Rate the take: Is Yankees' Luke Weaver the best reliever in baseball right now?

One of the most important pieces of a team during the postseason is the bullpen. The Cleveland Guardians have the best bullpen in baseball, from top to bottom. They were led by the top closer in the game, Emmanuel Clase, who is bound to get some Cy Young votes this year.

But just because Clase was the best reliever during the regular season doesn't mean he's the best reliever right now. Clase did give up four hits and three earned runs in a single game against the Tigers during the ALDS.

One MLB insider has very strong opinions on who the best reliever in baseball is right now. Dan Plesac didn't hold his opinion back on MLB Tonight.

Is New York Yankees breakout star Luke Weaver the best relief pitcher in baseball right now? Dan Plesac certainly thinks so.

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Rate the take: "Luke Weaver is the best reliever in baseball right now."

My initial thought to this bold claim? Absolutely not. It sounds like one of the worst possible takes that somebody could have right now. It's Luke Weaver, for crying out loud.

There are pitchers in the postseason right now that have dominated hitters all season long. Emmanuel Clase is going to receive Cy Young votes for the AL award. He held an ERA below 1.00 for the majority of the season while anchoring the top bullpen in the league. Edwin Diaz is filthy and looks to be back in his 2022 form. The Dodgers bullpen has multiple guys that look unhittable.

But, once you get over the knee-jerk reaction that this is a bad take, you can really look at what Weaver has done since being elevated to New York's closer. And when you look at that, you understand where a statement like this comes from.

So far in the postseason, Weaver has tossed 6.0 innings to record four saves. Two of his four saves have been five-out saves. In his six innings, Weaver has allowed no runs on two hits while striking out nine hitters. He's dominated with his fastball and he's dominated with his changeup. Weaver is a nightmare to face right now for both righties and lefties.

Clase has gotten hit harder than anybody expected. It's not just the one Kerry Carpenter swing that won the Tigers the game during the ALDS. Clase has given up five hits and four earned runs in 5.2 innings this postseason.

Now, it's hard to say that you would want to pitch Weaver in a tough spot over Clase given Clase's entire body of work and his unicorn arsenal of pitches, but the claim isn't as outlandish as it seems. There's definitely an argument to be had that Weaver is the best reliever in the game right now.

Especially if you consider how big of a dumpster fire the Yankees bullpen seemed like until Weaver was elevated to the closer role.

Grade the take: B+