MLB
Less Than Two Weeks to Go
With the Super Bowl occurring yesterday, this reminds us that football will be over and baseball starts in less than three weeks. Spring training, that is. Pitchers and catchers report in less than two weeks, as well. This makes you wonder what the state of the World Series Champion Boston Red Sox really is. Sure they have the Patriots to take the pressure off them for now, but after yesterday they need some relief. After all, they can’t get any relief with their bullpen.
What Have They Done?
So far, the Red Sox have been focused on signing relievers. This is great news for a bullpen that had the ninth-best ERA in baseball (3.72), with the sixth-most shutouts (14) and the 12th-best WHIP (1.29). So, they needed a little help, especially with one of their stars moving to the Dark Side (Joe Kelly to the Dodgers), and the other unsigned (Craig Kimbrel). Unfortunately, the help they got is pretty minimal, and all are on minor-league contracts. That sounds like a World Series defender to me.
Some of the new faces the Red Sox brought in for relief help include Jenrry Mejia, Daniel Runzler, and Brian Ellington. The good news is that they have all played in the majors before. The bad news is that none of their names is “Kimbrel”. The more reassuring part is that Mejia is a great friend to the MLB. Not only was Mejia suspended three times for performance-enhancing drugs, but he also received a lifetime ban. Lucky for the Red Sox, Mejia was reinstated so they could sign him to boost their team strength. Pun. In his career, Mejia has posted a 3.68 ERA with a 9-14 record in his 18 starts along with 95 relief appearances. The word on the street is that the Red Sox liked him due to an impressive winter league stint.
Runzler and Ellington are two more additions made recently. Runzler, at 33, has played mostly with the Giants, a span of five seasons. His overall ERA has been 3.89 with an average of a strikeout per inning pitched. He has pitched 76.1 innings. He had an impressive Independent League stint, with a 2.81 ERA and 11 K/9. That isn’t bad to take, along with a 95 MPH fastball. Ellington, 28, has not been too bad over his four major league seasons with the Marlins. His career 4.65 ERA overshadows his two years of sub-3.00 ERA over roughly 60 innings in that span. Ellington comes up just short of a strikeout per inning, but his tops 98 MPH fastball should make up for that loss.
The Trade-off
It may seem great to add new bullpen help to the no relief the Red Sox have so far. However, they need better than three players who did not play in the MLB last year. Who can they turn to? Ooh, what about that closer they had last season? What was his name? The guy with the 333 career saves, 1.91 career ERA, 0.92 WHIP, and 14.7 SO/9, to go along with that 98-100 MPH four-seam fastball that batters love? Listen, I am not the biggest Kimbrel fan in terms of his blow-ups in clutch situations (the ALDS, the ALCS, moments throughout the year), highlighted by that 5.91 postseason ERA. However, he is better than any option we have now. Plus, the fact that he is chilling with Brock Holt who is endorsing the Red Sox to bring him back makes you want him more. Let’s bring back Kimbrel.
The Options
Right now, the bullpen looks decent, but not great. Definitely not World Series ready. The Red Sox relievers include: Brian Johnston, Hector Velazquez, Steven Wright, Bobby Poyner, Marcus Walden, Colten Brewer (who?), Durbin Feltman (who?), Travis Lakins (who?), Heath Hembree, Tyler Thornburg (why?), Brandon Workman, Ryan Brasier, and Matt Barnes. So, Red Sox fans have probably heard of most of those names. Baseball fans are probably like “What the heck am I reading?”
Obviously, Hembree, Vazquez, and Wright are the big relief names who really contributed last season. The biggest name would be Matt Barnes, with his 2.30 ERA and 74 K’s over 47 innings. Then there are the new studs: Bobby Poyner and everyone’s favorite Ryan Brasier. Poyner and Brasier had limited starts, but finished off the year with 1.65 ERAs in 10 innings. The playoffs were where Brasier shined, posting a 1.04 ERA and 7.27 K/9 in the 8.2 innings he pitched. Brasier’s playoff success may have been overshadowed a bit by a guy named Nathan Eovaldi, but that is a different story.
Overall
In closing, the Red Sox have a decent bullpen, but they need help. They shouldn’t have to turn to Matt Barnes and Ryan Brasier as closers. Luckily, Wright and Walden each had a save last year, so they have the experience. Jokes aside, throwing Brasier into a high-pressured setup or closer situation this early may be disastrous. Likewise, throwing your best reliever, Barnes, into a closer situation may prove to hurt more than help, as he is needed for setup and relief. So, my final words would be a call to Kimbrel for this no relief dilemma. I want to ask him: “Oh great red-bearded one, where art thou? Why don’t you return to the Red Sox? We have money (arguable).” I think Kimbrel should return, otherwise focus on getting someone else, for the new additions won’t help in the minors.
Photo credit to Jordan Cait via Flickr
