Beef Stew starting the season on the IL. Who are the 8 in the bullpen?

[thelanges5]

 

[thelanges5]

Jax, Durán, Alcala, Varland, Coulombe, Topa, Sands, and ?

[Vanimal46]

25 minutes ago, thelanges5 said:

Jax, Durán, Alcala, Varland, Coulombe, Topa, Sands, and ?

The rule 5 pick 

[Linus]

9 hours ago, Vanimal46 said:

The rule 5 pick 

Yes, which is scary.  The guy has no idea where he is throwing the ball.

[thelanges5]

 

[Twins_Fan_in_NJ]

I wonder if they bring Funderburk back up to take the last bullpen spot...

[Cory Engelhardt]

Dan Hayes keeps saying that he is hearing they are watching the waiver wire to pick up someone else to start the year. That's my guess on who is the 8th reliever, someone not currently in the organization.

[DJL44]

Any word on the Rule 5 picks drafted ahead of Castellano? Are they all making the team?

1. White Sox: Shane Smith, RHP (from Brewers)
3. Angels: Garrett McDaniels, LHP (Dodgers, now LAA No. 29)
4. Athletics: Noah Murdock, RHP (Royals)
5. Nationals: Evan Reifert, RHP (Rays, now WSH No. 26)
6. Blue Jays: Angel Bastardo, RHP (Red Sox, now TOR No. 29)
8. Rays: Nathan Lavender, LHP (Mets)

[Danchat]

A couple sources are reporting that Dobnak is getting the last bullpen spot. He has options left and will likely be the first to go once Tonkin / Stewart are ready to go. They could also opt to pluck someone off the waiver wire.

[USAFChief]

13 minutes ago, Danchat said:

A couple sources are reporting that Dobnak is getting the last bullpen spot. He has options left and will likely be the first to go once Tonkin / Stewart are ready to go. They could also opt to pluck someone off the waiver wire.

It's not options for Dobnak. It's that he can be DFA'd and nobody will claim him due to contract. 

[Vanimal46]

Oh boy. More Dobnak mop up work this year. 

[USAFChief]

*Best Bullpen In Baseball*

[amjgt]

As soon as we knew Castellanos wasn't making the team it seemed incredibly obvious that it was going to be Dobnak to fill that roll. They want someone to potentially eat innings, especially early in the season. Say what you will about Dobnak, but he's pretty effective in that role. That is how he was used this spring and he was effective doing it.

As was stated above, due to his $3M guaranteed salary, if he does just a so-so job in that role, it's easy to DFA him, and have him get through waivers and back to AAA. If he does well in that role, then great, we've got a guy who can eat innings and keep our higher leverage relievers fresher than they have been the last couple years.

[jud6312]

This front office's obsession with recouping any sort of value from that awful contract extension is mind boggling. Accept the fact you made a terrible business decision and MOVE ON.

[amjgt]

I'm probably in the minority but I actually like this Dobnak move/decision. Makes a ton of sense in my mind. 

[Twins_Fan_in_NJ]

8 minutes ago, amjgt said:

I'm probably in the minority but I actually like this Dobnak move/decision. Makes a ton of sense in my mind. 

Makes sense relative to being able to shuttle him back and forth between the majors and St. Paul. But the idea of Dobnak has always made more sense than the actual performance. He got hit pretty hard last year in a limited sampling and I wouldn't expect anything different in 2025. 

[Twins_Fan_in_NJ]

2 hours ago, USAFChief said:

*Best Bullpen In Baseball*

Always concerning when a pre-season prediction falls flat on its face before opening day!

[DJL44]

17 minutes ago, amjgt said:

I'm probably in the minority but I actually like this Dobnak move/decision. Makes a ton of sense in my mind. 

Anyone off the waiver wire instead, please.

Now they have officially dumped Headrick, Castellano and Henriquez to give Randy Dobnak a job and keep Canterino in the organization.

[USAFChief]

1 hour ago, amjgt said:

I'm probably in the minority but I actually like this Dobnak move/decision. Makes a ton of sense in my mind. 

100 percent correct...you're in the minority. 

[chpettit19]

They're hoping Dobnak doesn't throw a pitch, just like the majority of us. And just like the majority of us would wish with anyone they picked off the waiver wire. He's there in case a starter blows up or gets hurt in a start before Stewart is activated. They didn't want to risk losing Blewett or any of the other guys without options the first week of the season.

Reasonable decision even if it's also reasonable to risk those guys now.

[amjgt]

Plus you gotta figure out if you're going to offer him arbitration in 2026!

(90% joking)

[tony&rodney]

The beard is worth his contract.