Pirates activated RHP Joel Hanrahan from the bereavement list. 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.

Pirates placed Joel Hanrahan on the bereavement list. 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.

Joel Hanrahan worked a perfect ninth inning with a pair of strikeouts against the Braves on Saturday to pick up his fourth save of the season. After a shaky start to the season, and a hamstring issue, Hanrahan has looked like his normal dominating self in his last few outings. He remains one of the best and most dominating closers in the fantasy game.

Joel Hanrahan sent down the Rockies in order on Tuesday, locking up his third save of the season. 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.

Joel Hanrahan returned to action on Saturday April 21.

Joel Hanrahan, in his first action since April 15th, recorded his second save of the season in the Pirates win over the Cardinals on Saturday. 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.

Updating a previous item, Joel Hanrahan was unavailable Tuesday night due to tightness in his right hamstring. 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.

Joel Hanrahan earned a win Sunday in the Pirates' 5-4 defeat of the Phillies. 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.

The Pirates agreed to terms on a one-year, $4.1 million deal with Joel Hanrahan, avoiding arbitration. The Pittsburgh closer made $1.4 million last season in his first year of arbitration eligibility, and scored a sizeable raise for 2012. Hanrahan posted a 1.83 ERA and 61/16 K/BB ratio in 68 2/3 innings last season, converting 40 of 44 save opportunities. He'll be a top fantasy option again this year.

The Pirates have not begun negotiations toward a contract extension for closer Joel Hanrahan. Hanrahan is still an arbitration-eligible player, so the Bucs are in no real rush. The 30-year-old right-hander posted a 1.83 ERA and 61/16 K/BB ratio over 68 2/3 innings in 2011, converting 40 of 44 save opportunities.