David Robertson, Bryan Abreu, Jorge Alcala, John Brebbia, Emmanuel Clase, Fernando Cruz, Jason Foley, Josh Hader, Jeff Hoffman, Dedniel Núñez and Kirby Yates all had three SV+HLDs this past week with Robertson racking up four holds. Robertson may be having the best season of his career at age 37 and should net the Rangers a good return this deadline (Yates as well). It’s nice to see Foley on this list, but this past week did come with an 11.57 ERA and 3.00 WHIP and the velo continues to be down from the start of the season. Brebbia hasn’t allowed a run over the past three weeks and has 12 K’s and 5 holds over 8.1 IP. Alcala has been almost as good over the past four weeks with 5 holds and 12 K’s over 10.2 IP. Núñez’s 3 holds this past week are his first since June 15th, but he continues to be worth a look in holds leagues given the potential K upside here as well.
Notes
- David Bednar, Gregory Santos, Mark Leiter Jr., Porter Hodge, Ryan Fernandez, Tayler Scott, Justin Wilson and Cionel Pérez were all added to the list. Bednar, Santos and Leiter returned from the IL while the other five relievers have been moving up their respective teams high leverage charts. Hodge has the most upside of the group given opportunity and his strike out ability but the others are worth a look as well. Fernandez and Scott may have a hard time finding consistent hold chances but the two have still found a way to be fantasy viable (Fernandez gets holds on days Romero or Kittredge aren’t available, Scott has 6 wins now).
- Enyel De Los Santos, Trevor Richards, Elvis Peguero, Joel Payamps, Sam Hentges, Sean Hjelle, Justin Slaten and Reed Garrett all fell off the list this week. Garrett, Slaten and Hentges landed on the IL while the others have been struggling as of late. For De Los Santos, he’s allowed 7 ER over his past 4.2 IP while having just 4 K’s to 3 BB’s. With Devin Williams returning in the next week or two, Peguero and Payamps could be out of the holds mix. Richards will be on a new team soon and has allowed runs in his past 3 outings. Hjelle has allowed 11 runs over his past 7 IP, but he still has a 46/6 K/BB ratio for the season.
- Ryan Helsley is still all alone as the league leader SV+HLDs for the season with a whopping 31 now, with Emmanuel Clase in 2nd with 28, and Craig Kimbrel in 3rd with 27. Helsley’s usage is starting to get scaled back a little so there’s certainly a chance Clase catches him. Helsley is still not looking like his early season self, and it really has been a tale of two seasons with him, despite the save totals. Between May 14th and May 20th, Helsley did not pitch. Before May 20th: 1.35 ERA, 0.85 WHIP, 2.19 SIERA, 27.6% K-BB, over 20 IP. After May 20th: 3.43 ERA, 1.48 WHIP, 4.52 SIERA, 9.7% K-BB over 21 IP.
- Quick closer update since Closing Time came out on Tuesday. Paul Sewald had allowed 7 ER over 3 consecutive outings after Mondays games, but he’s settled down over his past two outings, converting 2 save chances while allowing just one baserunner. His job is likely safe for now, but things could change in the coming weeks. With all the talk around Christian Walker potentially being available, that would lead me to believe Sewald is as well, so we may see him with a new team in a new role come August.
And if you want more daily reliever updates, please check out our Reliever Ranks series.
| PITCHER | TIER | INJURY. NOTES |
|---|---|---|
| Devin Williams | 1-2 | Back. Will begin a rehab assignment with High-A Wisconsin on Saturday. Return in 1-2 weeks likely. |
| Jordan Romano | 3-4 | Elbow. Underwent arthroscopic surgery and is shut down for six weeks. September is best case now. |
| Yimi García | 3-4 | Elbow. Beginning rehab assignment this weekend hopefully. A return next weekend seems possible. |
| Julian Merryweather | 5-6 | Rib. Began a rehab assignment. Should return in 1-2 weeks. |
| Reed Garrett | 5-6 | Elbow. No structural damage is good, but don’t expect to see him again until August. |
| Danny Coulombe | 5-6 | Elbow. Underwent surgery to remove bone chips from his elbow, and now out until at least September. |
| Brock Stewart | 5-7 | Shoulder. Began a rehab assignment. Should return in 1-2 weeks. |
| Chris Martin | 6-7 | Elbow. Throwing already and could be ready after the All-Star break. |
| Justin Slaten | 6-7 | Elbow. Likely a short stint here to manage Slaten’s workload. Expect an August return. |
| Joe Kelly | 6-7 | Shoulder. Began a rehab assignment. Should return in 1-2 weeks. |
| Brusdar Graterol | 7-8 | Shoulder. Likely out until at least August now, if not longer. He has been able to start bullpen work however. |
| Liam Hendriks | 2-8 | TJS. Has been throwing bullpens and could start a rehab assignment before the end of the month. |
