When in doubt, trust the Cleveland Guardians' bullpen. This is hardly the first season to note this, as the Guardians as an organization boast a strong reputation for extracting the most from their pitchers, whether you know the player names or not. Fantasy baseball managers sure know about RHP Emmanuel Clase, who has rebounded nicely from an uneven 2023 season to top the list of valuable relief pitchers, but he is hardly alone.
The 36-18 Guardians lead all of baseball in relief pitcher fWAR at 3.6, far ahead of second-place Boston at 2.7. They are also tops in relief games, saves, ERA, FIP and xFIP, and second in K/9. Clase gets all the notice and fantasy accolades for his 0.33 ERA and 17 saves and he has not permitted an earned run in six weeks. However, don't forget to check out RHPs Cade Smith, Hunter Gaddis, Nick Sandlin and Tim Herrin. Each fellow averages at least 3.4 ESPN fantasy points per game, which surpasses myriad highly rostered closers.
Smith, 25, is the unheralded rookie from the University of Hawaii who is among the overall leaders in strikeout rate, dominating with his fastball/split-finger combination. If the financially prudent Guardians need to trade Clase, he appears to be next in line for saves. Smith averages 4.0 fantasy points per outing, better than Edwin Diaz, Alexis Diaz, David Bednar, Jordan Romano and others. Smith boasts three holds over his last four appearances, striking out nine out of 16 hitters. Investing seems wise.
As for Clase, storming ahead to perhaps his third consecutive season leading the league with at least 40 saves, it's worth nothing that he blew 12 saves last season and lost nine games -- some due to his ineffectiveness, but also some due to bad luck. Fantasy managers hardly backed off in 2024 drafts. New manager Stephen Vogt, just like Terry Francona, does not have a closer committee. It's all Clase. Fantasy managers love the clear role. They can also love the setup men piling on fantasy numbers ahead of him. Smith misses bats. Gaddis and Scott Barlow feature double-digit holds. Sandlin has four wins. There is plenty of depth to go around.
Stock rising
Trevor Megill, Milwaukee Brewers: While Abner Uribe and Joel Payamps started out with the team's saves in the wake of awesome Devin Williams hitting the 60-day IL due to multiple back fractures, Megill quickly usurped the role once he returned to active duty in mid-April. Megill has no MLB closing experience, but he is striking out nearly 33% of hitters and he has not issued a walk in nearly six weeks. The Brewers want a healthy Williams back as soon as possible, of course, but Megill warrants a place on fantasy rosters as long as he keeps thriving. Do not ignore Megill just because you assume Williams will push him aside. Stuff happens.
Andres Munoz, Seattle Mariners: So much for sharing the saves! The Ryne Stanek era seems so long ago. Munoz has every Seattle save over the past six weeks, coinciding with his excellent performance after a rocky start. Munoz has struck out multiple hitters in five out of his last seven appearances, and right-handed hitters are batting just .109 off him. Clase is the lone closer with more fantasy points than Munoz over the last 30 days. Only health gets in the way of Munoz and his first 30-save campaign.
Jeremiah Estrada, San Diego Padres: Estrada enters Tuesday having struck out his last 10 batters faced over two appearances (against the Yankees and Reds), setting a franchise record. Robert Suarez is the unquestioned closer with 16 saves, but Estrada deserves notice for his unlikely breakout. The right-hander is 25, having joined the Padres on a waiver claim from the Cubs last winter, and he has yet to permit a base hit to a left-handed hitter in 21 chances, 11 of them ending in a strikeout. OK, so things likely do not continue at this level, but relief pitching is volatile for both big names and small and, right now, Estrada is dominating. Enjoy it while it lasts.
Stock falling
Jordan Romano, Toronto Blue Jays: Yeah, we must worry now after Romano permitted a three-run, walk-off homer to Tigers OF Matt Vierling -- not exactly Aaron Judge there -- to blow Sunday's game and spike his ERA to 6.39. Romano has now allowed a run in six of his 14 appearances and, while the bloated numbers versus right-handed hitters should normalize some, he just does not look like the same fellow who saved 36 games in both of the last two seasons. Perhaps he is healthy, perhaps not. Still, trading for Romano at this point is risky. Yimi Garcia should be next in line for saves.
Ryan Helsley, St. Louis Cardinals: One of the league-leaders in saves, Helsley has permitted runs in both of his last two appearances, totaling seven hits and three runs over two innings. He did save those weekend wins against the Cubs, but it was hard not to notice the inefficiency. Helsley should be one of baseball's top relief pitchers in terms of strikeout rate (as he was the last two seasons), but he has whiffed only two of the last 20 hitters he's faced over four outings, with his three-digit velocity down just a bit. This is something to watch.
Jason Foley, Detroit Tigers: Foley has struck out nary a hitter over his past four outings, and he allowed home runs in two of those games. He probably remains Detroit's closer, especially with last year's closer, Alex Lange, in Triple-A, Shelby Miller on the IL and LHP Andrew Chafin scuffling. Most Tigers relief pitchers are struggling. Try to avoid this bullpen, classifying the unit as "a precarious fantasy situation" alongside the likes of the Rockies and White Sox. It's just not worth it.