SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — The Giants’ closer carousel last season started with Jake McGee and ended with Camilo Doval recording the final outs of their last victory, in Game 3 of the NLDS. Both players, as well 13-game-saver Tyler Rogers and the rest of San Francisco’s playoff bullpen, are back for 2022, so who can you expect to see most often in the ninth inning this season?
Whether it’s the young flamethrower, the veteran southpaw or the submariner — or somebody else entirely — will likely depend on the night and the opponent. In his two seasons in San Francisco, manager Gabe Kapler has never officially named a closer, and that is likely to continue this year.
“I think there’s some advantage to some level of consistency, but I think that pales in comparison to the advantage of having several that can do it,” Kapler said, while also listing off Dominic Leone and Zack Littell as candidates to close games. “Camilo is much different from Jake, who’s much different from Roj, but that’s not it. … Where we sit on March 16, we’re not going to sit on April 16. That’s just going to be true throughout the season. Other people are going to emerge as quality candidates as well.”
Eight different Giants recorded saves in 2021; five guys accounted for all 13 saves in the previous pandemic-shorted season.
In both years, that could have a product of preference or circumstance. Neither opening day roster featured more a player with more than 45 career saves, and neither bullpen had more than 54 total saves between them. This year, though, San Francisco should enter the season with nearly that many just from last season between McGee’s 31, Rogers’ 13 and eight more between Doval, Littell, Leone and Jarlin Garcia.
Whether it be with his position players or his bullpen decisions, Kapler has already shown a penchant for playing the matchups. The Giants used 32 pitchers last season and pinch-hit more than any other team in the league. Now Kapler has the ultimate level of flexibility with how to manage his back of his bullpen (though the new limit on options will force the Giants to employ relievers less aggressively).
“Once we establish that three or four pitchers are capable,” Kapler said, “then we can say OK, what’s upcoming in the next couple of innings? Here’s this really tough stretch of the lineup for an opposing team and we have this weapon that’s been really good against those guys, but he’s been pitching in the ninth inning. … We might say this is the right time to give a reliever that’s been pitching the ninth a different part of the game, and vice versa.”
It’s not as simple as handing a guy the ball and telling him to go pitch.
Baseball players are creatures of habit and generally perform better when they have a set role, something Kapler has had to contend with as he has tried to implement more platoons. In the world we live in, where players are paid millions of dollars and the amount of millions often depends on a stat such as saves in the free agency or arbitration process, it also requires an act of selflessness for a reliever who’s earned it not to demand the ball in the ninth inning.
It helps, according to Kapler, when the three primary candidates vying for the ball are McGee, Doval and Rogers.
Rogers was a frequent eater of high-leverage innings in 2021 after first flashing his submarine motion for three saves in 2020. Doval, who hadn’t pitched above High-A ball before last season, didn’t emerge as a real option until the pennant race, after McGee landed on the injured list.
“Jake was the guy who closed the most games for us, was the most consistent closer for us, but I don’t think Jake is motivated by money and saves,” Kapler said. “Roj (and) Camilo, these are guys that are just establishing themselves as major league relievers. … While we have our pitchers in this open-minded, unselfish, team-first space, we can help them see how that makes them better at their jobs and help them see how that makes our team better at winning games, which ultimately creates more jobs. I don’t think the two things are mutually exclusive. …
“This is the mindset that we would like our players and pitchers to have: I know that if I’m a successful major leaguer and I know that if I contribute to wins, multiple teams are going to want to have me around; I’m going to acquire more service time; I’m going to make a lot of money in my baseball career.”
- Doval was among the pitchers throwing bullpen sessions Wednesday on the backfields of Scottsdale Stadium, while two presumed rotation members — Alex Wood and newcomer Alex Cobb — pitched a simulated game against a lineup of live hitters that included most of the Giants starting lineup. Newly added catcher Jose Godoy took Wood deep to right-center field.
- President of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi was observing from behind home plate, getting one of his first live looks at Cobb, whose fastball was sitting around 93-94 mph.
Source: www.mercurynews.com