It's the All Star break for major league baseball, which also means for most fantasy owners out there it's time to take a few days and take a serious look at their fantasy teams. This is the time of year where you should know if you are a contender or a pretender, and in keeper or dynasty leagues, act accordingly.
In single season leagues if you are unsure if you can get back into the mix, chances are you should try to make that run. That means cutting bait with names and only focus on where can you make up some points in a quick manner. Those quick points can usually be made up with saves. Saves are as volatile as any category in fantasy baseball and concurrently closers are just as dicey. With that said the trade deadline brings up some new hope for owners looking for saves because there will be closers dealt and new arms will be put into those 9th inning roles.
Let's take a look at some of the shakeups that can happen in the next few days or weeks as the trade deadline approaches. The most obvious trade candidates will come from losing teams with a good back end of the bullpen. That means the immediate names like Mason Miller, Kyle Finnegan, and David Bednar come to the forefront. Miller will cost a ton of money, which really means there are two targets.
Both Finnegan and Bednar have proven closing track records, are on last place teams, and both have contracts where their current teams want them dealt. Bednar is an interesting study because if he is dealt I am not sure we can immediately count on Santana to get owners saves. That is because he is likely on the moves as well. That leaves Ashcraft as the likely take over and on a bad team and an unproven resume, him helping much is a stretch.
The same can be said for Finnegan. There isn't a clear next man up in Washington. Brad Lord is intriguing because of his age and put away stuff, but he is no sure thing with Ferrer in the mix. Whatever youngster grabs the job could give you a big boost because the Nats have given Finnegan plenty of save chances the past two seasons. This is a spot where if you have the roster room you take both pitchers and hope it shakes itself out quickly and then you can drop whoever doesn't secure the job.
The next group have been rumored to be dealt and would be a huge boost for who stands behind them. Emmanuel Clase has been on the rumored trade block for a while now. Clase would cost a ton, but teams might bite if they think they are a closer away from a title. Smith, Gaddis and even Paul Sewald will be in the mix. I still believe Smith is the best bet but the Guardians might go with experience here. Ryan Helsley is another name that could be moved. He had a great year last year and has been solid this season but the Cards don't like the contract. They would throw Jojo Romero, Phil Maton or Chris Leahy in there but ultimately I think Romero is the name you want here.
Players like Kenley Jansen and Carlos Estevez seemed to be destined to be dealt, but both teams are in the hunt. The same goes for Chapman in Boston who have gone on a mid season run, so a big shakeup doesn't seem likely.