Fantasy baseball: Closer depth chart, relief pitcher rankings for Week 12

We’re more than two months into the 2023 MLB season, and it feels like bullpen hierarchies are finally settling in. The clubs who believe in closers have settled on them, and barring some sort of injury or other disaster, there aren’t a ton of loose saves to be found on the waiver wire.

Of course, this is 2023 we’re talking about, so there’s always one injury or another — and this past week was no exception. A former All-Star is now on the shelf with arm trouble, while two other elite options returned from IL stints of their own. We’ll go through all that and more along with a full depth chart of every bullpen in the league.

Relief pitcher notes: Week 11

• Man, this stinks. Just a couple of weeks after making his emotional and triumphant return to the mound following a battle with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, Liam Hendriks is headed back to the injured list with elbow inflammation. Manager Pedro Grifol told reporters it seems similar to the strain the All-Star suffered last year; that injury cost him about three weeks, although the team obviously won’t know more until test results come back. Kendall Graveman should see the lion’s share of opportunities with Hendriks out, and while he blew a save on Sunday against the Miami Marlins, the righty has been awfully good of late and should have a fairly long leash.
• Well isn’t this a sight for sore eyes:

After more than a month on the shelf with shoulder trouble that he had a hard time kicking, Munoz finally returned from the injured list this week and looked like he never left. The righty struck out five across 2.1 innings in his first two appearances back for the Seattle Mariners, and while Paul Sewald is still getting the ninth-inning work, it’s just a matter of time before this becomes at worst a timeshare.

• Also returning this week: Erstwhile Philadelphia Phillies closer Jose Alvarado. The big lefty was a bit rocky this weekend against the Dodgers, allowing a run on two walks and a hit on Sunday, but the most important thing is that he’s feeling healthy and is still showing that premium triple-digits velocity. Craig Kimbrel has done surprisingly good work in the ninth for Philly while Alvarado’s been out and could eat into his save opportunities, but this should be at least a 1A-1B situation moving forward.
• A.J. Puk also came back from an IL stint last week, and unlike the prior two returnees on this list, Puk actually locked down a save. The lefty worked a clean ninth inning on Sunday, his third straight scoreless appearance since coming off the injured list, and he should get as much work as he can handle for a surprisingly competitive Marlins team.
• Just when it looked like the Oakland Athletics would never see a save chance again, the A’s have ripped off five (!) wins in a row. That sudden stretch of confidence was Trevor May’s gain, as the veteran righty locked down two saves amid three straight scoreless appearances. It could’ve been three, but May melted down a bit on Sunday, allowing three runs on three walks and just one hit before giving way to Sam Long. Long finished the job to steal the save, his second of his career and his second in as many days. Despite that rough outing, this is likely May’s job to lose given the lack of other proven options, and he’s looked better since coming back from the IL in late May.