diff --git a/services/custom_commands_service.py b/services/custom_commands_service.py
index 03445bc..ad2635b 100644
--- a/services/custom_commands_service.py
+++ b/services/custom_commands_service.py
@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@ Custom Commands Service for Discord Bot v2.0
 Modern async service layer for managing custom commands with full type safety.
 """
 
+import asyncio
 import math
 from datetime import UTC, datetime, timedelta
 from typing import Optional, List, Any, Tuple
@@ -466,21 +467,28 @@ class CustomCommandsService(BaseService[CustomCommand]):
 
         commands_data = await self.get_items_with_params(params)
 
+        creators = await asyncio.gather(
+            *[
+                self.get_creator_by_id(cmd_data.creator_id)
+                for cmd_data in commands_data
+            ],
+            return_exceptions=True,
+        )
+
         commands = []
-        for cmd_data in commands_data:
-            try:
-                creator = await self.get_creator_by_id(cmd_data.creator_id)
-                commands.append(CustomCommand(**cmd_data.model_dump(), creator=creator))
-            except BotException as e:
-                # Handle missing creator gracefully
+        for cmd_data, creator in zip(commands_data, creators):
+            if isinstance(creator, BotException):
                 self.logger.warning(
                     "Skipping popular command with missing creator",
                     command_id=cmd_data.id,
                     command_name=cmd_data.name,
                     creator_id=cmd_data.creator_id,
-                    error=str(e),
+                    error=str(creator),
                 )
                 continue
+            if isinstance(creator, BaseException):
+                raise creator
+            commands.append(CustomCommand(**cmd_data.model_dump(), creator=creator))
 
         return commands
 
@@ -662,21 +670,28 @@ class CustomCommandsService(BaseService[CustomCommand]):
 
         commands_data = await self.get_items_with_params(params)
 
+        creators = await asyncio.gather(
+            *[
+                self.get_creator_by_id(cmd_data.creator_id)
+                for cmd_data in commands_data
+            ],
+            return_exceptions=True,
+        )
+
         commands = []
-        for cmd_data in commands_data:
-            try:
-                creator = await self.get_creator_by_id(cmd_data.creator_id)
-                commands.append(CustomCommand(**cmd_data.model_dump(), creator=creator))
-            except BotException as e:
-                # Handle missing creator gracefully
+        for cmd_data, creator in zip(commands_data, creators):
+            if isinstance(creator, BotException):
                 self.logger.warning(
                     "Skipping command with missing creator",
                     command_id=cmd_data.id,
                     command_name=cmd_data.name,
                     creator_id=cmd_data.creator_id,
-                    error=str(e),
+                    error=str(creator),
                 )
                 continue
+            if isinstance(creator, BaseException):
+                raise creator
+            commands.append(CustomCommand(**cmd_data.model_dump(), creator=creator))
 
         return commands
 
@@ -688,21 +703,28 @@ class CustomCommandsService(BaseService[CustomCommand]):
 
         commands_data = await self.get_items_with_params(params)
 
+        creators = await asyncio.gather(
+            *[
+                self.get_creator_by_id(cmd_data.creator_id)
+                for cmd_data in commands_data
+            ],
+            return_exceptions=True,
+        )
+
         commands = []
-        for cmd_data in commands_data:
-            try:
-                creator = await self.get_creator_by_id(cmd_data.creator_id)
-                commands.append(CustomCommand(**cmd_data.model_dump(), creator=creator))
-            except BotException as e:
-                # Handle missing creator gracefully
+        for cmd_data, creator in zip(commands_data, creators):
+            if isinstance(creator, BotException):
                 self.logger.warning(
                     "Skipping command with missing creator",
                     command_id=cmd_data.id,
                     command_name=cmd_data.name,
                     creator_id=cmd_data.creator_id,
-                    error=str(e),
+                    error=str(creator),
                 )
                 continue
+            if isinstance(creator, BaseException):
+                raise creator
+            commands.append(CustomCommand(**cmd_data.model_dump(), creator=creator))
 
         return commands
 
diff --git a/services/decision_service.py b/services/decision_service.py
index 11a36b5..a688b9e 100644
--- a/services/decision_service.py
+++ b/services/decision_service.py
@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@ Decision Service
 Manages pitching decision operations for game submission.
 """
 
+import asyncio
 from typing import List, Dict, Any, Optional, Tuple
 
 from utils.logging import get_contextual_logger
@@ -124,22 +125,19 @@ class DecisionService:
             if int(decision.get("b_save", 0)) == 1:
                 bsv_ids.append(pitcher_id)
 
-        # Second pass: Fetch Player objects
-        wp = await player_service.get_player(wp_id) if wp_id else None
-        lp = await player_service.get_player(lp_id) if lp_id else None
-        sv = await player_service.get_player(sv_id) if sv_id else None
+        # Second pass: Fetch all Player objects in parallel
+        # Order: [wp_id, lp_id, sv_id, *hold_ids, *bsv_ids]; None IDs resolve immediately
+        ordered_ids = [wp_id, lp_id, sv_id] + hold_ids + bsv_ids
+        results = await asyncio.gather(
+            *[
+                player_service.get_player(pid) if pid else asyncio.sleep(0, result=None)
+                for pid in ordered_ids
+            ]
+        )
 
-        holders = []
-        for hold_id in hold_ids:
-            holder = await player_service.get_player(hold_id)
-            if holder:
-                holders.append(holder)
-
-        blown_saves = []
-        for bsv_id in bsv_ids:
-            bsv = await player_service.get_player(bsv_id)
-            if bsv:
-                blown_saves.append(bsv)
+        wp, lp, sv = results[0], results[1], results[2]
+        holders = [p for p in results[3 : 3 + len(hold_ids)] if p]
+        blown_saves = [p for p in results[3 + len(hold_ids) :] if p]
 
         return wp, lp, sv, holders, blown_saves