Getting A Grip: Fantasy Baseball Waiver Wire Pickups for Holds

September 15, 2014

Ryan Nakada analyzes the best waiver wire pickups for leagues that reward holds. These sleepers for holds are potentially also closers in waiting down the line.

While the holds statistic is even harder to predict than saves for closers, the players we highlight today feature some sleeper setup men and some looking to reclaim glory they once had. The more likely an MLB team is to win, the more likely these following relief pitchers will be eligible to earn the holds that could be the difference between winning or losing in your fantasy league.

This week, the relievers profiled are not always strikeout artists that will dial it up towards triple digits causing their opponent to swing and miss. These relievers generate the ground outs that keep the defense on their toes and the ball in the ballpark. Here are five relievers that do their part to ensure that the closer gets his opportunity to record a save.

Bryan Morris, Miami Marlins

17 holds, 1.82 ERA, 64.1 innings (60 games), 50 strikeouts, 1.28 WHIP

The Miami Marlins are likely out of the race but Bryan Morris has been having a great season since leaving the Pirates. He has great numbers overall this season but his numbers with the Marlins feature an ERA under 1.00. He has also notched 13 holds over 39 games. He keeps the opponent from hitting it in the air with a ground ball rate of nearly 60%. The hard throwing reliever features a fastball that averages around 95 and a cutter that averages around 90. In nearly half of his appearances, Morris finds himself called upon to pitch the eighth inning so the Marlins clearly entrust him with late inning duties.

Tom Wilhelmsen, Seattle Mariners

8 holds, 2.06 ERA, 74.1 innings (51 games), 68 strikeouts, 1.00 WHIP

Once the closer, Tom Wilhelmsen finds himself working the seventh inning often as he is a part of a very strong Seattle Mariners bullpen. Wilhelmsen uses a fastball and curveball to get the job done. Opponents are hitting just .168 against him. Strengths of Tom Wilhelmsen’s game include his low fly ball (27.4%) and line drive rates (19.5%). He keeps the ball on the ground with a 53.2% rate. He’s having his best year in terms of hits and walks allowed.

Jared Hughes, Pittsburgh Pirates

10 holds, 2.10 ERA, 60.0 innings (58 games), 34 strikeouts, 1.13 WHIP

Jared Hughes is having another good season for the Pittsburgh Pirates. While Hughes does not present an outstanding strikeout per nine innings rate, (5.1), his strength is how he gets opponents to put the ball in play. Hughes gets batters to hit ground balls a very impressive 63.5% of the time the ball is put in play. He accomplishes this by using a heavy sinker that he throws over 77% of the time. He has allowed four home runs in 60 innings of work (0.6 HR/9). While he has not gotten a large number of holds, he does find himself pitching in the seventh inning frequently. His numbers will not be flashy but an ERA around 2.00 is evidence that he does his job and he does it in a good, effective way.

Jeff Beliveau, Tampa Rays

4 holds, 1.77 ERA, 20.1 innings (22 games), 22 strikeouts, 1.08 WHIP

The Rays are likely out of the race but this gives players like left-handed reliever Jeff Beliveau a chance to work towards earning a job in the following season. In a small sample size this season, Beliveau has held opponents to a .213 batting average against. As a left-handed reliever, teams look to see how he does against the left-handed batters and in 37 plate appearances against Beliveau, they are hitting just .156 so he can be relied upon as a specialist as the situation presents itself. He relies on his fastball and curveball and to this point, he has been used in full innings. The Rays are always looking to find another good arm to add to their history of success in their bullpen and with Beliveau they may just have found a pitcher that can help their team for years to come.

Bryan Shaw, Cleveland Indians

21 holds, 2.20 ERA, 69.2 innings (72 games), 58 strikeouts, 0.99 WHIP

Bryan Shaw is one of the better relievers who is not known around the league. The reliever for the Cleveland Indians throws a pair of pitches with a lot of movement. With an effective cutter and slider, opponents are batting .208 against him. He gets batters to hit ground balls 47.2% of the time and although he only has an average strikeout per nine inning rate of 7.5, his 21 holds are indicative that he’s getting the job done and getting it done often. Bryan Shaw has pitched in the seventh or eighth inning in 56 out of his 72 appearances this season. The Indians count on him for late inning work and he usually succeeds.