MadduxFanII
Swallowed by Mark Bowman
I am all about us signing O'Day. Pair him with Paco, go find the insurance company my old friend Conner Falkenbach is working at and you'll have a shutdown Gator bullpen.
Bowman had some things to say about the pen in a Q&A session:
How big of a concern is the bullpen moving forward? Will Foltynewicz get reps at closer in the future?
-- Michael C., Smiths Station, Ala.
The Braves have approximately $25 million to $30 million to spend this offseason, and a significant chunk of this money will be aimed toward rebuilding the bullpen. Arodys Vizcaino has shown he is capable of filling a late-inning role, and Daniel Winkler will likely be part of next season's relief corps, because he was a Rule 5 Draft selection. Though he is the experienced version of Winkler, Peter Moylan also has to be considered a candidate to return.
With Jason Grilli, Paco Rodriguez, Shae Simmons and Chris Withrow, Atlanta has a few more candidates to choose from based on how each of these pitchers returns from injury.
As for Foltynewicz, the easy solution is to simply put him in a late-inning role and watch him flourish. But the Braves have not yet given up on the possibility that his power repertoire could work as a starter.
Given the uncertainty surrounding some of these 'pen candidates, Atlanta has made it clear that acquiring proven relievers will be a priority this winter.
Bowman loves Folty but I totally disagree that this so called easy solution would work out as he assumes. Folty needs to be in the minors next year learning to pitch, then maybe he can be something down the road.
That said, I hope they don't spend much on the pen because that can be fixed on the cheap and we have bigger issues with the rotation and offense going forward.
I'm thinking we spend about 15M on a starting pitcher, 5M on a couple relievers, 5M on a catcher, and whats left on a bench bat with some pop (maybe Kelly Johnson). I also found Bowman's speculation about our next catcher interesting. He threw out Iannetta's name. Someone I've been wondering about. He is having a poor season, but has been decent in the past.
I'd sign Moylan to a minor league deal. I don't think we should count on him much given his age and injury history. If he gives us anything its gravy.Moylan has handled righties very well in a small sample, if he has a strong enough ST I'd give him a spot in the pen again. He is still an effective righty specialist and apparently working on improving his chances vs lefties.
Moylan wasn’t about to pass up the unusual offer they made: a two-year minor league contract that includes a spring training invitation in 2016, and a position as player/coach this season with rookie-league Danville when it starts its season in June.
Moylan signed a 2-year minor league contract this Spring, so he'll be back for ST 2016.
http://www.ajc.com/news/sports/baseball/moylan-back-with-braves-on-2-year-minor-league-dea/nkTCj/