2009 Bullpen Preview – Part 2

Today we bring you part two of the 2009 bullpen preview.  In case you missed part one yesterday, here it is.  We’re looking at the guys duking it out in Spring Training for the last couple of spots in the bullpen this year.

Jeff Bennett was an indispensable part of the Braves’ pitching staff last season, serving in every imaginable role. He started several games, and converted 3 of 4 save opportunities. He pitched in long relief, and was frequently used an inning at a time. And with a hard sinker as his best pitch, he was sometimes called on to pitch to a single hitter in double-play situations. Despite the lack of a predictable role, he performed admirably, finishing the year with a 3.70 ERA (3.12 as a reliever). His solid body of work in 08′, combined with his versatility, may give him an edge in the battle for a spot in the Braves’ bullpen.

Jorge Campillo spent most of last season in Atlanta’s starting rotation, but was outstanding in his 21.2 innings of relief, allowing only 3 earned runs out of the bullpen. He is unlikely to retain his job in the rotation, and will probably find himself battling for a job in the ‘pen’. As with Jeff Bennett, Campillo offers the Braves flexibility. He can pitch in long or short relief, and can be called on to start in a pinch.

Phil Stockman is a fascinating possible addition to the big league club. When healthy, Stockman has dominated minor league hitters over the past few seasons. And I do mean DOMINATED. Since the start of the 2006 season, the 6′ 8″ Australian righty has pitched 109 innings at the A, AA, and AAA levels, posting a 1.57 ERA. Not to mention 126 strikeouts in those 109 innings. Stockman had a cup of coffee with the Atlanta Braves in 2006, and again last season. In 11.1 big league innings, he has recorded 13 strikeouts, and allowed only 1 earned run. The downside… his control can be erratic, and he is injury prone. Stockman is out of options, so the Braves must either add him to the 25-man roster this spring, or trade him. But if he is healthy this spring, his potential may prove too great for the Braves to pass over.

Buddy Carlyle earned a place in Bobby Cox’s heart after his surprise contributions to the team during the 2007 season. The veteran journeyman was very effective in the long-relief role for the Braves, finishing the year with a 3.59 ERA over 62.2 innings of work. Carlyle certainly pitched well enough last year to earn a job in the 09′ bullpen. But with so many options and some tough decisions ahead, I’ll be surprised if Carlyle wears an Atlanta Braves uniform this year.

Eric O’Flaherty will compete with Boone Logan and Jeff Ridgeway for the “situational lefty” position in the Atlanta ‘pen’. He started the 08′ season in that very role for the Seattle Mariners, but was optioned to “AA” just two weeks into the season after a rough start. The Braves claimed him off waivers over the winter after he was dropped from the Mariners’ 40-man roster. Braves officials are hopeful that O’Flaherty, who features a mid-90’s fastball and a biting slider, will respond to a change of scenery and recapture the form that once made him a top-prospect in the Mariners’ organization.

Boone Logan was “the other guy” acquired by the Braves in the deal that brought Javier Vazquez to Atlanta. MLB’s Mark Bowman recently reported that the Braves are “excited about Logan’s potential”. He added that the 24-year-old left-handed reliever “posted a 5.95 ERA in 55 inconsistent appearances this past season. In his first 36 appearances [last] season, Logan posted a 1.95 ERA and limited opponents to a .223 batting average.” However, he struggled over his next 12 appearances, and lost his job on the big league roster.

Jeff Ridgway was one of two players the Braves acquired from the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for Willy Ayabar prior to last season. After 10 productive outings with the Braves last year (3.72 ERA), the lefty earned a chance to compete for a big league bullpen job this spring.

STRENGTHS: Assuming reasonably good health, the Braves bullpen essentially has three dominant closers (Gonzalez, Soriano, Moylan) at their disposal. I’m not sure any other team in baseball can say the same. They also have two other young relievers (Acosta, Boyer) with “closer’s stuff”, and tremendous overall depth. A more durable starting rotation will further add to the strength of this bullpen by removing the undue burden placed on it last season.

WEAKNESSES: While everyone appears healthy, the Braves will be dependent upon three surgically repaired arms at the end of their bullpen. Also, the departure of Ohman leaves Atlanta without a proven left-handed middle-reliever.

BEST-CASE SCENARIO: If healthy, it is not hyperbole to say the Braves could have the best bullpen in baseball. And if Boyer & Acosta take a step forward, along with good health, this could be the best bullpen in either league by a significant margin.

WORST-CASE SCENARIO: Please see 2008.

So with that in mind, who do you see taking the final couple of spots in the bullpen this year and what roles will they best serve?

Pitching Problems Have Yet To Creep Up

When the Braves started the season, it seemed as if their impenetrable depth in the starting pitching spot would be their greatest strength. Now, heading into the second half of May, it has already become a weakness. Yes, I know we lead the league in starter’s ERA, but it’s a very deceiving stat in that our starters have only pitched 225 innings, 14th in the NL (St. Louis leads the league with 266.1 and Philly comes in second at 256.0 for comparisons).

Does that take away anything from our accomplishment so far? Not necessarily. It does, however, bring about the question of how long can the bullpen keep up their routine. Yes, eventually Smoltz, Soriano and Gonzalez will return and give us probably the best finishers in the league, but until then? And what about after that? What happens to our middle relief? Acosta, Boyer, Ohman and the others can only go so far. Especially Acosta, who has never pitched a full season in the majors and may hit a wall.

Going back to the starters. At the beginning the season, the Braves touted one of the deepest starting pitching crops of any team in the majors and looked to be getting back to their old ways of being the pitching premium. Smoltz, Hudson, Glavine, Jurrjens, Hampton, James, Reyes, Carlyle and Bennett among others that were potential starters.

Smoltz went down in spring training with a shoulder injury that never really fully recovered, and may not. It’s an injury that will linger throughout the season. For Smoltz, though, the option of pitching out of the bullpen is still there and will probably become a reality. This will reduce the stress he puts on his shoulder as well as allow him time to recover between appearances.

And then our boy Hampton tries to go up the stairs without his bubble-wrap suit and yeah…gets hurt (kidding, he actually strained a pectoral muscle warming up in cold weather and strained it again on the 71st pitch of a rehab game). Thankfully, the Braves had options at that point.

Chuck James, a veteran with options who has won 10 games in each of the past two seasons as well as Jojo Reyes and Jeff Bennett. Bennett has been a solid replacement. Three times spot starting, all of his starts have been solid. Unfortunately, only one of those was a “quality start” (6 or more innings pitched, three or less earned runs allowed). For the Braves to be successful in the long run, quality starts are important. Two of last seasons top three quality starters (Huddy and Glavine) are in the rotation, while the other (Smoltzy) is moving to the bullpen. The AJC reported today that Bennett may be a potential replacement for James in the rotation. Updated: Campillo to get the start in James’ place in game 2 against the Mets.

Carlyle is sitting on the DL with a strained neck after running into a runner against San Diego. Jojo Reyes has been both solid and bad at times. Against San Diego, he gave up two runs, but walked two in 2 2/3 innings and had thrown 51 pitches to that point. Against Philly last Friday, Reyes cruised through the first three innings with no trouble. But really struggled with the middle of the order the second and third times around and ended up giving up five runs in 5 1/3 innings.

The Braves are truly lucky to be sitting where they are, and with no one having run away with the division to this point, the Braves are primed for a run. Both Gonzalez and Soriano should be back before the end of the month and Smoltz not too far behind. Reyes is getting adjusted to the majors and Bennett/Campillo could be a solid tail end of the rotation. With the way John Schuerholz and Frank Wren prepared this team, they had injury problems at the front of their mind and truly did a strong job of getting together the right personnel to keep this team afloat.

Chuck James Back Against Pittsburgh

A night after having their 6-game win streak snapped by the Pirates, the Braves are looking to Chuck James to get them back in the win column in the second game of this road trip.  James is all too familiar with the trips back and forth between Richmond and Atlanta, having started the season in Atlanta and amassing a 2-1 record before heading back to Richmond to continue to strengthen his injured shoulder.  He makes the start in place of the incapable-to-ever-be-healthy, Mike Hampton, so he has a real opportunity to shine tonight and help maintain a job in the bigs for awhile.  I personally would like to see Chuck find some consistency and stay in Atlanta for awhile.

The spot for James on the roster was made by placing Buddy Carlyle on the 15-day disabled list after the collision that knocked him out of the game in Atlanta on Thursday.  Buddy has a strained neck and bruised temple and hopefully we’ll see him back in action after a little bit of rest.  Road games have been the weak point of the Braves so far this season.  With a road record of 4-12, the Braves have the fewest road wins in the majors so far this season.  You can’t make it to the postseason if you can’t win on the road.

Taking the mound for the Pirates will be Tom Gorzelanny (2-3, 6.91).  Gorzelanny has a tendency to give up runs, but the real key is whether or not the Braves can get the bats going early in the game.  We’ve had problems with McLouth and Nady patrolling the Pirates outfield and stealing hits away from us.  Hopefully we can get that changed tonight and put another win up on the board.

Another Injury-Filled Day

It seems that I spend more time these days writing about injuries than I do about anything else.  Every day it’s disabled lists, injuries, surgeries, lack of pitching….get the picture?  So while the Braves finished up a strong homestand today, why would it be any different?  So let’s get to it and highlight the injuries du jour:

Jo-Jo Reyes – Jo-Jo made the start in today’s game against the Padres.  Reyes didn’t have his best stuff today and left the game in the third inning with a blister on the index finger of his throwing hand.  This is one of those nagging little injuries that you just want to take care of so that it doesn’t become a nagging problem.

Buddy Carlyle – Buddy replaced Jo-Jo Reyes after he left with his injury in the third inning today.  Carlyle however only made it through 6 batters before colliding with Kevin Kouzmanoff while trying to field a ball down the first base line.  He recorded the out but fell to the field in obvious pain.  Buddy was diagnosed with a muscle strain in the left side of his neck and is listed as day-to-day.

Peter Moylan – Moylan underwent Tommy John surgery today and will miss the next 12 months or so.  He will be missed in the Braves’ bullpen.

Brayan Pena - Brayan was placed on the 15-day disabled list today with a back strain.  Pena’s trip to the disabled list made room on the roster for utility man, Omar Infante, who was activated today after breaking his hand in Venezuelan winter leagues. Infante made the start in today’s game in place of Kelly Johnson at second base.

So those are the injuries for today.  Check back in tomorrow and I’m sure we’ll have more to keep you updated about.  In the meantime, let’s hope the Braves can figure out the secret to winning on the road as we head to Pittsburgh.

Carlyle Called Up, Who Goes?

As reported by the AJC, Buddy Carlyle is on his way from Triple-A Richmond to Florida to meet up with the Braves for their series against the Marlins.  He is slated to either replace Tom Glavine should he need to be placed on the disabled list because of his hamstring, or to fill in as the fifth starter in the rotation.

With this move, someone from the bullpen has to be sent down to make room on the roster.   The Braves have not yet announced their decision on whose spot Carlyle will take, but I’m hopeful that it’s Chris Resop.  Resop, though he’s out of options and would have to clear waivers, has been a thorn in the side of the pen so far this season as far as I’m concerned.  I don’t think Jeff Bennett’s outing was bad enough to send him and we need his potential as a long reliever.

Carlyle was 0-0 through 2 outings in Richmond thus far this season with a 7.04 ERA.

UPDATE: The Braves have announced that Peter Moylan has been placed on the 15-day disabled list with a right elbow strain.

‘08 Roster Nearing Completion

After last night’s loss to Cleveland, the Braves further thinned out their roster, getting ready for Sunday’s game against the Washington Nationals.  Of course the most notable moves involved the ongoing battles for the limited number of backup spots on the roster.

Brent Lillibridge, impressive as he was in the first half of the spring, got sent back to AAA Richmond, where he’ll get more playing time.  I think this is crucial, since either he or Escobar will likely be trade bait before too long.  He needs to be playing all the time.  Martin Prado gets to stay in Atlanta – his first time starting the season in the majors.  Joining Prado (who played a few innings last night at first, by the way) is new acquisition Ruben Gotay, a switch-hitting contact hitter who can play second, third, and short.

In the outfield, Gregor Blanco beat out Josh Anderson for the backup job.  Anderson got out-hit by Blanco this spring (.260 to .341) and despite his speed, Bobby couldn’t find a roster spot for him.  I like Anderson though – if we have an issue mid-season with Diaz or Kotsay I’m sure we’ll see him (maybe even before Schafer, whom they might want to groom all season long).

Behind the plate, Corky Miller seems to have the backup job.  Brayan Pena is still on the roster too, but he’s out of options and conventional wisdom says he’s traded by the end of the day.  If Pena sticks around, he can pitch in at first as well.

So that leaves the five bench spots going to Blanco (OF), Gotay (IF), Prado (IF), Pena (C/1B) and Miller (C).  I’m not sure what we’ll see happen if Pena is traded – maybe Anderson comes back up?

The Bullpen is finally solid, with slots going to Peter Moylan, Rafael Soriano, Manny Acosta, Will Ohman, Chris Resop, Royce Ring, and Blaine Boyer.  I like this year’s ‘pen.  Lots of arms who have the capacity to be good pitchers throughout the season.

Jeff Bennett and Buddy Carlyle are still fighting for the pitching slot left vacant by Smoltzie, who will start the season on the DL (it’ll be backdated and he’ll only miss one start).  I’d give the edge to Bennett in this one – he’s been impressive, but Carlyle hasn’t put together a bad spring himself.

More as we hear it – our ears are to the ground today as we wait for the final moves to be made.

Ridgway Flounders, Braves Fall

The Braves will likely want to forget this one.  Despite a strong start by Buddy Carlyle (1 run in four innings work), the Braves fell 8-0 to the Indians.  Not only did the offense never get off the ground, but Jeff Ridgway (the left-hander acquired from Tampa Bay in exchange for Willy Aybar) gave up six runs (four earned) in just one inning.

Ridgway didn’t just give up six runs – he walked two, balked home a run, had a throwing error to first base, and four hits.  If I had to guess, I don’t think Ridgway will start the season in Atlanta, unless we trade away one of our other lefties.  This outing was not something the Braves wanted to see just before the season started.

Carlyle is looking for that long relief spot and put on a good show – pitching four strong innings, giving up only one run, walking two, and striking out three.  We’ll see whether or not Bennett or Carlyle gets this job heading into spring.

As for the Braves at the plate?  We didn’t get started until Chipper hit a double in the 7th inning.  Jake Westbrook of the Indians is one mean pitcher.  Other than that, there’s nothing to report.

Apparently there are trade rumors out there regarding one or more of our out-of-options players.  We’ll keep you updated on the goings on as we hear more about it.

Braves Rally, Can’t Beat ‘Stros

Jo-Jo Reyes started for the Braves today hoping to overcome some recent struggles.  Unfortunately for Reyes and the Braves, he pitched four innings and gave up five runs, six hits, and walked four.  The Braves scored five runs in the 8th, thanks to two errors by the Astros, but gave up a run in the bottom of the eighth to seal the loss.

Rafael Soriano, a more key part of the pitching staff than Reyes, gave up two runs in the sixth inning on a two run homer.  We’ll hope he can pull his stuff together as the preseason wraps up here soon – we need him to be lights out in the bullpen to have a strong relief staff.

Offensively, Gregor Blanco went 2-4 with an RBI and a run scored.  Yunel Escobar went 1-3 with a run scored as his preseason batting average is now at .462.  Anderson, Diaz, and Schafer also added an RBI.  Schafer came in as a pinch runner, scored two runs, and went 1-1.  Diaz was 1-1 as well, continuing his strong preseason.  A five run eighth tied the Braves for the lead, but Buddy Carlyle got the loss after hitting a batter and facing five batters in the bottom of the eighth.

Whether or not Reyes remains with the team through the second round of cuts (planned for Friday) is yet to be seen.  I’d guess he gets cut as he’s going to start the season at AAA Richmond.

Next up, Tim Hudson gets the start tomorrow night against Justin Verlander and the Detroit Tigers at 7:05pm.

Braves Destroy Indians 11-4

The Braves’ offense beat the Indians to a pulp tonight as Brian McCann and Mark Teixeira led the offense to a nine-run fourth inning outburst.  McCann went 2-3 and knocked in three runs, while Teixeira went 3-3 and knocked in two runs, while scoring three runs himself.  The supporting role included Chipper Jones, Martin Prado and Jeff Francoeur with an RBI each.  Blaine Boyer even got in on the action with an RBI and a run scored of his own.

On the mound, the Braves started Buddy Carlyle, who looked decent early, but gave up three solo home runs when he seemed to think he was throwing batting practice.  Besides Boyer beating up on the Indians’ pitching staff, he pitched two scoreless innings with three strikeouts.  Tyler Yates got an inning in as well, where he walked two and struck out one.

Good to see Teixeira and McCann come out of their slow starts for a night and knock in some runs.  Both were very confident and solid at the plate.  We’ll need to rely on these guys all year to be competitive offensively.

In other news, Hampton pitched a successful simulation game, in which he pitched four innings and 59 pitches.  And he refrained from hurting his groin, breaking his elbow, or creating some other freak injury nobody has ever had before.  Good news is he had good movement on his curveball during the session.  He should see action early next week.

Next up is Chuck James in his spring debut against the Tigers.  He’ll pitch two innings and test his rotator cuff.  We’ll bring you the latest on that, too.

Braves Drop Split-Squad Pair

The Braves fell in both games of their split-squad pair Saturday to the Astros and the Reds.  The Astros downed the Braves 7-4 while the Reds issued a 13-8 beating as well.  Here are quick recaps of both games that saw a few highlights and exposed a few issues for the Braves:

Game 1 – Braves 4, Astros 7
Jo-Jo Reyes tooks the mound in the first half of the split-squad pair, fighting to earn a spot in the Atlanta rotation.  At quick glance, his numbers on the day weren’t too bad.  Pitched 2 innings of no-hit ball and struck out 4 (striking out the side in the 2nd inning).  But Reyes also issued 5 walks and brought a run home on a bases-loaded balk that saw him tripping on the mound and, while falling, delivering the ball only about halfway to the plate.

Blain Boyer continued to impress, pitching scoreless 3rd and 4th innings, while giving up only 1 hit.  The Braves gave up an additional 3 runs in the top of the 9th, bringing the score to 7-2.  The 2 runs scored in the bottom of 9th, on a Brandon Hicks homerun, weren’t enough to overcome the deficit and the Braves fell 7-4.  In a highlight however, Yunel Escobar continued his amazing hitting of the preseason, going 2-3 with his 3rd double of the preseason.  He’s now batting .545 (12-22) with 15 total bases.  Chipper Jones also went 2-3 in his 4th preseason appearance, extending his preseason average to .600 (6-10).

Game 2 – Braves 8, Reds 13
The Reds continually beat up on the Braves in the second game of the split-squad pair, posting runs in 5 of the 8 innings in which they came to the plate.  Additionally, the Braves didn’t help themselves too much in this matchup, donating 5 unearned runs to the Reds.

Buddy Carlyle made the start for the Braves, still fighting at an outside shot of a starting rotation job though I think we’ll see him in a long reliever role instead.  The Reds jumped on Carlyle, who had previously retired all 12 batters he had faced in the preseason, early on, chalking 3 runs on the board in the 1st inning.  Carlyle also gave up a solo homerun to Brandon Phillips in the 3rd, ending his day pitching 3 innings, striking out 3 and giving up 6 hits and 4 runs.  With the help of a Diory Hernandez two-run homer in the top of the 4th, however, the Braves led 6-4 heading into the bottom of the 4th.

Jeff Bennett took over on the hill from Carlyle, giving up 5 runs on 3 hits over the next two innings, giving him the loss for the day.  Charlie Morton came on to give up 4 runs [on 1 hit] in the 6th before Phil Stockman and Vladimir Nunez each pitched a scoreless inning to finish off the game.  The Braves offense tried to keep up, with the help of 2 RBIs from both Jordan Schafer and Martin Prado, but it was not enough to make up for the 5 unearned runs and the Braves fell 13-8.

Next up, Tim Hudson kicks off a 4-game preseason homestand for the Braves, facing off against the Cardinals.  Look to see last season’s dominant setup man, Peter Moylan, make an appearance to test the soreness in his right elbow.

Stompin’ the Phillies: 10-1

Tim Hudson once again gave up one run in his outing today, but the Braves’ bats made sure that the earned run was forgotten in a 10-1 win over the Philadelphia Phillies.  Led offensively by Mark Teixeira, who went 2-3 with 2 RBIs, and helped by Brent Lillibridge’s 3 hits, 2 runs, and 1 RBI.  Kotsay also contributed with a hit, run scored and RBI, and Francoeur knocked in a couple as well.

The pitching was great on our side as well – Hudson gave up one run and four hits, but beyond that the staff was almost untouchable.  Will Ohman – the left-handed import from Chicago – pitched a scoreless inning and struck out one.  Buddy Carlyle faced 6 batters and had a perfect two innings with three strikeouts.

In addition, Brandon Jones walked twice and scored two runs – looking good on his part.  I really think he gets the job in left field, though Josh Anderson was 1-2 with a run scored.

Good to see the Braves whip up on the Phillies.  Glad to see that we can hold our own – even if it’s against the second-hand pitching.

Keep up the work, boys.  Francoeur took yesterday off because he played golf with Smoltz, Glavine, and none other than Tiger Woods.  Talk about living the big life.

Braves 10, Dodgers 3

The Braves squared off against the Dodgers – and then teed off in a 10-3 win yesterday.  We’ve got a few observations here and there as a lot of players got some playing time.

Jair Jurrjens started and looked very sharp (though he gave up one run).  He kept his balls low in the zone and induced 5 ground outs and got one called K.  He worked both sides of the plate and was very impressive in my opinion.  Buddy Carlyle also looked strong in his outing.

His first time up, Javy absolutely tore into a pitch low in the zone and knocked it out of the park in left for a two-run homer.  He had two throws down to second – one that was a little to right field, and another that went straight into center because neither of the infielders covered second.  At least the second throw looked good.

Brandon Jones and Josh Anderson looked good – but Jones didn’t hustle after botching a catch in left and didn’t hustle down the line on an infield ground ball.  I’d prefer to see him sprint down the line even if he knows he won’t make it.  I’m sure he’ll have opportunities to redeem himself though.

We tagged the Dodger pitching staff up pretty good in the bottom of the fifth.  Any time we can put a 7 spot on the board, it’s a good time for all involved.  Speaking of having a good time – Chipper seems to be happy to have Teixeira hitting behind him.  Francoeur is a bit anxious still at the plate but he’s developing into a fine young ballplayer.

Braves win, good game.  Great start to the season for us – we can’t wait to be sitting at the ballpark for the home opener.