Should The Detroit Tigers Rely Upon Bruce Rondon?
As the 2015 MLB season inches closer it’s looking more and more likely that the current cast of Detroit Tigers will be what’s featured this Spring Training.
With Spring Training a mere 3 days away the most exciting part about the winter is rolling in for baseballs fans nationwide.
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But looking at the current state of these Tigers question marks are rampant and obvious. They’re definitely entering 2015 with more questions than in 2014.
Will Justin Verlander be his old MVP self again? Can Miguel Cabrera come back from injury and how’s that going to affect this team? How will J.D. Martinez look after a breakout season?
Perhaps the biggest kicker of it all though is the bullpen. The bullpen has been criticized and analyzed numerous times by local media and national writers alike.
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If there was one blatant weak spot for the Tigers in 2014 it was easily the bullpen. A bullpen ERA of 4.29 put them 14th out of 15 American League teams.
Closer Joe Nathan struggled immensely and mid-season acquisition Joakim Soria just didn’t look the same as his dominant self during his time with the Texas Rangers.
With the current state of the bullpen the way it is it’s becoming much more likely that the Tigers will have to rely upon hard-throwing righty Bruce Rondon.
But at this point of Rondon’s career how much can the Tigers expect from him?
He lost the entire 2014 season with an arm injury and now has an injury-plagued past. If he doesn’t stay healthy over the course of the entire season his long-term future with the team may be up in the air. The comparisons to former-Tiger Joel Zumaya are uncanny.
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It’s also worth nothing that in the last two off-seasons General Manager Dave Dombrowski has heavily relied upon Rondon to be a contributor before 2013 and 2014.
Expecting much out of him in 2015 would be foolish. It looks like Dombrowski himself knows this now seeing that he’s made a few under-the-radar acquisitions in Alex Wilson and Tom Gorzelanny.
While these signings are useful for the depth of the bullpen there will still be a large question mark over Rondon’s head. Even though he pitched marginally well in 2013 he was a quick flash-in-the-pan late in the season in terms of success.
He has no reliable track record in the majors to even gauge how he might pitch this season. While he has plenty of potential (read: velocity) how he’ll transfer that to the Majors is entirely different.
To be successful in this league Rondon will need some kind of off-speed pitch to keep hitters from sitting fastball all day. Major League hitters can square up 100 mph heaters if they know it’s coming.
Oct 5, 2014; Detroit, MI, USA; Detroit Tigers manager
Brad Ausmus(7) runs onto the field against the Baltimore Orioles during game three of the 2014 ALDS baseball playoff game at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-USA TODAY Sports
Ultimately a big part of Rondon’s success though may be up to his manager Brad Ausmus. While it’s doubtful Rondon will immediately be thrust into the closer role he should see some time in the back-end of games.
Except if he’s struggling he shouldn’t be seeing any time there. With his control issues (3.5 BB/9 IP in 2013) he can mess up the end of games if he’s not properly taken out when he hits a rough patch.
If Ausmus completely botches his handling of Rondon it’ll also hinder his long-term value. If he’s buried behind guys in the bullpen without pitching for days on end he might as well just spend his time in Triple-AAA Toledo.
With the bullpen’s current situation though it’ll be hard to see Rondon not get innings consistently. Except in the Tigers’ win-now mode they probably won’t hesitate to send him down to the Minors if he struggles for an extended period.
Overall though it’s scary to see the Tigers rely on Rondon too much as the season approaches. Who knows what Spring Training does to this now-fragile flamethrower.
For now though the jury is still out on Rondon. Looking at it from his perspective, this may be a make-or-break season for the youngster. While 25 is still young for a prospect another injury-riddled season won’t inspire confidence in the Tigers faithful.
Now, your thoughts. How do you feel about Bruce Rondon going into the 2015 MLB season? Bad? Good? Hopeful? Whatever the case fans and pundits should hope for Rondon to be that missing piece to this Tigers bullpen.