One of the most volatile things in all of baseball is the effectiveness of a major league bullpen. It’s no easy task to put a top bullpen together, and nobody would know that better than our own general manager Sandy Alderson who has presided over three straight seasons of bullpen futility at its most deplorable levels.
It almost looked like we were in for yet another year of agonizing relief when the Mets bullpen began this season by allowing an unsightly 12 runs in their first 12 innings pitched.
But then something happened… Someone flipped a switch and all of a sudden we were treated to an amazing 14 inning stretch of shut-down, no-holds-barred, good old-fashioned domination – culminating in a dramatic series win against the Atlanta Braves! I gotta say, it was pretty freaking awesome to behold…
Given the inherent unpredictability of relief pitching, I implore you to enjoy this incredible ride while it lasts.
In the days following the announcement that we had lost our closer Bobby Parnell for the year to Tommy John surgery, this bullpen could have crumbled and nobody would have batted an eyelash.
But instead they did something even more remarkable.. These amazing guys all picked each other up and delivered one shining performance after another, never letting one baserunner touch home plate for 42 consecutive outs. Wow!
The bullpen has thrived led by veterans Kyle Farnsworth and Jose Valverde at the backend and peppered with some great shut-down outings by Gonzalez Germen, Carlos Torres, Scott Rice and Jeurys Familia.
It was pure high-drama and it was baseball at its best…
So let’s hear it for the boys!
