By INTERN DEVIN (I.D.)
The first thing that comes to mind when you think of the Milwaukee Brewers is probably Bernie going down the slide after a homerun, Robin Yount and his amazing hair, Ryan Braun and Prince Fielder mashing homeruns, or maybe Harvey’s Wallbangers. The Brewer bullpen being dominant, however is not something that comes to mind instantly. Except 2018 is changing that narrative.
The Brewers bullpen ranks first in ERA, second in strikeouts, third in batting average against, tied for fifth in saves, and fifth in total innings pitched. You could say that this dominant bullpen is the main reason they are currently sitting 11 games over .500 at the moment at 30-19.
If you compare this year’s bullpen to the one in 2011 (the last year they made playoffs) there are some extreme differences. In 2011, the bullpen ranked No. 21 in strikeouts, 12 in batting average against, and sixth in ERA. Now even though they ranked sixth in ERA they still had a 3.32 ERA, compared to the 2.58 ERA they have in 2018.
At the forefront of this dominant bullpen is Josh Hader. Hader is absurdly averaging 18.44 strikeouts over nine innings! If he keeps up this pace he will end the year with about 168 strikeouts! That would be something that John Axford, Francisco Cordero, Francisco Rodriguez, Rollie Fingers, or plenty of other pitchers who wore the Brewer uniform have never done.
Looking back at it now, trading Carlos Gomez and Mike Fiers could be one of the best trades in Brewers history. In return for Gomez and Fiers the Brewers received: Hader, 30-home-run hitter Domingo Santana, top outfield prospect Brett Phillips, and pitching prospect Adrian Houser.
Not to be outdone, Jeremy Jeffress is putting great numbers out of the bullpen as well. Jeffress has only given up one earned run in 25.2 innings pitched. He is not posting the eye-popping numbers that Hader is putting up, but is still having a fantastic season so far.
Corey Knebel, an all-star last year, is working his way back from an early season hamstring injury. Knebel only has pitched in 8.2 innings so far this year. However in his last four appearances he has only surrendered one walk and zero hits.
These three relievers make it easy for the starting pitcher, because he knows they only need to get through six innings and the bullpen can take over. Plus with Hader pitching more than one inning at times, maybe they only need to get through five innings.
If there is on concern about the Brewers’ bullpen so far is the amount of innings they have had to work so far this year. They currently rank 5th in innings pitched and of the four teams ahead of them, three of them are in last place in their division (Cincinnati, San Diego, & Miami) and the other are the Los Angeles Angels. An overworked bullpen could lead to a decrease in stats as fatigue can become an issue.
At the same time though the Brewers are in first place, and have one of the best, if not THE best bullpen in the major leagues. Now we just need a nickname like Harvey’s Wallbangers for the bullpen! Counsell’s Flamethrowers, Counsell’s Can be Counted on Bullpen, or maybe Counsell’s Ks?
Devin Willems attends UW-Green Bay, and is an intern at Sports Radio 107.5 & 1400 The Fan. Follow him on Twitter @Devin_TheIntern
