X
Lost password?

Don't have an account?
Join the Best Live Fantasy Chat Community!

X

Receive free daily analysis

NFL
NBA
NHL
NASCAR
CFB
MLB
MMA
PGA
ESPORTS
BETTING

Already have an account? Log In

X

Forgot Password


LINEUP RESOURCES

Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Daily Stats & Leaders
All Pitcher Matchups
Compare Any Players
Pickups & Streamers
Rookies & Call-Ups
24x7 News and Alerts

Week 26 MLB Closers and Saves Report

Congrats on (probably) making it through the first week or two of the playoffs! I got knocked out in the first round because almost all of my hitters decided to pretty much take a week off from being on base. My closers did great though, so I'm still qualified to create this week's Closers and Saves Report, I guess don't bother asking me about hitters though (unless you want to know how to get your hitters to combine for a .162 batting average and one home run throughout a whole week!)

Aroldis Chapman is back, things are moving around in the White Sox bullpen, and Cleveland is trying new things as well. With expanded rosters and many teams well out of the playoff picture, managers will experiment throughout the last couple of weeks of the season. That makes for some challenges when setting up a fantasy playoff pitching staff. The Phillies, of course, had all 40 players on their 40-man roster active this week, creating some overcrowding issues in the dugout and bullpen.

All that and more in this week's Closers and Saves Report, so let's dive into the news, the best performers, and any suggested moves for your fantasy team this week:

Featured Promo: Want a free RotoBaller Premium Pass? Check out these sports betting promo offers from the top sportsbooks! All new sign-ups get a free bonus offer on their first deposit, and a free year of RotoBaller's Premium Pass for all sports ($450 value)! Sign Up Now!

 

Bullpen News for Week 26

New York Yankees

The Yankees finally got their closer back, as Aroldis Chapman was able to rejoin the bullpen this week. He'd been out since August 21 dealing with tendinitis in his left knee. He'll be eased back into things, but the Yankees will surely want him closing out games before the playoffs start, just to get him back into the swing of things. Always an excellent provider of ratios, Chapman should be fantasy-active right away even if he's not getting save situations immediately.

Chicago Cubs

Brandon Morrow reinvented himself as a relief pitcher and quickly became one of the stronger closers in baseball. Then, Brandon Morrow went back to his old ways of spending way too much time on the disabled list. The Cubs closer is out for the season due to a bone bruise. The reliever who took over for Morrow? Pedro Strop. He's also on the DL, in his case it's a hamstring injury. So the Cubs, in an attempt to win the NL Central and go deep in the playoffs, will be using a committee approach to the ninth inning. Their ninth will be led by Steve Cishek, but Brandon Kintzler, Carl Edwards Jr., and Justin Wilson will likely get chances as well.

Miami Marlins

The Marlins have seen the rise and fall of two young, exciting closers this season. Kyle Barraclough was legitimately elite in the first half but has become worse than a batting practice pitcher in the second half. Behind him, Drew Steckenrider showed flashes of elite work in the first half, but now has also become way too easy to hit. In steps Adam Conley, who earned his third save of the season this week. Conley was a promising young starter a few years ago but then fell apart and couldn't get anyone out. He's worked his way into a bullpen role and has mostly looked strong this season. He's had some "blow up" outings where he's allowed handfuls of runs while getting just an out or two, but he's had plenty of scoreless outings as well. His overall inconsistency and propensity for those "blow up" appearances make him hard to trust on a fantasy roster, but he's still someone to keep an eye on going into next season.

Los Angeles Angels

Ty Buttrey, featured in last week's "Adds" section, has now earned the last three saves by an Angels pitcher. It's too soon to call him the closer there, but he's certainly at the top of the committee, at least. Blake Parker has been pitching well, but he's been working in a setup role ahead of Buttrey. For any fantasy players in the playoffs looking for a boost in saves, check for Buttrey on the wire.

Advertising

 

Roster Moves of the Week

Adds

Ty Buttrey, Los Angeles Angels - Buttrey was on last week's "Adds" list as more of a speculative add, but now that he's earned the last three saves for the Angels, he's reaching must-add status, especially this deep into the season.

Drops

No immediate drops this week, but if you own Blake Parker and see Ty Buttrey on the wire, make the swap.

 

Best of the Week

Ken Giles, Toronto Blue Jays - 3 1/3 IP, 4 K, 3 SV, 0.00 ERA, 0.30 WHIP

Blue Jays closer Ken Giles has had an interesting season. In "high leverage" situations, he allows a .648 OPS to opposing hitters. In "low leverage" that jumps up to .920. Basically, Giles needs the pressure to pitch well. He had it this week, and he did, saving three games while striking out four and allowing just one hit.

Will Smith, San Francisco Giants - 3 IP, 3 K, 3 SV, 0.00 ERA, 0.67 WHIP

Giants closer Will Smith hadn't even sniffed a save in a while since the Giants hadn't won a game in September until this week. He made the most of their renewed confidence though, saving three games in three tries while allowing just two hits and striking out three.

Ty Buttrey, Los Angeles Angels - 3 2/3 IP, 8 K, 2 SV, 0.00 ERA, 0.82 WHIP

New committee head Ty Buttrey had a strong week, saving two of the three games he appeared in while striking out eight and allowing just two hits and a walk. He's seemingly jumped over Blake Parker in the Angels bullpen hierarchy.

Advertising

 

More Waiver Wire Pickups and Streamers




LINEUP RESOURCES

Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Daily Stats & Leaders
All Pitcher Matchups
Compare Any Players
Pickups & Streamers
Rookies & Call-Ups
24x7 News and Alerts

WIN MORE IN 2024

Articles & Tools
Import Your Leagues
Daily Stats & Leaders
All Pitcher Matchups
Compare Any Players
Pickups & Streamers
Rookies & Call-Ups
24x7 News and Alerts

ROTOBALLER PLAYER NEWS

RANKINGS
C
1B
2B
3B
SS
OF
SP
RP

MORE RECENT ARTICLES

 
Alexis Diaz fantasy baseball closers rankings draft sleepers waiver wire pickups

MLB Closers and Saves: Fantasy Baseball Depth Charts

Saves are an important component for many fantasy baseball leagues. Closers are one of the most volatile positions in fantasy baseball, and one of the highest turnover positions in MLB. Each year, closers drop like flies and many MLB teams make in-season changes due to injuries or poor performance. In addition to closers and saves, relief... Read More


Do These Prospects Matter for Fantasy Baseball?

The 2023 fantasy baseball season has been highlighted by the promotion of nearly two-dozen top prospects to the major leagues to impact fantasy rosters. This week's edition features one player who was called up as the piece was being written. Will these strong performers join the ranks of those who have moved to the majors... Read More


clayton kershaw fantasy baseball rankings draft sleepers MLB injury news

articles report test

this is a test


Starting Pitcher Waiver Wire Pickups for Fantasy Baseball - Week 24

Welcome back! It's Week 24 of our fantasy baseball Starting Pitcher Waiver Wire Pickups series! There are just two precious weeks left, and every start is becoming more and more important as most of the fantasy baseball world is in playoff matchups. If you've made it this far, there's a good chance you don't really... Read More


Aaron Nola - Fantasy Baseball Rankings, MLB Injury News, DFS Lineup Picks

Starts & Sits for MLB Week 23 - All Starting Pitcher Matchups for Fantasy Baseball

Welcome back RotoBallers! Big week in fantasy leagues as we approach the end of the season and playoffs! As always, we are here with our starting pitcher starts and sits series to help you set those winning lineups for the week ahead! For those who are not familiar, RotoBaller puts out a weekly grid of... Read More


Gunnar Henderson - Fantasy Baseball Rankings, MLB Prospects, Draft Sleepers

Points League Hitters: Waiver Wire Pickups for Fantasy Baseball - Week 24

Welcome to Week 24 and our fantasy baseball waiver wire hitters. We'll be doing this roundup of points leagues every week here at RotoBaller, with waiver wire targets and streaming pitchers being evaluated in terms of the different scoring systems of ESPN, Yahoo!, CBS, and Fantrax. Player values can vary wildly from platform to platform,... Read More


Brayan Bello - Fantasy Baseball Rankings, Draft Sleepers, Waiver Wire Pickups

Two-Start Pitcher Streamers for Fantasy Baseball - Week 24

Yo, it's Jon Anderson, continuing to run the show here in terms of late-summer fantasy baseball writing. There are just two weeks left of streaming pitchers, so let's make it count! This weekly fantasy baseball waiver wire pickups column aims to identify starting pitchers expected to make two starts in the upcoming fantasy baseball week,... Read More


Fantasy Baseball Week 24 Injury News and Updates: Tyler Glasnow, Ozzie Albies, Starling Marte, Anthony Rizzo, Zack Wheeler

September is now more than half over. The baseball season is slowly coming to a close. At this point, fantasy players are pushing for their league titles or just playing for pride. Major League Baseball teams continue to do the same and injuries continue to happen, now with the dreaded term "done for the season"... Read More


Joe Musgrove - Fantasy Baseball Rankings, Draft Sleepers, MLB Injury News

Free MLB Betting Picks - Today's Best Bets, Expert Predictions, Odds (9/17/22)

Happy Saturday, RotoBallers, we're back for another weekend of MLB betting picks! Make sure you're following my Twitter, as I can't guarantee that I'll always be able to get the added plays written here in the article, but I will typically add whatever else I'm playing throughout the day. The entire RotoBaller team has been... Read More


DraftKings, FanDuel Daily Fantasy Baseball Picks (9/17/22): Today's Top MLB DFS Lineups

Today's MLB slates are split up as is the norm for September baseball. Half the guys I think will play will not, so you have to be as flexible as Gumby to play MLB DFS in September, but that also means that there is a lot of money out there should you dare to dive... Read More


Max Fried - Fantasy Baseball Rankings, Draft Sleepers, MLB Injury News

Free MLB Betting Picks - Today's Best Bets, Expert Predictions, Odds (9/15/22)

Happy Friday, RotoBallers, we're back for another weekend of MLB betting picks! Make sure you're following my Twitter, as I can't guarantee that I'll always be able to get the added plays written here in the article, but I will typically add whatever else I'm playing throughout the day. The entire RotoBaller team has been... Read More


Robbie Ray - Fantasy Baseball Rankings, MLB Injury News, Draft Sleepers

DraftKings, FanDuel Daily Fantasy Baseball Picks (9/16/22): Today's Top MLB DFS Lineups

Fridays are big MLB DFS days and offer a nice respite from the NFL, who command our attention on Thursdays, Sundays, and Mondays. This slate, like most Friday slates, is a big one as all MLB teams are in action today and 28 of those teams are on tonight's 14-game DFS slate. This was a... Read More


kyle farmer fantasy baseball rankings draft sleepers MLB injury news

Top Hitter Streamers and Starts for Fantasy Baseball - Week 24

There are only two weeks left of fantasy baseball! It's going to be very sad when the season comes to an end, but the impending end of the season means that these are the most important, and therefore most fun weeks of the year – for those of you still competing, at least. I have... Read More


TODAY’S MOST VIEWED PLAYERS

rotating JS ad test

RANKINGS

QB
RB
WR
TE
K
DEF