Detroit Tigers: Bobby Parnell and Bruce Rondon Could Play Big Roles in 2016 Bullpen
By Matt Snyder
Detroit Tigers relief pitchiers BobbyParnell and BruceRondon will begin the season in AAA, but both could play big roles in the major league club’s bullpen this season.
One of Al Avila’s offseason goals became quickly apparent: upgrade a Detroit Tigers relief corps that finished second to last in the American League in ERA (and fielding independent pitching) and ended the season without much in the way of late-inning options.
The three big bullpen moves were quick in coming. Veteran closer Francisco Rodriguez was brought in via a trade with the Milwaukee Brewers, setup man Mark Lowe was signed to a two year, $11 million free agent contract, and lefty setup man Justin Wilson was acquired in a trade with the New York Yankees.
But, while these ostensibly solid options should shore up the late innings, the bullpen as a whole does not appear to be particularly good. The group ranks 25th in the majors in FanGraph’s recent positional power rankings. Rodriguez, Lowe, and J. Wilson grade out well enough, but the Tigers don’t appear to have a single solidly above-replacement-level option behind them.
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That hopefully bodes well for games in which the starting pitcher turns in 6+ innings of work and hands over a lead — even these games were a struggle to win last year — but it doesn’t bode well for games in which the starter exits early or the three big names are taxed due to workload. It also doesn’t leave much margin for error in the case of injury or ineffectiveness.
Filling out the bullpen appears to be Kyle Ryan, Drew VerHagen, and two of Buck Farmer, Logan Kensing, and Lendy Castillo. This current bullpen arrangement would earn a maximum grade of “fine, but certainly not great”. Kensing, VerHagen, and Ryan all appear to be more of the “get you through innings” variety of reliever rather than the “shut down the opponent” relievers we all hope for. Farmer has some potential as a strikeout artist, but he’s yet to put that together at the major league level.
Alex Wilson (and to a degree Blaine Hardy) returning from injury will help the situation out to a degree, but they’re still not the sort of strike-em-out, get-you-out-of-a-jam relievers that a team like, say, the Royals employed during their postseason run last year.
This is where Bobby Parnell and Bruce Rondon come in. Both relievers seem to hold the sort of high upside potential that is not present in much of the relief staff. Rondon’s velocity and high-strikeout arsenal could make him a dominant late-inning arm if he keeps his head on straight.
Parnell is a former ace reliever who is only now regaining his velocity after elbow ligament surgery in 2014. Bother players will start the season in AAA, but could easily earn a call up if they perform.
A renewed Parnell and a mentally stable Rondon could inject a level of stability — even near dominance — into the middle innings that doesn’t presently exist.
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As it stands, the bullpen will probably be better than the miserable version we witnessed last year, but if fans want to see it into something better — even good, perhaps — we’re going to have to hope for guys like Parnell and Rondon to play a part.