Projecting Rest of Season Top 10 Closers in 2026 Fantasy Baseball (July Update)

July 8, 2026

Dan Palyo projects which 10 closers will finish the season in the top 10 for the 2026 fantasy baseball season as we head into Week 15 of MLB action.

It's that time again, friends. Time to re-evaluate the closer landscape in fantasy baseball, that is. Every month, I update the current top-ten list of closers and speculate as to how that list may change by the season's end.

With many teams lacking an established closer entirely, we are seeing plenty of "bullpen-by-committee" approaches, making the closers who do have some job security and are producing saves and solid ratios that much more valuable!

So, which closers do we expect to finish in the top 10 by the end of the season? Let's start by looking at the current top 10 closers as of today, July 8.

Current Top 10 Closers for Fantasy Baseball

Here are the top 10 most valuable starting pitchers in 5x5 roto leagues right now, according to Yahoo's player rankings. All stats were current through Monday, July 6.

No surprise here that Mason Miller still tops the leaderboard, though you could argue that the field is slowly starting to narrow the gap on the top closer in the game. It's still hard to imagine anyone passing him up by season's end.

Louis Varland has been able to stick around near the top of the rankings despite the Blue Jays falling on hard times. His strikeouts and elite ratios have made up for his saves slowing down.

Louis Varland, Wicked Knuckle Curves. 🤢 pic.twitter.com/aPWCewyGjE

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) June 30, 2026

I am a bit of a sucker for a closer with a bad-ass curveball instead of a slider, and Varland's is filthy, especially when paired with his fastball up in the zone. He's been a really fun player to watch emerge and pretty clearly has the keys as the Jays' closer, with Jeff Hoffman being relegated to a seventh or eighth inning role.

Over the last month, Jacob Latz has tied with Josh Hader for the most saves in MLB with nine. It's honestly been one of the coolest stories in baseball as Latz came into the year trying to compete for a spot in the rotation after starting eight games last season and ended up transforming into an elite closer.

Jacob Latz is officially an All-Star for the first time after emerging as one of the most dominant relievers in baseball.

The Rangers' lefty owns a sparkling 1.71 ERA, 0.62 WHIP, and 28.3% strikeout rate while giving hitters virtually nothing all season. pic.twitter.com/ufWIdENz9K

— Pitch Profiler (@pitchprofiler) July 6, 2026

Bryan Baker has saved eight games over the last month and continues to benefit from pitching behind a fantastic starting pitching staff. It certainly helps that the Rays offense is firing on all cylinders right now, too, with Junior Caminero going on a crazy home run binge of his own. The Rays are truly a tremendous story this year, and a bona fide pitching factory when you consider what they have done with Griffin Jax and Ian Seymour lately.

Cade Smith drops down the rankings a bit this month, as he had a 3.09 ERA last month and has seen his Guardians team really struggle offensively, creating fewer save opportunities. He's still really good and has a legitimate shot to lead all closers in saves when it's all said and done.

As I predicted last month, Jhoan Duran is rising in the rankings as the Phillies have started playing better baseball. He's still as unhittable as he's been in the past, and a good bet to keep it going the rest of the year if he's healthy.

For the first time in his career, Jhoan Duran is an All-Star! ⭐ pic.twitter.com/mKE6inQ3p2

— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) July 4, 2026

Tanner Scott has worked his way into the mix with a strong month of June. The big issue with Scott is that he could eventually lose the job to Edwin Diaz, or at least have to share the closer role with him, which caps his upside.

Riley O'Brien is still clinging to the eighth spot in the rankings, but he has slowed down considerably. The saves are still there, but the ERA is pushing towards 4.00, which is simply unacceptable from a closer. The good news is that he still doesn't seem to have anyone pushing him as far as competition for the job goes.

Welcome back, Josh Hader! He wasted no time in reaching the top ten as he's looked absolutely dominant since returning to the team. I am pushing up the season-long ranks as well, based on his excellent performance, as he's shown no ill effects of the injury that caused him to miss the first two months of the season.

Projected Top 10 Closers for Fantasy Baseball

When we factor in the remaining schedule and adjust for some expected regression, we end up with this list - my prediction for which relief pitchers finish as the top 10 closers by the end of the season.

I don't have too much of a shake-up near the top of the ranks going forward, other than Hader jumping a few spots. I do like Raisel Iglesias's outlook as well, as he's looked about as sharp as we've seen him in a few years this season. I have Latz falling a few spots, but mainly because I don't think he finishes with the volume of saves that he'll need to hold off other high-end closers like Hader, Duren, and Smith.

I have to push Trevor Megill up into the top ten going forward based on his strong performance in June. He has 17 strikeouts in his last 13 innings pitched, locking down six saves in the process and holding off Abner Uribe for closing duties.

Trevor Megill, Hammers. 🔨🔨 pic.twitter.com/20Udo1L5ul

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) July 7, 2026

The Brewers are just so good. They continue to get excellent starting pitching and have more than enough hitting to support their current win rate. Megill should continue to see ample save opportunities and appears to be rounding into top form at just the right time.

I have been hesitant about David Bednar, but you can't argue with his recent results as the Yankees' closer. He's quieted the critics with a stellar run lately and has held off any competition for the job.

David Bednar, K'ing the Side in the 9th...and Sword ⚔️ pic.twitter.com/FShUTPmNML

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) July 4, 2026

Even with the Yankees struggling lately, this is still a club that is going to create more than enough save situations for Bednar going forward. As long as they don't bring in another closer at the deadline, I think Bednar finishes the year as the Yankees' closer and pushes for 30 saves.

Paul Sewald probably still deserves an honorable mention here as he's cracked 20 saves, but that 4.50 ERA is hard to stomach for the ratios. Gregory Soto is a major faller this month, and I will admit that I was very wrong about him. Pittsburgh badly needs a closer, and I am not sure Mason Montgomery is really up for the challenge, so don't be surprised if they go after Aroldis Chapman or another arm before the deadline.

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