Friday, April 02, 1999Oh, what a relief Reds' pen is
Bullpen strong as season nears
BY CHRIS HAFT
The Cincinnati EnquirerPORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. — The term “relief” should be doubly meaningful for the Reds when the regular season begins Monday.
Injuries have eroded the starting rotation, forcing Denny Neagle (shoulder) to start the season on the disabled list and Pete Harnisch (back) to skip his Opening Day start. There's also no guarantee about the durability of Jason Bere and Steve Avery, neither of whom has worked more than 135 innings in the last three years.
But Cincinnati's bullpen appears ready to bolster the starters.
“It's good that our bullpen is pretty much ready to go,” catcher Eddie Taubensee said. “When (the starters) get healthy, maybe they can turn around and take care of the bullpen.”
So far, the bullpen has taken care of itself.
The trio of Danny Graves, Gabe White and rookie Scott Williamson, who will share the burden of preserving late-inning leads, has combined to post a 1.93 ERA through Thursday's 6-4 exhibition loss to the Texas Rangers.
Graves, who converted all eight of his save opportunities last year, and White, 9-for-13 in those situations, inspired enough confidence in '98 for manager Jack McKeon to let them keep the co-closer's role entering spring training.
Consider: The Reds made changes in the outfield, infield and starting rotation over the winter, but except for Williamson's emergence, the relief corps remained relatively intact.
“We felt confident that they believed in us and knew that we could do the job,” said Graves, who endured a mild setback against the Rangers by allowing two eighth-inning runs and absorbing the defeat.
McKeon said he plans to mix Williamson, the non-roster invitee with a devastating fastball, into late-inning pressure situations. The right-handed Williamson's presence gives McKeon the flexibility to use various combinations of relievers in the set-up/save sequence with the righty Graves and lefty White.
“Basically, we look at it as a three-way deal,” McKeon said.
Pitching coach Don Gullett reminded that intra-team competition, a subtle yet definite element, could enhance the trio's efforts. “One guy's trying to top the other's performance,” Gullett said.
Williamson, who officially became a Red when the team purchased his contract Thursday, has stayed on an even keel all spring.
“I can't get too happy; I can't get on too much of a high. I want to stay at that medium,” he said. “If you get too high you start taking things for granted and get out of your game plan.”
Others also have been successful. Scott Sullivan, who hasn't pitched since March 24 with a strained upper left hamstring muscle, sports an 0.82 ERA in 11 games. John Hudek (3.60 ERA) has not allowed a run in his last five innings, spanning four appearances.
Dennys Reyes' raw statistics (8.31 ERA, .316 opponents' batting average) look ugly, but the 21-year-old usually thrives at his primary task, which is retiring left-handed hitters. Stan Belinda, a Reds bullpen fixture, will begin the season on the disabled list with shoulder soreness.
With starters still trying to build their endurance, the Reds have prepared each reliever, particularly those appearing in mid-game, to work multiple innings. Reyes filled this role against Texas, blanking Texas in the sixth and seventh innings.
“Some of these guys may have to go two, two, two and two,” said McKeon.
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