After getting off to a slow start and battling knee issues, I had almost given up on Ryan Pressly as a legitimate RP1 option with declining velocity and a declining strikeout rate. Well, the velocity is back up to near 95 MPH on average over his last eight appearances, and since his implosion at Yankee Stadium back on June 23rd (his only truly bat outing this year), Pressly has rattled off five straight outings now without allowing a baserunner (while striking out nine). It’s a small sample size but it looks like 2021 Ryan Pressly is making a comeback, so here’s to hoping he can keep this going and stay healthy for the remainder of the season.
Notes
- After throwing a bullpen yesterday, Kenley Jansen appears ready to return from the IL at some point this week (and as early as today). Jansen’s return will slide A.J. Minter and Will Smith back into setup roles, although Minter is probably worth holding onto in save-only leagues for the time being, at least until Jansen is officially cleared to return.
- Two NL West closers dipped this week (actually three if you count Craig Kimbrel) with Camilo Doval and Taylor Rogers moving down four spots. Doval has just one save over the past three-plus weeks while allowing six runs over 6.1 IP during that span. Rogers’ struggles have been more apparent, allowing 13 hits and seven runs over his last 5.2 IP, but I don’t think he’s in danger of losing his role quite yet whereas do we know what Doval’s role is?
- Corey Knebel may be inching his way back into the closer role in Philadelphia, as the reliever picked up the team’s last save and has been particularly dominant as of late. Over his past 6.2 IP Knebel has allowed just one hit and two walks while striking out seven. I’d still hang on to Seranthony Domínguez for now (and Brad Hand in deeper leagues) as we see how things play out leading up to the All-Star break.
- Joe Barlow was somewhat surprisingly removed from the Rangers’ closer role over the past week, and it looks like Brett Martin will get the first crack at replacing him for the time being. The way Chris Woodward talked about the situation makes it sound like Barlow will be out just temporarily as they try to reduce stressful innings for him, but Martin has done a fine job so far, picking up two saves and has not allowed a run since May (10.2 IP).
EDIT: 7/13- removed Tanner Rainey who will miss the remainder of the season and added Kyle Finnegan as his replacement.
| Rank | Pitcher | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Josh HaderT1 | - |
| 2 | Edwin Díaz | - |
| 3 | Liam Hendriks | - |
| 4 | Raisel IglesiasT2 | - |
| 5 | Emmanuel Clase | - |
| 6 | Clay Holmes | - |
| 7 | Ryan PresslyT3 | +1 |
| 8 | Jordan Romano | +1 |
| 9 | David Bednar | +3 |
| 10 | Ryan Helsley | +1 |
| 11 | Taylor Rogers | -4 |
| 12 | Paul Sewald | +1 |
| 13 | Kenley Jansen | +UR |
| 14 | Camilo DovalT4 | -4 |
| 15 | Craig Kimbrel | -1 |
| 16 | David Robertson | -1 |
| 17 | Jorge López | +2 |
| 18 | Daniel Bard | -1 |
| 19 | Gregory Soto | -1 |
| 20 | Scott Barlow | - |
| 21 | Tanner Scott | +2 |
| 22 | Tanner Houck | - |
| 23 | Jhoan DuranT5 | +1 |
| 24 | Lou Trivino | +3 |
| 25 | Corey Knebel | +UR |
| 26 | Brett Martin | +UR |
| 27 | Kyle Finnegan | +UR |
| 28 | Colin Poche | - |
| 29 | Hunter Strickland | +1 |
| 30 | Mark Melancon | -1 |
| Rank | Pitcher | Team | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Seranthony Domínguez | PHI | losing ground to Knebel and Hand? |
| 2. | Diego Castillo | SEA | back in the saves mix again? |
| 3. | Jason Adam | TB | Could be RH complement to Poche |
| 4. | Alexis Díaz | CIN | obviously better than Strickland |
| 5. | Giovanny Gallegos | STL | Helsley isn’t giving Gallegos a chance |
| 6. | Tyler Duffey | MIN | overtaken Pagán for late-inning work? |
| 7. | John Schreiber | BOS | still the best reliever in Boston |
| 8. | A.J. Minter | ATL | Jansen returning this week? |
| 9. | Joe Barlow | TEX | removed from the role…for now |
| 10. | Brusdar Graterol | LAD | two saves over the past week… |
Photo by Leslie Plaza Johnson/Icon Sportswire | Adapted by Justin Paradis (@JustParaDesigns on Twitter)
Soto as 19th best closer is a pretty bad take particularly with no justification.
Do you think he should be higher or lower?
Doval and Duran are tough to hold. The first one is excellent when closing but awful in non-save situations. And the second one is just never getting any save opportunity which has also become the trend for Doval.
Imagine rostering Romano, Clase, Doval, and Duran. You hardly get 3 saves per week while on the paper you start with an elite closer gang. This season is really strange.
Are we sure Rogers isn’t going to lose the closer gig? His history track when in MIN is quite alarming. This guy always find a way to disappoint.
You said it, I love that group of four closers but your right, saves can be hard to come by on a weekly basis.
I think the lack of alternatives in San Diego should give Rogers some time to work things out. Since he’s not a big swing and miss guy, he does go through these bouts of ineffectiveness but I think he’ll bounce back.
Thanks for doing this, always a fun read and super helpful to figure out trades and FA pickups.
Not arguing the rankings, but what would Diaz have to do to overtake Hader in the first spot. In the last 30 days, he’s got 8 SVs on 12.2 IP with 30 (no, not a typo) strikeouts and a .71 ERA. In the same timeframe, Hader also has 8 SVs, but with a 3.60 ERA and 19 Ks in 10 IP. Obviously Hader is amazing, but Diaz has been on another planet.
I honestly thought about it swapping them this week, as Diaz is certainly deserving of that top spot. Perhaps next week will be the week…
Why should I pick up Helsley over Sewald??
I think I give Helsley the edge as he has a bit more strikeout upside but ultimately they are in the same tier for a reason as they are nearly interchangeable.