It's Been Awhile

It has been a good couple of weeks since I last posted. I was away in Scotland for a week, and I did not have a chance to post at all. In any event, I'm back.

Last week a fellow blogger and I had a debate. The topic was the newest sensation in New York and in baseball, Mr. Joba Chamberlain. Basically, considering how dominant and comfortable Joba looks as a reliever I argued that the Yankees should keep him in this role for next year and possibly groom him to follow Mariano as the Yankee closer of the next generation. Da Bocker felt that once this season is over, the Yankees should give Joba a look in the rotation and ideally that's where he should fit in the Yankees plans. It is so premature in the guys career, that this debate is really stupid to even have at this point. he has less that ten career innings pitched in the big leagues so we were getting quite a bit ahead of ourselves. The larger topic that I felt we were truly arguing though was the importance of a starting staff compared to a bullpen.

There is no doubt that the starters get more attention than relievers. They pitch more innings, make more money and are often leaders on a ballclub. Throughout history it has been said that a team with great starting pitching always has a chance to win ballgames, especially in the playoffs. I great 1-2 punch can cause a lot of trouble for the opposition, especially in a five game series.

Baseball has changed though over the past decade or so. As we all know starters are pitching less inning than ever before. A solid start is going six innings and giving up three runs or less. Pitch counts play a huge role in the performance of veterans and the development of youngsters. As a result I feel that the bullpen will continue to play a larger and larger role.

Look at the drafting of pitchers. Already in recent years, relief pitchers such as Chad Cordero and Craig Hansen have been taken in the first round by teams knowing that they were getting a relief pitcher. That was unheard of before. Just like the Yankees made Joba a reliever (temporarily?) the Red Sox put Palpebon in the bullpen. The Mets have traded starters for relievers (Seo for Sanchez and Bannister for Burgos) as have the Braves (Ramirez for Soriano) the past couple of years. The Phillies were trying to give away Jon Leiber at the beginning of the year for any reliever were a dime and could not find a partner. The cardinal rule used to be never to trade a starter for a reliever and now teams all over baseball are discarding this.

In addition to the whole innings thing with starters and the increased workload of bullpens, I think the bullpen importance has to do with the pressure and popularity of today's game. Baseball is making more money than ever before and more people are watching than ever before. As a result more teams are spending record amounts. The bullpen is like the padlock. Teams are spending all this money to put together great teams together, but they better have that bullpen in order to preserve these wins. Its like the left tackle position in the NFL. If you are going to pay a lot of money for your quarterback, you better get yourself a quality left tackle to protect his blind side.

A team with a great offense does not need great starting pitching. Look at the Mets or the Yankees. You know that they are going to put up 5-6 runs a game and if the starter gives up a run early chances are the offense will get it back. A good bullpen though is essential. If Wang gives up a three run shot to go down 4-2 in the third inning the Yanks still have a lot of time to come back. If Farnsworth gives up the three run shot though in the 8th inning the game is likely over.

In the same breath if a team has great starting pitching, they don't need a great offense. If the starters are consistently going seven innings and giving up three runs or less, all the team needs is for the offense to scratch out a run here or there. Look at the Twins and Angels of the past few years. In the same respect though, both of those teams have had top bullpens. Without the bullpens, these starting pitching efforts would largely be for nothing.

Lastly, when you look at a major league season there are a lot of ups and downs. Often times the trigger to an up or a down is a late inning situation. When a closer blows a ballgame it often can bring a whole team down. In the same respect, when the bullpen holds an opponent down and gives the offense a chance to win it, the team gets a big boost. Look at the NBA or NFL. What is the biggest back breaker as a fan watching a game? When the defense can't get a stop late in the game. When you know that once the other team has the ball you are not going to stop them. That's the negative impact the bullpen can have in baseball. The entire mood of a home crowd will go down the drain and it can often take the team with it.

I have made it sound really easy. Build a good bullpen, have decent starting pitching, be able to manufacture runs and you got a playoff team. I wish it were that simple. The fact is that relievers are the sports version of Dr. Jeckle and Mr. Hyde. On year they are on top of the world and sign a multi-year deal and two years later they are pitching for the Long Island Ducks. It is a pressure job that can take its toll both on a pitchers body and mind. You can name maybe 10 relief pitchers who have been consistently great over the past five years.

So now the question is how does a team approach this difficult position to fill that is so essential to a team winning. Who knows. I think you have to concentrate on building power arms from your minor league system, in addition to taking chances on veterans who have pitched in pressure situations in the past. After watching the Mets game tonight I feel even stronger about my belief in the bullpen. I would almost rather lose 6-2 and not come back, then have the bullpen continue to give up the lead. I just hope the impact of a loss like this is not felt through the weekend and more importantly, I hope that this bullpen can find some consistency soon.

On a side note...

TO all the Yankee clowns, uh I mean fans who are calling for Mike Mussina's head. Chill out. This is a guy who first of all has pitched well in a number of big games in a Yankee uniform (Game 3 A's in 2001, relief of Game 7 2003 Red Sox just to name a couple) and has been a part of the team for the past seven years. In addition, in the four starts prior to these last two poor ones he went 4-0 with a K-BB ration of 19-2 and did not allow more than 2 runs in any of those starts. That includes a start in Cleveland in an important series for the Yanks. We know he is not the pitcher he once was, but this is ridiculous. The guy is a gamer and has been his whole career. For Yankee fans to throw this guy under the bus now is exactly what I hate about them. Have just a little patience and realize that Mussinas next four start hot stretch may come in September. On second though, drop him from the rotation for luminaries such as Kai Igawa, Jeff Karstens or another unproven rookie. It always makes sense to NOT go with the guys who have been there for you over the years when times get tough. Remember...IT WAS TWO STARTS. If Mussina pitches seven strong on Sunday I want all you Yankee fans to be praising him as much as you have been burying him this past week. What a joke.

STKAFI