Bullpen Woes

It's always right about this time of the season when a baseball team finds out which players are most important to their success. One area of a team is shown to be the weakest link, and injuries come up to really handcuff teams. The Yankees have struggled without strong starting pitching, and the addition of Roger Clemens isn't likely to help much. The loss of John Smoltz as of last night is likely to leave its mark on the Braves. The absence of impact pitchers like Jason Schmidt and Pedro Martinez have really hindered their team.

And then there's the Tiger's bullpen.

No Joel Zumaya, no Fernando Rodney, and it really showed in the past weekend's series with the Indians. The Tigers have great starting pitching, but that doesn't mean they will hold up and pitch seven innings every game. And when they couldn't this weekend, the bullpen couldn't hold up. In almost every game of the series the Tigers were either up or tied late and blew it in the 7th or 8th inning. Teams like the Braves and Red Sox built up their bullpen in the offseason and we're seeing the results. Jose Mesa isn't the answer, and we're starting to see just how important a guy like Jamie Walker was.

Once Rodney, Zumaya, and Rogers come back the Tigers will be a different team. Until then the bullpen is overworked and understaffed. The team needs to find a way to grind out the close games, unlike they have Friday through Monday. The offense needs to pick up the staff, and it is the perfect chance for a pitcher in the pen (Tim Brydack) to step up.