A key part of two playoff runs, will Orioles bullpen be strong again?

When the Orioles made the playoffs in both 2012 and 2014, the bullpen was very good both years, ranking third in the American League in bullpen ERA each time.

That 'pen performance also helped the Orioles to lead the AL in one-run winning percentage both seasons. It was a big part of those playoff teams.

The O's had a 3.00 bullpen ERA in 2012 and went an amazing 29-9 (.763) in one-run games. Last year, the 'pen ERA was 3.10 and the O's went 32-23 (.582) in one-run contests.

Will the O's 'pen be that good again?

The pieces certainly look to be in place for another solid performance, even with Andrew Miller now pitching for the Yankees.

Zach Britton finished fourth in the league with 37 saves. He was one of three AL closers that recorded 30 or more saves with a save percentage of 90 percent or better. Britton led all relievers in groundball-to-flyball ratio (6.68) and groundball percentage (75.8).

Tommy Hunter went 3-2 with a 2.97 ERA over 60 games. He posted a 1.77 ERA in his final 43 appearances beginning May 17. Hunter walked just 1.8 batters for every nine innings.

Darren O'Day gave up three homers in September, but he also saw his ERA decrease for the third year in a row with the Orioles - from 2.28 in 2012 to 2.18 and then to 1.70 last year. That ranked seventh among AL relievers. With runners in scoring position, he held opponents to an .089/.232/.161 slash line in 69 plate appearances.

Brian Matusz draws fan criticism, but he did pitch to a career-best 3.48 ERA. Matusz held lefty batters to a slash line of .223/.277/.350. Over his last 27 appearances beginning July 3, the left-hander pitched to a 1.23 ERA with four walks and 29 strikeouts.

Brad Brach pitched to a 1.07 ERA over a 25-game stretch from June 23-Sept. 2. He led AL relievers with an .875 winning percentage and held right-handed batters to an average of .192 and OPS of .543. He might be more of a weapon than he gets credit for.

Several others could factor into that bullpen, including T.J. McFarland, who pitched to a 2.76 ERA for the year and 2.01 after the All-Star break. Ryan Webb posted a career-best 3.08 strikeout-to-walk ratio. Newcomer Wesley Wright could find a key role in the 'pen. Last year, he gave up a batting average and slugging percentage of .273 to left-handed batters and didn't allow an extra-base hit in 77 at-bats against lefty hitters.

For bullpen depth, the Orioles added four pitchers from their farm system over the winter to the 40-man roster. Yesterday, I wrote about Tyler Wilson, Eddie Gamboa, Mike Wright and Oliver Drake. They also have the two Rule 5 picks to look at in camp in Jason Garcia and Logan Verrett.

Five of the six non-roster spring invitees could impact the bullpen at some point this year. They include: Dane De La Rosa, Mark Hendrickson, Steve Johnson, Chris Jones and Chaz Roe.

There is always the Dylan Bundy factor to consider. While the talented right-hander still has some work to do in his comeback from Tommy John surgery this year, it is likely that he shows the same quality stuff he showed during his at-times dominant 2012 season. He could be a real bullpen weapon in the second half of the season.

Here is a ranking of 2014 O's relievers with the percentage of inherited runners they allowed to score:

10.0 - Zach Britton (1-10)
15.6 - Tommy Hunter (5-32)
20.0 - Darren O'Day (6-30)
20.4 - Brian Matusz (10-49)
28.0 - Brad Brach (7-25)
31.3 - Andrew Miller (5-16)
55.0 - T.J. McFarland (11-20)

Is the Orioles bullpen poised for another strong year?