It’s February. A couple of weeks later, pitchers and catchers will report to spring training. In the off-season, several teams signed players on the free agent market. For several teams, the top priority is to enhance the rotation. However, nowadays, no one can ignore the importance of relief pitchers in baseball games. Hence, during the off-season, there are several teams which decided to ink a deal with relievers to enhance the bullpen.
Firstly, now, there are only 2 active pitchers who have 400+ career saves. One is Kenley Jansen and the other is Craig Kimbrel. Jansen is now the closer for the Boston Red Sox. Craig Kimbrel collected 23 saves in 2023 and in the off-season, he inked a one-year deal with the Orioles. Kimbrel is expected to be the closer for the Orioles because Felix Bautista, who collected 33 saves for the Orioles, underwent Tommy John surgery and won’t pitch in 2024.
In addition, the Kansas City Royals have a busy off-season and they have acquired several pitchers. To enhance the bullpen, the Royals signed a one-year deal with Chris Stratton and Will Smith in December. Stratton made 64 relief appearances last season, posting a 3.92 ERA and a 1.14 WHIP over 82.2 innings. Will Smith pitched for the Texas Rangers in 2023. He owned a 4.40 ERA and a 1.06 WHIP across 57.1 innings.
Moreover, the Cincinnati Reds agreed to a 2-year deal with Emilio Pagan. Pagan made 1 start (opener) and 65 relief appearances for the Twins last season. He owned a great 2.99 ERA and a 0.95 WHIP over 69.1 innings. Opponents only batted .181 against Pagan. Furthermore, the Texas Rangers, which just won the first World Series title in franchise history, agreed to a 1-year deal with Kirby Yates. In 2023, Yates made 61 relief appearances for the Braves, posting a 3.28 ERA and a 1.19 WHIP over 60.1 innings. Opponents’ batting average against Yates was .167.
The Dodgers are certainly one of the busiest teams in the offseason and of course, they are trying to enhance the bullpen. The Dodgers re-signed Joe Kelly and in the 2024 season, he will change his number to 99. Kelly was traded to the Dodgers last July. In total, he made 11 relief appearances for the Dodgers during the regular season, posting a 1.74 ERA and a 0.87 WHIP over 10.1 innings. However, he missed some playing time due to injury. Additionally, Andrew Chafin and the Tigers embrace a reunion. They agreed to a 1-year deal. Chafin used to pitch for the Tigers in 2022 and in that season, he had a 2.83 ERA and a 1.17 WHIP over 57.1 innings. Last season, Chafin made 43 relief appearances for the D-backs and made 20 relief appearances for the Brewers. He finished the 2023 season with a 4.73 ERA and a 1.42 WHIP.
Finally, we can’t ignore 2 flamethrowers. Josh Hader agreed to a 5-year deal with the Astros. He’s one of the most dominant closers in the majors. Last season, Hader collected 33 saves for the Padres. He owned a 1.28 ERA and a 1.10 WHIP over 56.1 innings in 2023. Meanwhile, Aroldis Chapman, who has 321 saves by far in his career, agreed to a 1-year deal with the Pirates. Chapman made 61 relief appearances in 2023, posting a 3.09 ERA and a 1.25 WHIP.
In baseball, no one can ignore the importance of the bullpen. While reading the news about signing relief pitchers during the off-season, adding Hader will surely make the Astros bullpen even better since they already have a great closer Ryan Pressly. Additionally, the Orioles won 101 games in 2023 and in the 2024 season, they will need Craig Kimbrel to close the door. Nonetheless, several relief pitchers signed a 1-year deal. It will be worthwhile to see if they can pitch even better in the new season, so they might have a chance to sign a contract, which will compensate much better.
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