Cavalry To The [Bullpen's] Rescue.

We all watched with dismay as the once seemingly unbeatable 2007 edition of the Braves bullpen started to give up hits, then runs and finally leads as the calendar pages turned, but before the Trade Deadline's expired, Atlanta's legendary General Manager had reinforced that unit yet again and beyond what anyone had expected. Not only did he trade for one of the most coveted arms available, but he addressed the bullpen's greatest area of concern by acquiring not one, but two left-handed relievers. While these moves undoubtedly make the Braves a better team this season and were not as costly as their headlining deal, it's best to curb our enthusiasm a bit when discussing these three pitchers.

The Kansas City Royals, a team that was not expected to (and has in fact failed to) contend this year, took a chance by signing struggling 33-year-old relief pitcher Octavio Dotel to a one-year, $5M-$7.5M contract with a player option for 2008 worth $5.5M-$8M, thinking that they could in fact deal him before the deadline in exchange for a much needed prospect or two and that is exactly what happened. Octavio re-established his value by proving his relative health and worth, becoming one of the most attractive names on the market and, while he's sure to help Atlanta by providing some much needed depth and power to their relief corps, he's not the difference- maker that some have made him out to believe. That said, he's certainly not the lemon that others have made him out to be.

Dotel has had many phases in his career, some good/great, others bad/ugly. He was originally miscast as a starter and struggled through his rookie season in 1999 with the Mets and a good chuck of his second season, then with the Astros. He then became a dominant reliever in Houston (2001-2003) before his performance began to dip and he was eventually traded to Oakland in 2004. His 2005 was adequate as far as performance goes, but shortened by injury and 2006 (then with the Yankees) was an unmitigated disaster. This season with the Royals has seen him return to the results he displayed with the A's, but his peripherals are considerably worse. He was the closer in Kansas City, but he will be used as a set-up man in Atlanta and, if everyone else straigthens out, he should be relegated to middle relief.

Though their names are not as recognizable, the other two additions to the Braves bullpen are certainly the most significant. Ron Mahay was billed as the "side of fries" in the Mark Teixeira deal, but he's more than just a throw-in. The 36-year-old RP is currently working his tenth season in the major leagues, but he hasn't been consistently good in his career. He's not to be confused with a LOOGY (Lefty One Out Guy i.e. lefty specialist) as he's been used for over an inning per appearance and about equally against lefties and righties with similar success coming against both those groups. He's not a power/strikeout pitcher and his control isn't exceptional, but he gets results. It's easy to see how he gets himself into trouble, but he's a useful guy to have around that's had a good year thus far. Ron is on the last year of his current deal and I honestly wouldn't expect to see him back in Atlanta next season.

Finally, Royce Ring is a guy that most Braves fans may have forgotten even though he used to play for the rival Mets. Here's a guy that once was highly regarded, but was apparently never given a fair shake at the major league level. It's true that he's struggled with his control at times, but he gets plenty of strikeouts and is brutal on lefties. He's been incredibly effective in the minor leagues, including considerable time there this year, so he should get a chance to prove his worth in Atlanta. He's 26 and far from free agency, so I see this potential LOOGY or set-up man sticking with the Braves for a long time to come. In fact, I'll venture to guess that he should be a mainstay in Atlanta, if he's given the chance.

Well, there you have it: an extended, in depth look at the acquisitions by the Braves this Trade Deadline. Personally, I think that they got the best that they could have gotten and that it will be enough to catapult them into legitimate World Series contention, though I will discuss the remaining rumors that did not pan out in another post soon. By the way, the newcomers had practically perfect debuts; Teixeira had a big first night at the plate as the Braves blew out yet another opponent, while Dotel and Mahay saw their first action in Atlanta this evening and pitched a pair of scoreless innings. Perhaps only Braves fans can understand just how comforting/exciting all that is, but I'm sure that others can sympathize.