Around this time last year, the Cleveland Indians were providing a preview of the American League postseason.
Manager Terry Francona was using newly acquired reliever Andrew Miller in all sorts of situations, and for more than one inning if necessary. It was an approach that eventually helped the Indians win the American League pennant, with Miller the MVP of the AL Championship Series.
The Indians are only the latest team to show how important a good bullpen can be in the playoffs, but not everybody has a tireless star like Miller. Here’s a look at four other teams that are almost certain to be in the postseason this year – and how they might use their relievers.
Dodgers: Kenley Jansen might be the best reliever in all of baseball, and he threw 51 pitches in the Division Series finale last year at Washington, so manager Dave Roberts knows he can handle an extended outing. What’s interesting this year is that Los Angeles appears to have a surplus of starters, so Roberts could convert at least one of them (Rich Hill? Kenta Maeda?) into a multi-inning option out of the bullpen.
Astros: Houston may be the team that most resembles the 2016 Indians. The Astros will lean on ace starter Dallas Keuchel, but there’s a drop-off after him in the rotation, which means the Houston bullpen should be crucial. Ken Giles is the closer, but Chris Devenski is the X-factor. He went four innings in each of his first two appearances back in April, and he’s gone at least two innings in 12 of his 49 relief outings in 2017.