Joel

Hanrahan

The 22-year-old was 10-4 with a 2.43 ERA and 130/53 K/BB in 133 1/3 innings for Jacksonville.

After a shaky start to the season and a hamstring issue, Hanrahan has looked like his normal dominant self in his last few outings. He remains a top fantasy closer.

He was away from the team for a couple days while attending his grandmother’s funeral, but Hanrahan is ready to resume his ninth inning role.

He only needed 16 pitches to get through the inning and picked up a strikeout. Hanrahan had been dealing with a hamstring issue and looked shaky in his first outing back on Saturday, but was back to his normal dominating self in this effort.

Hanrahan will be excused for a minimum of three days to attend his grandmother’s funeral and spend time with his family. Save chances this weekend could go to Jason Grilli, Juan Cruz, Tony Watson or Chris Resop, with Grilli the leader in the clubhouse.

Imagine that. Hanrahan doesn’t have a save yet, but his win-loss record sits 1-0. The 30-year-old Pirates closer should be an excellent fantasy option all season long.

Hanrahan had been sidelined while dealing with hamstring issues and looked very shaky in his first outing back. He walked two, putting the winning run at the plate, before working his way out of trouble with a pair of strikeouts. Now that he’s shaken off the rust, he should be fine moving forward.

Hanrahan had been perfect in his first five outings before this hiccup. Tony Watson came in to relieve him after the long ball, and wound up picking up the victory in relief. Hanrahan is currently in no danger of losing his grip on the closer’s role.

Hanrahan will be excused for a minimum of three days to attend the funeral and spend time with his family. The 30-year-old right-hander has posted a pedestrian 4.66 ERA in 9 2/3 innings this year and blew his first save on Tuesday night, but he’s in no danger of losing his job. Save chances this weekend could go to Jason Grilli, Juan Cruz, Tony Watson or Chris Resop.

Hanrahan tweaked his hamstring on the final pitch of his save against the Giants on Sunday. He is considered day-to-day and hopes to return Friday or Saturday. Veteran right-hander Juan Cruz notched the save in Tuesday’s win over the D-Backs.