Going into the season, we knew our bullpen would be a problem. We underestimated just how much of a problem it would be. We managed to post a shit-tastic record of 3-7 in one-run games last chapter, thanks in no small part to our bullpen. Let's take a look at all the wins our bullpen cost us this season (so far):
April 2: We handed a tied game over to Raisel Iglesias (allegedly one of our two best relievers) in the fifth inning in a game against Joplin. He proceeded to allow FOUR hits in a single inning, allowing two runs to score, and putting the game out of reach. Matt Grace and Pedro Strop poured salt on the wound by allowing three more runs.
April 17: We held a tenuous 3-1 lead over the Jamboree heading into the bottom of the eighth inning. Stephen Strasburg had pitched a phenomenal game, and we needed our bullpen to step up and do its job. Instead, Iglesias (again) allowed FOUR hits in a single inning of work. He and Mike Montgomery (allegedly our other decent reliever) coughed up three runs in their 1.1 innings combined.
April 20: We carried a 1-1 tie into the final game of that series against Bear Country, needing a win to give us a split of the series, which would allow us a share of first place for another day. Instead, Jonathan Holder (a right-hander who only faces righties) allowed back-to-back singles to the first two batters he faced (both right-handers.) Montgomery was then called upon to put out the fire. Instead, he shit the bed, giving up a base hit to lefty Jon Jay, and then a two-run single to Luis Aguilar. That was four singles in a row.
April 22: Jose Quintana pitched a gem, but we had to pull him after six innings with the score tied at 1-1. We handed the ball to Montgomery, who proceeded to allow a base hit to Mike Zunino and an RBI double to Starlin Castro. Game over. Another one-run loss.
April 26: Game One against the daunting Flagstaff Outlaws. We somehow managed to hold that ridiculous offense to only one run over the first eight innings, but their pitcher (Zack Greinke) was just as tough. We carried a 1-1 tie into the ninth, and entrusted Iglesias to hold them at bay for one more turn at bat, to give us a fighting chance to win. Instead, he coughed up a home run to Kris Davis. Game over. Another one-run loss.
April 28: Final game of the series against Flagstaff, and once again, we managed to carry a tied score into the ninth. This time, the game went into extra innings. In the 11th inning, Aaron Judge finally did to his old team what we expected him to do throughout the series, clubbing a two-run bomb to put Flagstaff ahead. Want to guess who was pitching? Yes, that's right: Iglesias. We ended up scoring a run in the bottom half of that inning, for not other reason than to give us one more one-run loss.
Those six game epitomize the 2018 season so far. All six of those games were easily winnable, and yet we managed to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory each and every time. Had we won just one of those games, we would have finished the chapter above .500. Had we won all six, we'd be looking at a VERY comfortable lead in our division. Instead, we're looking up at the Joplin Miners.
The Good
Mike Leake (2-2, 3.70 ERA in 7 games) has been everything we thought and hoped he would be. He has been a steady and reliable inning-eater, who has kept us in almost every game he has pitched. Jose Quintana (1-1, 3.25) has also been a steady contributor. Despite all of his failures listed above, Mike Montgomery (3-1, 2.52 ERA in 25 IP) was arguably our best pitcher in Chapter One.
Our catching duo of Gary Sanchez (.256/.306/.578 with a team-leading 8 HR and 18 RBI's) and Travis d'Arnaud (.409/.519/.773) has been absolutely insane at the plate. Miguel Cabrera (.348/.500/.435), Odubel Herrera (.315/.364/.435), Trea Turner (.307/.360/.533), and Andrew Benintendi (.280/.330/.441) have also been very good.
The Bad
Yoenes Cespedes was supposed to be a highly-productive part-time player for us this year. Instead, he has hit .239/.311/.418, with 22 strikeouts in only 67 at-bats. Matt Joyce (.242/.329/.468) was supposed to be a beast against right-handers, but has been largely useless this season. Jose Ramirez (.277/.344/.411) was supposed to be an MVP-candidate, but cooled down substantially after a hot start to the season.
Jon Gray may be the only player in BDBL history who is completely unaffected by park factors. He actually pitches WORSE in a pitcher's park than he does in Coors Field. So far this season, he has given up an inexplicable number of hits and home runs, and already has four losses on the season. We've been using him every fourth turn in the rotation despite his half-season of usage, hoping that it would help us get off to a hot start. Boy, did that backfire!
Stephen Strasburg continues his career-long pattern of allowing an inexplicable number of home runs. He has already allowed seven in just 42+ innings, after having allowed only 11 in 175+ innings in MLB. His BDBL home run rate is DOUBLED compared to his MLB rate -- and he pitches in a much friendlier BDBL home ballpark!
The Ugly
Jonathan Holder managed to post a 3.89 ERA in an extremely tough home ballpark of Yankee Stadium in 2017. He is an extreme-splits right-handed specialist, which is why he has only faced four left-handed batters in the BDBL so far. He held right-handers to a .260/.295/.415 batting line in MLB, but that line in the BDBL has been .391/.500/.609. It doesn't make sense on any level, and yet that's our reality. Because of his atrocious performance, we've had to rely on Montgomery, Iglesias, and Strop more than we would have liked. Two of the three are now drastically overused as a result.
Deven Marrero is not a good hitter. We know that. But he did somehow manage to post a .291/.344/.600 line in 55 at-bats against lefties. His batting line against lefties in the BDBL? .056/.105/.111. The dude is 1-for-18. He's managed ONE hit in eighteen at-bats against lefties. You'd think that he'd have two hits simply by random luck!
We made a last-minute trade for Mitch Moreland, both for his bat and his glove. So far, he's only brought his glove to the game. His bat has produced a .210/.253/.358 batting line, with 22 strikeouts and only five walks in 81 at-bats.
When we traded Elvis Andrus for Eugenio Suarez, we thought that their bats would be a wash. We knew Suarez's power numbers would suffer in Salem, but we hoped that he'd still be capable of hitting a few doubles -- or even a few singles. Instead, he's hit all of .221/.309/.337, with ONE stinkin' home run and a team-leading 27 K's. This is a guy who hit 26 homers in MLB. Adjusting for park factors, you'd expect maybe 22 homers in Salem. Instead he's on pace for SIX. (Yeah, I know, small sample.)
