Great question. You only exercise one option per season. An option is exercised once they have spent at least 20 days in the minors. However, you can only option a player a maximum of five times within a season.
Good one,Jeff. I am eager to see your input on the match-up issue. A fine initiative.
I would also more depth on the “sneaky fast” phenomenon with pitchers. I know height, stride, spin rate, quirky deliveries, hiding the ball can all make pitches appear faster to the hitter, getting swings and misses when the radar gun says “crush me.” Announcers often mention this and sometimes go in to factors but I want more on that.
Related to this, given all,the talk about how organizations and pitching coaches help pitchers add pitches, change deliveries, and make other adjustments, do they try to coach pitchers to become more “sneaky fast?” If not, why not? Adding the effects of velocity without over stressing the arm would seem a growth area for the pitching performance business, no?
The "option" argument is interesting. I understand it and you've explained it well, especially by showing context with other teams, but if there was a game tonight I'd rather have Andrew Chafin in the bullpen than Jeff Brigham even if Brigham can be optioned after the game.
Yeah, this is a fascinating factor I only noticed last year, wondering why teams don’t rotate more players up and down from minors to fill specific, temporary needs. The number of times a guy has a good start and then goes down surprised me, until I realized team is exchanging an arm that can only rest for some days for one ready to pitch. If it were possible, I would want all of my pitchers to be in the minors on days when they aren’t available; it isn’t, of course, possible and might destroy morale even if it were. Fun stuff.
This could be resolved if MLB had a "taxi squad" so, say, 3 players who would definitely not play in that day's game could be replaced. Of course, that would mean that 3 more players would receive a MLB salary and certain owners would object.
Last year they used 31 pitchers. OK. But the bullpen to start the season was full of guys without options: Diaz, Lugo, May, Ottavino, Joely, Shreve, Williams plus Drew Smith and Sean Reid-Foley. And they still managed to bring in all those other pitchers. Because people get injured, because you are allowed to bring guys up for doubleheaders, and because some guys don’t pan out.
The plan should be to minimize the need for optioning in guys by minimizing the reasons you need to bring them in. And this is done by having more guys with track records of success.
Talk about overthinking a problem. Front office nerds thinking planned obsolescence is the way to managing rosters.
Isn’t there now a limit on the number of times a player can be sent down in one season? New rule starting last year? If so that even further limits flexibility.
My first thought about adding to the bullpen is that if you don’t do so now, you will have to at the trade deadline. Now it costs only money; at the deadline it costs prospects (and salary).
I’m speculating that the Mets really would like to keep Rule 5 draftee Zach Green. They must value him more than other organizations do. If he makes the team he provides zero flexibility, so I can see why they would really need to have other optionable pitchers on the roster.
Obviously Spring Training hasn't even started yet, but he's my Holderman (who I was immediately impressed by in March) for 2023.
It just shows that putting a bullpen together is complex. A lot of plates spinning and nowhere does performance vary more from season to season than in the pen. It's not ideal to toss away assets or fill every hole with money.
Does one trip to the minors use up one option? Or is an option good for repeated uses within one season?
Great question. You only exercise one option per season. An option is exercised once they have spent at least 20 days in the minors. However, you can only option a player a maximum of five times within a season.
Good one,Jeff. I am eager to see your input on the match-up issue. A fine initiative.
I would also more depth on the “sneaky fast” phenomenon with pitchers. I know height, stride, spin rate, quirky deliveries, hiding the ball can all make pitches appear faster to the hitter, getting swings and misses when the radar gun says “crush me.” Announcers often mention this and sometimes go in to factors but I want more on that.
Related to this, given all,the talk about how organizations and pitching coaches help pitchers add pitches, change deliveries, and make other adjustments, do they try to coach pitchers to become more “sneaky fast?” If not, why not? Adding the effects of velocity without over stressing the arm would seem a growth area for the pitching performance business, no?
The "option" argument is interesting. I understand it and you've explained it well, especially by showing context with other teams, but if there was a game tonight I'd rather have Andrew Chafin in the bullpen than Jeff Brigham even if Brigham can be optioned after the game.
Yeah, this is a fascinating factor I only noticed last year, wondering why teams don’t rotate more players up and down from minors to fill specific, temporary needs. The number of times a guy has a good start and then goes down surprised me, until I realized team is exchanging an arm that can only rest for some days for one ready to pitch. If it were possible, I would want all of my pitchers to be in the minors on days when they aren’t available; it isn’t, of course, possible and might destroy morale even if it were. Fun stuff.
This could be resolved if MLB had a "taxi squad" so, say, 3 players who would definitely not play in that day's game could be replaced. Of course, that would mean that 3 more players would receive a MLB salary and certain owners would object.
surpised at the Marte news - thought just a thumb or something
This is repairing one of the injuries he had last season I believe
Last year they used 31 pitchers. OK. But the bullpen to start the season was full of guys without options: Diaz, Lugo, May, Ottavino, Joely, Shreve, Williams plus Drew Smith and Sean Reid-Foley. And they still managed to bring in all those other pitchers. Because people get injured, because you are allowed to bring guys up for doubleheaders, and because some guys don’t pan out.
The plan should be to minimize the need for optioning in guys by minimizing the reasons you need to bring them in. And this is done by having more guys with track records of success.
Talk about overthinking a problem. Front office nerds thinking planned obsolescence is the way to managing rosters.
Isn’t there now a limit on the number of times a player can be sent down in one season? New rule starting last year? If so that even further limits flexibility.
Yes, you can only send a player down five times, unless they are replacing an injured player, which teams use to work around the rule.
My first thought about adding to the bullpen is that if you don’t do so now, you will have to at the trade deadline. Now it costs only money; at the deadline it costs prospects (and salary).
I’m speculating that the Mets really would like to keep Rule 5 draftee Zach Green. They must value him more than other organizations do. If he makes the team he provides zero flexibility, so I can see why they would really need to have other optionable pitchers on the roster.
Yes, it's a smart strategy.
I've always found Nogosek to be an interest backend of the pen guy. Zero options. He makes the team or, I believe, he's gone.
I hope he has a healthy spring and makes the team. I think he's got outs in that arm.
Agree. He had a few good outings with Mets and nice numbers at AAA.
Obviously Spring Training hasn't even started yet, but he's my Holderman (who I was immediately impressed by in March) for 2023.
It just shows that putting a bullpen together is complex. A lot of plates spinning and nowhere does performance vary more from season to season than in the pen. It's not ideal to toss away assets or fill every hole with money.