MLB Bullpen Red Flags
Bullpen Red Flags, MIA's Pen Is Running on Fumes
Published
Bullpens do not announce when they are tired; the box scores announce it for them. Counted straight from the last three days of pitching lines, every arm after the starter, this is who has been leaning hardest on the pen.
Running on fumes
MIA top the board with twelve relief appearances in three games, about 4.0 arms out of the pen a night. A manager can live like that for a weekend; over a longer stretch, it is usually the late innings that pay the bill.
Close behind, PIT have called down 12 times in 3 games.
ARI have leaned on the pen 12 times in 3 games themselves.
The rested arms
At the other end, ATL have used just three relievers across one games. A rested pen usually means the manager gets the matchups he wants late, instead of the ones he is stuck with.
NYY (3 appearances in 1 games) have kept their powder nearly as dry.
From most-taxed to freshest, the difference is nine appearances over the same stretch of days, the kind of gap that quietly decides eighth innings.
By the numbers
The workload table, straight from the pitching lines:
| Team | Relief outings | Games |
|---|---|---|
| MIA | 12 | 3 |
| PIT | 12 | 3 |
| ARI | 12 | 3 |
| SD | 12 | 3 |
| SEA | 11 | 3 |
One more thing
A quick note on the counting: every pitcher after the starter in each captured box score registers as one appearance, so a one-out specialist and a two-inning bulk arm weigh the same. Imperfect, but honest, and consistent across every team.
A taxed pen shows up late, not early: fewer trusted arms, longer leashes, fatter late innings. Watch the eighth.
Next up on the slate: Miami Marlins against Boston Red Sox. Check back after that one goes final.