Friday's Physical: The Bullpen

Today was supposed to be right field day, as I was hoping the outfield situation would have been figured out.  But the Winter Meetings came and went and nothing happened.

So I'm putting off right field to talk about the bullpen, which appears to be far more settled.


2009:

Well, the nickname given to the bullpen by many in 2009 was "the pigpen".  In the end, the they weren't horrible.  They weren't great...but they weren't horrible.

The truth is, the biggest problem for the bullpen in 2009 was two fold...walks and home runs.  It was actually quite amazing that the ERAs of many of the pitchers were as low as they actually were considering they couldn't throw strikes and when they did throw strikes, ball seemed to end up in distant lands.

Kevin Gregg was named closer during spring training.  That was probably a mistake.  And for the second year in a row, Kevin Gregg was removed from a closers role in the middle of the season.  (It happened in Florida in 2008.)  Once out of the closers role, Gregg didn't pitch too poorly.  While in the closers role, especially on the road, Gregg had a hard time keeping the ball in the ballpark.

Gregg needed to wear glasses so he could see his pitches sail over the outfield fence.

So, once Gregg was removed as closer, Carlos Marmol took it over.  Well, this led to a lot of anxiety among Cubs fans as Marmol seemed to completely forget where the strike zone was this past season.   But, as a closer, Marmol was 13 for 13 in save opportunities.

The rest of the bullpen was a little icky.  The Cubs had a rotation of players during the year...more so than in most seasons.  The big offseason acquition in the bullpen other than Kevin Gregg was Aaron Heilman.  Heilman was to compete for the 5th starter spot, but lost out to Shawn Marshall.  Heilman didn't pitch too poorly, but had a problem with the long ball as well.

One of the biggest problems early in the season was the lack of a good left hander in the bullpen.  It started off to be Neil Cotts.  But that ended quickly as Cotts are just terrible.  Marshall moved into that role later and did a fairly good job there.  Before the trading deadline, the Cubs got lefties John Grabow and Tom Gorzelanay from the Pirates.  Both pitched fairly well. 

Jeff Samardzija was bounced up and down between AAA and the big leagues about a hundred times, never really doing much while in the big leagues.

Rule 5 pick David Patton impressed a lot of people in spring training, and earned a spot in the bullpen, but, due to Rule 5 pick rules, the Cubs weren't allowed to demote him without fear of losing him to his original team.  I felt this handcuffed the Cubs during the season.  Patton eventually found his way on to the DL...which basically allowed the Cubs not to play him without losing him but not take up a roster spot.

Rule 5 dude, David Patton.  Chances are, this pitch was not a strike.

Other players of little note in the Cubs bullpen in 2009...

Luis Viscanio who was acquired in the Jason Marquis trade was released not too far into the season.  Angel Guzman looked good, when healthy.  Kevin Hart logged a few innings (and a couple starts) before being traded to the Pirates.  And there where others too...but nothing really worth noting.

2010:  What's likely to happen.

With the exception of one setup spot, the bullpen looks set for 2010.

Carlos Marmol will be the closer.  And I think a full season in that role will be great.  Control will be a concern, but his stuff is just plain unhittable.

Grabow was resigned and will be the left handed setup guy. 

The rest of the bullpen will have a similar look as last year...included the losers to the 5th starter competition in spring training which will be contested by Spellcheck (Samardzija), Marshall, and Sloth (Gorzelanny). Guzman might compete for that starters role too.


Watch for rule 5 pickup, Michael Parisi, taken from the Cardinals.  He actually pitched in 12 big league games in 2008  before undergoing Tommy John surgury. He could compete for the #5 position in the rotation but more likely, he'll be a long reliever.  Hopefully the Cubs won't be handcuffed by this rule 5 pick like they were with David Patton last year (who should start the season in AAA). 

Doc's comments:

Well, the bullpen seemed a mess last year.  Two of the most disliked of the players, Gregg and Heilman, are gone.  The rest of the bullpen is rather young.  Expect the Cubs to get a veteran to fill the right handed setup role.

I'd watch Spellcheck closely this year.  I feel this is a make or break year for him. He really doesn't seem to have the stuff to be a starting pitcher in the big leagues, but the Cubs are paying him a lot of money, and they may force him into that role.  But, with that said, near the end of last season Samardzija actually had make some bigtime adjustments to his pitching motion, and I think that will help him become more consistent.  But if he doesn't really make a big leap this coming season, I think the Cubs need to pull the plug on this ill advised experiement.  (and the Bears could use a receiver!)

Marmol should dominate...but he hasn't been quite as good since the end of the 2008 season.  Hopefully Larry Rothschild will work with Marmol to get his arm angle up so he stays on top of his fast ball, which he had a hard time controlling in 2009.

Marmol in 2008, staying on the of his fastball.

Marmol in 2009, dropping down much more.

 

I found the price the Cubs paid for John Grabow a bit high.  I'm not sure we can expect him to pitch quite as well in 2009. 

Overall, if the Cubs could get a reliable setup man, then I feel good about the pen this year. And the Cubs have some depth now, so if and when some of these guys don't work out (which happens every year...there's a reason they are in the bullpen!), they should have someone ready to replace him. 

But most importantly, this group must throw strikes...because most of the pitchers out there have got fantastic stuff and will be hard to hit.