As the Braves’ exited spring training last season, there were several questions surrounding their relief corp. What was up with Mike Gonzalez’s lack of velocity? What would they get out of Peter Moylan after Tommy John surgery? What’s Rafael Soriano going to do? How would newcomers like Eric O’Flaherty and Boone Logan fare with their new team? When all was said and done, the Atlanta bullpen posted a 3.57 ERA in 2009. Moylan recovered better than anyone could have asked, Gonzalez and Soriano were solid in the closer role, and O’Flaherty proved to be quite reliable.
So over half way through camp, where does the team stand with it’s current group of relievers? Billy Wagner, Takashi Saito, Peter Moylan, Eric O’Flaherty and Kris Medlen are all pretty much garaunteed spots. That leaves two spots open and about seven pitchers competing. Here’s a look at where each pitcher stands, and their chances of making the team.
Jesse Chavez
Entering camp, many expected one of the two spots was his to lose. Bobby Cox raved about his changeup, and his bullpens were supposedly impressive. But after allowing six earned runs in his first two appearances of the spring, Chavez dropped back in the race and now seems to have as good a chance as anyone else. Since his first two games, he has tuned in three scoreless innings, but hasn’t recorded a strikeout. He seems to be improving, and Cox seems to like him, so it will likely take another couple of those disasterous outings for Chavez to find himself in Gwinnett to start the year.
Mariano Gomez
Gomez has allowed two runs in 5.2 innings, but has given up 10 hits and a walk. The couple times I’ve seen him pitch, he looked good against left-handers. But in terms of stuff and perfermance, he doesn’t seem to be on par with the other pitchers vying for the the open spots. I’d put him in the back of the pack, and he could possibly be included in the next round of cuts.
Johnny Venters
Cox loves this guy and his “super-sinker”. Venters has been a starter through most of his minor league career, and didn’t post great numbers in 17 starts for Gwinnett last year. But he has allowed just one run in 5.1 innings this spring, and when you find yourself on Cox’s list of favorites, you have a chance. Still, with all the competition, I’d put him back there with Gomez. As starters begin to go deeper in games, some of these guys need to be cut, and he could go anytime.
Scott Proctor
If he’d been healthy, we’d be talking about one open spot in the ‘pen instead of two. But Proctor still has plenty left to prove before he’s deemed ready for action, starting today against the Tigers. If his recovery from Tommy John surgery goes well, I’m sure he’ll be in Atlanta by early-May if not sooner. As discussed yesterday, I just don’t see a need to rush him back from surgery. Rather, I’d like to see him spend a few weeks in Gwinnett to ease himself back into game action. Right now I’d put his chances at slim, but with a few solid outings, that could change.
Manny Acosta
Bobby Cox seems to like the kid, and spent a fair amount of time in Atlanta last year, so he entered camp with a legitimate shot at cracking the roster. He threw four scoreless innings in his first three appearances, but last Sunday he allowed two homers against Houston while recording only one out. Manny hasn’t pitched since then. He does have six strikeouts in 4.1 innings, and has only walked one, so there have been some positives. I expect Bobby to give him every chance to earn a spot, and barring a couple more games like the one against Houston, he’ll likely break camp with the team.
Craig Kimbrel
This kid has recieved a lot of attention this spring, especially from Bobby Cox. He’s thrown four scoreless innings and has struck out six. More important, his control has looked reasonable with just three walks. As good he’s looked in camp, Kimbrel has thrown just 13.2 innings above High-A, and for his sake should probably spend some time in Gwinnett to start the year. But if he continues pitching the way he has, he may find himself sticking around. I’d put him in the middle of the pack at the moment.
Mike Dunn
Dunn fits the same mold as several of these guys: hard-thrower, good stuff, but poor control. He’s allowed just one run in 6.1 innings, yet he has walked seven and given up four hits. Like Chavez, his control has improved a little as camp has gone on, but it still needs work. Dunn had his cup of coffee last year in New York, so he has big-league experience. However, don’t look for him on the 25-man come April.
Luis Valdez
Valdez has no chance of making the team, but we haven’t discussed his situation yet, so I figured we’d take the chance now. Valdez hasn’t arrived at camp due to problems with his visa. If he had reported on time, I’m sure he’d be right in the mix. At this point, Valdez has just missed too much time to be ready for opening day. I do, however, expect to find him pitching in Atlanta some time this year.
So I’m thinking Chavez and Acosta will be the winners. Is that who I would go with if I were Cox? I doubt it. But hopefully they’ll be able to hold down the fort until Proctor or Luis Valdez is ready. The bullpen was good last year, and has been getting better this spring. Hopefully, this group can repeat, or even improve, in 2010.
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