Though things have gone better than expected so far this year in the Mariners bullpen, one of the biggest disappointments thus far has been the inconsistent performance of RHP Joel Peralta. Through 26 games in two months, he posted the third-highest ERA of his entire career at 5.40, his worst since 2009 with the Colorado Rockies when it was 6.20.
In addition to the drop in his ERA, Peralta experienced a tough time preventing the long ball with 9 of his 14 runs coming off home runs. This is something that hasn’t completely manifested as a problem quite yet, but with the starting rotation beginning to come back to Earth, it will be easier for hitters to exploit weaknesses in the bullpen as the season continues into the dog days.