres nothing to be concerned about with Edwin Diaz in New York but the rest of that bullpen has been less than ideal since making multiple deals at the deadline to shore things up. For starters, Ryan Helsley continues to struggle and now holds an 11.45 ERA and 2.45 WHIP in 11 innings with his new team and just a 21% K rate. There are concerns he is tipping his pitches, but so far we have not seen a solution to the problem. Gregory Soto and Tyler Rogers have been fine at limiting runs, but their 1.46 and 1.29 respective WHIPS are a bit concerning.
- Shawn Armstrong has taken over the closer role in Texas for the time being, but I’m not totally out on Phil Maton and Robert Garcia yet. Both have ERA’s north of five since August 1st, but they also have SIERA’s of 2.90 and 3.10 and K-BB rates over 20% still. Chris Martin is also back this week and should see plenty of hold chances but he’s likely to remain out of the closer role.
