Brad Hand Blows Yet Another Save Monday

Washington Nationals relief pitcher Brad Hand blew another save Monday, giving up three runs on two hits and a walk in just a third of an inning to the Philadelphia Phillies, yielding a walk-off three-run home run to Andrew McCutchen. It's his second consecutive day with a blown save, and his third consecutive outing when […]

Matt Barnes Saves 22nd Game Monday

Boston Red Sox relief pitcher Matt Barnes continued his impressive season Monday, locking up his 22nd save of the year with a one-two-three inning against the Toronto Blue Jays. He did not strike out a batter. Barnes is on a streak of six consecutive outings without giving up an earned run, and he's dropped his […]

Taylor Rogers Exits Monday With Apparent Hand Injury

Minnesota Twins relief pitcher Taylor Rogers (hand) exited Monday's game early with an apparent hand injury, according to Do-Hyoung Park of MLB.com. Park reports that the ball slipped out of Rogers' hand during a pitch, and he was indicating something on his pitching hand before exiting the game with a trainer. There's no word yet […]

Nationals Open To Trading Everyone Except Juan Soto

The Washington Nationals are open to trading anyone on their roster with the exception of outfielder Juan Soto, according to Jon Heyman of MLB Network. This includes starting pitcher Max Scherzer — who has expressed that he is open to being traded but will make use of his 10-5 rights to veto trades if necessary […]

Michael Fulmer Nearing Return From Injured List

Detroit Tigers relief pitcher Michael Fulmer (neck) is getting close to a return from the injured list, according to Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic. Stavenhagen reports that Fulmer met with manager AJ Hinch on Monday, and the team is deciding whether he will be activated soon or if he will get one more rehab outing […]

Andrew Chafin On The Verge Of Being Traded To Oakland

Chicago Cubs relief pitcher Andrew Chafin is on the verge of being traded to the Oakland Athletics, according to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. There's no word yet on what the return would be, but Chafin would be a solid boost to Oakland's bullpen, as he is 0-2 with a 2.06 ERA, 0.839 WHIP and […]

Michael Lorenzen Could Be Back Quicker Than Expected

Cincinnati Reds right-hander Michael Lorenzen (hamstring) is making progress in his attempts to rehab an injured hamstring. Lorenzen threw off of a mound on Saturday and was able to run 30-yard sprints and could be activated from the injured list in a week or two. The right-hander initially feared that his season was over when […]

Amir Garrett Activated Monday

The Cincinnati Reds activated relief pitcher Amir Garrett from the paternity list on Monday and optioned infielder Alejo Lopez to Triple-A Louisville in a corresponding move. Garrett was the most attractive fantasy option from the Reds bullpen to begin the 2021 season, but that certainly isn't the case as things stand now. The 29-year-old left-hander […]

Kirby Snead Joins Toronto On Monday

Toronto Blue Jays relief pitcher Kirby Snead had his contract selected from Triple-A Buffalo on Monday, according to Jon Morosi of MLB Network. To clear room for Snead on the roster, Toronto designated pitcher Jacob Barnes for assignment. Snead has been having a great year at Triple-A, going 2-0 with four saves, a 2.01 ERA, […]

Clay Holmes Traded To The Yankees

Pittsburgh Pirates relief pitcher Clay Holmes was traded to the New York Yankees on Monday, according to Jon Heyman of MLB Network. To complete the deal, the Yankees sent infielders Diego Castillo and Hoy Jun Park to Pittsburgh. Holmes has been a decent option in SV/HLD formats this season, as he has seven holds while […]

Seranthony Dominguez Could Begin Rehab Assignment Soon

Philadelphia Phillies relief pitcher Seranthony Dominguez (elbow) could begin a rehab assignment later this week, according to Scott Lauber of the Philadelphia Inquirer. This news comes a few days before the one-year mark since undergoing Tommy John surgery, and reports say that Dominguez is currently throwing his fastball at about 93-94 mph. He saw time […]

Corey Knebel Begins Rehab Assignment

Los Angeles Dodgers reliever Corey Knebel (lat) will operate as the opener as part of his rehab assignment with Triple-A Oklahoma City. Knebel has been sidelined since April 23 with a right lat injury and Monday will be his first game action since he got hurt. Knebel was having a good season for the Dodgers […]

Richard Rodriguez Gaining Trade Interest From Oakland

Pittsburgh Pirates relief pitcher Richard Rodriguez is drawing trade interest from the Oakland Athletics ahead of Friday's trade deadline, according to Jon Morosi of MLB Network. Morosi reports that the Athletics are prioritizing a bullpen upgrade before the deadline, and Rodriguez would certainly fit the bill as he is 4-2 with 14 saves, a 2.82 […]

J.B. Wendelken Whiffs Two In Relief Appearance Versus Mariners

Oakland Athletics relief pitcher J.B. Wendelken recorded four outs on Sunday versus the Mariners with two coming via the strikeout. The right-hander walked one, but did not allow a run for the third time in his last four appearances. Wendelken has a 22 percent strikeout rate this season which is down 10 percent from 2019 […]

James Karinchak Earns Seventh Win Sunday

Cleveland Indians relief pitcher James Karinchak threw one inning while allowing one walk to record his seventh win of the season in Sunday's 3-2 win over the Tampa Bay Rays. Karinchak has shown some struggles recently as he has posted a 3.72 ERA in July and has allowed three earned runs across his previous four […]

Emmanuel Clase Locks Down Save Sunday

Cleveland Indians relief pitcher Emmanuel Clase threw a perfect ninth inning while striking out one to earn his 12th save of the season in Sunday's 3-2 win over the Tampa Bay Rays. Clase has not allowed a run in his previous four outings and could be rounding back into form after a couple of tough […]

Edwin Diaz Saves 21st Game

New York Mets relief pitcher Edwin Diaz saved his 21st game of the year Sunday, closing the door on the Toronto Blue Jays with three strikeouts around one walk to secure a 5-4 victory. It's Diaz's second consecutive scoreless outing after giving up runs in his previous three. Despite his struggles, which have led to […]

Matt Barnes Earns 21st Save

Boston Red Sox relief pitcher Matt Barnes locked down his 21st save of the year Sunday, allowing just one hit in one inning of work against the New York Yankees. Barnes hasn't allowed an earned run in 11 of his last 12 appearances and is very solidly among the elite fantasy closers. His job seems […]

Brad Hand Blows Save, Takes Loss Sunday

Washington Nationals relief pitcher Brad Hand had a bad outing at the wrong time Sunday, giving up two runs on a hit and a walk in a third of an inning to blow the save and take the loss against the Baltimore Orioles. It was his fourth loss and fourth blown save on the season. […]

Drew Steckenrider Secures Third Save

Seattle Mariners relief pitcher Drew Steckenrider picked up his third save of the year Sunday, throwing a scoreless inning with just one hit allowed against the Oakland Athletics to secure a 4-3 victory. He did not strike out a batter. Steckenrider is third in the pecking order for saves behind Kendall Graveman and Paul Sewald, […]

Liam Hendriks Records 24th Save

Chicago White Sox closer Liam Hendriks recorded the final six outs to record his 24th save of the season in Sunday's victory versus the Milwaukee Brewers. Hendriks entered with no outs and a runner on first base in the bottom of the eighth inning and retired three straight batters. Hendriks allowed a single to Tyrone […]

Joe Kelly Injures Hamstring On Sunday

Los Angeles Dodgers relief pitcher Joe Kelly (hamstring) injured his hamstring while fielding a ground ball in the ninth inning and will be re-evaluated on Monday, according to J.P. Hoornstra of the Southern California News Group. Kelly suffered the injury on the first play of the ninth inning, but was able to finish out the […]

Ryan Pressly Locks Up 18th Save

Houston Astros closer Ryan Pressly struck out one batter through a scoreless ninth inning in the Astros 3-1 win over the Rangers on Sunday. Pressly picked up his 18th save of the season and has not blown a save since May 29. The Astros have been piling up the victories and there was a time […]

Matt Wisler Implodes In The Eighth Inning On Sunday

Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Matt Wisler (3-4) allowed two runs on two hits and a hit batter in 1/3 of an inning during Sunday's 3-2 loss to the Guardians. He was tagged with his third loss of the season. The 28-year-old entered the eighth frame to protect a 2-1 lead but was saddled with the […]

Carlos Estevez Takes The Loss On Sunday

Colorado Rockies relief pitcher Carlos Estevez took the loss on Sunday when he allowed one run on two hits over one inning in a 3-2 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers. Estevez entered in the eighth inning to try and preserve a 2-2 tie but wasn't able to get the job done. He coughed up […]

Josiah Gray Goes Four Innings In First Start

Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Josiah Gray made his second career appearance and first start of his career in Sunday's no-decision versus the Colorado Rockies. Gray tossed four frames and allowed three hits, two runs, four walks and struck out six. Not the best outing, but also not the worst for the youngster. Gray is […]

Points Leagues Pitchers: Waiver Wire Pickups - Week 18

We'll be doing this roundup of points leagues every week here at RotoBaller, with waiver wire targets and streaming pitchers being evaluated in terms of the different scoring systems of ESPN, Yahoo!, CBS, and Fantrax. Player values can vary wildly from platform to platform, so we'll make sure to highlight where players are the best […]

The Cut List - Time to Let Go? Week 18

Welcome back to The Cut List. This is our weekly article looking at players who fantasy managers might be considering cutting from their teams and struggling players who need a closer look. We'll look at players who are worthy of a drop, players who are worth monitoring for replacing, and someone on the hot seat who […]

The Bigger Picture - Post-Trade Deadline Pickups Are Key

The MLB trade deadline is one week away as of this writing and the first big deal has already gone down. Baseball's version of the Highlander, Nelson Cruz, has moved to Tampa Bay. It comes as no shock that the Twins are sellers this year; they are currently 17.5 games behind first place in the […]

Joakim Soria (RP, ARI) - Week 18 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 10+ Team Leagues ROSTERED IN: 32% of leagues ANALYSIS: Though he's a prime candidate to be dealt ahead of next weekend's trade deadline, Joakim Soria is the clear top dog in the Arizona bullpen right now. That makes it surprising to see him languishing on the waiver wire in over two-thirds of leagues […]