Truncated season could squander Braves bullpen depth

So, they brought in Will Smith. They brought back Chris Martin and Darren O’Day. And the Braves were all ready to have the best bullpen they have ever had in their history.

And then the world stopped.

There are so many things that are unfortunate about having to pause the season, but one is that the Braves were all ready to have the best bullpen in the game. General manager Alex Anthopoulos had made the moves before last July’s trade deadline, and then he did it again with the moves this past winter.

Anthopoulos acquired Martin on July 30 and then Shane Greene and Mark Melancon the next day before the deadline. Then, when O’Day returned from his strained forearm in September, the bullpen was much improved.

Smith’s addition was a surprise, as many believed the bullpen was already improved enough. But to then bring O’Day and Martin, both free agents, back showed how much Anthopoulos wanted to keep the bullpen a strength.

The bullpen was effective in spring training. Luke Jackson, last year’s early-season closer, did not allow an earned run. Neither did Martin, Melancon or O’Day. Smith’s ERA was 1.69, while after struggling early on, Greene settled down and looked good before they stopped the spring.

When the season starts, the Braves must hope their pen can still be a strength. It’s a shame this bullpen won’t have a full, 162-game season to show how good it can be, but the bullpen can still be one of the best in the sport once the season starts.

Listen to The Bill Shanks Show weekdays at 3:00 p.m. ET on Middle Georgia’s ESPN. You can listen online at TheSuperStations.com. Follow Bill on Twitter at @billshanks and you can email him at thebillshanksshow@yahoo.com.