2025 Fantasy Baseball: Boston Red Sox Closer Depth Chart
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The Red Sox bullpen will be in flux out of the gate. Boston's top two options - Liam Hendriks and Aroldis Chapman are on the wrong side of 35. One is coming off an injury, and command tends to be an issue for the fireballing lefty.
Liam Hendriks. 🔥 pic.twitter.com/4HlERsTN8o
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) June 4, 2023
24 – Liam Hendriks, BOS (ADP – 260.4)
Over the first seven games in 2022, his stats were way out of line due to allowing five runs, 14 baserunners, and two home runs over 7.1 innings with 12 strikeouts. Hendriks corrected numbers over his next 23.1 innings (1.16 ERA, 0.557, .093, and 33 strikeouts over 23.1 innings) but struggled in three straight games (five runs, eight base runners, and two home runs). He pitched at an elite level over his final 24 at-bats (1.88 ERA and 36 strikeouts),
His average fastball (97.8) was elite in 2022. Batters had no answer for his four-seamer (.237 BAA), slider (.096 BAA), and curveball (.231 BAA). His fly-ball rate (46.5) was high over the previous two seasons.
The status of Hendriks was unknown in 2023 due to battling non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. He ended up pitching only five innings (three runs, five baserunners, and three strikeouts), leading to two wins and a save. His right elbow gave away in early August, resulting in TJ surgery. In his brief 2023 season, Hendriks had a decline in his fastball (95.5 mph).
In 2024, Hendriks tried to work his way back to some innings on the mound, but a minor setback in early September put him on the shelf for the rest of the season. Over his six appearances between AA and AAA, he allowed a run and six baserunners over five innings with three strikeouts and a league-average fastball (93.9 mph).
Fantasy Outlook: Boston expects Hendriks to be ready for spring training while planning on using a closer committee until one arm emerges. From 2019 to 2023, he converted 115 of his 133 opportunities. His velocity and command in spring training will set the tone for his March fantasy draft value. Hendriks has the best-proven closing profile for the Red Sox, but the calendar no longer reads 2022. For now, we are waiting for more information about the direction of his right arm.
More pitching work from Aroldis Chapman 🔥 pic.twitter.com/LB27M0j4c6
— Boston Strong (@BostonStrong_34) December 16, 2024
Top Red Sox Handcuff – Aroldis Chapman, BOS
I was talking to my wife the other day about the command of Chapman. I showed her he hasn’t had a walk rate under 5.0 since 2020. She asked me how far home plate was from the pitching mound; I responded 60 feet and six inches. Her retort to me was this: Let me get this straight, you complaining about a guy who can’t throw a 97 mph fastball over a 17-inch plate, yet you (me) play golf from the lady's tees and the fairway is 50 yards wide, and somehow your drives find the woods 50% of the time. Apparently, she has never had Chapman on her fantasy team.
Over the past four seasons, the big lefty went 21-18 with a 3.60 ERA, 1.326 WHIP, 341 strikeouts, and 59 saves over 212.2 innings. Almost half of his saves came in 2021 (30) when the fantasy market had hopes and dreams of a rebound in command.
Chapman struggled in April and September (12 runs, 30 baserunners, and 30 strikeouts over 19.0 innings) last season, but he picked up 10 of his 14 saves. Batters have never hit higher than .200 against him in any of his 15 years in the majors.
His average fastball (97.8) was down over one mph from 2023. Chapman upped the usage of his sinker (27.4%) and split-finger fastball (13.1%) at the expense of his four-seamer (33.4%). Left-handed batters succeeded against his four-seamer (.350 BAA), while righties banged around his slider (.296 BAA).
Fantasy Outlook: Chapman has plenty of closing experience, but there will be times when he can’t find home plate. His WHIP risk is real unless somehow he gets his walk rate closer to 3.0, something that has only happened three times (2.9, 2.8, and 3.1) in his career. Ride him when Boston gives him save chances, kick him to the curb when he’s pitching in a setup role.
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With 20+ years of experience in the high-stakes fantasy market, I aim to research and compete at the highest level in baseball and football each season. I've contributed as a writer/analyst for Sports Draft Daily, ScoutPro, Scout Fantasy, Fulltime Fantasy, FFToolbox, and Sports Illustrated Fantasy. I'm honored to be in the National Fantasy Baseball Championship Hall of Fame. My drafting philosophy is risk-averse yet open to betting on potential game-changers. I approach player selection with a neutral perspective, acknowledging that fantasy sports are inherently unpredictable due to injuries, performance dips, and managerial decisions. My work focuses on these main areas: - Season-long fantasy baseball and football - BestBall Baseball and Football Events - Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS): DraftKings, FanDuel, and Underdog - Long Shot Player Prop Parlays for NFL I participate in various leagues and contests, including NFBC, NFFC, RTSports, FFPC, DraftKings, Underdog Fantasy, FanDuel, and FFWC, with the goal of leveraging my extensive experience and research for success in each game format. A fantasy follower can expect in-depth profiles of NFL and MLB players, along with season-long and weekly projections for each fantasy football season. In addition, I have many strategy articles to help develop fantasy players' learning curves.
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