Saves+Holds Fantasy Baseball Rankings (SV+HLD): Top 150 Relief Pitchers for 2026

February 26, 2026

Nick Mariano's top 150 fantasy baseball saves+holds (SV+HLD) rankings for closers and relief pitchers. His tiered rankings for 2026 Saves+Holds leagues (SOLDS).

Welcome to our Saves+Holds fantasy baseball rankings (SV+HLD or SOLDS) for the top 150 relief pitchers and the 2026 season. Traditional fantasy baseball bullpen content is hyperfixated on saves, with most only concerned with who gets the ninth inning. Therefore, Saves+Holds reliever ranks can be an afterthought, but we love having a reason to dig into fantasy baseball bullpens. My last name is Mariano, meaning I was built for this!

The closer's role remains a premier spot, but some bullpens will deploy the most talented arm in an earlier high-leverage spot as a fireman. Saves+Holds (or Solds, or SV+HLD) leagues help fantasy leagues reward the best arms, and we'll also give a boost to those who rack up the strikeouts (it is a factor in most formats). Be sure to also check out our constantly updated fantasy baseball closers and saves depth charts to get more bullpen insights and running updates on reliever news.

Reminder: A hold is recorded when a relief pitcher enters with a lead of three runs or less or with the tying run on deck, at the plate, or on base and maintains that lead while recording at least one out. Read on, and you'll see where I rank each player and what tier they're in, followed by a team-by-team bullpen overview. Strikeout rates, pristine ratios, job security, and projected saves+holds are the primary factors, with injured arms largely omitted due to variance.

2026 Saves+Holds Rankings: Top 150 Relief Pitchers

These rankings are for roto leagues (5x5 category leagues) -- but instead of Saves, we use Saves+Holds as a pitching category. These are for the top 150 relief pitchers. Please bear in mind that this is an initial January cut, and will be updated continuously through Opening Day and all season long.

Rankings updated as of March 15, 2026

Team-by-Team Saves+Holds Rankings Analysis

Arizona: There’s no question that losing both Justin Martinez and A.J. Puk to elbow injuries is a brutal runout for the D-Backs, but the show must go on. Perhaps they make a later midseason return, but we won’t count on that come draft day.

This leaves us with a committee with Kevin Ginkel, who is expected back from his right shoulder sprain, Andrew Saalfrank, a southpaw without putaway stuff, and Ryan Thompson. The latter led the remaining arms with 18 solds last year, posting a solid 3.92 ERA and modest 20.6% K rate.

Otherwise, perhaps Taylor Clarke’s mid-90s stuff will elevate after he posted a career-best 3.25 ERA/0.85 WHIP last year for Kansas City. He’d missed all of 2024 and relied on more offspeed stuff, but doesn’t have hefty Ks.

Drey Jameson is the sneaky X-factor. The fireballer missed 2024 due to Tommy John surgery and much of ‘25 due to the TJS recovery and a bone spur, but he’s already hit 99 mph at the Arizona Fall League. He could easily wind up as the most effective reliever of the lot. We'll also see how the oft-injured Jonathan Loaisiga looks this spring.

Another saves spec for you:

Drey Jameson

Came back from injury hitting 99 MPH for the D-Backs.

The backend of that bullpen is extremely weak with A.J. Puk and Justin Martinez injured.

— Frank Ammirante (@FAmmiranteTFJ) January 23, 2026

Athletics: The vacuum left by the Mason Miller trade has no clear answer, but the SV+HLD format is more forgiving on that front. For now, it looks like Hogan Harris, Mark Leiter Jr., and Justin Sterner are in the best position to get high leverage.

Harris is a lefty and a converted starter who worked around an 11.9% walk rate to post a 3.20 ERA (4.37 xFIP, 4.19 SIERA), which isn’t that exciting. Leiter was a strikeout machine in 2024 (33.6%), but faced tough luck in the Bronx last year alongside depressed whiffs (24.7% K%, 4.84 ERA, 3.44 SIERA).

Sterner was stuck in Tampa Bay’s system until joining the A’s last year, when he boasted a healthy 26.3% K rate, 3.18 ERA (3.47 SIERA), and 1.05 WHIP. Zoom in on the second half, and you’ll find a superior 2.64 ERA with a 35:6 K:BB and a lowly .185 batting average against. He’s the “fun” one, with Leiter being the steady veteran of the bunch.

Atlanta: The Braves re-signed Raisel Iglesias to a one-year, $16 million deal in late November before making a splash by bringing Robert Suarez in. This format will almost surely see Suarez drafted ahead of Iglesias, whose slider kept getting demolished early on.

But for those wondering why Suarez is still setting up, Iglesias only allowed one run over his final 27 appearances (27:6 K:BB). Both are solid buys in 2026. And then Dylan Lee is the key left-hander who produced 21 solds last year, while Tyler Kinley became a beast after severing his Coors Field ties.

It took him a few games to adjust, but then Kinley allowed one run over his last 22 ⅓ IP. If all of these guys do their job, then it’ll be intriguing to see where Joe Jimenez slots in when available. One wonders if a swap to the bullpen will help prospect Jhancarlos Lara harness his electricity, as the 23-year-old just posted a 104:65 K:BB in 68 ⅔ IP between Double- and Triple-A.

Baltimore: Felix Bautista is out for most, if not all, of the 2026 season. This ushered in the signing of Ryan Helsley, who should quickly prove that he’s left the pitch-tipping issue in Queens. Ancillary arms such as Rico Garcia and Kade Strowd offer intrigue, but the key setup men will be Keegan Akin and Andrew Kittredge.

Akin enjoyed parallel success against both lefties and righties in 2024, but left-handed batters got to him in ‘25 (.815 OPS, .671 vs. RHB). It’s likely a blip, but his 3.41 ERA had an ugly 4.94 FIP/4.44 SIERA underneath the hood.

Kittredge is my preferred target after a career-high 30.8% strikeout rate, but things hit another level in the second half. He was dealt to the Cubs at the deadline and found another gear, which better not disappear upon returning to Baltimore. After the All-Star break, his 33.6% K-BB% and 1.74 SIERA trailed only Mason Miller among 182 RPs with at least 20 IP.

If they run into trouble, then perhaps they call up Tyson Neighbors? He came over in the trade for Ramon Laureano and Ryan O’Hearn, recording a 36.4% strikeout rate with a 1.53 ERA over 59 frames. If he gets more confident throwing strikes to start at-bats, then he could take off.

Boston: Aroldis Chapman had his best season in a decade at the ripe age of 37, improving his locating while trading off some sliders for sinkers. You know you’re getting an elite arm there. Garrett Whitlock stayed healthy and surged to a 31.1% strikeout rate after never surpassing 27.5% before, so we’re dancing there.

Justin Slaten and Greg Weissert are worth a long look for the later frames, as there’s little else to lean on unless you’re a Jordan Hicks truther. Of course, if anyone like Payton Tolle, Connelly Early, or David Sandlin moves into a relief role that gets holds and not just long stints, then you’re moving fast. One doubts they move Christian Foutch through the system in time for a late ‘26 MLB debut.

Chicago (AL): There were recent questions of whether Jordan Leasure or Grant Taylor would get the ninth, but that’s been put to rest with a two-year signing of Seranthony Dominguez to be the closer. He’ll wind up with the best SV+HLD chances as a result, but all three can bring the heat, with Taylor posting the best WAR, strikeout and walk numbers, even with the worst ERA and a gaudy .420 BABIP.

There was a brief thought that Taylor would return to starting moving forward, but general manager Chris Getz said it's likely that Taylor is a multi-inning reliever. If the whiffs and overall command hold up while he runs into better luck and hits more corners, then we could be cooking.

Leasure flambed the competition with the seventh-best strikeout rate (38%) of the final two months, just edging out Edwin Diaz. Opponents only hit .118 against him as well, so it wasn’t just Ks in between hard contact. Folks will almost surely undervalue these ChiSox based on team reputation and these stat funnies that obscure the real picture.

Chicago (NL): The Cubbies appear poised to roll Daniel Palencia’s heat out as the closer, though they brought in Hunter Harvey and Phil Maton as veteran RPs. Caleb Thielbar will soak up the left-handed holds alongside Hoby Milner, but both will probably drag down your team’s K/9.

And then Hodge is a wild card. He was lights out as a rookie, but clearly overperformed against his sabermetric profile. And his second year saw the pendulum come crashing back, as his ERA soared by over four runs (1.88 to 6.27) even with his SIERA rising only 58 points. The truth surely lies somewhere in the middle, but that woeful 2.45 HR/9 needs to calm down.

For now, we’ll target Palencia and Maton, with Harvey as a sneaky play if he looks healthy come springtime.

Cincinnati: Pagan was a revelation for Cincy last year with his 32 saves and 2.88 ERA, and they’re happily running it back. Those who doubted him throughout the 2025 campaign will surely be circling the likes of Tony Santillan and Graham Ashcraft on the boards.

I am not giving up on Luis Mey’s elite velocity either. The tertiary group contains guys like Brock Burke and Pierce Johnson, with Burke looking like the ranking southpaw, so 25 holds isn’t out of the question.

Cleveland: The Guardians will almost surely be without Emmanuel Clase thanks to the betting scandal, which elevates Cade Smith into the elite tier of closers. He got tagged on the day that the suspension was announced, but went 6-1 with 13 saves and a robust 39:2 K:BB in 28 ⅔ IP from July 30 on.

His overall 16 saves and 19 holds made him a solds superstar, with a glistening 1.95 FIP and 2.32 SIERA behind the 2.93 ERA. He didn't need the promotion for this format, but it further cements his spot on the totem pole. The Guardians lead MLB with 327 solds in the last two years, just edging the Dodgers (321). You want to lean on their approach.

And while Hunter Gaddis rightfully gets plenty of shine beyond Smith, I should point out that Smith’s top-12 34.7% strikeout rate was tied by teammate Erik Sabrowski. The lefty had it come with an ugly 17.4% walk rate, and yet he still posted a 1.19 WHIP with 12 holds over 29 ⅓ IP. Being tough to handle can work, as long as your catcher has some edge over the batter, hah. Always key in on the best left-hander here.

They also picked up Shawn Armstrong, who had a 2.31 ERA (3.02 xERA) with a steady diet of sweepers thrown into his four-pitch arsenal. He uses all four pitches between 23-29% of the time and should slide nicely onto a team that isn’t afraid to lean on its ‘pen. Andrew Walters largely missed 2025 due to a lat injury, but has dominated the minors in between IL stints, logging 102 Ks in 62 ⅓ IP on the farm.

Colorado: Surely, you have better options than a Rockies reliever? Yes, Victor Vodnik looks like the closer, but are you eating that 1.40 WHIP and 8.7 K/9? Seth Halvorsen’s 1.56 WHIP and overall control are tough to trust.

Juan Mejia and Jimmy Herget were the best RPs, but trusting a lesser solds-eligible usage rate while dancing with altitude is frightful. True dreamers can hope for Welington Herrera’s promotion. He’s a lefty who put up a 3.50 ERA/1.29 WHIP/34.3% K rate/25% K-BB rate after reaching Double-A.

Detroit: We went from Will Vest looking like the standalone anchor in Detroit before they brought Kyle Finnegan back, and then the two-horse stable quickly expanded to three with Kenley Jansen’s signing. The future Hall of Famer posted a career-low 24.4% K rate, but a .195 BABIP led to a 0.95 WHIP (thanks, sky-high 59% fly-ball rate).

Assuming he chugs along to roughly 30-35 save opportunities, Vest and Finnegan, who Detroit improved through higher splitter usage, could see about 25 solds each next to strong numbers. Tyler Holton notched six wins with 17 holds as the primary left-hander. I doubt many will have to dig down to Brenan Hanifee or Brant Hurter, though both are solid arms.

Houston: We still don’t have a clear picture of where Josh Hader’s shoulder capsule strain recovery is, but not requiring surgery is a big step. He made seven appearances beyond three outs, which may scale back in ‘26 to protect his age-32 arm. We’re not too worried about giving up eight homers, but it can’t be ignored.

One of the biggest solds risers is Bryan Abreu, who holds a trusted role across the late frames. He’s topped 70 innings and 100 Ks in three straight years, which gives him the most Ks as a reliever in that window. And only Tyler Holton and Tyler Rogers have thrown more innings as RP, too.

Bryan King is the lefty setup man, while both Enyel De Los Santos and Nate Pearson are more volatile but have the velocity to become studs down the line. Alimber Santa, Hudson Leach, and Michael Knorr all have K upside but must refine their control in the minors before getting leverage looks.

Kansas City: Carlos Estevez whelmed with his metrics, logging a 4.95 xFIP and 4.43 SIERA that were practically double the 2.45 ERA. But you’ll stomach the subpar 54 Ks in 66 IP when it comes with 42 saves!

If the bottom falls out, then Lucas Erceg and Matt Strahm both have experience in the ninth. Erceg had 24 solds with a 52.8% groundball rate, but finished 2025 with shoulder impingement (he should be okay). Strahm has been an elite reliever in Philly for the last three years and should surpass 25 solds as the only big lefty for the Royals.

James McArthur should eventually return to action after requiring Tommy John surgery and missing all of 2025. And A.J. Causey is the prospect to watch, but he’s unlikely to make an early impact.

LA Angels: A trio of signings has made this an extremely intriguing bullpen. We went from worrying whether Robert Stephenson would be healthy as Ben Joyce rehabs from his torn labrum to now having Kirby Yates, Drew Pomeranz, and Jordan Romano in the wings. Stephenson was so good before injury hit, and is in the early conversation to close in 2026.

Yates was an amazing closer for the Rangers in '24, but lost his gains for the Dodgers last year amidst hamstring and back injuries. I must say that before hurting his hammy, he had a 2.95 ERA, 1.09 WHIP, and an eye-popping 31:5 K:BB in 18 1/3 IP. That 41.3% K rate was second to Mason Miller during that span, so he could wind up being a steal for drafters if healthy throughout his age-39 campaign.

LA Dodgers: The reigning champions pushed through a 4.27 ERA from their bullpen, which inspired them to pony up and secure Edwin Diaz to lock down the ninth inning. The team had 46 total saves, and now the lion’s share goes to Diaz as a top solds arm.

Tanner Scott created much of the turbulence with his 4.74 ERA and still saw 31 solds. He should remain the key lefty, though Alex Vesia had 30 solds of his own with an ERA nearly two runs lower and 20 more strikeouts in just three more frames. Allegiance is one thing, but Vesia could leapfrog with ease if the 2025 form plays out again.

Players such as Blake Treinen, Edgardo Henriquez, or even prospect Ronan Kopp will make an impact. Bobby Miller may play up with the flamethrower as a reliever as well. Anthony Banda, Brusdar Graterol, Will Klein, and Ben Casparius are all capable arms not to be overlooked, but the fantasy appeal is lower, even with LAD’s winning ways.

Miami: This writer is heartbroken that Ronny Henriquez is out for 2026, but we press on after the signing of Pete Fairbanks stabilized the ninth inning. We’d been preparing for a committee, but now they become the bridge to Fairbanks. That is Calvin Faucher, Anthony Bender, Tyler Phillips, and Cade Gibson on paper.

While that quartet did well on the diamond, nearly all had a FIP that was a run or higher than the shinier ERA. None had a strikeout per inning either. If you want to try to corner some cheaper solds then Faucher and Bender are good bets.

Andrew Nardi and prospect Josh White are more fun, however. Nardi’s 2024 season ended prematurely due to an elbow injury, and then lower back inflammation persisted throughout 2025. If healthy, he has a career 31.5% K rate to offer. White crushed both Double- and Triple-A last year, cruising to a 10-1 record with 10 solds, a 1.86 ERA (1.65 FIP), 0.92 WHIP, and 40.8% K rate with an impressive 8.8% walk rate.

Those needing a reference point can absorb that White’s K rate was the second best in the minors, sitting between Trey Yesavage and Jonah Tong. No one had a better K-BB rate, as he bested Chase Burns’ 31.4% mark. It’s right to weigh RP vs. SP work, but no other reliever was up there. Let’s hope he starts hot and that it is rewarded with holds in high leverage.

Do you ever just look at Josh White's Prospect Savant page pic.twitter.com/lCbAMhDEiS

— Forever Marlins (@ForeverMarlins) November 30, 2025

Milwaukee: Solds players will not have to hinge their plans on who will close between Trevor Megill and Abner Uribe. Both have to be highlighted on draft boards as premier options, with Uribe owning the slight advantage with the whiffs. But Megill is steadier as a vet, and he’ll be a late-inning presence no matter where he’s traded to (if that’s his fate).

For now, the Brew Crew is rocking a ship full of southpaws beyond those two at the top. Beyond Grant Anderson (not a target), Jared Koenig, Aaron Ashby, Angel Zerpa, and DL Hall are at the ready. Koenig is one of the best setup men around, and Ashby boasts great whiffs and an elite 62% groundball rate.

Craig Yoho still has a bright future ahead of him. He scuffled with seven runs on eight hits and nine walks over 8 ⅔ IP in the bigs, but still held a 0.94 ERA/0.97 WHIP over 47 ⅔ IP at Triple-A. Let’s see how his spring goes, but there won’t be room for many solds with Megill, Uribe, Koenig, and Ashby up top.

Minnesota: The Twins just signed Taylor Rogers and his 83 career saves to a one-year deal worth $2 million. That’s not outright closer money, but the bar is low alongside Justin Topa, Cole Sands, and Kody Funderburk. None of them had an ERA below 3.50 or had a strikeout rate north of 22%.

Rogers will not stay in the circle of trust if he continues a recent trend of losing Ks and gaining BBs. If he can finally unlock another level of command to handle Triple-A, Connor Prielipp could force his way into the conversation.

New York (AL): Late leads in the Bronx are now in the hands of David Bednar, Camilo Doval, and Fernando Cruz, with Tim Hill coming off of 15 holds and a 3.09 ERA (but 13.8% K rate).  I must reiterate that I understand some can work around low K/9 output, but many must compensate elsewhere to stay competitive.

We’ve seen all three of those bigger names endure roller-coaster periods, with Bednar and Doval each receiving breaks from closing (and the majors, in Bednar’s case) to reset. Cruz has faced command woes, but the Yanks had him up the splitter usage and nearly halve the four-seam rate. Similarly, they pulled back on Doval’s slider for the sinker. Let’s see if the levers pulled work out in ‘26.

New York (NL): Both Devin Williams and Luke Weaver have taken their talents across The Big Apple, hoping to shed the iffy 2025 season seen with the Yankees. Williams is 31 and has a long track record to fall on, while Weaver had a clear pre- and post-injury split that keeps hope alive.

Then A.J. Minter and Brooks Raley are the left-handers to pitch in key spots. It’s unlikely we get either Dedniel Nunez or Reed Garrett in 2026, as both recover from TJS. Dylan Ross is the prospect to circle on the 40-man roster thanks to an overpowering fastball. If he develops the secondaries and cuts down the walks, he could blossom into a fantasy-relevant force.

Philadelphia: Jhoan Duran headlines the four horsemen for Philly, closing after the likes of Jose Alvarado, Brad Keller, and Orion Kerkering handle the middle frames. Duran is well established, so let’s move along. Alvarado was handed an 80-game PED suspension in mid-May and then struggled upon returning, only to be forced out with a forearm injury in September.

This may put more pressure on Tanner Banks to step up if Alvarado doesn’t recover his form. Let’s see what the spring velocity reports yield. Orion Kerkering must also look like himself after the error that ended their season, but he also had a nasty 1.37 WHIP (10% walk rate) with fewer whiffs.

The best of the rest may very well be Keller, who took well to the bullpen in Chicago last year. His fastball averaged around 94 mph as a starter and jumped above 97 in the ‘pen, with his sweeper whiff rate soaring from 27% in ‘24 to 46% last year. Netting 30 solds with plus ratios and Ks would be beautiful.

Pittsburgh: Dennis Santana didn’t have a markedly better year than 2024 when looking at the metrics, but his ERA was basically cut in half (3.89 to 2.18) with a 0.87 WHIP. He’d had a BABIP between .280 and .290 in four straight years, only to see that plunge to .211 in ‘25. He did so with more sliders and fewer cutters/sinkers, but there’s plenty saying 2024 should’ve been better rather than ‘25 being unsustainable.

It isn’t an exceptional profile, but 25 solds will do (pending a deadline flip). Gregory Soto will get the lefty work, while Isaac Mattson and Justin Lawrence are the other righties of note. Lawrence dealt with injury, but had a 23:8 K:BB and only one run allowed over 17 ⅔ IP in his first year away from Colorado. Color me a fan. Perhaps they can also help Mason Montgomery rebound, physically and mentally, after he ate a 5.67 ERA next to a 3.55 SIERA.

San Diego: You’re going to be tickled to draft any of Mason Miller, Jeremiah Estrada, or Adrian Morejon. The Padres led all of baseball with 49 saves and a 3.06 bullpen ERA last year, and these guys should be able to defend that crown even without Suarez.

Jason Adam posted his third season with a sub-2.00 ERA in the last four years, but his 2026 debut will almost surely be delayed by a ruptured left quadriceps tendon suffered in September. The good news is that he’s positioned to throw off a mound by spring training, so we can be optimistic.

This was an exceptionally top-heavy bullpen. Outside of Suarez, Estrada, Adam, Morejon, and Miller, no other reliever had more than four solds. Adam’s recovery timeline should push someone like David Morgan or Wandy Peralta into the early conversation, or perhaps a younger player like Tucker Musgrove or Garrett Hawkins causes a stir this spring.

San Francisco: Ryan Walker could not follow up his magical 2024 with a full ‘25 season, but the Doval trade and a severe Randy Rodriguez injury have made Walker the guy again for ‘26. His swinging-strike rate plummeted from 12.4% to 8.9%, and September was his worst month after appearing to recover in the midseason. The faithful will have their discount to buy in.

Otherwise, you’re looking at an uninspiring bucket of Jose Butto, Erik Miller, and Joel Peguero. When Jason Foley (shoulder) and Gregory Santos (lat, biceps, knee) wind up ready to contribute, they could easily become the integral setup men within a month.

Seattle: When Andres Munoz is healthy, he’s one of the best in the game. He only had 26-28 solds in each season between 2022-24, but last season saw him leap to 38 saves. Any team would be lucky to have him anchoring its bullpen needs.

Matt Brash looked quite different after missing 2024 due to TJS. He came back throwing more sliders, introducing a changeup, and nearly abandoning the four-seamer. After finding his stride, Brash was one of 30 RPs with a 31% or better K rate in the second half (min. 20 IP). And he notched 25 solds even after the delayed start and ramp-up period.

Matt Brash, Wicked 87mph Slider. 🤢 pic.twitter.com/SpP3GC6LmN

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) October 13, 2025

They traded for Jose A. Ferrer to join Gabe Speier as the left-handers, while Eduard Bazardo is the other middle reliever that I’d keep an eye on as the season begins. Speier posted 24 holds with a 33.7% K rate as the southpaw-in-chief last year, so whoever wins out between him and Ferrer should be relevant.

St. Louis: JoJo Romero had 32 solds last year, and Riley O'Brien came on late to secure 12, with both helping with ratios, but not Ks. Matt Svanson was the one who brought it all, edging the aforementioned duo with a 1.94 ERA and a hearty 29.1% K rate via a sinker/sweeper-led arsenal. But he only amassed five holds as a rookie, which will change in 2026.

Kyle Leahy is expected to stretch as a starter, which leaves more room for that headliner trio. Ryan Fernandez and Ryne Stanek occupy the next slots, but it’s tough to see them reliably exceeding 15 or more solds pending injury/trade.

Tampa Bay: The Rays shipped off Pete Fairbanks to Miami and appear poised to have a fluid ‘pen that’ll ride momentum and matchups. In Tampa Bay fashion, they’ve put together a swing-and-miss crew. They’re okay ceding a few walks if it means the overall contact rates are poor.

Griffin Jax joins Garrett Cleavinger (L) and Edwin Uceta as the most likely to handle the final three innings and rack up solds. You can widen the lens and include Bryan Baker to come up with four pitchers who had a SIERA under 2.85 last year, which is four within the top 21 of 191 RPs with at least 40 IP last season.

Side with any, side with all, and you’ll likely reap some rewards. The move back to the Trop, which was the third-friendliest venue to pitchers going into 2025 per the three-year rolling average Statcast Park Factors, should help them.

Texas: One year after posting mediocre results with stellar xStats, Robert Garcia flipped things with a 2.95 ERA and 3.82 xERA. The southpaw certainly handled left-handed bats better, but there was only a 27-point gap between his OPS allowed to LHB and RHB. He should approach 25 solds again in ‘26.

The 2025 Rangers bullpen got a bad rap due to Luke Jackson getting the spotlight as the early closer, as well as Bruce Bochy sticking with him for too long, but they actually had a collective top-five ERA!

They return Chris Martin going into his age-40 season and will hope that Alexis Diaz can find a time machine to when he had command. It’s a decent flyer given the relative upside of the group. Cole Winn is the lean of the rest, though a good spring from Emiliano Teodo would change that. Would they consider converting Kumar Rocker if he starts cold?

Toronto: Jeff Hoffman struggled with the long ball in 2025, which was punctuated by that Miguel Rojas homer in Game 7 of the World Series. That’s what most recall first, despite an overall 1.46 ERA and 18:4 K:BB over 12 ⅓ IP in the playoffs. The K-BB rate went from 26% to 12% between the first and second half, but the postseason surge in whiffs provides hope on that front.

The Blue Jays wouldn’t commit to Hoffman as closer moving forward, and then they brought in Tyler Rogers. The 35-year-old submariner has been a tour de force over the last five years, eclipsing 70 frames in each of those seasons while averaging 31 solds. Your K/9 will take a big hit, but he’s one of the few stable arms where you bite that bullet.

Yimi Garcia is solid when healthy, but has had injury issues, notably his elbow, over the last two years. He’ll turn 36 in August, so tread carefully. Louis Varland led MLB with 14 postseason relief appearances and could push for 25-30 solds through effective volume. Brendon Little racked up 31 solds as the lefty with 91 Ks in 68 ⅓ IP, working around the 15.3% BB rate with the whiffs and a 59% groundball rate.

Washington: The Nats didn’t reunite with Finnegan and traded Ferrer to the Mariners, which leaves a mashup of Clayton Beeter, PJ Poulin, and Cole Henry to handle the final outs. It’s tempting to roll your eyes in a Rockies-esque manner, but Beeter should give some pause. Look at the slider's metrics improve as the season went on, notably the climbing whiffs with barely any damage:

The walks can get scary, but his 38.1% strikeout rate in the second half was tied with Edwin Diaz for the fifth-best by a reliever (min. 20 IP). Only Diaz and Mason Miller had a lower ERA from that lot at the top of the leaderboard. He’s the play out of the gate. Selfishly, Jarlin Susana could become the next Mason Miller as a reliever, but they’ll surely keep him at SP for a few years before pivoting.

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