In the Red Sox recent turnaround, in which they've won six of their last eight games to pull themselves out of the ditch in the early season, the work of their bullpen has gone somewhat unnoticed.
With much of the focus set on the starting rotation and speculation about which pitchers will ultimately remain and which ones might be repurposed into relief roles, and attention paid to some of the underperforming hitters struggling to get their averages to the .200 mark, the bullpen has quietly but assuredly become a team strength.
That was evident once again in Friday's 5-3 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers.
After Nick Pivetta had run out of steam at exactly 100 pitches and 5.2 innings, Alex Cora turned things over to Josh Winckowski, who may be the team's most unheralded performer in the first three weeks.
A failed starter a year ago, Winckowski has resurfaced as a multi-inning relief weapon in 2023. After standing an inherited runner in the sixth, Winckowski came back for the seventh and immediately retired all three hitters he faced in succession.
Those four outs were big enough as the Sox' lead went from one run to two, and the inning and a third might have been deemed a sufficient night's work. But with Chris Martin sidelined with a shoulder injury for the time being, Cora's high-leverage options are somewhat limited. Essentially, he currently has John Schreiber as his lone trustworthy option for the eighth.
Given that Winckowski hadn't thrown a lot of pitches in recording the first four outs, Cora decided to send him out for three more. The manager was rewarded with two quick strikeouts before Winckowski encountered a spot of trouble. A two-out walk and a single put runners at the corners, but Cora's faith remained steadfast. No one stirred in the bullpen.
Winckowski then challenged Brian Anderson with a 95 mph heater in the middle of the zone and Anderson swung through it. A jubilant Winckowski pumped his arm in celebration as he strode off the mound.
During the winter, Winckowski made some slight adjustments to his delivery that has him releasing the ball with more extension. That, and the shorter outings in relief, have his fastball gaining life and explosiveness. Watching him post four strikeouts – three of them swinging – in the span of six at-bats Friday night, it's hard to believe that he had some of the worst swing-and-miss rates of any major league pitcher a season ago.
It's obvious that Cora is operating his bullpen differently in the first month. He's content to let Winckowski and Kutter Crawford serve as one-man bridges between the starter and closer Kenley Jansen. There's some risk to the plan, as the multiple-inning outings render either unavailable for several days following each outing.
But at the same time, there's a payoff to the strategy, too. When Winckowski and Crawford provide length, the rest of the bullpen gets a night off.
Everyone, that is, except Jansen, who has been remarkable through the first month of his Red Sox career. Jansen has appeared in seven games, has not allowed a run to date, and has earned five saves and a win. In seven innings, he's struck out 11 and walked just two. And more often than not, he's turned in clean innings.
Jansen is that rarity: a no-drama closer. He attacks the strike zone aggressively, and at age 35, he's improbably beefed up his fastball velocity, which only makes his trademark cutter all the more difficult to hit.
And remember all that talk that the introduction of the pitch clock would be ruinous for Jansen? Think again. He's gone from one of the game's most deliberate pitchers to among the fastest-working relievers in the game.
The notion of the traditional closer – the guy who automatically gets the ball with a ninth-inning lead of one, two or three runs – seems almost quaint in modern baseball. Some managers prefer to lean on matchups for the final inning, spreading the closing duties around.
The imposing Jansen may be a throwback, but it's hard to argue with the results. In fact, team-wide, the Red Sox are getting shutdown innings late in games, regardless of who's on the mound. They've allowed just seven runs in the eighth and ninth innings this season, which translates to a 1.43 ERA. Heading into Friday night, only two teams – the Los Angeles Dodgers and Texas Rangers – had lower ERAs.
Meanwhile, a season ago, the Red Sox were 25th in bullpen ERA at 4.59. Only four other teams were worse,
So far, this season's relief corps – in performance and personnel – barely resembles last year's. That's by design, and very much a good thing for the 2023 Red Sox.