The Shuffle Up series keeps rolling along, with relief pitchers on the docket for today. The chase for saves is a love/hate proposition. After all, when closers go bad, they can often return negative value. This will always be a position where the turnover rate is high.
Relief Pitcher Overview
As you formulate your closer draft plan for 2025, do some reverse engineering. How likely are you to find cheap closers in the draft, or land them on the waiver wire? Are you the one-step-ahead manager in your league, or do others tend to get there first? I’ve been in leagues where the chase for every save turns into a rock fight — and I’ve been in leagues where more than one manager wants to punt the category entirely. Considering the past trends and résumés in your pool will have a lot to say in how you attack the position over the next 4-6 weeks.
[Shuffle Up Rankings Tiers: Catchers | Corner Infield | Middle Infield | Outfield | Starters | Relievers]
I probably will lean toward an Anchor RP approach in my leagues, where I want one primary closer I can hang my hat on, and then I’ll downshift to a more value-driven approach. And let’s be clear on one other thing — I’m probably not going to be the first team in my league to select a relief pitcher. I guess that’s why I called this strategy Anchor RP and not Hero RP. I don’t want to break the seal at the position. I don’t like how it takes away one impact hitter or starting pitcher from the front of my roster build.
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I also love rostering a few non-closing relievers who have wipeout ratios, but I feel you can find them easily in-season. I would prefer not to pay aggressively for that profile in March — you can acquire it so much cheaper during the year. Keep grinding those K/BB ratios; freshly minted dominators will emerge every spring.
Have some disagreements? Good, that’s why we have a game. I welcome your reasoned disagreement over at X (@scott_pianowski) or on Blue Sky (@pianow.bsky.social).
Tier 1: The Big Tickets
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$24 Emmanuel Clase
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$22 Devin Williams
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$21 Josh Hader
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$21 Edwin Díaz
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$20 Mason Miller
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$19 Ryan Helsley
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$18 Raisel Iglesias
Clase has racked up 133 saves the last three years, which is 30 more than anyone else (Hader is second). Although Clase has a fastball in the 99 mph range, he is not a dominant strikeout source for a closer, managing a modest 8.48 K/9 over this three-season period. But he rarely walks anyone and his extreme ground-ball rate meshes well with Cleveland’s defense. It’s not my style to be the first team to draft a closer, but I fully understand why Clase wears the yellow jersey at this position.
Williams would love to forget the playoffs (Pete Alonso homered off him, sending Milwaukee home) but otherwise his partial season was a smash: 14 saves, 1.25 ERA and a silly 15.8 K/9. He’s always been a little bit wild, but he rarely allows home runs and has the perfect mindset for a ninth-inning dominator. The Yankees should set him up for an easy 40 saves or more.
Two years ago Hader struggled with walks; last year, he was bitten by home runs. His strikeout rate is still excellent, and his velocity was stable, year over year. The 71 innings were Hader’s highest total in five years, and the Astros are creative in using him for multiple innings. Because his effectiveness and profile have an erratic trend line over the past few years, Hader probably won’t be a target of mine. But he seems to have a very long leash in Houston.
Tier 2: Legitimate Building Blocks
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$16 Andres Muñoz
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$14 Jhoan Durán
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$14 Robert Suárez
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$13 Ryan Walker
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$12 *Félix Bautista
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$11 Alexis Díaz
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$11 Tanner Scott
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$11 Trevor Megill
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$11 David Bednar
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$11 Jeff Hoffman
Duran had some bad luck in 2024, as that 3.64 ERA probably should have been under 3 based on his batted-ball profile. He also lost some save chances because manager Rocco Baldelli isn’t shy about using Duran outside the ninth inning, when the situation calls for it. I’ll never get mad at a manager running his team based on leverage considerations and not bowing at the altar of the save rule. It might knock a few bucks off the Duran salary, but he’ll still rack up the usual 20-30 saves he always does.
Last week Bautista reported he was throwing at 85% and said he had a good chance to be full go for Opening Day. It’s lovely to hear optimistic injury and rehab news, but when the player is the source of that optimism, I’m wired to take it with a grain of salt. I know I’m lower on Bautista than the market and I’m fine with that, given that he’s coming off Tommy John surgery and didn’t pitch last year.
Be careful when you’re looking for Trevor Megill in your queue — click the wrong name and you might wind up with Tylor Megill, his brother (a solid but unspectacular pitcher for the Mets). The Milwaukee Megill opens camp as the likely closer, a role he handled fine (21 saves) while Devin Williams was rehabbing last tear. The reason Megill isn’t higher on the list is that he was battling some undisclosed health concerns when camp opened a week ago. Do a news double-check before you commit to the presumptive Milwaukee closer. The competition behind Megill is not threatening.
The Dodgers probably won’t have a one-click closer, but Scott looks like the head of a committee — and we’re talking about a team that could easily sail past 100 wins. No matter what role Scott holds, we’re talking about someone with a 2.04 ERA and 1.05 WHIP over the last two seasons with over three strikeouts for every walk. Not every team loves salting away games with a lefty, but Scott’s dominant stuff gives him a decent chance at 20-plus saves.
Tier 3: Talk Them Up, Talk Them Down
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$10 Kenley Jansen
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$10 Justin Martínez
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$10 Carlos Estévez
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$9 Lucas Erceg
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$9 Kirby Yates
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$9 Pete Fairbanks
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$9 Jordan Romano
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$9 Aroldis Chapman
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$9 Ryan Pressly
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$8 Ben Joyce
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$8 Jason Foley
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$8 Chris Martin
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$7 Porter Hodge
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$7 A.J. Puk
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$6 Jorge López
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$5 Orion Kerkering
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$5 Cade Smith
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$5 Calvin Faucher
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$5 Jason Adam
Chapman probably gets the first closing chance in the Boston bullpen, but the Red Sox fancy themselves contenders again and they won’t hesitate to use others (Liam Hendriks, Justin Slaten among them) if Chapman isn’t ready for the job. Chapman’s fastball and strikeout rate are still impressive, but he doesn’t always know where the ball is going — his walk rate was an ugly 14.4% last year. The Red Sox gave Chapman $10.75 million for one year; he’ll get a chance to own the ninth, but nothing is guaranteed.
Arizona’s Martínez is another flamethrower who misses plenty of bats (29.5% strikeout rate) but often can’t find the zone (11.7% walk rate). He recorded eight of the team’s 13 saves over the final two months, which is enough to put him in the first chair for the opening of camp. A.J. Puk and Kevin Ginkle loom as the primary challengers.
Adam is going to have value in San Diego, it’s just a matter of what innings he percolates to. He’s posted a 2.12 ERA over the last three years, with 13 wins and 24 saves. Suárez did just fine as the San Diego stopper last year (36 saves, 2.77 ERA), though he pitches to contact and out-kicked his component stats last year. Adam is an interesting speculation play, offering save upside and a floor even if he doesn’t get the ninth at any point.
Tier 4: Bargain Bin
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$4 Liam Hendriks
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$4 Luke Weaver
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$4 Edwin Uceta
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$4 Justin Slaten
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$4 Tyler Holton
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$4 Robert García
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$3 Michael Kopech
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$3 Griffin Jax
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$3 Chad Green
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$3 Yimi García
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$2 Blake Treinen
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$2 Evan Phillips
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$2 Jeremiah Estrada
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$2 Bryan Abreu
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$2 Matt Strahm
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$2 Tyler Kinley
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$2 Taylor Rogers
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$1 Kyle Finnegan
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$1 Camilo Doval
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$1 Jesús Tinoco
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$1 Paul Sewald
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$1 Joel Payamps
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$1 Matt Brash
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$1 Tommy Kahnle
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$1 A.J. Minter
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$1 Pierce Johnson
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$1 JoJo Romero
