Paul Sewald DVOA, Advanced Stats, & Fantasy Rankings

The Cleveland Guardians announced on Wednesday that they signed free-agent right-handed reliever Paul Sewald to an undisclosed major-league contract for the 2025 season. The deal includes a mutual option for 2026. It was a rough 2024 season for Sewald in his final year with the Arizona Diamondbacks, as he missed time due to injury and also lost his job as the closer. The 34-year-old veteran finished with a 4.31 ERA (3.95 FIP) and a 1.13 WHIP with 16 saves, a 26.1% strikeout rate and a 6.1% walk rate in 39 2/3 relief innings. He got a late start due to an oblique injury and saved 11 straight saves while being unhittable before everything fell apart. Although Sewald won't be the closer in Cleveland with Emmanuel Clase locked into that role, he did have 81 saves the last four years and should be worth a look in holds leagues as a setup man for the Guardians in 2025.UPDATE: Sewald will make $7 million, and his 2026 option will be worth $10 million.

Arizona Diamondbacks right-handed reliever Paul Sewald (neck) threw a 20-pitch bullpen session at Chase Field on Monday and is scheduled to throw again on either Thursday or Friday, making it unlikely that he would be activated from the injured list before the final few games or two of the regular season. "Paul's got a disk problem in his neck," manager Torey Lovullo said. "It's causing some problems with his left side, his left shoulder, so he can't go out there at full strength and compete. We made the decision, along with his input, to just step away and heal up and get strong." Sewald was put on the IL (retroactive to Sept. 12), which would mean that the first day he could be activated would be this Friday. With Sewald on the shelf, Justin Martinez has stepped into the closer's role for the Snakes. It's unclear if Sewald will be available to the team if they get into the postseason.

Arizona Diamondbacks reliever Paul Sewald (neck) played catch on Friday for the first time since being placed on the 15-day IL on Sunday with neck discomfort. Arizona manager Torey Lovullo also noted that Sewald will throw off a mound in the coming days. That news is a positive update for the 34-year-old, signaling that the discomfort is subsiding. Sewald has been a solid member of the Diamondbacks' bullpen in August and September after struggling in July (10.80 ERA). Though Arizona is clinging to the final wild card spot, Sewald likely is done for the regular season and wouldn't be able to return until the postseason. Fantasy managers hoping for help in the last week of the season should set their sights elsewhere. A fine replacement would be Justin Martinez, who's posted a 1.59 ERA in his last five appearances for Arizona.

Arizona Diamondbacks closer Paul Sewald has been in a slump as of late and is having trouble locating his pitches. Arizona skipper Torey Lovullo expressed after Wednesday's game that "there's something that's going on with his delivery" and "It's not allowing him to throw the ball where he wants to and make the pitches that he's normally making." Wednesday evening was another poor outing for the 34-year-old as he served up three free passes and two earned runs. Sewald has posted a hefty 13.50 ERA and 3.00 WHIP across his past four appearances. This is a stark contrast to earlier in the season, where he went 11-for-11 in his first save opportunities after making his season debut in May due to an early stint on the injured list. Lovullo also did not commit to whether Sewald would remain the primary ninth-inning option in the desert. If the right-hander were to shift to a lower leverage role to work out his struggles, Kevin Ginkel and A.J. Puk are strong candidates to see save opportunities.

Arizona Diamondbacks closer Paul Sewald couldn't find his command Wednesday night, allowing two runs on three walks and one hit in one-third of an inning in a 5-4 victory over the Washington Nationals. Sewald entered the game with a three-run lead, and unfortunately for fantasy managers, he could not find the strike zone. He exited the game with the bases loaded, and Ryan Thompson ended up inheriting the tough task of shutting the door. Luckily, Thompson was able to bail Sewald out of a potential loss, but not before a passed ball allowed one of Sewald's runners to score. Sewald now owns a 4.39 ERA on the season and has allowed 12 runs in 10 innings pitched during the month of July, which is a complete 180 from the one earned run he had allowed in May and June combined. The Diamondbacks traded for Sewald during last season and due to the capital given up, he's got a long leash, but with Arizona only five games back in the National League West, they can ill-afford rough outings from the 34-year-old veteran. Arizona could turn to Thompson, A.J. Puk, or Kevin Ginkel to close games if Sewald continues to struggle.