While we await word on the severity of Corey Knebel ’s injury, Fantasy owners at this point should be preparing for the worst. Wherever and however you invested in the Brewers Closer looks like a disastrous investment, but before you jump ship let’s take a look at who you should be targeting on the Brewers to replace him. Brewers Manager Craig Counsell has said the 9th will be a committee, but that could quickly become one guy. Let’s dive in on the situation and who could be in line to save your and their crew this season.
1. Jacob Barnes 
Barnes could be the first in line to replace Knebel, considering the fact he was called on by Craig Counsell on opening day to nail down the team’s first save after Knebel blew it last week. Barnes as of Friday hadn’t given up a run in this early part of the season, and dating back to 2017 had struck out 10 batters per 9 innings pitched. Aside from one miserable four Earned Run outing against the Reds in early September, Barnes had a solid 2017 campaign and has closer “stuff”. Barnes didn’t give up an earned run in his first twelve outings last season. It’s pretty evident as the season wore on, so did he.
Analysis: Should be added in all NL Only, 15 team and 12 team mixed leagues. In leagues with FAAB Budget 20%.
2. Matt Albers
Albers was lights out last year for the Nationals when he wasn’t asked to close out the 9th inning with the Nationals. Albers is also on his 8th team and has been in the league 13 seasons. He isn’t a terrible option should Barnes fail, considering he is unlikely to melt under pressure, but the Brewers can do better. Albers’ 9.3 K per 9 last season was an outlier in terms of his career which is unlikely to repeat. He is the type if you lose out on Barnes and perhaps other this week you can stash and hope the guy ahead of him fails.
Analysis: Should be added in all NL Only formats. Mixed leagues probably not. A few bucks of FAAB in NL only.
3. Jeremy Jeffress
Jeffress is a bit intriguing due to the fact he saved 27 games for Craig Counsell with the Brew Crew in 2016. Since then things have not gone particularly well. Jeffress’ walk rate went way up with the Texas Rangers, and even when he returned to Milwaukee last season, his overall numbers would indicate some luck was involved in his success. He also gave up 10 long balls last season. This is Jeffress third go around with the Brewers and if Barnes or Albers fails, he could be in the mix. This gives him NL only value and in deeper mixed leagues he may be worth a stash. Counsell does have some familiarity with him which puts him on par with Albers for the moment.
Analysis: Should be added in all NL Only formats Mixed leagues same as Albers A few bucks of FAAB in NL only.
4. J.J. Hoover
Things would really have to fall off the rails for Hoover to get a shot here, but he does have a ton of big league experience and pitched well last year with the Diamondbacks. Currently, Hoover sits in Colorado Springs but could join the big league club to replace Knebel, or a future injury down the line. Hoover whiffed 54 batters in 41 innings last season with Arizona, and has been in the closer conversation before. Stranger things have happened at the closer position in fantasy, so if he does get called up, monitor his progress.
Analysis: Monitor, do not add in any league
5. Josh Hader 
It’s pretty clear at this point Craig Counsell does not want to use Josh Hader as his closer, and he does profile as a future starter in the big leagues. He is probably owned in most formats anyway but he is certainly worth mentioning here and is probably the most talented pitcher on this list. If for some reason he is on the waiver wire in any format he should be added for the ratios alone. Perhaps he ends up like Padres Closer Brad Hand in the 9th inning at some point but that doesn’t appear to be the plan yet.
Analysis: Probably already owned in your league, if not grab him.
Player News
Kyren Paris hit a two-run homer in Wednesday’s win for the Angels over the Blue Jays.
That’s the first homer for Paris since April 9 when he went deep twice against Tampa Bay and caused everyone to lose all sense of rational thought. The 23-year-old did also single and walk to improve his on-base percentage to .311,, while the homer bumps his slugging mark to .378. There is long-term upside in Paris with flashes that suggest he can be a fantasy option. Fantasy managers should still absolutely looking elsewhere for options up the middle.
Jorge Soler hit a three-run double in the bottom of the ninth to give the Angels a 5-4 win over the Blue Jays on Wednesday.
Trent Grisham went 1-for-1 with a game-tying two-run home run in the eighth inning of a 4-3 win over the Padres on Wednesday.
While the Yankees won this game on a walk-off in the 10th inning, Grisham’s game-tying home run in the eighth was the biggest moment. He came on as a pinch-hitter for Jorbit Vibas against the usually stout Jason Adam and smashed a two-strike changeup into the right field seats. This clutch shot will only continue to push Grisham’s playing time in the right direction after he just started eight of the last 10 games, hit either first or second in each, and already has 10 homers in 31 games played this season.
Jeff Hoffman blew a save and picked up a loss Wednesday against the Angels.
Devin Williams struck out three batters with one walk and hit another in a scoreless 10th inning to earn the win against the Padres on Wednesday.
The Yankees entrusted Williams with the all important 10th inning and the inherited ghost runner on second base after their dramatic comeback. While he loaded the bases and had some tense moments, he left the inning unscathed and opened the door for them to win it right after. It should be noted that Luke Weaver came on for what were the most important outs of this game at the time, after Ian Hamilton walked two to begin the eighth inning and Weaver allowed both of those inherited runners to score. He was called upon as the fireman though and will likely get the next save opportunity. Still, this was a massive step in the right direction for Williams.
Max Fried allowed five hits and one run with no walks and eight strikeouts over seven innings in a no-decision against the Padres on Wednesday.
Fried’s excellent season continued as he set down the Padres easily besides for a mammoth solo home run by Jackson Merrill. It was no matter though, as they rarely threatened otherwise and Fried continued to find his strikeout stuff. This was his fourth outing of the year with at least seven strikeouts, a mark he only hit 10 times last season in 29 starts. Fried with a strikeout rate that’s better than league average – which is where he’s at right now – is a clear top-10 pitcher in fantasy baseball. He’s set for a two-start week coming up against the Mariners and Mets.