Should the Seattle Mariners replicate the Tampa Bay Rays bullpen?

Reason No. 2: Closers by committees are adaptable to unprecedented situations

In my mind, a closer by committee basically just means added depth. When a team has more depth and options, the more adaptable it is to unprecedented circumstances. One of the most common unexpected situations in baseball is injuries. The Rays have shown when a bullpen pitcher goes on the injured list, the next man up comes in and does the job.

Oliver Drake of the Rays had a great 2019 and missed a lot of the 2020 regular season and the entire postseason, but the Rays were still able to manage and reach the World Series. Similar situation with the Yankees, when Chapman is injured, Zack Britton can easily slot in. Although the Yankees do not technically operate a closer by committee system, it is pretty close by adding lots of depth. Having multiple pitchers ready to pitch in a variety of situations provides managers with flexibility and practice for the bullpen pitchers.

In 2020, a closer by committee could have been extremely useful due to the unexpected COVID-19 positive tests around the league. If a team commits to one standout closer to come in for the ninth inning, the team would have to go to its second option if something happened to the closer. The closer by committee avoids this scenario by making anyone in the bullpen ready to pitch in any situation including the save situation.

Operating as a closer by committee or a Rays bullpen system allows pitchers to practice pitching in different situations. Nick Anderson, Kevin Cash’s number one guy pitched in the seventh, the eighth, or ninth depending on the game and when the game was at a turning point. This allows other of the Rays’ top bullpen options to get used to the different high-stress situations to prepare them in the long run. When a team only commits to a single closer, the second option does not have the opportunity to practice in save situations.

So even if the closer by committee does not work so well at the beginning, it provides valuable experience for bullpen pitchers to learn to pitch in different leverage situations moving forward. This is especially applicable to the Seattle Mariners because the bullpen is so young. And Dipoto and Scott Servais basically did just that during the 2020 season, allowing different young pitchers to pitch in different situations.

Reason No. 3: Ability to create favorable matchups and is less predictable

One of the main reasons why the Rays do what they do is to create favorable matchups by relying on analytics. When the opposing team has three lefties up to bat in the ninth inning, it might be better to bring in your lefty specialist, or a pitcher with a great right-handed changeup. It does not make sense to bring in a right-handed pitcher that is hittable by left-handed batters in a high leverage situation as such.

For example, Yohan Ramirez pitched very well for the Mariners in 2020 as a young flame thrower but the numbers show that against lefties he is more hittable. Right-handed batters had a .071 batting average, while left-handed batters had a .222 average. That is a major split and it would make sense to bring in a left-handed specialist like Aaron Fletcher, who did not allow a hit against lefties last season.

Although the three batters minimum rule is not favorable so much for pitching to matchups, the closer by committee is a very realistic system for the young Mariners bullpen. Even if it does not perform as well as we want in 2021, it will help foster pitching in different situations which takes experience to learn. The Rays struggled at first under the unorthodox bullpen system, but after a while of experience and bringing in the right pieces, it was one of the best.

Like the Rays early on, the Seattle Mariners had a pilot 2020 season and 2021 could be similar. So why not try the Rays bullpen system and bring in the best arms at the high leverage situations in a game whether that be the fourth inning, seventh inning, or ninth inning? The Mariners practically did that in 2020 already.

The closer by committee also helps create confusion, and or unpredictability. When teams used to face the San Diego Padres, they knew Trevor Hoffman was pitching the ninth. Or the Yankees, Mariano Rivera is taking the mound in the ninth. Yes, these guys were outstanding closers but it is rare to find gems like them and bringing them in costs money. But, when you have four pitchers that could potentially pitch in the ninth inning, it makes preparation much more difficult for the opposing team in terms of who to pinch-hit and who to scout. It becomes a game of chess where the pitching team can have an advantage in secrecy and game plan in high leverage situations.

But of course, with any good thing, there are always downsides. Here are some negative consequences of operating a Rays bullpen system.

Downsides of operating a closer by committee like the Rays

One of the most evident issues of using a Tampa Bay Rays bullpen system for the Seattle Mariners is the need for a lot of quality relievers. The Mariners can operate a closer by committee at any time, but it will not be nearly as effective without the right pieces. The Rays have done a great job finding affordable bullpen pitchers who all provide a different look. Aaron Loup a left-handed three-quarter release pitcher, Pete Fairbanks touched triple digits over the top, Oliver Drake has a funky over the top motion, and Ryan Thompson throws sidearm.

The Seattle Mariners have a few pieces in the pen right now that offer different looks, but they need to add onto it heavily this offseason. At the moment, the Mariners have a hard-throwing Ramirez, a funky motion pitcher in Joey Gerber, a veteran Kendall Graveman, a curveball specialist Anthony Misiewicz, lefty specialist Aaron Fletcher, and a few others. This already looks a little like the array of Rays bullpen pitchers. The Mariners also have some relief pitchers in the farm system that are almost MLB ready like Wyatt Mills who throws from a low 3/4 delivery from the right side.

The team does need to be careful though because adding the top free-agent relievers cost money, and the Mariners should not sign five of the top free-agent pitchers to create a successful bullpen. Rather the team should look into the analytics and find affordable pitchers that allow us to sign more than five relievers for example. To sum it up, creating a closer by committee is difficult, or just creating a good bullpen as well.

Another downside of a Rays bullpen system is the blame goes towards the manager, and the manager has a lot more work to do. Because the coaches make the decisions on who pitches when and the blame for failure goes to the coaches. Kevin Cash took the blame for game six of the World Series, bringing in Nick Anderson which was a move based on analytics. Traditionally, the closer always came in the ninth inning and that was it, clean and simple. And if the closer fails, the blame goes towards them. Operating a closer by committee becomes a whole new can of worms and becomes the manager job much more difficult in terms of strategy.

Having a great staff of bullpen pitchers can also lead to the elimination of routine. When the game is tight, closers sometimes have a routine and schedule of when to warm up. Same with setup pitchers, and middle relievers. But when a bullpen operates like the Rays, that all goes away because anyone could come in at any time. This can be difficult for some pitchers who are so routine based.

Another consequence is if the manager is wrong in choosing the highest leverage situation in a game, the best bullpen option will not be available later. This is a little hard to put together, but if Scott Servais decides to bring in Ramirez during the sixth inning in a bases-loaded situation, he will not be available in the ninth inning where it could be a one-run save situation for example. Again there is the hypothetical that if Ramirez did not come in a finish the bases-loaded mess, the ninth inning one-run lead might not have existed, so the argument could go on and on.

Lastly, closers by committees are a mess for fantasy baseball owners to navigate. We have already seen several teams go to a closer by committee, which reduces the supply of viable closer candidates for fantasy baseball teams. I would not be surprised if more teams operate like the Rays did, because the Seattle Mariners should. That would make official closers for teams a lot more valuable earlier in fantasy drafts if the supply continues to reduce. Another smaller consequence is the closer walk-up introduction would be gone. Safeco Field used to have a special introduction for J.J Putz, Fernando Rodney, and Edwin Diaz. A closer by committee would eliminate the chilling introduction for the closer.

Even with the negative internal and external consequences, the Seattle Mariners should replicate the Rays bullpen because it has proven effective. Again, the Mariners might be competitors in 2021, but the focus is on 2022 and beyond. Closers by committee take time to develop as shown by the Rays, but the Mariners have time to learn and try different things. It already seems like Dipoto is attempting to copy the Rays system so it could look more like it in 2021. The team just needs to add a few free-agent relievers and the Mariners are well on their way.