Thursday, March 12, 2015

Bullpens, bullpens, bullpens....

Major League Baseball has seen bullpen usage rise over the decade. You can say the increase in managing highly paid starters' pitch counts and yearly inning caps is a big part of it. You can say having lefty specialists to get that one big late-inning out is another. You can also say that it serves as a way of shortening the game, a plan that the Kansas City Royals executed perfectly last season on their run to a World Series appearance. The Royals would hope and pray that their starting pitcher could get through six innings, then Kelvin Herrera took the seventh, Wade Davis the eighth, and finally Greg Holland would shut things down in the ninth. 

Personally, I find the overuse of bullpens annoying. I have always been a proponent of having the best pitchers on your team. Your starting five should be your five best pitchers. Why? Well, they are the ones toeing the rubber every fifth day. They are the ones expected to pitch deep into games and get all batters out. Say it's Game 7 of the World Series. Would you not pitch Clayton Kershaw against an all right-handed hitting lineup? Not throw Felix Hernandez against a lineup stacked with lefties? Obviously, those guys pitch, and they pitch against anyone because they are two of the best, and that's what every starting five should be comprised of -- the best. Now, bullpens. Shouldn't the same theory apply? Put the next best arms available in your bullpen and go to war with those guys.

This brings me to the Mets and their current dilemna. Josh Edgin was all set to be the main (and possibly only) lefty out of the bullpen this season. A stretched ligament in his pitching elbow that might require Tommy John surgery put the Mets in a bad spot. The other lefties in camp include Sean Gilmartin, a Rule 5 pickup with no major league experience; Scott Rice, coming of a surgery of his own; Jack Leathersich, a young minor league prospect with a knack for the strikeout (15.4 per nine innings) and a bit of a walk problem (4.6 per nine); and Dario Alvarez, who has logged an entire seven innings of experience above A ball. 

Knowing how Terry Collins loves leaning on his lefties, there could be a big problem brewing. How to solve this problem is easy. Take the best seven pitchers north to fill out the bullpen when the regular season begins.

MLB writer Michael Baron of JustMets.net seems to agree with me.
Hell, he might have even got the idea from me.
I want the best arms in my bullpen. Edgin's injury opens up a spot for prospect Rafael Montero to possibly shine in relief. Maybe one of the aforementioned lefties puts it together during the rest of spring and takes the job. Regardless, whoever is the best should be the guy that makes the roster.
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