As our 250th birthday celebration fades and fireworks smoke subsides and our pets emerge from closets, two things are true – it’s hot and the closer carousel keeps churning. While you were celebrating, we were monitoring, so here’s your Week 15 primer for the back-ends of all the bullpens.
Ryan Helsley landed on the injured list Friday, and Tyler Wells, not a name most fantasy managers rostered in any format, has saved back-to-back games in his place. Emilio Pagan is back in Cincinnati and, for once, the word “committee” does not apply to his bullpen anymore. Grant Taylor might finally be the guy for the White Sox. And Aroldis Chapman broke the all-time strikeout record for a relief pitcher in the same outing where he picked up his 17th save, which is the kind of week only this sport produces. Let's get to grades, based on everything through Saturday's games.
Reviewing the Categories
In the weekly Closer Confidential column, we group closers, and committees, into three cohorts:
- Secure: 90 and Above — Low-to-no risk; good results, strong underlying statistics, in a good bullpen situation
- Shaky: 80-89 — Some doubt exists, often with inconsistent supporting skills and stats
- Seesaw: 79 and Below — Committees and closers in trouble. The ninth inning is, or should be, in doubt.
Secure Closers
Cade Smith and Mason Miller lacked save chances late this week, so they hold steady …Ditto for Jhoan Duran and Devin Williams — both had quiet weeks with no save opportunities of note in games we can confirm; both hold ... Josh Hader continues his great post-injury run, lowering his ERA to a minuscule 0.64 … Raisel Iglesias converted his 35th consecutive save Friday, but it wasn't clean: three hits allowed, including an RBI single, and 22 pitches to get three outs. The streak is real and so is the recent messiness. Holds at 90 but stay tuned. … Aroldis Chapman broke the all-time strikeout record for a relief pitcher Friday, passing Hoyt Wilhelm, in the same outing where he needed 13 pitches to lock down save number 17. He climbs one point to 89 on the bounce-back save. … Congrats to Bryan Baker for graduating to Secure … and to David Bednar on the birth of his child and return to the Yankees 'pen.
Shaky Closers
© Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images
Louis Varland completed a combined shutout Friday for his 18th save, his seventh scoreless outing in his last eight appearances with a 36.1 K-BB% in that window. He climbs to 89. …Tanner Scott picked up a legitimate clean save Friday against San Diego, extending his scoreless streak to eight games with a 48.1 K-BB% and six saves in six chances across that stretch … He advances a step, to 88. Andres Munoz extended his scoreless streak to seven games with his 16th save Thursday, working around a leadoff walk and a two-out single before a double play ended it. Slowly earning our trust. 87 for him. … Jacob Latz named an All-Star, so he gets a bonus two points for the honor, and slowly climbs up the board.
Seesaw Situations
Katie Stratman-Imagn Images
Seesaw is generally where the news lives, and it’s no different this week. Start in Baltimore, where Ryan Helsley landed on the 15-day injured list Friday with right elbow discomfort, the same elbow that already cost him seven weeks earlier this season. Manager Craig Albernaz said Helsley was “looking at all his options, getting opinions, and gathering information.” Tyler Wells, not Andrew Kittredge, replaced him and has saved back-to-back games, his first save since September 2023 on Friday and a second the very next night, needing to escape a leadoff single and a walk to do it. He's been scoreless in nine of his last 10 outings since June 4 with a 0.60 WHIP and a 31.9 K-BB% in that stretch. Wells debuts in this space with a 68 score. … Emilio Pagan is the rare bit of good news in this tier. Cincinnati activated him June 30 after a two-month hamstring absence, and he has been installed as the outright closer, not part of a committee, for the first time all year. The three-pitchers-in-three-days chaos from two weeks ago is over. That situation needs to be watched closely, but we like what we see and hear. 74 grade for now. … Kenley Jansen had the worst kind of week for a future Hall of Famer. Detroit used him in the seventh inning of a game they trailed by six runs Thursday rather than saving him for a leverage spot, and he needed nine pitches just to escape it. The updated bullpen hierarchy in Detroit is kind of a mess. We list rookie Keider Montero ahead of him. Will Vest is also now on the injured list and the Detroit pen drops hard to 60. … Gregory Soto's decline is now a real personnel decision, not just bad results. He worked the eighth inning in back-to-back appearances this week while Mason Montgomery closed both games, and Pittsburgh's own broadcast noted this is now a pattern, not a one-off. His ERA over his last month and a half sits at 7.71. Drops to 68 and Montgomery is the name to speculate on if you need saves from this bullpen. … Yoendrys Gomez is a rare riser here: Minnesota's depth chart no longer tags his role with the committee asterisk, listing him as the outright primary option. … Grant Taylor blew his third save of the year Thursday on a walk-off two-run homer after issuing a leadoff walk, a real setback after weeks of good process. He remains the most talented arm in a bad Chicago bullpen. Drops to 70 but he did convert a Saturday save, so he might just be the guy in Chicago. I hope he is, but I also hope they give him two-inning opportunities. … The rest are of course a mess, not worthy of more “ink” …. But we will say that in Colorado, Antonio Senzatela is out of this column entirely. Colorado's bullpen has reshuffled around him, with Jimmy Herget and Brennan Bernardino now listed ahead of Victor Vodnik in a fully chaotic committee. New entrant at 55 under Herget's name, deep-league only, hold your nose.
Questions About Closer Confidential, Answered
Is Ryan Helsley still the Orioles closer?
No, he landed on the 15-day injured list Friday with right elbow discomfort and no confirmed timetable. Tyler Wells has saved back-to-back games in his place and is the current best option, with Andrew Kittredge and Yennier Cano next in line.
Is Emilio Pagan back as the Reds closer?
Yes, and unlike the committee chaos before his return, he's now the outright closer rather than part of a rotation. He was activated June 30 after a two-month hamstring absence.
Is Kenley Jansen still the Tigers closer?
His grip on the role is in real trouble. He was used in a low-leverage, down-by-six situation this week rather than a save chance, and Detroit's updated hierarchy now lists rookie Keider Montero ahead of him.
Should I drop Gregory Soto in fantasy baseball?
His role has genuinely changed, not just his results. Mason Montgomery has closed the last two games Pittsburgh needed saved, and Soto has been used in the eighth inning both times.
What happened with Aroldis Chapman this week?
He set the all-time strikeout record for a relief pitcher, passing Hoyt Wilhelm, in the same outing where he converted his 17th save. His performance ratios over his last eight appearances are worth watching even though the milestone is the headline.
Which closer grades are least certain heading into Week 16?
Josh Hader, Riley O'Brien, Paul Sewald, Caleb Kilian, and Alex Lange all had final scores this week that suggested a save chance without a confirmed box score at the time of writing. Check current save totals before making roster decisions based on those grades.
