Top Relievers in 2007

So, I had planned to post a thorough review of the top relievers of 2007 a few days ago. Sorry — my NYE Spinach & Artichoke Dip preparation got in the way. Now, because 2007 is so yesterday, here’s my cop-out Top Five list (please note that this list is in no way based upon holds or saves):

* Honorable mention: Pat Neshek, Tony Pena, Rafael Perez, Chad Qualls, Brandon Lyon

5. Joba Chamberlain – He was called up on August 8, but his name belongs on this list because: (1) he had an utterly dominant two-month stretch, helping to propel the Yankees to the postseason; (2) he achieved icon status in New York in record time; and (3) I’m a biased Yankees’ fan.

4. Carlos Marmol – Was nearly N.L. MVP. Plus, 96 K’s in 69.1 innings!

3. Hideki Okajima - The silver lining for us Yankees’ fans is that Jeemer struggled in the second half of the season; perhaps the league caught up to him a bit. Nevertheless, he was lights out in the first half and a major contributor to Boston’s championship season. Who woulda thunk that he’d be Boston’s best Japanese import?

2. Rafael Betancourt – I almost put him at number one, but because the Mitchell Report can selectively single out a small percentage of players who might have used PEDs, I choose to selectively discount Betancourt’s 2007 accomplishments because of his positive test a few years back. That said, Betancourt was awesome this past season. See, e.g., 312 ERA+!!!!

1. Heath Bell - A year ago, the Mets sent Bell to Kevin Towers’s Padres after a disappointing 2006 campaign. In 2007, Bell made, to say the least, a dramatic turnaround. While most of his numbers are similarly impressive as compared to the other guys on this list, what stands out the most, and what made Bell such a valuable reliever in 2007, is that he put those numbers up over 81 games and 93.2 innings pitched. In other words, Joe Torre would love to get this guy in a Dodgers uniform.

His arm might fall off by the middle of 2008, but, in 2007, Heath Bell was the best middle-relief pitcher in baseball. Congratulations, Heath!

Surfing the Bullpenternet

A quick look at what others are saying about middle relief:

• ‘Anorexic’ Mets: Mets fans start sweating (and stop spell-checking) after they failed to sign Cordero or Linebrink. (Mets Fever)
• Yanks fans, on the other hand, are ecstatic that some other bonehead GM overpaid Linebrink before Cashman could. (The New York Yankees Baseball Blog)

• It may have been the going rate, but you don’t have to like the Linebrink and Cordero signings; why not try the “trial and error” method for constructing a bullpen? (Hardball Review)
• For his part, Keith Law sees a troubling trend this offseason: (ESPN Insider)
  

  After Steve Karsay’s four-year deal, signed before the 2002 season, went bust, we saw just one three-year deal given to a reliever (Armando Benitez, who threw 118 innings with a 4.55 ERA during the deal) until B.J. Ryan’s five-year deal, signed in November of 2005. That month, we saw the destruction of the market’s reluctance to give long-term deals to relief pitchers, especially middle relievers, and the result has been a relative flood of three-, four-, and even five-year contracts for such free agents. After two winters of these contracts, however, the track record is already not good.

• Dbacks fans give out unsung hero awards to Edgar Gonzalez, Brandon Lyon, and their pitching coach, Bryan Price. (AZ Snakepit)
• Did you ever wonder who owns the “Most Consecutive Games with a Home Run Allowed by a Relief Pitcher” record? Yeah, me neither. (Recondite Baseball)