When I tell you to imagine the bullpen, you probably think of the collection of 10 or so guys that come on to pitch whenever the starter is done for the day. What if I told you this bullpen consists of two very distinct groups of pitchers? While everyone in the bullpen is a relief pitcher, they are either considered a middle reliever or a late-inning reliever/closer.
In this article, I’ve taken eight of the Guardians’ relief pitchers and split them into two groups of four. Four middle relievers and four late-inning relievers/closers. The purpose of this is to show just how different these two groups of pitchers are and what makes each group successful.