Early season bullpen thread

[The Gray Eagle]

With Eduardo Rodriguez on the DL, looks like Wright will be moved to the rotation for the first turn or two through the rotation. And with Smith on the DL for what may be a couple of months, that makes two slots open in the bullpen for players who weren't expected to start the season with the team.

Speculation is that Barnes and either Elias or Noe Ramirez will get those spots to begin with.

Not optimal. But wait, it gets possibly worse:
"Koji Uehara is dealing with general soreness and is expected to throw a bullpen on Friday with a game appearance scheduled some time after that. It's something to watch over the next few days."

The "boolpin," as Grady Littlebrain used to call it, is already down its #3 arm and long man, so any issues Koji has would make things quite worse. Hopefully it's just an old man feeling stiff and he will be all sorted before the season starts. He is really old and is coming off an injury to his pitching hand, so reports of any soreness of any kind make me wary.

From the same article, on Elias: "While he's been stretched out as a starter there's a possibility he breaks camp as the long reliever in place of Wright in the bullpen to start the year. (There's also the possibility the Red Sox don't want to keep flip flopping him and he starts the year in the Triple-A rotation.)... Barnes also has the option to be a multi-inning reliever as well, and Ramirez provides a bit of a different look, similar (although not as extreme) to Smith. He's only given up two earned runs in 8 2/3 innings this spring."

With the injuries, Tazawa will be at least the #3 bullpen arm to start the season. He was last seen shutting it down early for the rest of last season after being totally torched in the second half. Hopefully he is back to his normal self, but with 7 of the first 13 games to be played against his personal kryptonite, AKA Toronto, he might not be getting off to the good start we will need from him. In his 24.2 career IP against Toronto, he's served up 9 HRs, with 23 runs allowed. Just a small sample size, right? He's due to shut them down a bunch of times in a row now, surely.

On the other hand, at least Kimbrel looks ready for the season: "In five innings, he has nine strikeouts and no walks.
"He's thrown the ball exceptionally well," said Red Sox manager John Farrell. "He looks midseason form with the power that he's showing to his fastball. He's thrown some breaking balls now that are, like I said, midseason. He'll get a couple more appearances before we break camp."
The righty finished Thursday's outing by blowing a 98-mph heater by L.J. Mazzilli."

And here is a BP article on Barnes that talks up his chances of being a good setup man this year.

So it looks like to start the season the boolpin totem pole will look something like this:
Kimbrel
Koji, hopefully
Tazawa
Barnes
Ross
Layne
No Way Ramirez, if they go with a RHP to start with and let Elias stay stretched out as a starter in AAA. With the Toronto games early and hopefully Rodriguez returning to the rotation fairly soon, I think they might go this way for the first couple weeks, with Marmol in Pawtucket along with shuttle riders like Hembree, Pat Light, Elias and Escobar ready to come up at any point if needed. If Marmol has an out in his contract then he might get the last bullpen spot to begin with, but I hope not, as he isn't throwing hard or showing great command so far.

As I mentioned in another thread, I'd like to see them try to pick up Badenhop's minor league contract from the Marlins, which presumably would cost very little. Could be a useful veteran option to have around early in the season.

 

[HomeRunBaker]

Bump. This pen needs some love.

Even without Carson you have to LOVE the way this bullpen looks on the field making this a 6-7 inning game each night. Looked great on paper looks better live! I'm absolutely freakin giddy about this aspect of our team!

 

[Rasputin]

Bump. This pen needs some love.

Even without Carson you have to LOVE the way this bullpen looks on the field making this a 6-7 inning game each night. Looked great on paper looks better live! I'm absolutely freakin giddy about this aspect of our team!

If the rotation even resembles competence, this team is going to run away with the division.

 

[Philip Jeff Frye]

But 4/5ths of one time through the rotation, that looks like a stretch, doesn't it? [emoji12]

 

[Rasputin]

But 4/5ths of one time through the rotation, that looks like a stretch, doesn't it? [emoji12]

I think I'll muster up the patience to get through the rotation five or six times. Actually, I suppose there's a decision to be made when Rodriguez comes back. No need to freak out until then.

 

[EllisTheRimMan]

Our RP roolz. Seriously, SP help is expensive and by definition hard to find. We will likely need some even when ERod comes back. This team is expected to mash... So far so good. Let's just hope that Buck, Kelly and the little pig do better soon. We're almost one time through and the concrete data we have is that the SP's suck (except for Price) but the RP's are dominant and our offense is hitting the snot out of the ball. Regression to the mean would be welcome given the importance of SP in general and our "on paper" hitting and RP strengths. That is regressing on hitting and RP compared to SP would still make a very competitive team.

 

[PapaSox]

I have to say the 'boolpen' is looking a lot better than I'd thought it would be. Hitting is solid - small ball, big ball and all the ball in between. The rotation is scary. So as things stand now I think the 'boolpen' is doing well and not a place of great concern. I understand you concerns but I think there is depth and a few very solid arms ready to come in. The way the offense is able to comeback against other pens is down right amazing ... so much for the comeback being dead.

 

[Bob Montgomerys Helmet Hat]

Let's just hope that Buck, Kelly and the little pig do better soon.

The little pig?

I have to say the 'boolpen' is looking a lot better than I'd thought it would be. Hitting is solid - small ball, big ball and all the ball in between. The rotation is scary. So as things stand now I think the 'boolpen' is doing well and not a place of great concern.

The boolpen?



What the hell is going on here?

 

[EllisTheRimMan]

Porcello = little pig in Italian.

 

[shaggydog2000]

Our RP roolz. Seriously, SP help is expensive and by definition hard to find. We will likely need some even when ERod comes back. This team is expected to mash... So far so good. Let's just hope that Buck, Kelly and the little pig do better soon. We're almost one time through and the concrete data we have is that the SP's suck (except for Price) but the RP's are dominant and our offense is hitting the snot out of the ball. Regression to the mean would be welcome given the importance of SP in general and our "on paper" hitting and RP strengths. That is regressing on hitting and RP compared to SP would still make a very competitive team.

Maybe Owens or Johnson can knock somebody out of the rotation when they get a shot. This could be a transition year for the starters where Rodriguez and one or two of the Owens/Johnson/Elias/Wright group displace the guys who don't instill much faith in us. If Rodriguez becomes a solid #3 and Owens turns into what Rodriguez was last year, I'm enjoying certain summer nights a lot more than I would watching Kelly and Porcello. Buchholz is frustrating too, but when he is on, he really is a joy to watch, isn't he? If he's your number 4 or whatever life isn't so bad. We just need to push him down the rotation ladder.

 

[dbn]

The little pig?


The boolpen?



What the hell is going on here?

I'm going to go with either (A) because the relief pitching is either good or it isn't, or (B) that our discussion of relief pitching is always a logical operation.

 

[Heating up in the bullpen]

Did anybody else think Ferrell should have left Koji in for the 9th? Tie game, who knows how long it will go, just struck out two in a nine-pitch inning. I get the SOP of bringing in the closer when you're the home team. But if the game continues, I'd rather have gotten another inning out of Koji.

 

[Mookies Lip Curl]

Did anybody else think Ferrell should have left Koji in for the 9th? Tie game, who knows how long it will go, just struck out two in a nine-pitch inning. I get the SOP of bringing in the closer when you're the home team. But if the game continues, I'd rather have gotten another inning out of Koji.

I don't think its a completely absurd idea, but I just don't think a 41 y/o Uehara is the type of reliever who you jerk around like that. If Carson Smith were in that situation, sure, you might keep him in for the 9th. But Koji in 2016 is a preservation project with basically no room for impulsive decisions like that.

 

[Tartan]

Did anybody else think Ferrell should have left Koji in for the 9th? Tie game, who knows how long it will go, just struck out two in a nine-pitch inning. I get the SOP of bringing in the closer when you're the home team. But if the game continues, I'd rather have gotten another inning out of Koji.

Given his age I'd be surprised if Koji ever throws more than one inning this season. I know that the pitch count is what really matters, but I imagine Ferrell will view 9-pitch innings from Koji as more bullets for later in the season, rather than as a reason to trot him out for a second inning in the same game.

 

[Bob Montgomerys Helmet Hat]

Did anybody else think Ferrell should have left Koji in for the 9th? Tie game, who knows how long it will go, just struck out two in a nine-pitch inning. I get the SOP of bringing in the closer when you're the home team. But if the game continues, I'd rather have gotten another inning out of Koji.

First of all, his name is Farrell. The manager of the Sox isn't the Anchorman.

Koji pitched more than one inning one time last season. He had last pitched a week prior and then six days prior to that.
He's 41 years old and it's cool enough out that he would cool down significantly between innings.
No, he absolutely should not have pitched a second inning.

 

[Sandy Leon Trotsky]

I know.... Only two weeks in... But has Barnes looked as good as it seems he has?
I always felt that with time and patience he would turn into a bullpen ace.

 

[rotundlio]

His velocity is up a tick. Per Brooks, he's generating a lot of swings and misses with the fastball. FanGraphs says he's throwing a ton of strikes (and always has).... His groundball rate is still abominable, but this doesn't appear to have been an issue for him in the minors.

All in all, probably a credit to the team! Couple that with my ardor for Robbie Ross and this bullpen is seriously cooking with grease.

 

[BaseballJones]

Just want to give some love to Koji. 41 years old. Coming off a major injury. He's been unbelievable for the Red Sox during his career here (and really, all throughout his time in the majors). Hardly pitched during spring training. Has six appearances this year, and this is his line:

6.0 ip, 1 h, 0 r, 0 er, 1 bb, 6 k, 0.00 era, 0.33 whip, 9.00 k/9, opponents hitting .056/.105/.056/.161 against him

Early. Small sample size. All true. But the guy is just phenomenal. I love watching him pitch.

 

[Eddie Jurak]

How many key Sox relievers will be overworked into oblivion or ineffectiveness by June 1?

 

[Corleone]

How many key Sox relievers will be overworked into oblivion or ineffectiveness by June 1?

Koji!

Today's game perfect example of the questionable moves Farrell continues to make.
Taz throws 2 pitches and exits. Had not thrown since friday. Koji today 3rd appearance in 4 games. Zero command.

Add Kimbrell to the burnt reliever list if Farrell continues to use him in tie games..

Call Leyland or Gardenhire before it's to late!

 

[Pilgrim]

Call Leyland or Gardenhire before it's to late!

Definitely the guys I think of when it comes to holding late game leads

 

[jimbobim]

It is startling, yet unsurprising, how clear Farrell makes his bullpen tiers when the Sox are tied or ahead and the bind in terms of rest that not having Smith has created. Now how often Farrell uses smith will be very informative/nerve wracking.
For now
Trust with lead or tie
1) Kimbrel
2) Koji
3) Tazawa

But really this boils down to Tazawa if before the 8th. I'm not too worked up about Kimbrel today as he was thrown into maybe the worst possible spot and Martin's 2 RBI hit was definition of a bloop.
//////
4) I guess Barnes
5) ross
6) Noe

LH specialist - Layne
The drop off from 3 to 4 is pretty staggering. Is Smith on track to come back this series ? Thought I had heard that earlier

 

[smastroyin]

Here's a dumb thought.

Obviously there is a long season to go, but Kimbrel has already had a significant hand in two losses, while having a hand in a few wins. The problem is that the elite in closers comes with the ratio, not just accumulating contribution to wins. This is to say, the difference between a good closer and an elite one is not the number of successes, it's the relative absence of failure. Which is why, getting to my point, I'm still not sure it was especially smart to bundle assets to acquire a "proven" closer guy. Just a small downward tick in his results makes him less elite.

For bullpen management, we will have all of the same complaints about Farrell that we did about Tito. They are not particularly innovative and believe better performances comes with knowing your role. Actually most managers believe this or act as if they do.

DD has a very long history of showing that assembling a bullpen is his weakest link.

All of this to say, I expect this thread to have a lot of complaints as we go through the season.

 

[grimshaw]

A 4 game series against the Jays in particular, is probably the toughest test for any pen in the league, and this was after 3 with the O's. Especially playing them when they are on the road and they bat 9 times.

Looking at the schedule, the only other tough stretch of offensive lineups that compares to what they just finished with is from May 24 to June 5 where it goes Rockies (at home), Jays and O's on the road, and then home again against the Jays. Kind of ridiculous. The other long divisional stand offs are during roster expansion.

It's nice that they got through this test without needing to go to AAA already like they have done with taxed pens in the past.

I was ok with saving Taz and hoping for the best yesterday, given his track record against the Jays and wearing down by July.

 

[Savin Hillbilly]

For bullpen management, we will have all of the same complaints about Farrell that we did about Tito. They are not particularly innovative and believe better performances comes with knowing your role. Actually most managers believe this or act as if they do.

How can we be sure they're not right, though? I think you're going to have a hard time persuading managers to stop running their bullpens this way until there is clear empirical evidence that a more flexible, leverage-based approach works better. And the only way to obtain that evidence is for a substantial number of managers to start doing it. So there's a bit of a bootstrap problem there.

 

[smastroyin]

We can't be sure.

What we can be sure of is that people here will complain endlessly about relievers being used in a way that has been the standard since 1988 or so.

 

[Savin Hillbilly]

Speaking of roles and flexibility, I wonder if the Sox are being hurt by their long-standing reluctance to use young pitchers who are being groomed for starting roles in the bullpen. (Not saying they never do it, just that they don't do it much and generally seem to avoid it.) Example: you have Henry Owens in Pawtucket blowing people away after pitching decently in the majors last year. He seems pretty clearly ready, and it almost goes without saying that he is, right now, a better pitcher than Noe Ramirez. So why not bring him up and ask him to pitch a couple of 2-inning stints of mopup a week instead of one start? Wouldn't that help the team win more than using a lesser pitcher just because the organization has decided the pen is where that guy belongs? (Of course, you could bring Owens up to start and move Wright or Kelly to the pen, but that comes to the same thing.)

 

[joe dokes]

Speaking of roles and flexibility, I wonder if the Sox are being hurt by their long-standing reluctance to use young pitchers who are being groomed for starting roles in the bullpen. (Not saying they never do it, just that they don't do it much and generally seem to avoid it.) Example: you have Henry Owens in Pawtucket blowing people away after pitching decently in the majors last year. He seems pretty clearly ready, and it almost goes without saying that he is, right now, a better pitcher than Noe Ramirez. So why not bring him up and ask him to pitch a couple of 2-inning stints of mopup a week instead of one start? Wouldn't that help the team win more than using a lesser pitcher just because the organization has decided the pen is where that guy belongs? (Of course, you could bring Owens up to start and move Wright or Kelly to the pen, but that comes to the same thing.)

In theory, the Owens mop-up idea is a good one. It is what Earl Weaver and others used to do in the 70s. The difference, though, is that with the 10-man pitching staffs & 4 (or4.5) man rotations of Weaver's day, the young mop up guy could be counted on to get enough work to make the move viable. I'm not sure that works today. Using 1970 as an example, Oriole starters got 40/40/39 21/19 starts. Or 1972, when 21-yr old Doyle Alexander got the 5th most starts (9), and pitched 106 innings, while the top 4 started 35 or 36 games.

Maybe to harmonize the idea together with current usage patterns, the approach is not to put Owens into mop-up duty, but into a regular leveraged relief role, like Maddon did with David Price in the 2008 playoffs or even Lasorda did with Fernando Valenzuela down the stretch in a tight pennant race in 1980.

 

[Red(s)HawksFan]

In theory, the Owens mop-up idea is a good one. It is what Earl Weaver and others used to do in the 70s. The difference, though, is that with the 10-man pitching staffs & 4 (or4.5) man rotations of Weaver's day, the young mop up guy could be counted on to get enough work to make the move viable. I'm not sure that works today. Using 1970 as an example, Oriole starters got 40/40/39 21/19 starts. Or 1972, when 21-yr old Doyle Alexander got the 5th most starts (9), and pitched 106 innings, while the top 4 started 35 or 36 games.

Maybe to harmonize the idea together with current usage patterns, the approach is not to put Owens into mop-up duty, but into a regular leveraged relief role, like Maddon did with David Price in the 2008 playoffs or even Lasorda did with Fernando Valenzuela down the stretch in a tight pennant race in 1980.

You are dead on correct about the way teams use their rotation/bullpen now versus the past. Another factor, like it or not, is financial. Is it more prudent to have a guy like Owens developing into a middle of the rotation (or better) starter by pitching every five days in AAA and not running his service time clock so when he gets the "for good" call up the team gets the maximum possible time out of him as a low cost starter? Or do they put him in the pen making a couple 2 inning outings a week if needed while his service clock is running and the end result is one less year of him in the rotation before he is free agent eligible and commanding market-rate?

Earl Weaver and his peers had the luxury of running pitchers out there in an effort to maximize the big league staff without thought of salary costs or service clocks ticking. A guy "wasting" his first year or two pitching sporadically out of the bullpen didn't have the same impact on future years in 1970 as it does in 2016.

 

[RedOctober3829]

I am really worried about Koji's usage. He is currently on pace for 108 appearances. Even though he is the "8th inning guy", Farrell has to deviate from the book if it means risking his long-term durability for the season. In yesterday's situation, Tazawa should have started the 8th inning with Kimbrel coming in to clean up any trouble. It's either this or leave Buchholz in for that last batter in the 7th and bring in Tazawa for the 8th.

 

[ALiveH]

also the sox are in the middle of a brutal 23 game in 24 days stretch while missing one of their best relievers due to spring training injury.

 

[RedOctober3829]

also the sox are in the middle of a brutal 23 game in 24 days stretch while missing one of their best relievers due to spring training injury.

Which is why you need to be careful to manage the guys you have properly so they don't all burn out. Perfect example is yesterday. Tazawa has had 2 pitches since Friday and Koji has 3 appearances in 4 days and 4 in 6 days. That is not good when you consider Koji is 41 years old and has to be treated with kid gloves to preserve him for the full season.

 

[rembrat]

Which is why you need to be careful to manage the guys you have properly so they don't all burn out. Perfect example is yesterday. Tazawa has had 2 pitches since Friday and Koji has 3 appearances in 4 days and 4 in 6 days. That is not good when you consider Koji is 41 years old and has to be treated with kid gloves to preserve him for the full season.

Not really a perfect example since the alternative was bringing Tazawa back out after he had to sit (another thing managers don't like to do) for half an inning. Also not a perfect example since we shy away from using Tazawa in close games (it was 1-0 at that point) against the Blue Jays who have 9HRs in 123PA against him, the Yankees are second with 4HRs.

If Rutledge doesn't airmail his throw to Shaw, and if Shaw realizes getting the out at 1B is no longer the priority and keeping the ball in the field is, we likely aren't having this conversation.

EDIT: And let's not forget Vaz who can't seem to catch a ball if you feint a bunt. I can't wait until the league gets wind of that little tidbit.

 

[RedOctober3829]

Not really a perfect example since the alternative was bringing Tazawa back out after he had to sit (another thing managers don't like to do) for half an inning. Also not a perfect example since we shy away from using Tazawa in close games (it was 1-0 at that point) against the Blue Jays who have 9HRs in 123PA against him, the Yankees are second with 4HRs.

If Rutledge doesn't airmail his throw to Shaw, and if Shaw realizes getting the out at 1B is no longer the priority and keeping the ball in the field is, we likely aren't having this conversation.

EDIT: And let's not forget Vaz who can't seem to catch a ball if you feint a bunt. I can't wait until the league gets wind of that little tidbit.

He threw 2 pitches. I don't think sitting down and getting back up is going to hurt him in this spot. I'd rather have Tazawa in that spot than Koji due to the usage of him early in the season. That is why you also have Kimbrel warming behind him in case of trouble. Yes, there were more factors in that inning and we all know what they were. The fact is that Koji's command was way off and having him pitch 3-games-out-of-4 has to factor in. He's on pace for many more appearances than he's ever had in his career. His MLB career high is 73 back in 2013.

 

[Bob Montgomerys Helmet Hat]

Projecting Koji to 108 appearances is silly. Carson Smith is coming back soon and will take some of the high leverage innings. Plenty of games won't be close, either in the Sox favor other the other guys' over the course of the season. This isn't a direct mathematical equation.
The people who are complaining about using Koji yesterday are many of the same people who 1)were pissed that Koji wasn't left in for a second inning in a game last week, and 2)were pissed that Koji wasn't brought in when the Sox were "only down by two" on Sunday.

There is a lot of Farrell hate around here and it's clouding people's judgment. I can only imagine the outrage if Taz had been brought back out for the 8th yesterday and had shit the bed. Then that would have been a "horrible decision." Koji had the day off on Sunday, and bringing him in yesterday in the 8th was the right move, regardless of how poorly he ended up pitching.

 

[RedOctober3829]

Projecting Koji to 108 appearances is silly. Carson Smith is coming back soon and will take some of the high leverage innings. Plenty of games won't be close, either in the Sox favor other the other guys' over the course of the season. This isn't a direct mathematical equation.
The people who are complaining about using Koji yesterday are many of the same people who 1)were pissed that Koji wasn't left in for a second inning in a game last week, and 2)were pissed that Koji wasn't brought in when the Sox were "only down by two" on Sunday.

There is a lot of Farrell hate around here and it's clouding people's judgment. I can only imagine the outrage if Taz had been brought back out for the 8th yesterday and had shit the bed. Then that would have been a "horrible decision." Koji had the day off on Sunday, and bringing him in yesterday in the 8th was the right move, regardless of how poorly he ended up pitching.

I'm just saying he's appeared in 2/3 of the games so far. I'm obviously not going to think he's going to appear in 108 games but he is on track to appear in a career high number of games. That isn't good for his long-term well being at 41 years old.

 

[glennhoffmania]

Not really a perfect example since the alternative was bringing Tazawa back out after he had to sit (another thing managers don't like to do) for half an inning. Also not a perfect example since we shy away from using Tazawa in close games (it was 1-0 at that point) against the Blue Jays who have 9HRs in 123PA against him, the Yankees are second with 4HRs.

The point about bringing him back after sitting is valid. His numbers against Toronto are not. The roster hasn't been the same every season over the last five years. And not surprisingly he has the most appearances against Toronto and NY in his career, but the 9 homers compared to 4 can also be a sample size issue. Due up in the 8th were Pillar, Carrera and Saunders, hardly serious threats. Maybe you bring in Kimbrel to face Donaldson after that. I don't think the argument that Tazawa should've at least started the 8th is so crazy.

Projecting Koji to 108 appearances is silly. Carson Smith is coming back soon and will take some of the high leverage innings. Plenty of games won't be close, either in the Sox favor other the other guys' over the course of the season. This isn't a direct mathematical equation.
The people who are complaining about using Koji yesterday are many of the same people who 1)were pissed that Koji wasn't left in for a second inning in a game last week, and 2)were pissed that Koji wasn't brought in when the Sox were "only down by two" on Sunday.

I think the point of bringing up Koji's 108 game pace wasn't to suggest he may actually pitch 100 times. It was to show that, so far, he's been used a lot and the on pace projection simply shows that more dramatically.

 

[Adrian's Dome]

I'm just saying he's appeared in 2/3 of the games so far. I'm obviously not going to think he's going to appear in 108 games but he is on track to appear in a career high number of games. That isn't good for his long-term well being at 41 years old.

He's 41. He could fall off a cliff at any moment.

Worrying about his long-term well being (in baseball terms) at his age is ridiculous. I'm not saying abuse him, nor do I think it'd be a great idea to eclipse his career high in appearances, but using him regularly so long as he's still effective is not a problem nor should the Sox be overly concerned about potential future seasons.

 

[rembrat]

The point about bringing him back after sitting is valid. His numbers against Toronto are not. The roster hasn't been the same every season over the last five years. And not surprisingly he has the most appearances against Toronto and NY in his career, but the 9 homers compared to 4 can also be a sample size issue. Due up in the 8th were Pillar, Carrera and Saunders, hardly serious threats. Maybe you bring in Kimbrel to face Donaldson after that. I don't think the argument that Tazawa should've at least started the 8th is so crazy.

The bold is puzzling to say the least. Anyways, I looked up Pillar/Carrera/Saunders' history against Taz and unsurprisingly Pillar is 2 for 4 with 2 doubles, Carrera is 2 for 2 with 1 double and Saunders is 1 for 3.

Arguing this is going to be exhausting if we're going to ignore numbers and let Farrell hate take the wheel.

 

[Bob Montgomerys Helmet Hat]

I think the point of bringing up Koji's 108 game pace wasn't to suggest he may actually pitch 100 times. It was to show that, so far, he's been used a lot and the on pace projection simply shows that more dramatically.

I understand. It's just a meaningless number after 12 games of the season.
He's pitched a lot. He won't keep pitching at this pace.

 

[joe dokes]

Frustrating or not, that Farrell sticks to a bullpen formula makes him no different than about 28 other managers. However, I would like to see him add an exception to his formula for extraordinary circumstances, such as the "7th inning guy" needing only 2 pitches to get out of the 7th inning. If that happens, let him pitch the 8th. Playing along with the current usage model, Tazawa has already earned trust to be the "8th inning guy" over his career, so its not like Farrell is letting some not-an-8th-inning-guy-JAG pitch in the rarefied 8th inning air, or forcing some some "8th inning guy" be the "closer" for a day. It's not really much different than if the Sox had scored 10 runs in the bottom of the 7th, then neither Koji nor Tazawa would go in the 8th.

OTOH--If Tazawa fails in the 8th, then Farell is trying to "steal some outs" and damn him all to Hell.

A couple of wins that don't need all the "good" relief pitchers will solve a lot of issues.

 

[Adrian's Dome]

The bold is puzzling to say the least. Anyways, I looked up Pillar/Carrera/Saunders' history against Taz and unsurprisingly Pillar is 2 for 4 with 2 doubles, Carrera is 2 for 2 with 1 double and Saunders is 1 for 3.

Arguing this is going to be exhausting if we're going to ignore numbers and let Farrell hate take the wheel.

I'll take "sample sizes that are completely insignificant" for 500, Alex.

I know you'd jump into a fire for Farrell, but he mismanaged that situation. Koji could've used another day and Taz was fresh. Allowing Clay only one baserunner and pulling him when he gave it up was the right move, burning a reliever after two pitches was not.

 

[RedOctober3829]

He's 41. He could fall off a cliff at any moment.

Worrying about his long-term well being (in baseball terms) at his age is ridiculous. I'm not saying abuse him, nor do I think it'd be a great idea to eclipse his career high in appearances, but using him regularly so long as he's still effective is not a problem nor should the Sox be overly concerned about potential future seasons.

I don't think my point came across there. My reference to long-term is for this season. If they are going to contend this year I want an effective Koji in August and September. He is on his way to being Proctor'd.

 

[rembrat]

I'll take "sample sizes that are completely insignificant" for 500, Alex.

I know you'd jump into a fire for Farrell, but he mismanaged that situation. Koji could've used another day and Taz was fresh. Allowing Clay only one baserunner and pulling him when he gave it up was the right move, burning a reliever after two pitches was not.

He's a reliever so his entire body of work is a collection of "SSS" if you choose to view it that way. I don't. The Blue Jays have his number. Just peruse our gamethreads against them and try to figure out when Taz is in the game. I'll give you a hint, everyone starts to quiver.

 

[joe dokes]

He is on his way to being Proctor'd.

Feh. Cy Young threw 299 innings for the Sox when he was 41.

But seriously....I suspect that if that's really an issue, they'll just shut him down for week or so, like they did with Tazawa in 2013 (1 game in 10 days at the end of August) or Okajima in '07 and '08. As for yesterday, I would have preferred Tazawa, but while he was far from sharp, Koji still gets out of that inning with some help.

 

[Adrian's Dome]

He's a reliever so his entire body of work is a collection of "SSS" if you choose to view it that way. I don't. The Blue Jays have his number. Just peruse our gamethreads against them and try to figure out when Taz is in the game. I'll give you a hint, everyone starts to quiver.

So we're going to ignore any and all logic, say 2 ABs is relevant to anything at all, and use immediate game thread reactions to justify it.

Gotcha.

 

[geoduck no quahog]

Monday morning QB'ing is fun and all, but I'm more interested in understanding the reasons why Uehara pitched so poorly yesterday. I'm not in the media market so if anyone has heard insight I'd appreciate it.

Possibilities include:
- Muscle fatigue
- Nagging (minor) injury
- Shit happens

Understanding what happened is infinitely more important than picking on the manager. From what we saw, he had none of the control he's famous for. Is this a preview of what's to come? A long range problem? Or just one of those days. He certainly had been pitching well up to yesterday and it's presumptuous to assume everything that happened was a function of over-work. For all we know he had a leg cramp that he was too proud to mention...

 

[glennhoffmania]

The bold is puzzling to say the least. Anyways, I looked up Pillar/Carrera/Saunders' history against Taz and unsurprisingly Pillar is 2 for 4 with 2 doubles, Carrera is 2 for 2 with 1 double and Saunders is 1 for 3.

Arguing this is going to be exhausting if we're going to ignore numbers and let Farrell hate take the wheel.

I don't have any Farrell hate. Just because someone doesn't agree with every decision he makes doesn't mean they hate him. I completely agreed with bringing in Tazawa there. I didn't agree with bringing in Koji. Two, three or four ABs isn't going to sway me one way or another.

ETA: if you want to give some weight to his numbers against those three batters I see the point. My comment before was in response to your comment that Tazawa sucks against Toronto, which on its own is meaningless.

 

[Plympton91]

I don't think bringing in Koji was terrible, but was there anybody watching who thought leaving him in to face Bautista was a good move? His velocity was down to 85 and his command was atrocious, he was afraid of his splitter and couldn't throw it for a strike, and he was shaking his hand/wrist as if it hurt.

Leaving him in was malpractice.

 

[nvalvo]

The rotation picking itself off the mat will help with this.

Game scores: 62, 31, 18, 48, 58, 43, 39, 46, 64, 66, 58, 62.

Looks to me like the rotation needed another week of Spring Training.