Matt Svanson Fantasy Stats

St. Louis Cardinals right-handed reliever Matt Svanson could be involved in a closing committee in St. Louis this year, making him an intriguing candidate to speculate on for saves in deeper fantasy formats going into the 2026 campaign. Manager Oliver Marmol is already on record saying that he won't have a fixed closer going into the season, so Svanson, Riley O'Brien, JoJo Romero, and Ryne Stanek could all be options for the ninth inning. The 27-year-old Svanson was 4-0 in his major-league debut in 2025 with a 1.94 ERA, 0.88 WHIP, 68 strikeouts, and 20 walks in 60 1/3 innings pitched. He was deployed in a high-leverage spot in Wednesday's 4-1 Grapefruit League debut win over the Houston Astros, too, picking up his third spring win while throwing two shutout innings with a strikeout and no walks. Svanson entered the day with a 1.50 ERA, six K's, and a walk in six spring innings. His strong performance in spring training could make him a favorite to lead St. Louis' bullpen in save chances.

The St. Louis Cardinals are promoting right-handed pitcher Matt Svanson to the major leagues. Svanson has yet to reach the major leagues in his professional career. He was selected in the 13th round of the 2021 MLB Draft by the Toronto Blue Jays. Last season, Svanson spent his entire campaign with Double-A Springfield and posted a strong 2.69 ERA with a 1.40 WHIP across 63 2/3 innings. He struck out just 59 batters and served up a high 25 free passes. He then made his Triple-A debut at the start of the 2025 campaign and needed just five 2/3 innings of work to prove he was ready for the major leagues. Across this brief stint, Svanson allowed just one run. Fantasy managers should expect the Cardinals to deploy the Lehigh product in a low-leverage role.