In a league where late-inning dominance can make or break a team, these are the relief pitchers who 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.
Louis Varland, Minnesota Twins
Week’s Line: 0.00 ERA, 0.33 WHIP, 2 K, 6.00 K9, 3 S/H
It wasn’t sexy, but Varland did his job picking up two holds against the Orioles and one against the Giants. Varland is a key piece of the Twins bullpen, often deployed ahead of Griffin Jax and Jhoan Duran.
Tanner Scott, Los Angeles Dodgers
Week’s Line: 0.00 ERA, 0.28 WHIP, 4 K, 10.00 K9, 2 S/H
Scott, the Dodgers de facto closer, leads the team in saves and did pick up one of those this week, closing out a slugfest in the desert on Friday. But before that, he was sent out in the eighth to stop the bleeding against the Marlins after Yoendrys Gomez gave up a three-run shot to Agustin Ramirez. When the Dodgers need outs, it’s Scott they turn to.
Camilo Doval, San Francisco Giants
Week’s Line: 0.00 ERA, 0.33 WHIP, 4 K, 12.00 K9, 2 S/H
Great success story so far in 2025 for Doval, and the strikeouts came back this week as well. Two big boy holds against the Cubs, and he sat down their best hitters – Tucker, PCA, Busch, Happ, Hoerner. He’s an eyelash away from the closer’s role again, with Walker not being amazing just yet.
Tyler Rogers, San Francisco Giants
Week’s Line: 0.00 ERA, 0.00 WHIP, 3 K, 9.00 K9, 2 S/H
Same games, different Giants reliever. Rogers faced six batters in the Cubs series, and got ‘em all – five by induced groundouts. His other appearance? A 15-pitch, three-strikeout (including Byron Buxton) effort up in Minnesota on Sunday.
Jhoan Duran, Minnesota Twins
Week’s Line: 0.00 ERA, 0.50 WHIP, 6 K, 13.50 K9, 3 S/H
Duran generally gets the ninth for the Twins, and he shut the door three times this week – twice against the O’s, and another against the Giants. And he went right at Willy Adames – pounding the zone with his nearly unhittable knuckler and stupid 98 MPH splitter.
Yariel Rodriguez, Toronto Blue Jays
Week’s Line: 0.00 ERA, 0.43 WHIP, 9 K, 17.61 K9, 2 S/H
Yariel earned two holds last week and instantly doubled his season total on the cat. He’s the bridge for the Jays, and outside this week, he hasn’t been amazing. I’m just here to give props for the way he handled the Angels on Thursday. Yes, it’s the Halos, and yes, he allowed an inherited runner to score. But of the six outs he registered, five were via the punch. And the strikeout is my absolute favorite baseball stat.
Mason Montgomery, Tampa Bay Rays
Week’s Line: 0.00 ERA, 0.33 WHIP, 4 K, 12.00 K9, 2 S/H
If you don’t know who Mason Montgomery is, you will very soon. The lad throws pure smoke (averages 98+ with 19”+ of iVB), and the Rays give him the bump in leverage spots. Want proof? Take Thursday, against the Phils. Uceta started the eighth and proceeded to cough up three runs on a Stott homer, which cut the lead to just one run. Next batter – Bryce Harper. Montgomery was summoned for the task and dealt two filthy sliders, the second of which induced a soft groundout. 100 MPH heat with a ridiculous slider, and he’s a lefty. Swooooon.
Brendon Little, Toronto Blue Jays
Week’s Line: 0.00 ERA, 0.43 WHIP, 5 K, 19.31 K9, 2 S/H
Another whiff-inducing southpaw on my features this week, Little got the bump twice this week in leverage situations (@ LAA, @ SEA) and did his job – earning five strikeouts in a little over two innings of work. He’s generally the bridge, but does have eight holds on the season and the pitch profile to handle big spots.
Josh Hader, Houston Astros
Week’s Line: 0.00 ERA, 1.50 WHIP, 5 K, 22.50 K9, 1 S/H
If you’ve read my features before (thank you), you’ll remember my previous doting on Hader’s deceptive delivery. His delivery is so deceptive, I nicknamed it “my ex-wife.” Kidding (not kidding). Anyways… he wasn’t ultra-effective against the Brewers (walking Collins and giving up a double to Hoskins to put runners at second and third, then plunking Durbin to load ‘em up), and it took him 20 pitches to get three outs Friday against the Reds. But five of those six outs were strikeouts. And remember what I said about strikeouts.
Randy Rodriguez, San Francisco Giants
Week’s Line: 0.00 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 5 K, 22.50 K9, 1 S/H
My third bridge featured this week… and my third Giant. But it’s for good measure. He features a ridiculous fastball (elite velocity and iVB), and a ridiculous slider (just ask Miguel Amaya), with both pitches returning fantastic run value. A hold against the vaunted Cubs on Tuesday and a big stones, uber-efficient stop-gap against the Twins on Saturday (three punches, including Buxton). The Giants bullpen is really good, y’all.
