Where Have All the Closers Gone?
Rates & Barrels: A show about Baseball
The Athletic
4.7 • 875 Ratings
🗓️ 30 April 2026
⏱️ 51 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Eno and DVR welcome former major leaguer Adam Ottavino to the show to discuss closers and why more relievers are racking up saves this season than in years past. The guys also dive into bullpen management and the ever-perplexing question of why closers tend to struggle in non-save situations. Later, Eno and DVR share their desert island favorite starting pitchers and reveal the biggest OOPSY droppers – with the correct chart this time.
Rundown:
1:04 Where Have All the Closers Gone?
5:12 How Should Baseball Value & Reward Relievers?
8:48 New Bullpen Management
11:00 Is Better Balance Possible?
14:32 Why Do Closers Struggle in Non-Save Situations?
19:40 The Desert Island: Favorite Pitcher
26:33 Will Tigers Stick with Kenley Jansen?
29:40 Is the New Zone Causing K% and BB% Fluctuations?
32:48 Seattle’s Starters’ Early Strikeout Rate Slide?
39:08 The Biggest OOPSY Fallers
44:52 A Case for Lawrence Butler Despite Projections Drop
Eno’s Article: https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7241759
Follow DVR on Bluesky: @DVR.bsky.social
Follow Eno on Bluesky: @enosarris.bsky.social
Follow Adam on Instagram: @adamottavino
e-mail: ratesandbarrels@gmail.com
Join our Discord: https://discord.gg/FyBa9f3wFe
Subscribe to The Athletic: theathletic.com/ratesandbarrels
Hosts: Derek VanRiper & Eno Sarris
With: Adam Ottavino
Editor: Jason Potere
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | If it seems like this has been a weird year for saves, it's because it has. |
| 0:05.0 | Where have all the closers gone? |
| 0:07.2 | We'll explore that question and more as Adam Adavino joins the show. |
| 0:11.2 | Let's go. |
| 0:22.7 | Welcome to rates and barrels. |
| 0:27.2 | It's Thursday, April 30th, Derek Van Riper, Inoceris, and Adam Adavino. |
| 0:29.5 | You've probably seen him all over the place. |
| 0:32.7 | Now part of the Sunday night baseball crew on NBC and Peacock. |
| 0:38.4 | You've seen them on Yes Network, ESPN, and his YouTube show, Baseball and Coffee. |
| 0:40.3 | Adam, thank you so much for joining us today. |
| 0:41.3 | Thanks. |
| 0:42.6 | So great to be here with you guys. |
| 0:46.3 | So we are digging into a big question. |
| 0:49.1 | Edo wrote about this for The Athletic earlier today. |
| 0:50.1 | We had a piece go up. |
| 0:52.8 | And where have all the closers gone? |
| 0:57.2 | We are at 98 pitchers with a save at this point in the season, |
| 1:02.7 | well ahead of any past season. And I want to start by asking you, how much do you think this is just weathering a storm of injuries around the league versus a new way that teams are thinking |
| 1:08.4 | about using their relievers? It will be a combination of both. |
| 1:12.9 | Certainly the concept of using your best relievers in higher leverage situations prior to |
| 1:18.1 | the ninth inning has been going on for at least a decade or more now. |
| 1:23.7 | You know, even myself, you know, I signed with teams as a seventh, eighth inning option, |
... |
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