Bullpen by Committee - LucianoJJ's Blog

LucianoJJ's Blog

Bullpen by Committee

Posted on March 29, 2012 at 01:53 PM.

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With the elbow injury to closer Ryan Madson the Reds chances of winning the NL Central dropped several percentage points. On top of the loss of Madson, the fallout from the competition for the fifth starter's job, is the questionable status of two closer candidates. Lefty Bill Bray is off to a slow start in Cactus League play. Righty setup man Nick Masset shoulder soreness resulted in a move to the DL. Aside from Sean Marshall, those two are top candidates to replace Madson as closer.

The bullpen by committee approach becomes more problematic when the choices decrease. This committee now becomes a Gang of Four (Marshall, Arredondo, Ondrusek, LeCure). Does Chapman return to the 'pen? Could Homer Bailey flourish in a new role as a reliever?

Injuries are inevitable. Clubs typically end up using at least a dozen extra players over the course of a campaign. The burden falls on management to replace the injured talent, and the survivors on the roster to rise above and overproduce.

Should we expect a trade of Chapman/Bailey or surplus infielders like Juan Francisco, Todd Frazier, Paul Janish? Walt Jocketty has proven to be more adept at bundling than a telecom. If the clock is ticking on Brandon Phillips and Joey Votto, and the "all in" approach is still valid for 2012, Jocketty may be working towards one more move to restore the Reds to contention.