Relievers ready for late-year audition

[missionhockey21]

Relievers ready for late-year audition
By Marc Lancaster
Post staff reporter

The question was posed to Dan O'Brien sometime Tuesday, a day after the Reds had added three more bodies to an already crowded bullpen.

How can the Reds possibly get all of them regular work?

"You mean our special teams unit?" the general manager cracked.

Yes, there are 11 of them out there now, with the addition of Josh Hancock, Chris Booker, Allan Simpson and Joe Valentine over the last week. It's basically an unmanageable number of relievers, but Jerry Narron will do just that over the last few weeks of the season.

"You get that many guys, it's impossible to get guys out there on a regular basis," said Narron. "They're just going to have to perform well when they get that opportunity. It's not ideal circumstances for them, but that's all about being a major league player, is being able to do it when things aren't ideal."

Those circumstances come in handy when teams are trying to evaluate players for the future, which is one of the primary reasons for the Reds' newfound glut of relievers.

It's not as if they need extra help for a stretch drive or the existing bullpen was worn down - the pitching staff has turned in 21 quality starts in its last 30 games.

This is about seeing what the Reds have as they look ahead to 2006, with five slots in a likely seven-man bullpen up for grabs.

The only locks to open next season in the bullpen are veterans Kent Mercker and David Weathers, who will be expected to carry on what they started this season in mentoring the young pitchers around them and working the important innings late in games.

Beyond them, it's wide open with a number of young and/or inexperienced contenders in the mix, most of whom are now wearing Reds uniforms.

"We've got some guys with some ability out there," O'Brien said.

It's just a matter of determining how effective they will be with sustained exposure to major league hitters. Several have had the opportunity at least to begin answering that question this year.

Matt Belisle, the last man to make the staff out of spring training, is third on the club behind Mercker and Weathers with 51 appearances, all but five of them coming out of the bullpen. Todd Coffey has been in the majors for good since early May and has appeared in 46 games. Brian Shackelford (27 appearances) joined the team in late June and Jason Standridge (28 appearances) in early July, which will give each about three months of big-league work by the end of the season.

Generally speaking, the Reds have liked what they've seen from those pitchers so far.

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[Geki Ace]

The Reds have some definite talent in the bullpen. When Wags is healthy, he's awesome. Shackelford's been pretty good, and he's a lefty. I've really liked what Coffey has done, even with his somewhat high ERA. Belisle's inconsistent, but he's got some good stuff. Hudson will inevitably thrown in the mix, and he's got great stuff as well. Standridge is a bum, as is Valentine, but there are other guys who could be good.