Question: With Félix Bautista back next season as the closer how is the rest of bullpen going to shape up? Who could return or be replaced? From: Dnell
Answer: I think that Keegan Akin, Yennier Cano. Danny Coulombe and Jacob Webb are going to return. The Orioles must pick up Coulombe’s $4 million option, and I’m confident they will.
They have choices to make on options for Seranthony Domínguez ($8 million) and Cionel Pérez ($2.2 million plus up to $750,000 in incentives) as well as whether to offer Gregory Soto arbitration (he could make up to $5.6 million).
The Orioles also have Matt Bowman and Burch Smith, but they seem highly questionable to return. Colin Selby ended the season in the bullpen, but he only pitched in three games.
Question: Does the Orioles’ coaching staff look at a pitcher’s ERA or WHIP in the aftermath of an error committed in the field, or after giving up a home run? Seems like those are often gateways to big innings, which are key to winning or losing ballgames.
To my amateur eye, some of the Oriole starters are better at shaking it off and bouncing back than others. Some pitchers, such as Dean Kremer, have gotten better at it, while Corbin Burnes might have gotten worse. Would be cool to see if the numbers back that up. From: Seth Resnik
Answer: Seth, the Orioles don’t share what tools they look at to evaluate pitchers—or hitters. However, your question is a most interesting one, and I think the best way to answer it is to compare the number of earned runs allowed with the number of unearned runs.
Burnes allowed 76 runs, 13 unearned. Kremer allowed 72 runs, 13 unearned. Albert Suárez gave up 56 runs, and only was unearned. Grayson Rodriguez gave up 52 runs with just two unearned. Cade Povich gave up 49 runs with three unearned.
Kyle Bradish, Danny Coulombe and Zach Eflin didn’t have an unearned run score while they were pitching.
I’m not sure if this is what you’re looking for, but it did temporarily send me down a rabbit hole.
Most weekdays, I’ll be answering at least one Orioles question. If you’d like to submit a question, send it to: Rich@BaltimoreBaseball.com. Questions may be edited for clarity, length and style.