Joe Smith (RP, LAA) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in All Leagues ANALYSIS: Mike Scioscia named Joe Smith the new Angels closer earlier today, making him an immediate waiver wire pickup and one of those short-term sleepers for leagues that value closers and saves. Ernesto Frieri has been removed from the role, after a few disastrous outings and blown saves. He may get […]

5 Setup Men To Own: Waiver Wire Pickups for Holds Leagues

The Hold - Baseball's Unheralded Stat It is very difficult to rely on one pitcher on your roster as the Holds specialist. Unlike the closer there is no such thing as the holder. Specialist relievers that get one batter out or an eighth inning setup man expected to be the final part of the bridge […]

Kyle Farnsworth (RP, NYM) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in All Leagues ANALYSIS: Earlier today the Mets announced that Jose Valverde is being removed from the closers role, after a few brutal outings, and Kyle Farnsworth will be replacing him. This makes Farnsworth a waiver wire pickup, and one of those sleepers who can provide sneaky saves for your team. The Mets aren't as horrible (yet) […]

Pedro Strop (RP, CHC) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in Deep Leagues ANALYSIS: Pedro Strop will very likely be the new closer for the Cubs, at some point, after the demotion of Jose Veras. For now however, he seems to be splitting time with Hector Rondon. Both Rondon and Strop have a save each, since the removal of Veras, although Rondon's save has […]

Hector Rondon (RP, CHC) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in Deep Leagues ANALYSIS: Cubs manager Rick Renteria has stated that he will use a committee of Pedro Strop, Blake Parker, and Hector Rondon to close after the removal of Jose Veras. Although Rondon is pitching the best of the bunch, you get the feeling that Strop is next in line. Since Veras’ demotion, […]

5 Setup Men To Own: Waiver Wire Pickups for Holds Leagues

While the holds statistic is hard to determine who will enter the game in the right situation, the players noticed today feature a couple former closers and stellar setup men. All of these players are capable of being reliable setup men for their respective teams and players worth considering adding if your league counts holds. […]

Closer City: Closers and Saves Update for Week 3 of Fantasy Baseball

  A Closer Tried Called Quest First off I would like to dedicate this article to one of most underrated rap groups ever, A Tribe Called Quest.  As a youngsta, wanting to be a gangsta, I used to listen to almost every gangsta rap cassette tape available.  Yeah, notice I said cassette tapes which means […]

Luke Gregerson (RP, OAK) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in Deeper Leagues ANALYSIS: The Athletics announced yesterday that Jim Johnson has been removed from the closers role, as his early season struggles have caused concern.  At this point Oakland is saying they will use a closer by committee to replace him, but we are here chasing saves so let's take a look at the […]

5 Setup Men: Waiver Wire Pickups for Holds Leagues

The Holds statistic is a very difficult statistic to rely on. Specialist relievers who get one batter out can earn a hold, and so can an eighth inning setup man expected to be the final part of the bridge to a win. There are a lot of different relievers that will earn holds for a […]

Jonathan Broxton (RP, CIN) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in Deeper Leagues ANALYSIS: Jonathan Broxton was not a name I even expected to mention this MLB season. But with the early injury to incumbent closer Chapman, and the floundering of Hoover, Broxton will take over the closer duties once he is activated from the DL tomorrow. Broxton throws hard and gets a lot of […]

Shawn Kelley (RP, NYY) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add Immediately in All Leagues ANALYSIS: The Yankees places their closer David Robertson on the DL today, and Shawn Kelley got the save against the Orioles. If Kelley is available in your league, he should be picked up off the waiver wire immediately. He looks to be the fill-in closer for the Yankees and will get the […]

Francisco Rodriguez (RP, MIL) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add Immediately in All Leagues ANALYSIS: Francisco Rodriguez, and not projected closer Jim Henderson, got the save today for the Milwaukee Brewers. This comes as a bit of a surprise, as K-Rod was expected to operate as the setup man for the Brewers in 2014. But saves are saves, so if you have room on your team […]

Matt Lindstrom (RP, CWS) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add Immediately in All Leagues ANALYSIS: The big closer news today is that White Sox manager Robin Ventura has decided to go with Matt Lindstrom as the team's closer over Nate Jones. If you play in a league that counts saves, and Lindstrom is still available, stop what you're doing now and go pick […]

Fantasy Baseball Closers and Saves: Week 1 Updates

MLB Closers & Saves: Week 1 Updates Before the season gets into full swing on Monday, I’d like to briefly examine the updated closer news or perhaps give you a closer recap around the league.  There has been a decent amount of news, injuries and updates that need to be mentioned before the season gets […]

Sergio Santos (RP, TOR) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add Immediately in All Leagues ANALYSIS: With the news released today that closer Casey Janssen will start the season on the DL, Toronto's GM Billy Anthopoulos confirmed that Sergio Santos will fill-in as the team's closer until Janssen returns. Steve Delabar may get some looks as well, but keep in mind that Santos was a former closer and racked up 30 […]

Shawn Kelley: Holds Sleeper for 2014 Fantasy Baseball

Reliever Poised to Leap Forward: Shawn Kelley With the retirement of Mariano Rivera, and the eighth-inning setup man David Robertson moving into the pressured role as heir to the greatest closer of all-time, someone will need to move into the eighth-inning setup role. While the role could be open to anyone who will step up […]

Cody Allen (RP, CLE) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in Deeper Leagues or Holds Leagues ANALYSIS: The Cleveland reliever Cody Allen is coming off of a very productive 2013 season, in which he boasted a sub 2.50 ERA and an impressive 11 strikeouts per nine innings. Those numbers have future closer written all over them, but for the time being he will be […]

Top 10 for Holds: 2014 Fantasy Baseball Rankings

Top Ten in Holds for 2014 If a starting pitcher can pitch well enough to maintain a lead, the middle relievers will be given the responsibility of keeping the lead. The hold is a deceptive statistic. It can be obtained any time after the starting pitcher has exited the game as long as they exited […]

J.J. Hoover: Fantasy Baseball Draft Sleeper

After browsing some of the spring training box scores and taking into account the overall makeup of the roster for the Cincinnati Reds, I had narrowed it down to two players that could emerge as potential fantasy baseball sleepers in 2014. Outfielder Roger Bernadina and infielder Chris Nelson were those players, and while I still […]

J.J. Hoover (RP, CIN) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in Deeper Leagues ANALYSIS: The Reds bullpen is a mess right now, and there is no locked in closer slated to start the season. With Aroldis Chapman's recent injury, there is an opening for someone to step up and grab the closer's role. Jonathan Broxton and Sean Marshall are also dealing with their own […]

Joakim Soria (RP, TEX) - Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add Immediately ANALYSIS: Normally we wouldn't add a player to the waiver wire pickups list if they're already 65% owned - but with the recent news that Soria has officially been named the Texas closer over Neftali Feliz, this is a reminder that he needs to be owned in all leagues. If your draft has […]

Chad Qualls (RP, HOU) - Waiver Wire Analysis

BALLER MOVE: Continue Scouting ANALYSIS: We know a few things: the Astros don't have a very good team this year, the Astros won't win many games this year, and the Astros don't have a slam dunk closer lined up.  What we don't know, is who will actually be getting the saves opportunities here in 2014.  Chances are […]

Breakout Closer and Sleeper: Tommy Hunter

  Closer Poised to Leap Forward: Tommy Hunter Jim Johnson and his 101 saves over two seasons are gone, shipped off to Oakland. Grant Balfour didn’t satisfy the health criteria of the Orioles. Thus, the closer role is up for grabs, and a recently converted starter could be poised to make the big step into […]

Top 40 Closers & Relief Pitchers - Rankings, Tiers and Projections

1. “Elite” Tier, aka the Kate Upton Tier Kate Upton embodies all that is amazing about everything. Like these closers, she is, quite simply, the best, in every way. Craig Kimbrel, Kenley Jansen, Greg Holland, Aroldis Chapman, Joe Nathan In some cases but not all, size does matter and yes when I mean size I mean the large amount […]

Sergio Santos: Holds Sleeper for 2014 Fantasy Baseball

  Closer Poised to Leap Forward: Sergio Santos The Toronto Blue Jays bullpen features some talented arms that sometimes go overlooked. Names like Aaron Loup and Brett Cecil are not the first ones to come up when discussing bullpens, but they are the bridge to closer Casey Janssen, and the Toronto 'pen has another possible […]

Top 10 For Saves: 2014 Fantasy Baseball Predictions

I have a very strong opinion about closers in fantasy baseball, and that is they are the most overrated position in the game. Much like defenses in football, closers are very often drafted many rounds too soon. Relievers contribute little to most pitching stats, and there are often plenty of valuable options lower down the […]

Holds Leagues Sleepers: Luis Avilan & David Carpenter

Luis Avilan & David Carpenter With the best current closer in the game, Craig Kimbrel, manning the back of the Atlanta Braves bullpen, the complementary pieces that bridge the starting pitcher’s win to Kimbrel’s seemingly inevitable save are worth a look. Jonny Venters is returning from injury and he will join a pair of relievers that held the […]

3 Overvalued Relief Pitchers: Rankings Analysis

A relief pitcher is constantly living on the edge of success and failure.  One pitch can mean the difference between a good night sleep and a lot of tossing and turning.  Anyone that thinks that the ninth inning is just like any other is not factoring in the rapid heartbeat, adrenaline rush and tighter grip on […]

Three Undervalued Relief Pitchers: 2014 Fantasy Baseball Rankings

Undervalued Relief Pitchers for Fantasy Baseball Drafts Relief pitchers are the most difficult to get a gauge on when it comes to making predictions.  Most position players are going to produce close to their career numbers by the end of the season, but relievers could skyrocket or go south in a hurry. A lot depends […]

Jim Henderson: 2014 Fantasy Baseball Closer

  Jim Henderson's 2014 Fantasy Baseball Outlook Jim Henderson The Milwaukee Brewers have put together a team that, on paper, has a chance to succeed. The onetime face of the franchise, Ryan Braun, needs to repair his reputation, while veteran starting pitcher Matt Garza joins Kyle Lohse and Yovani Gallardo atop the rotation. They will […]