Roger Arrieta
The Game Within the Game
With such volume of pitchers in the bullpen this season, every man will be out to prove they belong.
The Dodgers bullpen has seen an enormous transformation during this offseason. Along with the subtraction of a few pitchers, we’ve seen the addition of many new arms going into the 2015 campaign. And if recent conversations with new GM Farhan Zaidi hold true, we’re sure to see all of them at some point in 2015. However, with only 25 spots on the MLB roster available at any given point, it’s hard to imagine how this vast surplus of pitching could remain active all at once. This leads me to conclude that Zaidi and Mattingly intend to create a competition among all pitchers on the Dodger’s staff, which could be just what the bullpen needs to succeed this season.
It’s no secret that the Dodger’s bullpen last season was the Achilles heel of what was otherwise a premiere ball club. The severely poor performance from former Indians closer Chris Perez and former Giants closer Brian Wilson served as a microcosm when observing the Dodgers late-game pitching staff. It was often up to Kershaw and Greinke to pitch 9 whole innings and 120+ pitches every fifth day. Manager Don Mattingly and pitching coach Rick Honeycutt would otherwise be forced to hand the ball over to a reliever that was more than likely to surrender any lead the Dodgers had in the late innings. This became a common occurrence last season. But even with the lousy performances from Perez, Wilson and company, they weren’t without their fair share of chances to turn their seasons around.
They never did.
Time and time again, they received the ball to relieve the starting pitcher, and in most cases, failed to complete their duties. Brian Wilson would go on record, saying “for what they’re paying me, I’m doing just fine,” implying that besides achieving reasonable stats during the season, there was no incentive for the relievers to do well on the mound. And for Dodger management, there was simply no fixing that problem. After Perez and Wilson, there were only so many pitchers that could be called upon without overtaxing the more reliable arms like Jansen and Howell.
Zaidi may have found a rather simple solution to that problem this offseason. With over a dozen new pitchers added onto the returning cast from last season, this surplus is sure to create a competition for every spot in the bullpen. If one man underperforms this season, he could find himself packing for Triple-A OKC and the next pitcher in line will have his opportunity to stake his claim. This sense of urgency among pitchers is something that was lacking from last year’s bullpen and, in theory, should provide plenty of incentive for pitching well in 2015.
It may be a bit of an insensitive strategy for Zaidi to employ and could possibly create some strife in the locker room. But no more tension than what already existed in the clubhouse last season. I give credit to Andrew Friedman and Farhan Zaidi for taking new approaches in effort to assemble a championship team, keeping in mind that you need the right amount of friction to start a fire. The Dodger faithful can look forward to seeing if The Dodgers can create a fire that will last all the way through October.
