Scott Alexander Earns First Save Of Season Friday

Los Angeles Dodgers relief pitcher Scott Alexander picked up his first save of the season in Friday's 3-2 game against the Angels. He came on to start the ninth and worked around two hits, allowing no runs with no strikeouts. Kenley Jansen was merely getting the night off, so Alexander should not see many more […]

Indians Discussing Mychal Givens

The Cleveland Indians have discussed relief pitcher Mychal Givens with the Baltimore Orioles, according to a source. The Indians are prioritizing controllable relief pitchers that can pitch multiple innings. Givens isn't the most attractive relief arm, but the Indians need all the help they can get in their beleaguered bullpen with Andrew Miller still injured. […]

Shane Greene Fires Scoreless Inning In Return

Detroit Tigers closer Shane Greene (shoulder) returned from the disabled list on Friday and worked a scoreless inning with two hits and a strikeout, though it was not a save situation. Manager Ron Gardenhire clearly wanted to get Greene some work as quickly as possible with his return to the team, but the Tiger offense couldn't […]

Week 16 Waiver Wire Watch List

The all-star break is almost here, which means we’re getting ever so close to the MLB trade deadline and, of course, the fantasy trade deadline. The waiver wire can play just as important a role, too. Whether you’re unable to strike a deal or need to backfill your roster after completing a two-for-one trade, it’s […]

Keone Kela Grabs 23rd Save Friday

Texas Rangers closer Keone Kela locked down his 23rd save of the season on Friday. Considering he is the closer on a team which has won just 41 games this is an impressive return so far from Kela. Kela has been relatively under the radar this season partly because of playing on a bad team but […]

Pat Neshek Records First Save Of 2018

The bullpen carousel of the Philadelphia Phillies took another turn on Friday night, as manager Gabe Kapler went to yet another reliever to secure a save. This time it was up to Pat Neshek to close out a tight, two-run lead. Neshek, who made his season debut at the beginning of this month, retired the […]

Phillies Could Trade For Manny Machado And Zach Britton

The Philadelphia Phillies increased their offer to the Baltimore Orioles for shortstop Manny Machado on Friday, but it's unclear what exactly they are offering. If they do a deal including both Machado and closer Zach Britton, they'll have to pay a higher price in talent. Philadelphia is reluctant to part with their top prospect, Sixto […]

Cody Allen Allows a Run but Picks Up a Save on Friday

Cleveland Indians closer Cody Allen allowed a run on two hits and a walk on Friday, but picked up his 19th save of the season. His ERA moved to 4.78 and while he has had some concerning slumps this season, he's also had some strong hot streaks. He's a decent buy-low candidate, but there's always […]

Sean Doolittle Playing Catch Friday

Washington Nationals closer Sean Doolittle (foot) is wearing cleats and playing catch on Friday. Doolittle is on the disabled list with a pinched nerve in his foot but should be ready to rejoin the team for the start of the second half of the season. The southpaw has been one of the best closers in […]

Aroldis Chapman Won't Pitch In All-Star Game

New York Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman (knee) will not pitch in the All-Star game next week and is hoping to get some extra rest for his left knee. However, he will be available Friday night. Chapman had a slight knee scare last week but is fine and recorded a save for the Yanks on Thursday. […]

Luke Gregerson Back From DL, Luke Weaver Sent Down

St. Louis Cardinals relief pitcher Luke Gregerson (knee) was activated from the 10-day disabled list on Friday, and starting pitcher Luke Weaver was optioned to Triple-A Memphis. Also, reliever Tyler Lyons (elbow) was activated from the DL and John Brebbia was sent to Memphis. Gregerson has thrown only 8 1/3 innings this year due to […]

Fernando Rodney Earns 21st Save On Thursday

Minnesota Twins closer Fernando Rodney secured his 21st save of the season, closing out a 5-1 Twins victory on Thursday. Rodney came in the ninth inning after reliever Ryan Pressly loaded the bases. Rodney then induced a ground ball out at home, and then the veteran struck out Matt Duffy to end the game. Rodney […]

Kenley Jansen Notches 26th Save Of Season Thursday

Los Angeles Dodgers closer Kenley Jansen was at it again Thursday, earning his 26th save (third-most in baseball) of the season in a 3-2 game against the Padres. Jansen entered for the ninth inning up by a run and shut the door, allowing no runs on no hits and a walk with a strikeout. The […]

Sergio Romo (RP, TB) - Week 16 Waiver Wire Pickups

BALLER MOVE: Add in All Leagues OWNED IN: 48% of leagues ANALYSIS: Tampa Bay Rays relief pitcher Sergio Romo has been a man of many talents this season, pitching as a starter, middle reliever, and closer for Tampa Bay. Since moving into the closer's role, after the trade of Alex Colome, Romo has turned into […]

Holds Leagues - Waiver Wire Pickups and Adds for Week 16

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 16. One-inning middle relievers are the constant sources for holds and specialists can manage to secure a hold even with one out. However, while specialists can get many […]

Week 16 MLB Closers and Saves Report

Another mostly quiet week in bullpens around baseball, leading up to what is sure to be a wild trade deadline in a couple of weeks. A big name closer said a big word and got himself sent to the minors. A guy who was a closer very recently is a closer again due to an […]

Week 16 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 […]

Aroldis Chapman Gets 25th Save Thursday

New York Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman notched his 25th save of the season Thursday against the Cleveland Indians. He struck out Rajai Davis, then got Yan Gomes to pop out and Brandon Guyer to groundout to secure the win for the Yankees. Chapman has 67 strikeouts to 15 walks. He is still one of the best […]

Seranthony Dominguez Back In Ninth Inning, Earns Save

After Philadelphia Phillies relief pitcher Victor Arano spent a week as the main closer, manager Gabe Kapler called on Seranthony Dominguez to once again assume that role. The 23-year-old initially took over the job by force, making 12 consecutive scoreless outings to begin his career. On Thursday, he entered with a one-run lead intact and tossed […]

Andrew Miller To Throw Batting Practice Saturday

Cleveland Indians relief pitcher Andrew Miller (knee) will throw live batting practice against minor league hitters on Saturday. Miller hasn't been himself this year and has been out since May 25, but the Indians beleaguered bullpen could certainly use him back in the second half. Miller might not get many save chances with Cody Allen […]

Marco Estrada To Miss Weekend Start; Sam Gaviglio An Option

Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher Marco Estrada (hip, gluteus) will miss another start, this time during a series with the Boston Red Sox the weekend before the All-Star break. Estrada has been day-to-day with a mild glute strain, though he has not been placed on the disabled list as of yet. Estrada owners waiting for […]

Ryan Tepera Expected To Return Right After All-Star Break

Toronto Blue Jays relief pitcher Ryan Tepera (elbow) is expected to return to the team shortly after the All-Star break. Tepera went down on June 30 with inflammation in his right elbow. He threw another successful bullpen session on Thursday and will make a rehab appearance this weekend. Before the injury, Tepera performed admirably in […]

Darren O’Day Out For Season After Hamstring Surgery

Baltimore Orioles relief pitcher Darren O'Day (hamstring) had surgery on Thursday and is officially out for the season. He’d been on the disabled list since June 27 with a Grade 2 hamstring strain. Before the injury, O’Day had a 3.60 ERA. O’Day is safe to drop from all formats, save for players in deep dynasty […]

Burch Smith Takes No-Decision In First Start

Kansas City Royals pitcher Burch Smith made his first major league start in five years on Wednesday, and he was rewarded by watching his bullpen blow a lead. After 3 1/3 innings for Smith, he exited the game with two runners on so reliever Glenn Sparkman could work out of the jam. Instead, Sparkman allowed […]

Mike Dunn Receiving Injection For AC Joint

Colorado Rockies relief pitcher Mike Dunn is scheduled to receive a platelet-rich injection on Thursday in hopes of helping his inflamed AC joint. The injury was suffered almost immediately upon his return from the disabled list in late June, and he told reporters that the injection is really the best bet for him to get […]

Jerry Vasto Demoted To Triple-A

Colorado Rockies relief pitcher Jerry Vasto made it to the majors, but that's about all he can say. Vasto had been in the Rockies bullpen for weeks, but he only made one appearance and it was atrocious. Vasto was blown up by the Diamondbacks in early June, and he never pitched again. With Bryan Shaw […]

Bryan Shaw Activated, Finishes Blowout

The Colorado Rockies activated relief pitcher Bryan Shaw from the disabled list on Wednesday, and he got his first refresher in major league pitching right away as he was called upon to get the final three outs of a 19-2 destruction of the Diamondbacks. Shaw had been sidelined since June 24 with a strained calf, […]

Phillies Interested In Zach Britton

The Philadelphia Phillies are interested in Orioles closer Zach Britton and have spoken about him with Orioles officials, according to a major league source. The Phils also like shortstop Manny Machado, but at the moment they find Baltimore's asking price for him to be too steep. Philadelphia's best shot at landing Machado might come in […]

Rookie Report: Recent MLB Prospect Call-Ups (Week 15)

I'm glad I led off last week's article with Kyle Tucker because the Astros made me look great. They called him up this past weekend and it looks like it's going to take a small adjustment period for Tucker to get adjusted to MLB pitching. We'll get to that later. The calendar turning to July seems […]

Jose Alvarado Out Until After All-Star Break

Tampa Bay Rays relief pitcher Jose Alvarado has left the team due to a family emergency. There are not a lot of details being given but the word is that he is out until at least after the All-Star break. It is clear that the Rays are willing to use Alvarado as a closer when […]