ALready been over this - I don't get influenced by mid season 12 inning sample sizes. Why on earth would you expect seamless transitions? What are Herrera's numbers and peripherals over the course of the season - how do they stack up with the rest of the bullpen? Have you seen his actual stuff, have you seen him perform in high pressure situations? I have. Need to tip your hat and accept you were wrong about the bullpen being good enough because "Giles has not blown a save" and they've got the "best era against crappy teams". I don't want change for the sake of change, but this is a clear issue for over a season and since the team has the resources to bring in help, they should do so. Hinch finally agrees with the Pressly trade, and suggesting more BP help may be on the way.
You regularly b**** about pitchers based on much smaller than 12 inning sample sizes. Nice try, though.
How about Joe Smith, as an example? He was better than Herrera last year and has been excellent since May 1, yet he remains your whipping boy due to a bad 8 innings in April. On this team, we have the following relievers that have been between good and excellent: McHugh Rondon Peacock Sipp Smith (post-April) I'm worried about Devo, but 5 innings ago, he had an ERA in the mid 1's, so he will hopefully get back on track. In the playoffs, you likely add McCullers or Morton to the mix unless Keuchel craters. That is more than enough high-level bullpen talent to get through the playoffs, and deeper than most teams. Is it as good as NY? Of course not - our advantage there is starting pitching. Way better than Cleveland and at least on par with or better than Boston.
Poking around on Brooks' site and I noticed that while his slider is obviously the star of the show, Pressly's fastball has some really interesting cutting action with horizontal movement closer to a meh cutter than a normal four seam fastball. Like a "power" cutter if there was such a thing.
Well, Mariano's had a lot more cut than Pressly's fastball. Pressly's fastball reminds a lot of Harris' cutter from earlier in his career but thrown 3-5 mph harder.
For reference, 2018 Pressly on top and 2014 Harris on bottom: I don't know how anyone makes contact on Pressly's curveball. That is some real Bugs Bunny ****.
