The Bullpen

I’ve already looked at the starting pitching situation for the Twins this offseason, so now, I’m going to take a gander at the back end of the Twins pitching staff. No not like that. That’s totally not what I meant. Stop it. I meant I’m going to review the relief pitching situation in Twins Territory.
The Twins were near the top of the league all season with their bullpen, and they did things the right way. They have several in house pitchers that have developed from the minors, or at the very least weren’t big name free agents. Bullpen guys are nothing if not volitaile, and you are best served by having guys with funny deliveries like Pat Neshek or good velocity like Joe Nathan. I like what the Twins did out there, putting a somewhat iffy starter (Matt Guerrier) in the long reliever role, and plopped a couple younger, homegrown guys in for middle relief, like Willie Eyre and Jesse Crain, and they were just as successful as they needed to be. The more important bullpen roles, like lefty specialist, set up man and closer were left to capable veterans. Ok so maybe calling Dennys Reyes capable is a stretch, but he performed when asked this year.Juan Rincon may be losing his touch, but Joe Nathan, when given the opportunity, is still an elite closer.
This off season, the Twins will probably be looking to refill the lefty role, as there are merely six lefties on the forty man roster, and two of them are Francisco Liriano and Johan Santana. Glen Perkins, a potential starter or valuable trade commodity is a third, Reyes is the fourth, and unproven Jose Mijares and Errol Simontisch are the remaining guys. Finding another lefty for the bullpen should be a cheap fix, however.
The Twins may not be so lucky in the setup role, where Juan Rincon may be on his way out. If nothing else, his declining numbers should be a cause for concern. Rather than spend money on Guillermo Mota or something, I would rather see the Twins groom someone internally for the role. There has to be more important ways to blow their money this offseason, especially when the ‘pen has been so reliable, and really, there aren’t many changes that need to be made. And think, you just spent seven minutes reading this, and that was my conclusion. Sorry. – Ryan