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Fantasy baseball waiver wire pickups for closers, saves, and bullpen arms for Week 18 (2024). David's relief pitcher and bullpen updates, and closers to add.
Not a lot of baseball to talk about this week (the All-Star Game was fun but like...there aren't too many fantasy leagues where it counts.) The second half is coming, and that means the trade deadline is getting closer and closer. If it feels like the first half was more than half, that's because it definitely was: several teams are already approaching their 100th game of the season.
The second half is sure to move quickly, and that July 30th trade deadline is about to get trade rumors swirling across the baseball corner of the internet. In today's article, we'll take a look at our usual waiver pick-ups and bullpen news, but we're also going to talk about the trade deadline and what may be coming up.
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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Sunday Quick Hit Closer Updates
-Jose Alvarado continues to struggle against righties, but Jeff Hoffman is still awesome. At least until/unless the Phillies trade for another reliever, Hoffman is the easy best bet from that bullpen to earn saves.
-Evan Phillips is struggling against lefties and has now allowed four home runs in his past six appearances. Daniel Hudson got the ninth inning against three left handers this weekend.
-The Tigers bullpen seems fluid and should continue to be that way. Jason Foley is probably still most likely to earn saves, but it won't be a consistent source.
-After Saturday's game, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said he was a "long way" from removing Evan Phillips from the closer's role. He went on to give up three runs while only getting one out on Sunday, while Daniel Hudson earned a save.
-Kenley Jansen will not travel with the team to Colorado due to his history with a heart condition. The Red Sox will be playing one player short for the series.
-Devin Williams had another scoreless rehab outing and should be back after two or three more, as long as he stays healthy.
Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Pickups for Saves
Ben Joyce, Los Angeles Angels (Rostered in 4% of leagues)
Angels reliever Ben Joyce makes his second appearance on the recommended pickup list. Last time, he was rostered in just 1% of leagues, so that has already skyrocketed to...4%. Joyce added a new pitch, a "splinker", and has been excellent since its debut. He's still behind Carlos Estevez and Luis Garcia in the bullpen hierarchy, but there's a good chance both of those veteran relievers will be traded, leaving the Angels with a pretty shallow bullpen that will have Joyce at the top.
The Angels have an easy second-half schedule, so they should be able to provide Joyce with a decent number of save chances as they slouch toward the end of another disappointing season. Joyce should be added in all holds leagues right away, and needs to be snatched up immediately as soon as any Angels reliever trade news comes out.
Ben Joyce, FILTH
3Ks using mostly Splinkers, with a Slider & 103 ⛽️ sprinkled in.
The Smile at the end. 😈 pic.twitter.com/NBWyvjgiDK
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) July 14, 2024
Jason Adam, Tampa Bay Rays (Rostered in 43% of leagues)
For the first time in a while, the Rays might be outright sellers at the trade deadline. They're currently 48-48 and have a 1.9% chance to make the playoffs in part due to a tough second-half schedule. Closer Pete Fairbanks still has another year on his contract so the Rays don't have to trade him, but if they find an offer they like, it's hard to see them hold on too tight. In that case, Jason Adam, who is not a free agent until 2027, would step into the closer's role. Adam has been solid all season and would be a guy who should be rostered in all formats if Fairbanks is dealt.
Jason Adam's 3Ks in the 9th. pic.twitter.com/rpZucLmuLe
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) May 14, 2024
More Bullpen and Closer News (Trade Deadline Preview)
With pretty much every National League team still realistically competing for a playoff spot (sorry, Marlins and Rockies, even the Nationals are right there on the edge despite the Hunter Harvey trade), the next week or so will force a lot of teams to decide if they want to buy at the deadline and go for it or sell at the deadline and try again next year.
Miami Marlins
As far as definite sellers, the Marlins are guaranteed to trade closer Tanner Scott. They're 30 games under .500 and Scott will be a free agent after the season. He's been excellent since last season and his two-year stretch has been one of the best in Marlins history for a reliever. He should be one of the prized pieces of the trade deadline, so the Marlins could demand quite a return here, even though he would only be a rental for his new team.
Given the expected cost of acquiring Scott, he will likely close for his new team, so while there's some risk in case he joins a committee or becomes a top-tier setup man, there's also a decent chance his fantasy value will rise once he joins a team that will win more games. Back on the Marlins, either A.J. Puk or Andrew Nardi could step into the closer's role if they aren't traded themselves, in which case it could be Anthony Bender, maybe? The Marlins bullpen will likely be one to avoid after the trade deadline.
Tanner Scott vs. the AL All-Stars:
Anthony Santander flyout
Jarren Duran groundout
Whiffs on both his fastball and slider pic.twitter.com/b2UuIQF95o— Fish On First (@FishOnFirst) July 17, 2024
Los Angeles Angels
As already mentioned above in the Waiver Wire Pickups section, the Angels are almost certain to trade Carlos Estevez and very likely to move Luis Garcia as well, leaving Ben Joyce and his 104 mph fastball in the closer's role for the last few weeks of the season. With his new pitch working well, Joyce has sky-high upside if he makes his way into the ninth inning consistently.
Texas Rangers
The defending World Series champion Texas Rangers haven't had the season they wanted in 2024. They'll come out of the All-Star break with a 46-50 record, five games out of a playoff spot. They do have an easy schedule, especially for the rest of July, so they'll likely wait until the last minute on July 30th to decide whether to buy or sell. If they do choose to sell, they could corner the relief pitching market, as Kirby Yates, Jose Leclerc, and David Robertson could all be dealt.
Yates and Leclerc are both free agents after the season, so if the Rangers sell they'll be gone for sure. Robertson has a mutual option for next year, so he could move as well. For now, the Rangers relievers are all in a holding pattern. Yates likely wouldn't see his value change much, as he'll either continue closing for Texas or close for another team, but the other two could see their roles change significantly depending on where they end up.
Kirby Yates' only other All-Star appearance was in 2019. He didn't get to pitch in the game.
Yates made the most of the opportunity this time around in front of the home crowd. 🔥🔥🔥
(Via @Rangers)pic.twitter.com/l63tNlTbgv
— SportsDay Rangers (@dmn_rangers) July 17, 2024
Chicago White Sox
The White Sox have 27 wins. Just three Phillies starters combined (Aaron Nola, Zack Wheeler, and Ranger Suarez) have 31 wins. In short: the White Sox are going to be trade deadline sellers. John Brebbia and Michael Kopech are their bullpen trade chips, with Brebbia the more likely one to move. Brebbia has a mutual option for next season and Kopech has one more year of arbitration eligibility before reaching free agency in 2026. Brebbia has been more consistent but Kopech has shown much more upside, and his recent stretch of three perfect outings could convince a competing team to take the risk.
How Kopech pitches to open up the second half likely determines if he gets traded. Neither of these two guys is going to close for their potential new teams though, so Brebbia's holds league value could go up, but Kopech's saves league value would be even lower than it already is. Before or after the trade deadline, the White Sox bullpen is one best avoided in most fantasy leagues.
Michael Kopech's Four-Seam Fastball was the Highest Grading tjStuff+ Pitch from yesterday pic.twitter.com/gWqgML2zeM
— Thomas Nestico (@TJStats) May 22, 2024
Short Relief - Other Bullpen News
-Of all the All-Star games in baseball history, this year's was...certainly one of them. Emmanuel Clase ended up with the save, with Mason Miller picking up the win and Cole Ragans, Seth Lugo, and Kirby Yates all earning holds.
-Mason Miller would be part of one of the biggest reliever trades in recent memory if the A's choose to deal him this year. It's unlikely but not impossible, although a trade of Lucas Erceg seems like the more possible route for now.
-Devin Williams was perfect in his first rehab appearance and is getting closer and closer to getting back on the mound for the Brewers. He'll close almost immediately once he's back.
-Hunter Harvey is on the Royals now, and he could push James McArthur for saves based on what manager Matt Quatraro said after the deal. For now, McArthur is still the guy in the ninth and Harvey will settle into the same role he had on the Nationals as the primary setup man/holds guy.
-First-half saves leaders: Ryan Helsley with 32, Emmanuel Clase with 29, Kyle Finnegan with 25, and Craig Kimbrel with 23.
- First half holds leaders: Hunter Harvey and JoJo Romero tied with 26, Andrew Kittredge with 25, and Yennier Cano with 24.
-First-half blown saves leaders: Clay Holmes and Jalen Beeks tied with six, and 11 other guys tied with five each.
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