Bullpens are key
A deep bullpen can go a long way in the baseball postseason, as Cleveland showed
The Cleveland Indians’ run to the 2016 World Series served as the latest example of the value of top-notch bullpens in the postseason.
Despite having a depleted rotation — remember Ryan Merritt making a start in the American League Championship Series? — the Indians reached Game 7 of the World Series thanks largely to a stellar relief corps headed by Andrew Miller and Cody Allen.
With the extra days off and heightened importance of every out in October, bullpens are sure to play a key role again in this postseason. Here’s a look at how every playoff team stacks up in that area.
Indians: The bullpen with the best ERA in the majors happily welcomed back a rested Miller, who missed 37 games while serving two stints on the disabled list with a knee injury. Miller has been his usual untouchable self since his return — 13 strikeouts in 62⁄ innings — bolstering an already formidable group of relievers.
Closer Allen and fellow righthander Nick Goody average at least 12 strikeouts per nine innings, Bryan Shaw leads the team’s relievers in appearances and Dan Otero is a master at inducing ground balls. And talk about the rich getting richer: Cleveland could have overpowering Danny Salazar and 12-game winner Mike Clevinger in the bullpen for the division series.
Washington Nationals: Remember when this was an area of concern, nay, dismay? The July acquisitions of Sean Doolittle, Ryan Madson and Brandon Kintzler have transformed the Nationals bullpen from a disaster into an asset going into the playoffs.
While all three have experience closing and have pitched well since arriving in Washington, Doolittle has taken over the ninth inning and converted his first 21 save chances before blowing a late lead in an eventual win Thursday. The newcomers’ arrival also allowed Matt Albers (1.66 ERA) to move into a sixth-inning role. Sammy Solis, who has turned around his season with 10 consecutive scoreless outings, gives the Nats a third lefty reliever along with Doolittle and Oliver Perez. Los Angeles Dodgers: Kenley Jansen registered every single one of the Dodgers’ 47 saves in 2016. He has been less of a save hog this year, collecting 41 of the club’s 51, but there’s little question about who’s the boss late in the game. And his domain is not necessarily limited to the ninth. Jansen has 11 saves of more than one inning, and his memorable 51-pitch outing in last year’s playoffs provided testament to his grit.
The bridge to Jansen has been shaky of late with the September struggles of Pedro Baez and Ross Stripling, so the Dodgers might get creative. They already have moved Kenta Maeda to the bullpen and will consider using lefty Alex Wood (16-3) in that same role. Dodgers relievers do have the best ERA in the National League at 3.37, so the club does not lack for options.
Chicago Cubs: We’ll forgive Wade Davis that one miscue after converting his first 32 save chances of the season. He has still allowed just 39 hits in 582⁄ in3 nings and is nearly automatic.
The rest of the bullpen is pretty sturdy as well, with hardthrowing Carl Edwards Jr. emerging as a solid setup man by striking out nearly 13 per nine innings. The Cubs figure to have three lefties in the bullpen in the first round in Mike Montgomery, Justin Wilson and Brian Duensing, which might help them neutralize the Nationals’ Bryce Harper and Daniel Murphy.
Boston Red Sox: After a pedestrian 2016 season, closer Craig Kimbrel is back to blowing away hitters at an amazing rate. Kimbrel has struck out 126 of the 254 batters he has faced, an astonishing 49.6% that’s even better than
the redoubtable Jansen (42.3%).
Backing up Kimbrel in the bullpen with the majors’ secondbest ERA (3.11) is a solid cast that includes right-handers Matt Barnes, Heath Hembree and the reborn Joe Kelly. But the staff ’s most intriguing pitcher in the postseason will be David Price, who has thrown 82⁄ scoreless in3 nings and struck out 13 as a reliever since returning from an elbow injury Sept. 17.
New York Yankees: The formidable quartet of Aroldis Chapman, Dellin Betances, David Robertson and Tommy Kahnle was supposed to make games five-inning affairs once the Yankees put them together, except Chapman mysteriously faltered all of a sudden.
Chapman is back to throwing
102-mph fireballs and his confidence has been restored, as he has posted a 0.71 ERA in his last
12 outings. That could make the Yankees bullpen a scary weapon in the playoffs, where overpowering pitching typically rules. Chapman and Betances are two of only five relievers ever to strike out
100-plus batters in four consecutive seasons. Arizona Diamondbacks:
Closer Fernando Rodney, 40, looked like he was done in April, when he fashioned a 12.60 ERA. But since then Rodney has been awfully effective, converting 33 of 37 save chances with a 2.45 ERA. Moreover, Rodney has limited batters to a .196 average and .574
OPS for the whole season, despite the early struggles, showing he can get the job done.
The more interesting prospect regarding Diamondbacks relievers is the likelihood they’ll use Archie Bradley — a breakout star this season with a 1.73 ERA and 1.04 WHIP as a setup man — in the same capacity the Indians used Miller last October. If Bradley can handle that kind of multiple-inning role, the Diamondbacks would have a hugely valuable tool at their disposal.
Houston Astros: The Astros have the shakiest bullpen among the top World Series contenders, ranking 17th in the majors with a 4.29 ERA. Closer Ken Giles can be overpowering but falls short of lights-out category, having converted 34 of 38 save chances.
Chris Devenski and Will Harris are solid in the setup roles, but Luke Gregerson has had a rough year, and the addition of Francisco Liriano failed to fulfill the need for an effective lefty in key situations. Houston’s 21 blown saves are the second-largest figure among playoff teams. That’s not a comforting stat to take into October.
Minnesota Twins: Who are these guys? The Twins traded closer Kintzler in late July, either thinking they could do better or refusing to believe they were really playoff contenders. Now they’ve become the first team to make the postseason the year af-
ter losing at least 100 games, and their bullpen is, well, different.
Matt Belisle, a 14-year veteran who had all of five career saves before this season, has converted eight as the closer and, most important, has logged a 1.45 ERA in his last 30 appearances. He’s supported by rookies Trevor Hildenberger and Alan Busenitz. Taylor Rogers is the top left-handed option.