Since his fourth of July debacle in which he allowed six earned runs while only getting two outs, Héctor Neris has been a top ten reliever in all of baseball, plain and simple. He ranks in the top ten in WAR, xFIP, pCRA, K-BB%, and CSW%. He hasn’t allowed a run now since August 15th, a streak of almost ten innings. New closer Ian Kennedy on the other hand has a 6.59 ERA and 1.39 WHIP since joining the Phillies and blew a save last night while allowing three earned to the Rockies at home. The team still views Kennedy as their closer for now, but if they were to switch back to Neris, he would become a top ten closing option immediately given how easy the team’s schedule is the rest of the way.
Notes
- It’s possible that Matt Barnes returns this weekend for the Red Sox, although there hasn’t been any confirmation that he will. He’s with the team in Chicago but I feel like given where Barnes was prior to his positive COVID test, a short rehab stint wouldn’t be the worst idea. Even after losing the closer role, Barnes should give this bullpen a huge boost with Adam Ottavino and Garrett Whitlock allowing seven earned runs over this past two appearances.
- Tim Mayza has been one of the better relievers in baseball since the calendar turned to June, and has been underrated in both the fantasy and non-fantasy baseball communities. Since June started Mayza has a 1.35 ERA and .69 WHIP to go with 33 K’s and 14 SV+HLD’s (33.1 IP). His 2.52 xFIP over that span is good for sixth-best amongst qualified relievers.
- It’s been a rollercoaster of a season for Codi Heuer but the talented rookie reliever has put together a fantastic 30-day stretch lately. He hasn’t allowed an earned run over his last 15 innings pitched, giving up just six hits while having a cool 12/3 K/BB ratio. Holds may be tough to come by the rest of this season, but look for Heuer to be an impact reliever next year.
- Alex Colomé and Giovanny Gallegos were the only two relievers to pick up three SV+HLD’s this past week. Colomé leads the league in saves since the start of August, but that comes with an 11.9% K rate and 5.13 xFIP.
| PITCHER | TIER | INJURY (EST. RETURN) |
|---|---|---|
| Matt Barnes | 3/4 | Covid (within the next week) |
| Matt Wisler | 4/5 | Finger (late September) |
| Jonathan Loáisiga | 4/5 | Rotator Cuff (late September) |
| Art Warren | 5/6 | Oblique (mid September) |
| Nick Sandlin | 5/6 | Shoulder (September) |
| Chris Martin | 5/6 | Elbow (mid-late September) |
| A.J. Cole | 6/7 | Oblique (next two weeks) |
| Evan Marshall | 6/7 | Elbow (next two weeks) |
Photo by Kyle Ross/Icon Sportswire | Adapted by Justin Paradis (@JustParaDesigns on Twitter)