Top fantasy baseball relief pitcher waiver pickups for Week 24

The air is starting to get a bit crisper (well, in the north at least). The real-life and fantasy trade deadlines have come and gone. September is almost upon us. The marathon of the 2023 MLB season has become a sprint to the finish, and right now is winning time for those of you lucky enough to still be in contention in your fantasy baseball leagues. With precious few weeks to shore up holes and make up ground in the standings, smart adds become even more important: Hit on an under-the-radar free agent, and fantasy hardware awaits; miss, and you’ll spend the winter wondering what if.

Luckily, our weekly waiver wire recommendations are here to help, with position-by-position looks are players you should consider snagging off the waiver wire. Next up: relief pitcher.

Fantasy baseball waiver wire: Week 24 relief pitcher targets

Jose Alvarado, RP, Philadelphia Phillies

Roster percentage: 12%

After a three-run blowup against the Angels — his second multi-run outing in his last five appearances — Craig Kimbrel appears to be wearing down in the closer’s role in Philly, while Alvarado is finally getting back to the guy he was before an elbow injury sidetracked his breakout season. Alvarado had the ninth inning on lockdown prior to that injury, with a triple-digit fastball and one earned run allowed across his first 14 appearances. He’s started to throw the ball better of late — though command issues did come back to bite him against the Brewers this past weekend — and all things equal, he’s probably the best pitcher the Phillies have in their bullpen. Unless Kimbrel figures it out in a hurry, he could start getting save chances again.

Tanner Scott, RP, Miami Marlins

Roster percentage: 10.6%

Scott lost the closer’s role when Miami acquired David Robertson at the trade deadline, but with Robertson getting removed from the ninth inning due to his recent struggles, this looks like Scott’s job to lose once again. The lefty has been sensational all year, with 10 straight scoreless appearances (including a save, a win and two multi-inning outings this past week) and a 2.48 ERA, and the Marlins should continue to find themselves in lots of close games.

Robert Stephenson, RP, Tampa Bay Rays

Roster percentage: 0.3%

Stephenson likely won’t dethrone Pete Fairbanks as the Rays’ primary closer, but Tampa mixes and matches more than most teams in the ninth, and the righty has been on a heater of late.

Stephenson has a 0.89 ERA over 27 games so far this year, with a gaudy 13.5 K/9 to boot. His new slider has been a lethal pitch, and while he may not see consistent save chances, he’s likely to get at least a few — while smoothing your ratios and adding a boatload of strikeouts.

Jason Foley, RP, Detroit Tigers

Roster percentage: 2.6%

With Alex Lange totally losing the strike zone once again — he suffered another ugly blown save against the Yankees last week — Foley could once again find himself in the closer’s role over the season’s final weeks. The righty posted a 2.50 ERA so far this year, and he converted consecutive save chances against the Guardians back in August. Again, Detroit is a better team than you probably think, with Eduardo Rodriguez and Tarik Skubal consistently keeping them in games and Riley Greene, Spencer Torkelson and Kerry Carpenter a sneaky heart of the order, and Foley figures to get at least some save chances down the stretch.