Luke Gregerson Seeking Second Opinion

St. Louis Cardinals relief pitcher Luke Gregerson (shoulder) will see Dr. James Andrews next week for a second opinion on his shoulder impingement. Gregerson just hasn't been able to stay healthy this year, and when he's pitched he's been bad. He has a 7.11 ERA, 1.58 WHIP and 12 strikeouts over just 12 2/3 innings […]

Kyle Barraclough Staying In Closer's Role For Now

Miami Marlins manager Don Mattingly said closer Kyle Barraclough will remain in the closer's role for now, but the manager admitted that he'll be "top-stepping" it in the dugout until Barraclough can fix his fastball command. Barraclough has mostly been solid for the Fish since taking over the ninth-inning duties, but he's faltered of late, […]

Chris Owings Optioned, Andrew Chafin Activated

Arizona Diamondbacks infielder/outfielder Chris Owings has been optioned to Triple-A Reno on Friday. Owings is hitting .198/.267/.287 this season and has continued to struggle throughout the 2018 season. Relief pitcher Andrew Chafin has been activated off paternity leave on Friday. He's been solid out of the bullpen for Arizona, but does not hold much fantasy […]

Chris Devenski Going On DL

The Houston Astros placed relief pitcher Chris Devenski (hamstring) on the 10-day disabled list on Friday with left hamstring tightness. The team is calling up pitcher Cionel Perez in a corresponding move. Devenski has been bad in his two outings since the All-Star break but still holds a 4.19 ERA, 1.19 WHIP and 44 strikeouts […]

Wade Davis Blows Another Save

Coming into 2018, Colorado Rockies closer Wade Davis had never blown more than three saves in a single season. With a walk-off loss to the Cardinals on Thursday, Davis has now blown five saves this year. Davis had been on a bit of a roll since his horrific meltdown against the Astros two weeks ago, […]

Andrew Miller Activated on Friday

Cleveland Indians relief pitcher Andrew Miller (knee) has been activated off the 60-day disabled list on Friday. Miller has been out since May 26 due to a knee injury. Zach McAllister has been designated for assignment to make room for Miller on the 25-man roster. It's unclear where Miller will pitch in the Indians bullpen, […]

Jose Leclerc (RP, TEX) - Week 19 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in All Leagues OWNED IN: 23% of leagues ANALYSIS: With both Keone Kela and Jake Diekman shipped off to contenders at the non-waiver trade deadline earlier this week, Jose Leclerc appears to the be the man to own in the Rangers' bullpen. The 24-year-old has always missed bats at an impressive clip (career […]

Jace Fry (RP, CWS) - Week 19 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in 12+ Team Leagues OWNED IN: 11% of leagues ANALYSIS: After the Chicago White Sox shipped closer Joakim Soria to the Milwaukee Brewers on July 26th, a big window of high-leverage opportunity opened up in the South Side's bullpen. This has created a volatile closer situation between pitchers like Juan Minaya, Luis Avilan, and […]

Brian Duensing to DL, Randy Rosario Recalled

Chicago Cubs relief pitcher Brian Duensing (shoulder) has been placed on the 10-day disabled list on Friday. He's struggled heavily this season and should not be owned in fantasy leagues. Rosario has a respectable 1.97 ERA in 32 innings this season, but only holds value in fantasy leagues that use holds as a category. He […]

Blaine Hardy To Start Friday

The Detroit Tigers will send reliever-turned-spot-starter Blaine Hardy to the hill on Friday as the team takes on the Oakland Athletics. Hardy has started just 10 games on the year as a fill-in man for a rotation that has seen its share of injuries. With Michael Fulmer (oblique) on the 10-day disabled list, Hardy will […]

MLB Closers and Saves Report - Week 19

With the non-waiver trade deadline now a few days behind us, we can confidently say: "a lot happened." But, seemingly more so than other trade deadlines in previous seasons, this time around we can also say: "a lot didn't happen." Zach Britton changed teams, to a team that absolutely no one suspected. Brad Hand changed […]

Holds Leagues - Waiver Wire Pickups and Adds for Week 19

Well, that was a fun trade deadline! While holds are even tougher to predict than saves, the players we’ll highlight today include some elite setup men to target off the waiver wire in Week 19. One-inning middle relievers are the constant sources for holds and specialists can manage to secure a hold even with one […]

Week 19 Waiver Wire: H2H Category Streamers

I like to consider myself a pioneer of the streaming approach. I won a league about seven years ago completely ignoring saves and just stacking up the starts each week. While streaming is undoubtedly more directly associated with pitching, there's plenty of value in streaming for offense as well. Maybe you have a stacked roster […]

Sergio Romo With His 13th Save Of 2018

Tampa Bay Rays closer Sergio Romo remained with the team through the trade deadline. Romo would strike out two of the three batters he faced in closing out the 4-2 victory. The save would be his 13th of the season and he also opened five games this season. Romo will continue to be worth owning […]

Eddie Butler Gets First Career Save Thursday

Texas Rangers relief pitcher Eddie Butler locked down the first save of his career Thursday. Butler came in to relieve Yovani Gallardo with the Rangers leading 13-5 in the sixth innings. Butler gave up three earned runs on five hits and no walks in 3 2/3 innings. Part of the reason Butler went so long […]

Jalen Beeks Earns First Win

Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Jalen Beeks earned his first career win Thursday versus Los Angeles. He came in as the first reliever after opener Hunter Wood dominated the first two innings. Beeks would go five innings where he allowed the only two runs the Angels would score in the game but would be awarded the […]

Jonathan Holder Implodes In Blowout Loss

The first man out of the New York Yankees bullpen was Jonathan Holder on Thursday night after CC Sabathia managed just three innings. Taking on the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park, the 25-year-old easily had his worst outing of the season, allowing seven runs without recording a single out. The woeful performance saw his […]

A.J. Minter Nails Down Save No. 7

It still looks like Atlanta Braves relief pitcher A.J. Minter is the closer for the team while everyone waits to see if Arodys Vizcaino will return this year - though that window is rapidly getting smaller. Minter struck out two in the ninth on Thursday to get his seventh save of the season. If you […]

Hunter Strickland Throws To Hitters

San Francisco Giants relief pitcher Hunter Strickland (hand) threw 20 pitches to hitters at the team's spring training complex on Thursday and should be ready to come off the 60-day disabled list when he's eligible in 16 days. Strickland had been serving as the team's closer but has been out since June 18. Will Smith […]

Ken Giles is Active, Dwight Smith Jr. Optioned

Toronto Blue Jays relief pitcher Ken Giles has been added to the 25-man roster and is active for Thursday's game against the Seattle Mariners. In a corresponding move, outfielder Dwight Smith Jr. has been optioned to Triple A. Giles has struggled this season with Houston, but a change of scenery could be good for him. […]

Roberto Osuna Starting Rehab Assignment Thursday

Houston Astros relief pitcher Roberto Osuna, who was acquired from the Blue Jays, will start his rehab assignment with Double-A Corpus Christi on Thursday. He will join the Astros on Sunday in Los Angeles. He's been serving an 75-game suspension for a domestic-assault case, but he's eligible to return on Sunday and could take over […]

Brad Ziegler is Active, Silvino Bracho Optioned

Arizona Diamondbacks relief pitcher Brad Ziegler is officially active for Thursday's contest against the San Francisco Giants. Relief pitcher Silvino Bracho has been optioned to Triple-A Reno to make room for Ziegler on the active roster. Ziegler was the closer in Miami during the beginning of the season, but over the last couple of months […]

A.J. Minter (RP, ATL) - Week 19 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in Leagues OWNED IN: 45% of Leagues ANALYSIS: Atlanta Braves closer A.J. Minter looks to have grabbed the job in Atlanta with both hands and it is unlikely that Aroldys Vizcaino will get it back. Vizcaino has been dealing with a bad shoulder, and Minter was thought to be splitting save opportunities […]

Brandon Morrow Playing Catch Thursday

Chicago Cubs closer Brandon Morrow (biceps) is playing catch in the outfield on Thursday. Morrow has been slow to recover from his injury, but he should remain stashed in all formats, as he'll likely jump right back into the closer's role when he's ready. He has a pristine 1.47 ERA, 1.08 WHIP and 31 K's […]

Sonny Gray Being Demoted To Bullpen

New York Yankees starting pitcher Sonny Gray has been told he's being demoted to the bullpen. The move comes as a surprise, though not completely unexpected. Gray was terrible in his last start, allowing seven runs to a Baltimore Orioles team that is pretty much devoid of strong talent. Gray had shown flashes this season, […]

Rangers Sign Chris Tillman To Minor League Contract

The Texas Rangers have signed starting pitcher Chris Tillman to a minor league deal. The 30-year-old was designated for assignment by the Baltimore Orioles on July 27, and he then elected free agency. Tillman had a terrible 2018 before hitting the disabled list, but is only two years removed from a 16-6 season. His situation […]

Tyler Clippard To Start Thursday

Toronto Blue Jays relief pitcher Tyler Clippard will make the start on Thursday against the Mariners. Clippard has appeared in 53 games for Toronto this year, but all have been in relief, and he hasn't gone more than 1 2/3 innings in any single outing. That means he won't be long for this start and […]

Nate Jones Plays Catch

Chicago White Sox relief pitcher Nate Jones (arm) played catch in the outfield on Thursday. It's progress, but Jones still has a long ways to go to return to the team's bullpen. He hasn't pitched in the bigs since June 12. Jones could be an option down the stretch for saves in Chicago, but fantasy […]

Mets Calling Up Bobby Wahl

The New York Mets are calling up relief pitcher Bobby Wahl, who was acquired at the trade deadline in the deal that sent closer Jeurys Familia to the A's, according to assistant general manager John Ricco. In 34 outings with Triple-A Nashville this year including one start, Wahl had a 2.27 ERA, 0.86 WHIP and […]

Shane Greene Logs 23rd Save

Detroit Tigers closer Shane Greene closed out Wednesday's victory with a scoreless ninth inning to earn his 23rd save of the season. Greene walked one batter and struck out one as well. He's allowed four earned runs since returning from the disabled list (shoulder) on July 13th, and has converted all but three save chances this […]