These being the two current relievers I have any interest in, other than Morrow.

Qualifier:  I think Batista could close games okay, because he throws strikes in relief, and it's hard to give up 2 runs in only 3 outs if you don't get nervous, and don't walk anybody.  Just let them hit the ball into outs.   He would be fine spelling Morrow, prob'ly.   Odd to say, I wouldn't want him doing anything other than pitching easy, single, ninth innings with nobody on.

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Checked out 'Deck Me's daily news roundup?  Great first read of the day.  Sort of a local version of what the big moneymaking national baseball rumor blogs do:  they surf the net, summarize what they find, maybe throw in an opinion.

Point is, deckme's column is substantial ...

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deckme sez:

This bullpen is all right. The Times decides to take a close look at how the bullpen could be constructed - without any lefties.

... [Times] The unavailability of lefties Tyler Johnson and Cesar Jimenez means the Mariners will need a right-handed reliever who can get hitters from the opposite side out.

Boy, wonder who that would be.   Check out Chris Jakabauskas' splits vs LH last year:

vs LH:  45 k to 9 bb (!!) and 1 hr (!) in 46 ip ... 0.88 WHIP

vs RH:  31 k to 15 bb and 2 hr in 47 ip ... 1.21 WHIP

That 45:9 control ratio, RHP vs LH, is not a "sample size" fluke.  It bears out Marc W's observation that Jaka is simply real good against lefty hitters -- according to him, because of a changeup.  If that's true, Jaka's changeup is plus-plus BY DEFINITION.  Other righties don't accomplish that with plus changeups.

For the record, an "80" changeup is defined as a "game-changing weapon".  Does it look to you like Jaka's changeup changed the games he was in?  In the minors it did, anyway.

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Also for the record, in 2007, Jaka ran equal lines vs LH and RH ... 1.42 vs 1.43 WHIPs ... but back then, he was even earlier in a fledgling pitching career.

If Chris Jakabauskas really has this plus-plus changeup, and his reverse split is for real, then he has a GOOLLLLLLLLLDEN opportunity with this ballclub right now.   We will assume that Wakamatsu, Mr. Oakland A's Saberdude, is very alert to everything that Marc W has alerted us to.

.

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Wasn't it Matty who called Shawn Kelley first?  Or check me if I'm wrong -- who did?  Nicely done, amigo...

Watching Kelley throw tonight, he kind of reminded me of a Mariner reliever from the mid-90's, Bill Risley.  Rizz put up a couple of real nice years for the M's before getting hurt -- he was one of those "secret weapons" that nobody really respected the way they should have.  I love that kind of reliever, a guy who's thought of as a fringe ML pitcher, but who is actually as good as the top guys in the league.

Anyway, a couple thoughts on Kelley:

1.  Surprising command of a very live fastball. This is what reminds of Risley.  Many times the catcher doesn't move his glove on Kelley's heater.  The best pitch in baseball is a plus fastball on the black.  End of story.

(The TV readings were way off, more so than I've ever seen.)

It was one game, but Kelley LOOKED like he was used to targeting the ball that well.  Outstanding nose-to-leather finish, too.

2.  Good shape to, good location with, dubious arm action on the breaking pitch.  Kelley gets a real nice horizontal drop on his breaking pitch, and he keeps it down.  But to me, it looked like he was telegraphing it.   The result was a bunch of Rockies doing leisurely squat thrusts down to the ball and lining it hard into their power alleys.

Gotta work on that arm action, babe.  Until you do, gotta throw the pitch to drop down OUT of the zone.

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But the breaking pitch is almost moot for the lad.  If you don't believe anything else we ever write ;- ) believe this one:  if you could throw every pitch 93 on the black, you wouldn't EVER need to change speed.  Seriously, you could throw 13 pitches in a row, at exactly 93 mph, if you could put every single one of them on the black.  Maybe once in a while somebody would reach out and line the ball through the IF for a single, but that would be it.

Kelly may have that rare ability to throw a pitch very fast and very located.

Kelley's a work in progress, and probably the M's 2nd- or 3rd-best reliever right now.

Cheers,

Dr D