The Misuse of Major League Bullpens
Apr 23rd 2007ericjhoroMLB & Baseball
Even since having a set closer pitch the 9th inning became the norm, teams have done a lot of tinkering with the way they use their bullpens. Still, nearly 30 years later, teams’ strict adherence to having certain pitchers pitch certain innings has led them to misuse their bullpens. Managers are too concerned about what inning it is and don’t pay enough attention to the actual situation. Let’s take a look at a few games from the last month where managers have mismanaged their bullpen.
On April 16th the Orioles trailed the Devil Rays 3-0 in the top of the 4th. Manger Sam Perlozzo pulled starter Adam Loewen with two outs and the bases loaded and brought in Jeremy Guthrie. Guthrie was the team’s longman–the last man out of the bullpen and the guy who is unofficially acknowledged as the worst pitcher on the roster. The O’s were only down three runs–if they got an out in that spot they would still be in the game. Guthrie ended up surrendering a bases clearing double to Ty Wiggington, and the Orioles would be down 6-0 before he got out of the inning. The question is, why bring in the worst pitcher on your team to pitch in such a key situation?–Who cares if conventional baseball wisdom says that the 4th inning is much too early to bring in one of your better relievers–the conventional wisdom is wrong and makes no sense. The Orioles had four other right handers in their bullpen better than Guthrie–Even though it was only the 4th inning that was the key spot in the game–Get an out and they would still be in it, give up a hit and the game would probably over. Yet Perlozzo brought in the worst pitcher on his team just because he felt the 4th inning was too early to bring in Chad Bradford or Scott Williamson. It’s becoming a common trend for managers to save their better relievers for a late game lead even if it means hurting their chances of actually having a late game lead. Even Little Leaguers know it’s better to be winning than to be in good position in case you’re winning. Interestingly enough, the Orioles would rally and Guthrie would get the win in the 9-7 victory–but that still doesn’t mean Perlozzo made the right move.
A similar blunder was made in the late innings when the Mets played the Braves a week later. Willie Randolph brought in right hander Aaron Heilman to pitch the 8th inning in a 6-6 game. After an error, a hit batter, and two outs, lefty Kelly Johnson stepped to the plate with two on. The Mets best reliever, closer Billy Wagner, is a lefty, but because he’s the closer, he wasn’t even ready to pitch. Randolph was waiting to pitch him in the 9th if the Mets took the lead. The Mets never took the lead and Wagner never got to pitch because Heilman surrendered a three run homer. In this case Randolph’s blunder of leaving Heilman in is less clear cut because Heilman is one of the Mets best relievers. Still, the Mets ended up losing a game that was tied in the 8th inning without having their best reliever pitch. Johnson’s at bat was the most important at bat of the game and by not brining in Wagner Randolph failed to create the best matchup for his team. Someday a manager will realize the flaw of adhering too strictly to pitching certain pitchers in certain innings, and much like Bill Belichick going for it on 4th and short, his success will force others to follow him.
3 Comments »
on 07 May 2007 at 7:07 am #
[…] relievers in key situations early in the game. One example I cited was Orioles manager Sam Perlozzo brigning in the worst pitcher on his roster with the bases loaded in the 4th inning. Well, old Sam has not learned his lesson. […]
on 09 May 2007 at 4:07 pm #
I agree… so many managers just don’t get it. But much of the media fuels this. The other day Joe Torre brought in Mariano Rivera in the 8th inning with a 3-run lead against the Red Sox. The press made a big deal about it, that he was treating it like a playoff game and was over-using his best reliever, but it was when he was needed. (Granted, Rivera blew the save, which was sweet, but at least Torre was bringing in his best to handle the situation.)
on 10 May 2007 at 9:24 pm #
The media does play a big role–I think they focus too much on the late innings and nobody ever pays enought attention to how managers manage the game in the middle innings.