RADIO
With a little more spring training behind us, we're back with the National League version of Closers and Saves Bullpen Report! Make sure to look over the American League edition that was published last week. There's still plenty of time until Opening Day, so as usual we can expect changes to come, but for now? Looks like the first time in a while where most bullpens seem to have a pretty noticeable hierarchy.
There are some exciting relief groups in the National League, with elite guys coming back from injuries, veterans reprising their roles, and young flamethrowers taking over. Let's go through every NL team, division by division, and see where all the fantasy value lies.
Be sure to also keep an eye on our Fantasy Baseball Closer Depth Charts for saves, holds, and bullpens. They will be updated daily or sometimes even more often throughout the 2024 baseball season.
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National League East - Bullpen Preview
The National League East has some really strong bullpens. One team will welcome back their elite closer while the others will start things off more or less the way they wrapped things up last season.
Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves have a ton of strikeout upside throughout their bullpen. Raisel Iglesias will serve as closer, coming off a 33-save season with solid peripherals. With the Braves once again expected to be one of the better teams in the league, Iglesias should get plenty of save opportunities. Setting him up will be A.J. Minter and Pierce Johnson. Both pitchers can pile up strikeouts and should be able to get tons of holds as well. (Also, Ken Giles is back and pitching well in Grapefruit League games so far!)
Miami Marlins
The Miami Marlins had a bit of a revolving door in the bullpen at the beginning of last season, but Tanner Scott took the reins and did not let go. Scott had always had huge strikeout numbers, but walks were an issue throughout his career. He got that under control last year and ended up with a strong 26.1% K-BB ratio. He's struggled this spring, but should be fine once the season starts and could be one of the top relief options if he keeps up what he was doing last season. He'll be set up by Andrew Nardi and Anthony Bender, both of whom should be solid holds league pitchers.
Anthony Bender, 97mph Sinker (called strike) and 85mph Slider (swinging K), Overlay.
Why you might swing at a pitch in the other batter's box. pic.twitter.com/nIUSfd1X4x
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) August 3, 2021
New York Mets
The New York Mets will be welcoming back closer Edwin Diaz possibly as soon as Opening Day. Diaz has been pitching in Grapefruit League games and looking almost like his old self. He was unquestionably a top-three reliever in baseball before he was forced to miss the 2023 season, and there's no reason to believe he won't be right back there once this season starts. The primary setup guys for the Mets will be Adam Ottavino and Brooks Raley.
Philadelphia Phillies
The Philadelphia Phillies bullpen is the only one in the NL East that might not have fairly strictly defined roles, at least to start the year. Jose Alvarado, Jeff Hoffman, Gregory Soto, Matt Strahm, and Orion Kerkering all figure to pitch in high-leverage situations and all can put up strong relief numbers. This is a dream bullpen for fantasy managers in holds leagues, and maybe a total nightmare for those in saves-only formats.
Orion Kerkering, Disgusting Sliders. 🤮 pic.twitter.com/QqX8W9Gpsm
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) October 18, 2023
Washington Nationals
The Washington Nationals will start the season with a well-defined bullpen. Kyle Finnegan will return as closer after leading the team in saves last season with 28. He had a solid season, but there are some underlying peripherals that are a bit concerning (4.83 xERA, 1.43 HR/9). Hunter Harvey and Tanner Rainey will be the primary setup men to start things off, but it wouldn't be a surprise to see either or both of them earn some saves along the way as well.
National League Central - Bullpen Preview
The National League Central has some interesting bullpens as well, but for a different reason. A few NL Central bullpens feature guys with huge upside but very limited experience. As of right now, however, it is the only division in the NL with fully set closer roles.
Chicago Cubs
The Chicago Cubs went with a hot hand approach in their bullpen for parts of the 2023 season, but one guy ended up on the mound most often with the game on the line. They look ready to commit to that guy, Adbert Alzolay, in the ninth inning this season, though. He led the team in saves last season, with 22, and posted a strong 2.67 ERA (although the 3.58 xERA could imply regression is coming). He'll have Julian Merryweather and Hector Neris working in setup roles in front of him. Both guys get a lot of strikeouts but can struggle with walks at times.
Adbert Alzolay's strike out for the 2nd out in the 9th was a *disgusting* 90 mph breaker...and with that closer attitude.
Chicago Cubs closer, Adbert Alzolay. pic.twitter.com/FcZwWvzdsq
— Brendan Miller (@brendan_cubs) August 30, 2023
Cincinnati Reds
The Cincinnati Reds plan on having a solidified closer this season, and his name is Alexis Diaz. Beyond that, though? No one knows. Manager David Bell appointed Diaz as closer, but then said that he does not plan to have a set structure for the seventh and eighth innings. Guys like Lucas Sims, Buck Farmer, Emilio Pagan, and Fernando Cruz all figure to earn holds as the season progresses, but this may end up being a bullpen where only one guy (Diaz, of course) provides consistent fantasy value.
Milwaukee Brewers
The Milwaukee Brewers moved on from Josh Hader a couple of years ago and replaced him with...a guy who ended up having a better 2023 season than Josh Hader. Devin Williams saved 36 games in 40 chances and should once again be one of the elite fantasy relief pitchers this season. He'll get help from setup men Trevor Megill and Abner Uribe. There's plenty of upside in the Brewers bullpen, but outside of Williams, there aren't any real sure things, and there's plenty of risk.
Devin Williams FB / Airbender overlay pic.twitter.com/SWyCnUVLgU
— Alex Fast (@AlexFast8) April 13, 2022
Pittsburgh Pirates
The Pittsburgh Pirates added a reliever this offseason who has the third-most saves among all active players. Aroldis Chapman likely won't be closing, however. David Bednar is dealing with an arm injury right now, so while he might not be ready for Opening Day, he's not expected to miss too much time and he will be the team's closer once he's healthy. Chapman will work in a setup role along with Colin Holderman in a bullpen that could be one of the team's biggest strengths.
St. Louis Cardinals
The St. Louis Cardinals shared bullpen roles for most of last season, with four different pitchers recording multiple saves for the team. This year, they will enter the season committed to Ryan Helsley in the ninth inning with Giovanny Gallegos and JoJo Romero working the key setup roles. There's a lot of variation in this bullpen, which could end up being a strength or a liability for the team depending mostly on Helsley.
National League West - Bullpen Preview
The National League West features the 2023 National League champion Arizona Diamondbacks and the pre-appointed-by-many 2024 World Series favorite Los Angeles Dodgers. The bullpens in this division have some intriguing arms in them and should be fun to watch as the season progresses.
Arizona Diamondbacks
The Arizona Diamondbacks made it all the way to the World Series last season, helped in part by their closer, trade-deadline acquisition Paul Sewald. He'll return for a full season as D-Backs closer this year, and will get setup help from Kevin Ginkel, Andrew Saalfrank, and Miguel Castro. Sewald has already been referred to as "bona fide closer" by the team, and has reportedly also added a new pitch.
Colorado Rockies
The Colorado Rockies bullpen is the least stable bullpen in this division, but there's some upside there even with the Coors Effect™ playing a role. With Daniel Bard hurt, the Rockies are having a camp battle to determine their closer. The two main competitors are Justin Lawrence and Tyler Kinley. Both have been solid in Cactus League play, and both have shown the ability to miss bats in the past. Lawrence's much higher ground ball rate (48.5% compared to Kinley's 19.6%) makes him more likely to succeed in Coors, so he's the one with more upside in this bullpen.
Justin Lawrence recorded 63 of his 78 strikeouts (81%) with his slider in the 2023 season, highest among NL relievers. pic.twitter.com/fQ1NNRoGT2
— Inside Edge (@IE_MLB) March 6, 2024
Los Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers, if games were played on paper, would probably win 140 games this season. Games, however, are played on dirt and grass, so we'll see what happens. Their bullpen should be solid once again, with Evan Phillips in charge of the ninth inning and set up by Brusdar Graterol and Alex Vesia. Ryan Brasier and Joe Kelly are sure to get high-leverage work as well, along with Blake Treinen and Daniel Hudson once they're healthy. The Dodgers bullpen is deep and manager Dave Roberts has shown a willingness to move guys around, but there should be enough saves and holds for several L.A. relievers to have significant fantasy value.
San Diego Padres
The San Diego Padres bullpen got to experience one season of having one of baseball's premier closers, but Josh Hader made his way to Houston as a free agent this offseason. So, the Padres will head into the season with a bit of upside and a bunch of question marks in the bullpen. Robert Suarez will start things off as the team's closer, with Yuki Matsui in a setup role once he's healthy and ready (he has a back injury but isn't expected to miss much time, if any). Wandy Peralta and Steven Wilson are likely to pick up some holds along the way as well.
After dealing with back spasms, Yuki Matsui is back on the mound and throwing a bullpen today in Arizona. pic.twitter.com/VY9K5S5wN8
— 97.3 The Fan (@973TheFanSD) March 5, 2024
San Francisco Giants
The San Francisco Giants will have their top-three bullpen guys from last season right back at it on Opening Day this year. Camilo Doval returns as closer with the Rogers twins, Tyler Rogers and Taylor Rogers, working in setup roles. Luke Jackson could mix in along the way as well in what should be a solid if sometimes unexciting bullpen.
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