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We are officially two months into the MLB season. That’s right, we are roughly one-third of the way through the fantasy baseball season. This was about all the baseball we got in 2020, so be happy that we have four more months to go!
Every week I break down the bullpens of all 30 MLB teams to help you identify bullpens that are changing their late-inning usage and help find those relievers that give you a lot of strikeouts with strong ratios. But, with May being over, I wanted to mix things up a bit this week. I will still address changing bullpens, but I will more take a look at the reliever leaderboard for both May and the season so far.
I did break down all the bullpens leading into Memorial Day Weekend so let's dig in!
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Changing Bullpens
Cincinnati Reds: Tejay Antone picked up a four-out save over the weekend. In that game, Lucas Sims got the seventh and Amir Garrett pitched the sixth. Antone is the best reliever in this bullpen, but he at times gets used in high leverage situations and brought in for multiple-inning duty. He is still the top fantasy arm in this bullpen, followed by Sims, Garrett and Sean Doolittle. But this bullpen remains one of the most unpredictable in baseball.
Kansas City Royals: This bullpen has been changing basically weekly all season long. With Josh Staumont (knee) and his team-leading five saves on the IL, we saw the Royals turn to Greg Holland for their last save opportunity over the weekend. On Memorial Day, he pitched the ninth inning against the Pirates, despite the lead being pushed to four runs. It’s worth noting though that it was a two-run game before Kansas City scored in the bottom of the eighth, meaning that they were saving him for the save opportunity. We have also seen Kyle Zimmer used to pick up two saves recently in Kansas City. But, he was the first reliever out of the bullpen when Holland got his save this weekend. Holland should once again be rostered in fantasy, but Zimmer is a deeper league option who could get some opportunities if Holland struggles, which is very possible.
Minnesota Twins: Hansel Robles picked up his fourth save of the season on Memorial Day. Just two days prior, he was pitching in a setup role, while Taylor Rogers picked up his fourth save of the season. While it is trending like Robles is going to see the majority of save opportunities moving forward, both of these pitchers are worth rostering and starting in Roto formats.
San Francisco Giants: We know it will be one of Tyler Rogers or Jake McGee getting the saves for the Giants. The issue is, we do not know which it will be on any given night. McGee got the last save for the Giants, his 12th of the season. In his outing prior, he pitched the eighth, while Rogers got the ninth but blew his third save of the season. Both should be rostered, with the pendulum slightly leaning towards McGee, but this can change on a nightly basis.
Seattle Mariners: With Kendall Graveman on the IL many expected Rafael Montero to just get all the save chances. But that has not been the case. Keynan Middleton has been getting mixed in, picking up two saves in the past two weeks, including one this past weekend. Montero also has two saves in that span and Erik Swanson has one. When Graveman returns, expect him and Montero to split save chances. Middleton is worth rostering for the time being, but I would expect him to lose those opportunities to Graveman. But if he gets the job done now, he could remain as a late-inning option.
Tampa Bay Rays: It seems as if J.P. Feyereisen has taken over as the Rays' top closing option. He has picked up three saves and had four chances since he joined the Rays. In the past two weeks, he has three saves, while Diego Castillo and Pete Fairbanks each have one. In fact, over the weekend we saw Castillo pitch the final inning of a four-inning game. He should still be rostered, as we need more clarity here. But Feyereisen is the top option for the time being.
May Leaders
Strikeout Rate: Matt Barnes led all relievers with a 45.7 percent strikeout rate. Just behind him was Scott Barlow (44.2 percent), Craig Kimbrel (43.8 percent), and Paul Fry (43.2 percent). Barnes and Kimbrel are top relieving options, while Barlow and Fry are out there in a lot of leagues. Barlow has not yet been moved into the closer role despite Kansas City trying a number of different options this season, but he is always a candidate since he is one of the top arms in that pen. If nothing else, he provides great ratios and strikeouts. Fry is likely the next man up if Cesar Valdez continues to struggle. He should be stashed in Roto formats.
WHIP: Ryan Tepera led all relievers with a 0.20 WHIP in 14.2 innings in May. Nick Wittgren pitched to a 0.38 WHIP in 10.2 innings. Neither will provide saves currently, but they have been providing elite WHIPs, to go with great ERAs and plenty of strikeouts. Both have a strikeout rate of 39 percent. If you need ratios and strikeouts, here are two arms for you.
ERA: There were nine pitchers who did not allow an earned run in the month of May. The ones with a WHIP below one and a strikeout rate over 25 percent are: Liam Hendriks, Lucas Luetge, Tyler Matzek, Dan Winkler, Austin Adams, Josh Taylor and Anthony Bender. All of these arms can provide great ratios and strikeouts moving forward.
SIERA: The top five pitchers in SIERA in May were Ryan Tepera (1.23), Richard Bleier (1.32), Nick Wittgren (1.35), Matt Barnes (1.38) and Craig Kimbrel (1.41). All five of these pitchers had an ERA of 2.70 or below, a WHIP less than one and a strikeout rate of at least 30 percent. What does that all mean? They have been absolutely elite as of late and should be added in Roto formats for great ratios and strikeouts.
Reliever Leaders Two Months In
Strikeout Rate: There are only four pitchers with a strikeout rate over 45 percent this season. They are all elite late-inning options as well. They are led by Aroldis Chapman (52.1 percent), Matt Barnes (48.2 percent), James Karinchak (46.2 percent), and Josh Hader (45.1 percent). Paul Fry, who I spoke about in the May section, has the eighth-highest strikeout rate on the season at 40.3 percent. Just add this man already!
WHIP: Kendall Graveman leads the league in WHIP at 0.54. He is followed by Richard Rodriguez (0.58), Matt Barnes (0.67), Ryan Tepera (0.69), Chad Green (0.69) then Giovanny Gallegos (0.71) and Tejay Antone (0.71). You may notice that there are some non-closers on this list. Graveman, Rodriguez, Barnes and Antone should already be rostered as they get save chances. But, the others on this list in Tepera, Green and Gallegos are all the next in line for saves in their bullpens plus they give you elite ratios and strikeouts. Add them in Roto formats.
ERA: There are nine qualified relievers with an ERA below one currently. Kendall Graveman (0.00), Aroldis Chapman (0.45), Dan Winkler (0.51), Caleb Baragar (0.52), Alex Reyes (0.64), Mark Melancon (0.74), Craig Kimbrel (0.82), Josh Hader (0.83) and Andrew Kittredge (0.87). There are some elite closers on this list, but there are other options for those in need of lowering their season-long ERA in Roto formats.
SIERA: There are only four relievers with a SIERA below two and they are all elite options: Matt Barnes (1.22), Liam Hendriks (1.52), Aroldis Chapman (1.69) and Josh Hader (1.88). Just behind them is Raisel Iglesias (2.01), Craig Kimbrel (2.03), Taylor Rogers (2.14) and James Karinchak (2.15). That has to make you feel better if you have Iglesias, he is the only one on this list with an ERA over three, and his sits at 4.29. He is a good buy-low candidate as he is still the closer, but better ratio days are ahead.
Make sure to follow Michael on Twitter, @MichaelFFlorio
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