It seemed inevitable that Toronto Blue Jays RHP Jeff Hoffman, who served up 15 regular season home runs during the 2025 season and blew Game 7 of the World Series with another, would lose the closer role at some point this season. Some point came a mere few weeks into April, as RHP Louis Varland zoomed past Hoffman on the depth chart.
We are well past the time for fantasy managers to notice Varland, who enters Tuesday with a sparkling 0.65 ERA (two earned runs in 25 appearances). He is among the top five relief pitchers in fantasy points but is rostered in only 57.6% of ESPN standard leagues. By the way, he's on pace for 122 strikeouts, and myriad saves will come, too.
Varland, 28, won four of 23 career starts for the Minnesota Twins during the 2022-24 seasons, posting a 5.18 ERA and a 1.40 WHIP. He permitted a ghastly 27 home runs over 116 1/3 innings and the Twins moved him into the bullpen, where Varland threw harder, became a ground ball machine and clearly thrived. He delivered a 2.97 ERA last season (with 23 holds) and ranked 12th among qualified relief pitchers by averaging 98.1 mph with his fastball. Now he is a legitimate relief star, whiffing 36.7% of hitters, while permitting nary a home run.
Some may have noticed that Hoffman, 33, saved a pair of recent wins, but only because Varland was unavailable for those games. Hoffman -- the one with the big contract -- is also piling on the strikeouts. He isn't the worst "buy low" investment for those in deeper formats seeking holds, because a .473 BABIP can't and shouldn't last for long. Varland is better, of course, ranking second only to San Diego Padres star RHP Mason Miller in fWAR. Varland's .350 BABIP should also normalize soon, so yeah, this breakout season should continue.
Stock rising
Gregory Soto, LHP, Pittsburgh Pirates
There is no more sharing of the ninth inning in this bullpen as Soto, 31, is enjoying the best season of his career, while RHP Dennis Santana and his 5.48 ERA ... are not. Remember, Soto saved 30 games for the 2022 Detroit Tigers and earned a spot on two AL All-Star teams, though he wasn't necessarily good during those seasons. His current 2.13 ERA and 0.79 WHIP may earn Soto his first NL midseason classic berth soon.
The Pirates have a total of five saves in May, all from Soto, whose strikeout rate is up to 32% from 25.1% a season ago. He is a bit fortunate to have a .170 BABIP, but there is clear pathway to 20-plus saves and perhaps a top-10 finish among relief pitchers in fantasy points.
Grant Taylor, RHP, Chicago White Sox
RHP Seranthony Dominguez remains the clear closer here, adding another save to his sketchy ledger on Monday. That said, Taylor, 24, is the best pitcher in the Chicago bullpen. He simply gets deployed earlier into games, in key leverage spots. Dominguez, thanks to 11 saves, boasts 11 more ESPN fantasy points than Taylor, despite a bloated 4.35 ERA. Taylor has a 2.36 ERA and a 35.2% K rate.
We cannot say with confidence that Taylor eventually pushes Dominguez out of the closer role, because MLB managers are under no obligation to deploy pitchers in order of effectiveness. Still, Taylor may well outscore him in fantasy when all is said and done -- and that seems quite relevant.
Kirby Yates, RHP, Los Angeles Angels
Yates, 39, didn't debut this season until May due to a knee injury, but this decimated Angels bullpen is desperate for him to handle ninth-inning work. Yates, the saver of 33 games with a 1.17 ERA only two seasons ago for the Texas Rangers, wasn't nearly as effective for last season's Los Angeles Dodgers (5.23 ERA). However, someone must close for the Angels, as even last-place squads earn some saves.
Yates earned his first save on Saturday against the Rangers, but with a fastball barely breaking 90 mph. We should be skeptical about his performance -- and his health -- moving forward. Other than the rehabbing RHP Ben Joyce (shoulder), this is a bullpen to avoid.
Stock falling
Kenley Jansen, RHP, Tigers
Jansen, 38, remains the active leader in saves (and third all-time), but the game-winning, three-run homer he served up to Baltimore Orioles OF Colton Cowser on Sunday pushed his season ERA to 5.02. He has now allowed four home runs, each one a critical part of a blown save. Other than those four outings, of course, Jansen has been nearly perfect, so what should we believe?
Tigers manager A.J. Hinch seems to be in little hurry to replace Jansen in the ninth inning, as RHP Kyle Finnegan (presumably next in line) has a major walk problem. Frankly, this may be a wise time to trade for Jansen in fantasy. He may well surpass 25 saves for the 14th time.
Riley O'Brien, RHP, St. Louis Cardinals
O'Brien, 31, has been one of the better success stories among relief pitchers this season, but he had a rough blown save last week against the Pirates (two hits, two HBP, two runs) and then he lost a weekend game against the Cincinnati Reds. O'Brien enters Tuesday with a gaudy 6.55 ERA over the past 30 days (4.26 FIP), having permitted multiple earned runs in four outings. Unlike Jansen, who has 483 career saves, O'Brien has only 19. LHP JoJo Romero and RHP George Soriano lurk in case these struggles continue.
Other notes
Only seven teams enter Tuesday with fewer saves than the 34-win Dodgers, which is quite an anomaly. Still, when a team scores myriad runs, saves can be harder to come by. The 20-win Colorado Rockies have 13 saves, one more than the Dodgers. Go figure! Anyway, LHP Tanner Scott is the Dodgers reliever to covet, but those in deeper leagues may consider RHPs Kyle Hurt and Will Klein. Each boasts more fantasy points than closers David Bednar, Lucas Erceg and Raisel Iglesias over the past 30 days.
Bednar, annoyingly inconsistent in recent seasons, is among the league leaders with 12 saves, but this is not a safe investment. Bednar has a 4.70 ERA and a 1.57 WHIP. Over his last five outings, he has permitted runs in three of them and also issued five walks versus six strikeouts over that span. An elevated BABIP is only part of the problem. Of course, top setup option RHP Camilo Doval hasn't struck out anyone in his last five appearances, covering 16 hitters. The Yankees may need help at the trade deadline.
The Twins may be compelled to make history, as 11 different hurlers already boast saves for them and we haven't reached June yet. (Last season's Arizona Diamondbacks featured a record 16 different pitchers with saves.) Several of these pitchers aren't even Twins anymore, including RHP Justin Topa. Fantasy managers should avoid this bullpen until someone emerges, though that seems unlikely.
So much for RHP Jack Perkins emerging as the Athletics closer. The team has five saves in May, with LHP Hogan Harris enjoying three of them and Perkins shut out. Perkins, who entered Monday's blowout loss in the fifth inning, has a 7.71 ERA in May. Be careful with Harris, too. The 1.73 WHIP (21 walks in 24 1/3 innings) tells us more than the 2.96 ERA.
Don't ignore Washington Nationals RHP Clayton Beeter. He must control his walks, but if he does, the ninth inning is there for the taking. LHP Richard Lovelady and RHP Gus Varland (brother of Louis) are not long for the closing role. Beeter, who recently came off an IL stint for forearm soreness (uh oh!) may be the best option when available.
Some may wish to invest in Rockies RHP Antonio Senzatela, but that 1.13 ERA (2.70 FIP) and 0.78 WHIP (with a .195 BABIP) are mirages, even though they may help him become an NL All-Star. These are the Rockies. You should know better.
