José Alvarado, Scott Barlow, Emmanuel Clase, Hunter Gaddis, Jeff Hoffman, Andrés Muñoz, JoJo Romero, Robert Suarez and Ryan Walker all had three SV+HLDs this past week as well. Really strong group in this weeks leaderboard, and it’s great to see the likes of Gaddis and Walker racking up holds now. Gaddis should probably be the top set up option for the Guardians at this point while the same could be said about Walker in San Francisco. The future of the Giants bullpen looks real strong with Walker, Camilo Doval, Erik Miller, and Randy Rodríguez (as does the Guardians with Gaddis, Clase, Cade Smith, and Tim Herrin).
Notes
- Jeremiah Estrada, Tommy Kahnle, Pierce Johnson, Randy Rodríguez, Héctor Neris, Ryne Stanek, Caleb Ferguson, and Justin Martinez all join the list this week. Estrada is breaking out in a major way due to some pitch mix changes, while Kahnle and Johnson have returned from the IL. Rodriguez and Martinez are deeper speculative adds with high upside (especially in dynasty), while Ferguson and Stanek continue to yo-yo on and off the list weekly.
- Tim Herrin, Kevin Kelly, Calvin Faucher, Emilio Pagán, Steven Wilson, Cole Sands, Shawn Armstrong, and Alex Lange all fell off the list this week. Pagan and Wilson landed on the IL this week while Lange was somewhat surprisingly sent to AAA. The rest are fringe top 100 RP options.
- JoJo Romero leads the league in SV+HLDs for the season with 17 total now. Romero has a 2 SV+HLD lead on the next group which includes Emmanuel Clase, Ryan Helsley, and Robert Suarez. Romero has picked up where he left off last season before ending the year on the IL, and while I wouldn’t worry about it too much yet, it’s worth keeping in mind that this is a guy who has not thrown more than 36 innings since 2019.
- Quick closer update since Closing Time came out on Tuesday. Mason Miller showed us that he is indeed human after all yesterday, and while there was a slight velo dip here, I wouldn’t worry about it too much unless it continues. Josh Hader on the other hand has allowed just one ER over his past 12.1 IP, walking just four and striking out 19 over that span looking like peak Hader. Michael Kopech may not be getting a ton of saves at the moment, but I imagine he gets dealt by the deadline and depending on the landing spot could be quite the dominant set up man (same goes for Tanner Scott). I think the last time I talked about Trevor Megill I was just hoping he would get his K rate back up again, and well, he has nine K’s over his past four innings pitched.
And if you want more daily reliever updates, please check out our Reliever Ranks series.
Injured List
| PITCHER | TIER | INJURY. NOTES |
|---|---|---|
| Devin Williams | 1 | Back. On the 60-day IL now. Likely out until the All-Star break. Playing catch now. |
| Evan Phillips | 2-3 | Hamstring. Grade 1 strain, progressing well and should return after 2-3 rehab outings. |
| Julian Merryweather | 5-6 | Rib. Could be a rather lengthy injury with the rib stress fracture. No timetable. Added to 60-day IL. |
| Josh Sborz | 5-6 | Shoulder. Another rotator cuff strain for Sborz, I’d expect he’s out for a while this time. |
| Brock Stewart | 5-6 | Shoulder. MRI came back clean and Stewart can resume throwing this weekend. Could return in May. |
| Gregory Santos | 6-7 | Lat. Close to mound work, could return in May. Added to 60-day IL |
| Keynan Middleton | 7-8 | Forearm. Started rehab assignment, could return as early as this weekend. |
| Brusdar Graterol | 7-8 | Shoulder. Added to the 60-day IL, and had another setback. He’s throwing from distance again. |
| Joe Kelly | 7-8 | Shoulder. Should be back in June. Started throwing program recently. |
| Giovanny Gallegos | 7-8 | Shoulder. No timetable as of yet but has progressed to bullpen work. |