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Welcome to Raisel Iglesias—I mean, Relief Pitcher Week! Garrett, Andrés, and myself are offering up our top 40 relievers this morning. What a fresh hell this is, by the way. There are some wild swings in the rankings—I’m really digging Archie Bradley, for instance. And I guess when Drew Pomeranz openly says “I’m not tied to a role,” that makes me freak out a little.
If it means anything at all, I’m really rooting for Amir Garrett in Cincinnati. We so often hear about the “closer mentality.” Well, that guy is the physical embodiment of said mentality. I hope to see him in the role, but for now I’m waiting to see if Garrett will pitch in Spring Training games next week as planned.
Anyway, we’ll chat more on relievers as we go this week. If you’ve got a strong take, I’d love to hear it in the comments. In the meantime, eviscerate this rankings set, why don’t ya?
Oops, I nearly forgot—yours truly didn’t rank guys like Freddy Peralta or Tejay Antone. I have a hard time comparing bulk relievers to guys I’m drafting solely for saves. Maybe it’s just me. Where I’d draft Peralta compared to these guys...does it really matter? But according to ADP, I think I could justify drafting Peralta as early as pick 220 or 230—which puts him in the Amir Garrett range according to recent NFBC ADP. If that matters to you, there ya go...
Top 40 Relievers for 2021
RANK | PLAYER NAME | TEAM | HEATH | ANDRES | GARRETT | Avg Rank |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
RANK | PLAYER NAME | TEAM | HEATH | ANDRES | GARRETT | Avg Rank |
1 | Liam Hendriks | CWS | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1.00 |
2 | Josh Hader | MLW | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2.00 |
3 | Aroldis Chapman | NYY | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3.00 |
4 | Edwin Diaz | NYM | 4 | 4 | 5 | 4.33 |
5 | Raisel Iglesias | LAA | 5 | 5 | 8 | 6.00 |
6 | Brad Hand | WSH | 8 | 6 | 6 | 6.67 |
7 | James Karinchak | CLE | 10 | 8 | 4 | 7.33 |
9 | Ryan Pressly | HOU | 6 | 7 | 10 | 7.67 |
8 | Trevor Rosenthal | OAK | 7 | 9 | 7 | 7.67 |
10 | Kenley Jansen | LAD | 9 | 11 | 11 | 10.33 |
11 | Kirby Yates | TOR | 12 | 10 | 9 | 10.33 |
12 | Will Smith | ATL | 15 | 15 | 12 | 14.00 |
13 | Rafael Montero | SEA | 14 | 17 | 15 | 15.33 |
14 | Devin Williams | MIL | 19 | 13 | 14 | 15.33 |
15 | Nick Anderson | TB | 18 | 12 | 18 | 16.00 |
16 | Craig Kimbrel | CHC | 16 | 14 | 19 | 16.33 |
17 | Amir Garrett | CIN | 20 | 20 | 16 | 18.67 |
18 | Drew Pomeranz | SD | 30 | 16 | 13 | 19.67 |
19 | Alex Colome | MIN | 13 | 21 | 26 | 20.00 |
20 | Taylor Rogers | MIN | 17 | 22 | 21 | 20.00 |
21 | Jordan Hicks | STL | 11 | 27 | 24 | 20.67 |
22 | Greg Holland | KC | 24 | 19 | 20 | 21.00 |
23 | Richard Rodriguez | PIT | 29 | 18 | 17 | 21.33 |
24 | Jose Leclerc | TEX | 22 | 23 | 25 | 23.33 |
25 | Daniel Bard | COL | 26 | 24 | 23 | 24.33 |
26 | Matt Barnes | BOS | 23 | 25 | 27 | 25.00 |
27 | Joakim Soria | ARI | 25 | 26 | 28 | 26.33 |
28 | Archie Bradley | PHI | 21 | 30 | 35 | 28.67 |
29 | Hector Neris | PHI | 36 | 28 | 22 | 28.67 |
30 | Jake McGee | SF | 31 | 29 | 30 | 30.00 |
31 | Mark Melancon | SD | 35 | 31 | 29 | 31.67 |
32 | Freddy Peralta | MIL | NR | 32 | 32 | 32.00 |
33 | Anthony Bass | MIA | 27 | 33 | 37 | 32.33 |
34 | Tanner Scott | BAL | 28 | 37 | NR | 32.50 |
35 | Giovanny Gallegos | STL | 34 | 34 | 33 | 33.67 |
36 | Yimi Garcia | MIA | 33 | 38 | 31 | 34.00 |
37 | Chris Martin | ATL | 32 | 39 | 41 | 37.33 |
38 | Bryan Garcia | DET | 39 | 35 | 38 | 37.33 |
39 | Jordan Romano | TOR | 40 | 42 | 34 | 38.67 |
40 | Diego Castillo | TB | 38 | 40 | 39 | 39.00 |