Taking another look at Baker's blistering start in bullpen and other relief notes (updated)

Bryan Baker had gotten used to the shuffling between the majors and Triple-A, just in time to run out of minor league options. He can’t bounce back and forth without clearing waivers.

It seems like a moot point now.

Baker has stood as one of the positive developments in a season that’s already stressing out much of the fan base. Injuries struck the team again. The rotation had a 5.62 ERA in the first 10 games. The defense had too many costly lapses. Every lineup is different but still attracts the detractors.

The bullpen posted a 3.55 ERA in 2023 that ranked fifth in the majors and a 4.22 ERA last summer that ranked 23^rd. Félix Bautista missed the entire 2024 season while recovering from elbow reconstructive surgery and his return figured to bring improvement, but he made only two appearances before last night because of early restrictions placed on him and the lack of a single save opportunity.

To give Bautista mop-up duty is to risk making him unavailable the next night with the game on the line.

Baker also didn’t break camp with the team last season, didn’t make an appearance until June 13 and registered a 5.01 ERA in 19 games. He seemed in danger of disappearing from the 40-man roster and he had to earn a job in spring training, with the final spot coming down to Baker and Matt Bowman. Baker was introduced on Opening Day in Toronto.

Bowman was outrighted and had his contract selected when Albert Suárez went on the 15-day injured list with right shoulder inflammation. Suárez was transferred yesterday to the 60-day IL with a subscapularis strain.

The Orioles called upon Baker five times before arriving in Phoenix and he tossed 5 1/3 scoreless innings with three hits, no walks and seven strikeouts. The uptick in velocity and slight adjustment in changeup grip are only part of the story.

Just being healthy is newsworthy around here.

“I think it speaks to a guy who’s not here to mess around,” pitching coach Drew French said before Sunday’s game in Kansas City. “A guy that’s really, really been focused since he walked out of the door after the ’24 season. Worked and got himself to this place, and he’s ultimately very confident in who he is.

“He can be a horsepower guy, but as you saw (Saturday), the guy comes in and throws three breaking balls right away to (Hunter) Renfroe, and two outs on three pitches. We don’t know where everybody fits right now, but that type of guy can fit anywhere in our bullpen for us.”

Also important is how Baker brings some balance.

Baker entered the Diamondbacks series with left-handed batters posting a .197 average and .586 OPS in his career and right-handers posting a .237 average and .664 OPS. Both sides had identical .235 averages last season in 19 games. Left-handers were 0-for-6 with four strikeouts this year.

Right-handers were hitting .222 with a .614 OPS lifetime against Yennier Cano and left-handers were hitting .283 with a .796 OPS. Right-handers were hitting .186 with a .570 OPS against Seranthony Domínguez and left-handers were hitting .241 with a .736 OPS. Left-handers were hitting .217 with a .615 OPS against Gregory Soto and right-handers were hitting .248 with a .746 OPS. Left-handers were hitting .208 with a .611 OPS against Cionel Pérez and right-handers were hitting .264 with a .741 OPS.

The more neutral splits for Baker feel like a perk.

“I think that’s ultimately what you want every bullpen to be in some form or fashion, which is at least close,” French said. “We know that there’s gonna be a little bit platoon sidedness that’s gonna skew things a touch, but we want guys to have confidence against both bat sides, and we know that they just need two pitch types per bat side that they can control counts with and then one pitch per bat side that they can end at-bats with.

“I think ultimately, whether it’s starters or relievers right now, that’s what we’re talking about is, how are we gonna end at-bats a little bit more efficiently, and that comes back to learning these guys and what their arsenals are actually going to be.”

Pérez threw 37 pitches Friday but didn’t think he’d need much time for his arm to bounce back.

“I couldn’t put max effort just with the conditions and everything, so a lot of pitches were going in the dirt, couldn’t really put too much force behind the baseball like I normally would,” he said. “Normally I’m 96-97, (Friday) night I was at 92. Honestly, I’m not as tired as I would be after any other outing.”

That’s one way to put a positive spin on a bad situation. Pérez’s ERA climbed from 1.40 in 66 appearances in 2022 to 3.54 in 65 in 2023 to 4.53 in 62 last season, and he allowed eight runs and seven hits with six walks in 3 2/3 innings in his first four outings this year.

“I thought he had a really, really good camp,” French said. “I thought he was very, very relaxed and very, very focused in camp. And since we’ve gotten to Opening Day, it seems like there’s a little bit more added internal pressure on himself. Just trying to get him to understand that he has the things that he needs in his toolbelt right now and it doesn’t have to be a more is more type of thing.

“We’re just talking about, honestly, internal mental efficiency, which for him is, less is more.”

Bautista, Cano and Keegan Akin are the only relievers with options, and the first two would require extraordinary circumstances to get sent down. Akin is on much more solid footing than in the past.

Suárez is the only Opening Day reliever who's no longer in the bullpen. Five of the eight who broke camp in 2024 aren't in the organization - Craig Kimbrel, Mike Baumann, Danny Coulombe, Dillon Tate and Nick Vespi - the latter a brief fill-in while Jacob Webb, also gone, went on paternity leave.

Update: Cano, Soto and Bautista combined for three scoreless innings last night with one hit and no walks in a 5-1 win over Arizona. Bautista retired the side in order in the ninth in a non-save situation.

Zach Eflin turned in his third consecutive six-inning quality start but left after only 73 pitches due to right shoulder fatigue.