In a league where late-inning dominance can make or break a team, a few relief pitchers stood out last week with electric performances that left hitters baffled and fans buzzing. Whether it’s a closer slamming the door shut or a setup man bridging the gap and holding the line, these arms delivered when it mattered. We’re spotlighting the hottest relief pitchers in Major League Baseball over the past seven days — the guys who turned pressure into performance and owned the mound.
Fernando Cruz – New York Yankees
Week’s Line: 0.00 ERA, 0.88 WHIP, 8 K,12.71 K9, 4 S/H
Fantastic line from Cruz last week, who is currently shaping up as the Yankees’ best reliever. Not that the Bronx Bombers are lacking in the bullpen – they’re actually kinda stacked on the back end. But Cruz is next level right now, thanks to a splitter that he throws nearly 55% of the time that has a whiff rate of 58.3% and a put-away rate of 42.2%. Unabashed filth. Four appearances, with two punchouts in 3/4. He was a little shaky against the Rays, but still ended up closing it out.
Josh Hader – Houston Astros
Week’s Line: 0.00 ERA,1.00 WHIP, 2 K, 6.00 K9, 3 S/H
In three appearances (3/3 on saves, btw), Hader only allowed one baserunner. And that included two games against the Padres. I’ve always loved the deception in Hader’s delivery. Described as a “herky-jerky” sidearm, his delivery makes it difficult to see the pitch coming. And he’s basically ditched the four-seamer in favor of his sinker/slider combo, and the metrics back it up. Any pitch that’s thrown more than 40% of the time that returns a whiff rate over 40% is absolutely cooking, and that’s exactly what Hader is getting from his slider, which is exceptional. Oh, and aren’t sinkers supposed to sink? His doesn’t, which is kooky.
Tanner Scott, Los Angeles Dodgers
Week’s Line: 0.00 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 4 K, 9.00 K9, 4 S/H
Scott just keeps on being there, and is featured here for the second straight week. And let’s be real – four saves in seven days will most likely always get you here. The strikeouts aren’t amazing, but he gets swings and misses due to a very good fastball (17.7” iVB and maxing out around 98 MPH) and his ridiculous slider. And do you need the strikeouts when your modus operandi is inducing grounders and tons of soft contact?
Kyle Finnegan, Washington Nationals
Week’s Line: 3.00 ERA, 0.67 WHIP, 6 K, 18.00 K9, 3 S/H
Maybe it’s time for me to stop looking at Finnegan as just the warm body the Nats trot out in the 9th. He’s been really good this season at closing out games (9/9 on save opportunities), and added three more last week. The split-finger plays really well of his four-seamer, which is a damn good pitch in its own right (96 MPH, nearly 17” of iVB). Yes, it was the Rockies and Pirates. But so what? Buddy is cooking right now. And if you’ve never been to Nationals Park, go. It’s a fantastic experience.
Abner Uribe, Milwaukee Brewers
Week’s Line: 0.00 ERA, 0.00 WHIP, 3 K, 13.50 K9, 3 S/H
Pitcher throw hard. Pitcher gets outs. That about sums it up. Uribe’s four-seamer and sinker routinely hit triple digits on the gun, which makes the slider (65% whiff rate – shocked-face emoji) that much more effective when you can’t tell it’s coming. Nice tight spin on his entire repertoire, the sinker stands out a bit also for the amount of drop and run (13.3” iHB arm-side), especially against LHB. He’s not the ninth-inning guy, but he absolutely has the stuff to be, if needed. Stacked bullpen in Milwaukee, also.
Mason Miller, Athletics
Week’s Line: 0.00 ERA, 0.00 WHIP, 5 K, 22.50 K9, 2 S/H
Swoooooooooooon. For real. MCM. I want him to marry my daughter. Give my eulogy. I’ll co-sign for his car. All the things. I really like watching Mason Miller tow the rubber. Miller’s fastball averages 100.6 MPH (WHAT), easily marking him as one of the hardest throwers in the league. And his slider… ARE YOU KIDDING ME? 61.9% whiffs, 44.4% put-away, with 37” drop and nearly 10” of run? For the week, zero baserunners, an 83% strikeout rate, and two saves. I’m on record that this is absolutely the most effective two-pitch mix in the bigs, and that Miller is the best reliever in the game. Please, for the love of David Hasselhoff, stay healthy.
Edwin Diaz, New York Mets
Week’s Line: 0.00 ERA, 0.67 WHIP, 6 K, 18.00 K9, 2 S/H
Three appearances, two baserunners, tickets punched, and two saves. Aside from the occasional blow-ups (which he avoided this week), Diaz can flat out get it done. Another four-seam/slider guy, and another 40/40 guy – his slider usage (46.8%) and it’s efficiency (48.9% whiffs), he’s just so intimidating when he’s on the mound. His Statcast is a master class in the top 2% of the league, but he’s generally bitten by two things – inconsistency (at times), and injuries, which, as of this writing, he’s now DTD.
Mark Leiter Jr., New York Yankees
Week’s Line: 0.00 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 5 K, 13.51 K9, 2 S/H
How stacked is your pen if you refer to MLJ as the fourth option? He’s been really good all year, and this week was no different. Three appearances with two holds, and a glistening K9. Leiter’s splitter tows the load, and why wouldn’t it – 53.6% on whiffs and a put-away north of 30%. He’s also a left assassin, where his lethal splitter cooks. And his sinker – while not amazing – does its job by keeping hitters off the split-finger.
Hunter Gaddis, Cleveland Guardians
Week’s Line: 0.00 ERA, 0.43 WHIP, 4 K, 15.45 K9, 2 S/H
Hunter was featured last week, so I won’t wax poetic again about his devastating fastball/changeup combination, but it’s so good, y’all. With Clase resting/hurting, the entire bullpen kicked in last week. Baltimore’s and Pittsburgh’s lineups are underperforming at the moment, but I wouldn’t necessarily call either soft. And I’ll always get that tingly feeling when a K9 shoots over 15, which Hunter’s did last week. He’s about as steady as they come at the moment.
Brendon Little, Toronto Blue Jays
Week’s Line: 0.00 ERA, 0.00 WHIP, 7 K, 21.00 K9, 1 S/H
Though he only finished with one hold on the week, I still chose to feature Brendan because he’s been so damn good. Huge week for strikeouts (18 in 10.2 on the year, btw) bolstered by his staaaanky pitch mix – his knuckle-curve should be illegal (72.2% whiff) and the sinker has been devastating as well (40% put-away). The command is a little shaky (11.4% walk rate), but there’s no denying the strikeout impact and the ability to induce ground balls. He shut down the Braves in back-to-back games, then did the same to Seattle. Toronto is another bullpen full of stand-up guys.
