SAGNOF: Last-Gasp Saves Sleepers

What’s poppin, Razzpimples?

Got a short and sweet one for you this week. Maybe you’ve already drafted and this ain’t much help, but if you’ve still got a team or two to put together, I’m laying out an updated list of cheap sources of saves for you to target in the later stages. I’ve just gone to Yahoo and sorted by Last 7 Days ADP among RP, so what you see below will be sorted from lowest to highest ADP, with all of them coming past pick #200.

Don’t forget to keep that Bullpen Chart bookmarked, y’all.

Let’s do it to it.

Craig Kimbrel is still going outside the Top 200 in Yahoo drafts. Can’t say he’s an outright closer like he’s been in the past, but he’s got a couple things going for him in terms of being the Phils’ saves leader in 2023: 1). he’s truly one of the GOATs, and 2). he’s the highest paid RP in terms of AAV. Last year wasn’t the best, but it wasn’t the worst either, and let’s not forget he’s only a full season removed from absolute dominance in 2021.

Jorge Lopez is right behind Kimbrel in ADP (211.2 to Kimbrel’s 207.9). Jhoan Duran has all the sexy mojo in the fantasy community and Twins fans’ hearts, but Lopez is still gonna be around for a good chunk of saves. That’s the good news. The bad news is his numbers once getting to Minnesota were doo doo butter: 4.35 FIP in 22.2 IP with an ugly 18:14 K:BB.

Seranthony Dominguez is going around pick #223. He tallied 9 SV last year along with pretty solid ratios and 61 K in 51 IP.

Jason Adam figures to see a decent crop of saves and should boost your ratios and Ks along the way. May even score you several dubs.

A.J. Minter saw time as closer last year when Jansen went down, so it makes sense that he could be the guy to fill in while Iglesias is out. Minter’s ADP has gone up as expected, but it’s still sitting at 233.3 lately. Not a bad price for a Braves closer (Jansen led the NL with 41 SV last season).

Liam Hendriks is handling treatment/recovery very well by all accounts so far. The timeline is very murky, but a June-ish return doesn’t sound too far-fetched. Hendriks is a solid IL stash if you have that luxury.

Giovanny Gallegos is of course a SVHD boss, but Katie Woo of The Athletic dropped a little nugget yesterday that both he and Helsley are expected to share closing duties. I’m of a mind to think that still means a good majority of saves go Helsley’s way, but you can probably expect a respectable total from Gallegos as well. His ADP is at 228.6 of late.

Kendall Graveman still cheap AF (232.6 this past week). As long as Hendriks is out, Graveman should be in the mix for saves. Unless he sucks it up, which isn’t terribly unlikely.

Brusdar Graterol was named one of the “favorites” to close for the Dodgers (and he’s even more of a lock for good save chances with Hudson already hitting the shelf), but it’s still a big ol’ committee. His ADP is on the rise (233.7) but is still firmly in “low cost high upside” territory.

Adam Ottavino is going around pick #236. Robertson figures to be the leader for saves in the absence of Diaz, but Ottavino almost certainly gets some chances and could even feasibly usurp D-Rob, who struggles mightily with walks.

Kyle Finnegan is down around pick #240-241. I know there have been reports that he’ll be a fireman type and not necessarily closing out games, but dammit if I’ll throw in the towel on my Finnegan’s a Top-20 closer take! Okay so I might have to throw in that towel; Finnegan will still see save chances pretty regularly methinks and is thus fantasy relevant.

Carlos Estevez currently clocks in around 241.5. Yes, his spring has been atrocious, but that’s mainly due to being instructed to experiment with grips and release points. He’s looked better of late. It also came to light that manager Phil Nevin backtracked a little on declaring Estevez the closer to start the season, so it’ll be rather interesting to see how things play out. I’m halfway of a mind to think that was just a fanbase appeasement quote given his putrid ST numbers. Everything I’ve been reading all spring points to 1). faith in Estevez in the ninth and 2). practically zero concern for how bad he’s been so far in an Angels uniform.

Michael Fulmer is going pretty damn close to pick #250 even after the Cubs announced he and Boxberger will share the closer role to start the season. I guess people don’t want a timeshare closer on a not good team? He’s now projected for 12-13 SV when a guy going 100 picks ahead of him (Andres Munoz) is projected for less by most outlets (10).

Dylan Floro is still firmly in the saves mix for the Marlins even if he ain’t the sexiest name they have. At pick #244, he’s not a big loss if he doesn’t pan out.

Scott McGough is a name I keep seeing a lot lately. I personally don’t know what to make of the DBacks closer situation and therefore don’t have must vested fantasy interest, but if’n you’re desperate then maybe throw a dart this guy’s way.

A.J. Puk has been great this spring and is another Marlins saves candidate. Best lefty they’ve got though, so might be he’s more of a matchup type.

Jimmy Herget could see more chances than I thought just a week or so ago if those Nevin comments about having no set closer are legit. He’s going around pick #248.

Brad Boxberger is going a few picks later and is only projected for 7-8 SV. Box Burger is one of those good boring pitchers. Especially over the last couple years, he’s been able to keep the ball in the yard and provide some good ratios/Ks. The K% took a good dip from 2021 to 2022, so maybe he can get that back up to around the 30% mark in 2023.

And finally, Reynaldo Lopez is also still going hella late in drafts and could see a few save chances in the early part of the year. Dude rocked a 0.95 WHIP with a 1.93 FIP last season, and that’s before visiting Driveline this offseason to get even better! Graveman has the experience advantage, though it’s not like he’s a grizzled veteran closer (16 whole saves to his name for his career), but Lopez is easily the better of the two. Could be that ReyLo leapfrogs pretty quick.