How Emmanuel Clase, struggling MLB closers can bounce back - ESPN

The first month of the 2025 MLB season was a tough one for some of baseball's elite relievers.

On Opening Day, Cleveland Guardians closer Emmanuel Clase blew a save in the bottom of the ninth inning when he allowed three hits and the tying run against the Kansas City Royals. A week later, he surrendered a couple of runs, including a homer, in a non-save situation. The rest of April was much of the same: Clase gave up 23 hits and 10 runs (all earned) over 13⅓ innings in 14 games in March and April for a 6.75 ERA.

Although he appears to be rounding back into form — in his past five appearances, he has picked up a win and four saves while allowing one earned run — what the heck happened in March and April?

This is not the same Clase who had one of the greatest closer seasons of all time in 2024, when he went 4-2 with 47 saves in 50 chances and a 0.61 ERA. He allowed just 10 runs all season, and five of those were unearned (four ghost runners in extra innings and one resulting on a Clase error). Indeed, take away the ghost runners and Clase was nearly perfect: Both losses were the result of ghost runners in extra innings, as was one of the blown saves. Batters hit just .154 off him, and he yielded just two home runs.

Nearly perfect… at least until the postseason, when Clase shockingly allowed eight runs in 14 innings, served up three home runs, and blew one save and lost two other games.

But Clase isn't the only struggling closer in 2025. Two-time All-Star Devin Williams was traded from the Milwaukee Brewers to the New York Yankees in the offseason and has posted a 9.24 ERA and lost his job. The Chicago Cubs acquired Ryan Pressly from the Houston Astros to fill their ninth-inning role, and he just had a historic meltdown,