Bullpen By Committee

The brass for the Los Angeles Dodgers would prefer to use a bullpen by committee than to trade for another closer in the absence of Closer Kenley Jansen. The options are a mixture of those with little experience and those with a lot of experience although not much of it as a closer. The candidates are Brandon League, J.P. Howell, Rookie Pedro Baez, and newcomers Joel Peralta, Chris Hatcher, and Juan Nicasio.

Brandon League has the most experience as a closer. He had 42 Saves with the Seattle Mariners in 2011 and in a brief stint as the Dodgers closer in 2013, he went 14 of 19 in save opportunities. In his career he is 74 for 104 in save opportunities. He has been inconsistent throughout his career but he had a strong season last year as a setup man for Jansen, appearing in 63 games with a 2.57 ERA.

J.P.Howell has been a left-handed specialist in his two year stint with the Dodgers and I do not see that role changing. He just may close more games out against left-handed batters in the 9th inning than he has in the past. He has 21 Saves in 32 career opportunities, 17 of those in 2009 with the Tamp Bay Rays.

Pedro Baez might be the most intriguing of the bullpen options. His career path has followed that of Kenley Jansen. He was a former minor league infielder in the Dodgers organization and even made the Futures Game in 2009 and 2010. He only has 88 games of minor league pitching experience under his belt. He impressed the Dodgers enough to get into 20 games last season with a 2.63 ERA.

Joel Peralta was acquired from the Miami Marlins in a trade this winter. He is 38 years old and has pitched in 556 games in the Majors but is only 12 for 36 in Save opportunities in his career.

Chris Hatcher was also acquired from the Miami Marlins via trade. He is 30 years old and only has 81 games of Major League experience. He did go 33 for 36 in Save opportunities in AAA in 2013.

Juan Nicasio was picked up from the Colorado Rockies and had been a starter for the first three seasons of his Major League career and throughout his minor league career. He pitched one season with the Asheville Tourists in 2009 going 9-3, with a 2.41 ERA. 69 of his 88 games in the the majors have been starts.