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 […]

Rookie Report: Recent MLB Prospect Call-Ups (Week 18)

The calendar has turned to August and we still have yet to see some of the big-name prospects that were expected to come up this season. Yes, Kyle Tucker, Willie Calhoun, Juan Soto, and Willy Adames have all made their debuts this season but I seriously doubt that we will see any more of the […]

MLB Trade Deadline: Analysis and Fantasy Implications

The 2018 version of the MLB Trade Deadline was one of the most memorable in recent years. With players being dealt left and right, multiple teams around the league have changed the identity of their franchise for the present and future. With so much movement going on, the fantasy baseball landscape has taken a major […]

Hunter Wood To Start Thursday

Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Hunter Wood will start on Thursday against the Angels, with reliever Jalen Beeks following him. The Rays will go with another bullpen game. Wood has a 3.38 ERA, 1.45 WHIP and 10.1 K/9 in 11 games (three starts), but he won't go deep enough in this game to be a fantasy […]

Greg Holland Released

The St. Louis Cardinals released relief pitcher Greg Holland on Wednesday after they were unable to find a trade partner for him. The team designated Holland for assignment earlier this week after he posted an atrocious 7.92 ERA, 2.24 WHIP and 22 strikeouts in 25 innings for the Red Birds this year. He's likely to […]

Brandon Kintzler Added to Roster, Randy Rosario Optioned

Chicago Cubs relief pitcher Brandon Kintzler has been added to the 25-man roster on Wednesday. In a corresponding move, the Cubs have optioned relief pitcher Randy Rosario to Triple-A Iowa. Kintzler was acquired by the Cubs on Tuesday and should see plenty of high leverage situations in Chicago. Brandon Morrow (biceps) is still sidelined, which […]

Jason Hammel The Next Wade Davis?

The Kansas City Royals have a history of success in converting starting pitchers to relievers, and it looks like Jason Hammel may be next. Hammel was sent to the bullpen on July 8 with a 6.16 ERA, and he's pitched eight innings in short relief since then. Over that period, he's posted a 3.38 ERA […]

Wily Peralta Walks Tight Rope To Sixth Save

Kansas City Royals closer Wily Peralta shut the door on his sixth save on Tuesday, but he just won't stop walking people. Peralta walked two on Tuesday, giving him 11 walks in 14 1/3 innings pitched. Granted, three of those were from his very first outing, but he's still walked three batters in his last […]

Shane Greene Records Save Against Reds

Detroit Tigers closer Shane Greene shut the door on the Cincinnati Reds on Wednesday afternoon, doing his part in the 7-4 victory. The save was his 23rd of the year, and he also recorded one strikeout and one walk in the process. Greene now has a 4.11 ERA, but still ranks among the top fantasy […]

Fernando Rodney Gives Up A Run In Loss On Wednesday

Minnesota Twins closer Fernando Rodney allowed the final run on Wednesday against the Cleveland Indians that would go on to be enough for a Twins loss. After the Twins offense was completely shut down by Indians starter Carlos Carrasco, Rodney came into the game in the ninth inning to try and keep the score at […]