Should the Seattle Mariners replicate the Tampa Bay Rays bullpen?

The Tampa Bay Rays have an unorthodox bullpen, but one of the most successful bullpens. As the Seattle Mariners bolsters its bullpen, should it look to replicate the Rays?

Rays manager, Kevin Cash has been operating an unorthodox bullpen for quite some time. And when I say unorthodox, I really am only referring to not having a single closer and using his bullpen guys in different situations instead of just the ninth inning. Baseball teams have traditionally had a go-to closer that always pitches in the ninth inning of close games. But, Cash and the Rays have been operating without an official closer the past few seasons. The Rays have found great success through its system and it raises the question, should the Seattle Mariners attempt a similar system?

The Seattle Mariners are almost finished with the Jerry Dipoto rebuild process, and now is the time to sign some free-agents to bolster the team. Dipoto has discussed the bullpen as one area of focus in this offseason and now would be the perfect time to decide what type of system the bullpen will operate in before bringing players onto the team. Also keep in mind that the MLB Rule 5 Draft is right around the corner, which could provide another bullpen arm. A closer by committee system has its pros and cons, but will it work for Seattle? Let’s start with the reasons to operate a closer by committee like the Rays.

Reason No. 1: The Rays have proved it can work while being cost-effective

In this past shortened season, the Tampa Bay Rays relievers were tied in first for most wins above replacements. The Rays and Twins relievers had a combined 3.6 wins above replacements. Tampa Bay was third in bullpen ERA with a 3.37 ERA. The Athletics and Dodgers were the only teams ahead of the Rays in ERA. In 2019, the Rays led the league in wins above replacements and ERA among all MLB bullpens. In 2018, the Rays finished in fifth place for bullpen WAR and 12th in ERA.

The other teams who have had bullpen success since 2018 include the Yankees, Athletics, Padres, and Dodgers. The four teams have had a main closer but they have great supporting relievers, who were comfortable enough to step in as the closer at any given time. For example, the Yankees have relied on Aroldis Chapman, but Zack Britton and Adam Ottavino have been used when Chapman was injured, or unavailable. But the main difference between the Yankees bullpen and the Rays bullpen is the amount spent on each bullpen.

The Yankees have always been a big-spending team and that is no secret. Just with Chapman and Britton combined, their annual salaries equal $28million in 2020. The Rays on the other hand had the 28th ranked payroll in 2020. The Rays top relief pitchers, Nick Anderson and Diego Castillo had a combined annual salary of just over $1million.

The Rays may have gotten lucky, or the general manager just did an incredible job putting together a bunch of different relief pitchers, or the system is just cheaper and effective. There is potential for the last option because when relief pitchers are dubbed “closers” they can be more expensive to sign. Like Chapman and Britton, they are both former All-Star closers who can leverage a large contract as they did with the Yankees.

Although the Seattle Mariners have some room to spend, they should not go on a complete shopping spree and sign Blake Treinen, Liam Hendriks, Shane Greene, Kirby Yates, and Brad Hand all in one offseason. But, a mix of solid lower end relief pitchers and a star relief pitcher could be very realistic. This would offer a great foundation for an excellent bullpen in the future and would fit as a closer by committee.

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.