The Shuffle Up series keeps rolling along, with relief pitchers on the docket for today. The chase for saves is a love/hate proposition. After all, when closers go bad, they can often return negative value. This will always be a position where the turnover rate is high.
Relief Pitcher Overview
As you formulate your closer draft plan for 2025, do some reverse engineering. How likely are you to find cheap closers in the draft, or land them on the waiver wire? Are you the one-step-ahead manager in your league, or do others tend to get there first? I’ve been in leagues where the chase for every save turns into a rock fight — and I’ve been in leagues where more than one manager wants to punt the category entirely. Considering the past trends and résumés in your pool will have a lot to say in how you attack the position over the next 4-6 weeks.
[Shuffle Up Rankings Tiers: Catchers | Corner Infield | Middle Infield | Outfield | Starters | Relievers]
I probably will lean toward an Anchor RP approach in my leagues, where I want one primary closer I can hang my hat on, and then I’ll downshift to a more value-driven approach. And let’s be clear on one other thing — I’m probably not going to be the first team in my league to select a relief pitcher. I guess that’s why I called this strategy Anchor RP and not Hero RP. I don’t want to break the seal at the position. I don’t like how it takes away one impact hitter or starting pitcher from the front of my roster build.
[Join or create a Yahoo Fantasy Baseball league for the 2025 MLB season]
I also love rostering a few non-closing relievers who have wipeout ratios, but I feel you can find them easily in-season. I would prefer not to pay aggressively for that profile in March — you can acquire it so much cheaper during the year. Keep grinding those K/BB ratios; freshly minted dominators will emerge every spring.
Have some disagreements? Good, that’s why we have a game. I welcome your reasoned disagreement over at X (@scott_pianowski) or on Blue Sky (@pianow.bsky.social).
Tier 1: The Big Tickets
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$24 Emmanuel Clase
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$22 Devin Williams
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$21 Josh Hader
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$21 Edwin Díaz
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$20 Mason Miller
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$19 Ryan Helsley
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$18 Raisel Iglesias
Clase has racked up 133 saves the last three years, which is 30 more than anyone else (Hader is second). Although Clase has a fastball in the 99 mph range, he is not a dominant strikeout source for a closer, managing a modest 8.48 K/9 over this three-season period. But he rarely walks anyone and his extreme…