Seattle The New York Mets bullpen is nearly never the same from day to day, much as you can never walk in the same river twice. The pen’s constantly changing group will keep changing throughout August as manager Carlos Mendoza decides how to effectively use relievers acquired last month and include returning players.
How’s all this going to work? Let’s run through some notes:
After missing a month of action due to tendinitis in his right elbow, Reed Garrett is back in action. Mendoza stated that although “it never happens the way you intend it,” he would prefer to gradually bring Garrett back into the game for three outs in a lower-leverage situation.
Through the first seven weeks of the season, Garrett was a revelation for the Mets, pitching to an ERA below one and a strikeout rate exceeding forty percent. Over the course of the following seven weeks, the strikeout percentage dropped to about 25 percent and the ERA increased to about eight.
When nearly no one in the bullpen was reliably recording outs in May, the Mets feel that they leaned too much on Garrett. They are hopeful that they are getting back more of the right-hander from April than from midsummer.
Reed Garrett is back from right elbow inflammation. (John Jones / USA Today)
Following his gradual return to action, Garrett should be among the team’s go-to players in the later innings.
The Mets elected to keep veteran Adam Ottavino in the major-league pen and option lefty Alex Young to Triple-A Syracuse in order to create room for Garrett. Young has thrown seven innings of solid relief, giving up just one run. But unlike Ottavino, he had possibilities in the minor leagues.
Ottavino allowed 13 earned runs in 11 innings from early May to early June; he pitched to a 2.27 ERA the rest of the season while striking out more than a third of opposing hitters. Despite his subpar overall numbers for the year (4.43 ERA), the Mets like what he is done outside of a miserable May.
“That month was hard for a lot of people, for us as a team and for a lot of our bullpen guys,” Mendoza said Saturday. “He found a way, as he’s always done, and he’s been pretty consistent for us. He’s a guy that takes the baseball and you can use him at any time in the game. You know he’s going to be ready.”
Since early June, Ottavino’s high-leverage opportunities have been restricted by the Mets; throughout that time, he has only been held three times. Both on and off the field, New York appreciates what the veteran does to the bullpen, but when additional relievers come off the injured list later in the month, it will have to make tougher choices.
Recall that President of Baseball Operations David Stearns highlighted the flexibility provided by Huascar Brazobán’s minor-league option when the Mets acquired him at the trade deadline. If the Mets decide it is best for the pen, they can also send him down.)
Even though Dedniel Núñez is not as good as Sean Reid-Foley, Núñez might return to the majors sooner than expected. By the end of the following week, the righty might be playing in rehab games after throwing his first bullpen session on Sunday.
Similar to Garrett, Núñez would ultimately come back to play a big part in the closing innings. The Mets are partial to the idea of having multi-inning, high-leverage relievers like Garrett, Núñez, and Jose Buttó as a bridge to Edwin Díaz in the ninth.
Sean Reid-Foley needs some time
While in the minors for his rehab assignment, Reid-Foley is resolving certain concerns. In 3 1/3 innings, the right-hander has given up 12 base runners while walking seven of the 22 batters he has faced. Thus yet, he has only pitched one inning. The Mets would need him to develop over that before he could make a major-league comeback because of his probable role as a long man.
Reid-Foley is slated to throw “one-plus” innings Sunday for Double-A Binghamton. His 30-day rehab clock, just in case, extends to Aug. 26.
Can the Mets get by with a single lefty?
The lone left-handed pitcher in the Mets bullpen now is Danny Young after Alex Young was sent down. Danny Young has made some tougher contact against righties but has been outstanding versus lefties (.520 OPS).
If the Mets use Young in any significant situations over the next few weeks to bat against two lefties sandwiching a right-handed hitter, it will be interesting to observe how they use him. Even with Brooks Raley out for the majority of the season, New York’s bullpen has performed admirably in closing out games by keeping left-handers in check.
(Top photo of Danny Young and catcher Luis Torrens: Isaiah J. Downing / USA Today)
