The Braves have invested a premium in their bullpen, assembling an experienced, hungry group given the task of shortening games. The bullpen surely won’t lack resumes — it consists of All-Stars and battle-tested veterans. In other words, it’s a group tailored for the postseason.
Mark Melancon, acquired at last season's trade deadline, is penciled in as the closer. For now. We know how fluid that can be. Just ask Shane Greene, also acquired last July, who was an All-Star closer for the Tigers last season, but quickly relinquished those duties with the Braves. Melancon and Greene were additions made with 2020 in mind.
The Braves' biggest free-agent signing was Will Smith, a 2019 All-Star, who'll be deployed in sticky late-inning affairs. Melancon, Smith and Greene give the Braves their strongest back end since the Kimbrel-Venters-O'Flaherty days.
Chris Martin, who possesses the best control of the group, was re-signed and also has closing experience. Darren O'Day is back and healthy. Luke Jackson is now relegated to a more suitable mid-innings role. Sean Newcomb might be a starter, but if he's back in the bullpen, he's a hard-throwing weapon. Then there's a variety of unproven players competing for spots on the unit.
Roster locks (2019 stats)
Mark Melancon (3.61 ERA, 68:18 strikeout-to-walks in 67-1/3 innings)
Will Smith (2.76 ERA, 96:21 in 65-1/3 innings)
Shane Greene (2.30 ERA, 64:17 in 62-2/3 innings)
Chris Martin (3.40 ERA, 65:5 in 55-2/3 innings)
Darren O'Day (1.69 ERA, 6:1 in 5-1/3 innings)
Luke Jackson (3.84 ERA, 106:26 in 72-3/ innings)
On the bubble
Sean Newcomb (who's competing for a rotation spot)
A.J. Minter
Grant Dayton
Chad Sobotka
Philip Pfeifer
Jeremy Walker
Jacob Webb
Thomas Burrows
Chris Rusin
Ben Rowan
Chris Nunn
Key stat: 4.21
Braves relievers posted a 4.21 collective ERA last season, 11th lowest in the bigs. For much of the time, it didn’t seem the bullpen would rank anywhere near the top half of the league. It often felt like a weakness, the team’s glaring Achilles’ heel, which prompted general manager Alex Anthopoulos to add a trio of arms at the deadline.
The Braves should, without question, earn a better mark this year. They’re paying a rich sum for their relief corps — over $45 million to Melancon, Greene, Smith and Martin alone — so it’s fair to have high expectations.
Key player: Smith
Smith is the bullpen’s best asset, capable of escaping a sixth-inning jam or retiring the middle of the order in the ninth. It’s possible Smith eventually takes over primary closer duties, but perhaps it’s better he doesn’t. He should be the team’s great extinguisher. The Braves will rely on him in pressure situations rather than limiting him to the ninth inning. He’s a luxury the Braves lacked a season ago.
What to watch for over the season
The bullpen will be a revolving door outside its key contributors. As such, roles will evolve. It doesn’t matter who’s assigned which inning; the Braves just need their relievers to pitch up to their capabilities. They’re also positioned to survive an injury or two without real suffering, which is much different than the past two seasons.
This collection of pitchers should be among the team’s greatest strengths. The Braves might have the deepest, most experienced bullpen in the National League. The new three-batter minimum for pitchers eliminates the left-handed specialist, so lacking such isn’t a concern here. Instead, the Braves have a well-rounded bullpen that could grow even better with the emergence of a young arm or two (Webb is a prime candidate after exhibiting reasons for optimism last season).
Keep in mind Kyle Wright, Bryse Wilson, Touki Toussaint and maybe even top prospect Ian Anderson — all aspiring starters — will probably log innings in the bullpen. This group is built around an expensive core four, but the Braves have plentiful pitchers to fill in the other innings.
