Royals Realm

This transformation is absolutely incredible.

Just two years ago, this bullpen was the laughing stock of the major leagues with a 53-percent save success rate.

Now, I’m tempted to change the channel when Soria toes the rubber in the ninth because I know the game is over.

The Wolf (nickname I’ve given Soria; let’s see how it goes) worked his magic again tonight, shutting down the Tigers’ last effort to preserve a 3-2 victory.

Wolf has been receiving the lion’s share of the credit, but his not-yet-household-name setup crew deserves just as much.

Ramon Ramirez and Leo Nunez are the heart of the bullpen. In short, this duo’s seventh- and eighth-inning success has been nothing short of surreal.

Think back with me, Royals fans, to 2006. We’ve got a 5-3 lead heading into the eighth inning. Andrew Sisco is on the mound, while Ambriorix Burgos warms up. How comfortable are you?

I can sure tell you I was far from it. It was panic-mode central in the Robinson living room and many others throughout Royals Nation. These two men, along with their less infamous mates, made up the worst ‘pen in the majors. They blew countless leads and may have cost Luke Hudson a large sum of money, as he was on his way to being a 12-15-game winner had this inept group not blown it for him.

Needless to say, no starting pitcher has any beef with the winning side of this ‘pen.

I probably shouldn’t imply that this group is without flaws, as Joel Peralta and would-be setup man Yasuhiko Yabuta have been horrendous. Those guys are only the mop-up men though and don’t see too many high-pressure situations (sans last Monday of course when Peralta gave up back-to-back homers in the ninth; needless to say, he won’t be seeing any of those situations anytime soon).

But the men that enter play with the lead are anything but horrendous as they have been the unsung catalyst to the Royal pitching staff’s stunning start.

Nunez (1.72 ERA, 15.2 IP) completely revived his career over the past two years. The 24-year-old was part of the 2005 bullpen, which was just as bad, only it didn’t have the opportunity to blow many leads because the team did not get them too often. As a rookie middle reliever, Nunez was awful, finishing the season with a 7.55 ERA. This led to a season and a half in the minors and being nearly left for dead by the organization’s higher-ups.

This included fans’ darling, Dayton Moore, as the GM agreed to trade the diminutive setup man last June to Oakland for mouthy outfielder Milton Bradley, but thankfully for the Royals, Bradley had a secret oblique injury that nullified everything.
Good thing too; Kansas City doesn’t need anymore players floundering in blue and flourishing somewhere else. I still have anger attacks when I see Emil Brown’s RBI totals flash across the ESPN bottom line.

Nunez was just supposed to be a middle or long relief guy, but his 95-mph heat and intense delivery are giving teams fits in the eighth inning. He owns that frame and that is such an underrated component of a successful team. Royals fans got a taste of that last season when Soria mowed down people in the setup role.

Nunez’s story is great, but I’m more impressed with Ramirez, who is the primary seventh-inning stopper. Ramirez has a 1.06 ERA with 21 strikeouts in 17 innings pitched. For a player who was acquired from Colorado the week before the season started for a player to be named later, his performance is the biggest shocker.

Like Soria, he has wicked movement on his pitches, which makes up for the fact that he cannot bring the heat like his smaller setup counterpart can. But Ramirez is just as important as Nunez to this success. Let’s not forget pricey veteran Ron Mahay, who is the primary lefty in the sixth and seventh innings, much to Jimmy Gobble’s chagrin. Mahay (2.65 ERA, 17 IP) frequently goes more than one inning and despite a rough first two weeks, has really found his groove.

He does not have the stuff his younger and more flashy cohorts do, but Mahay, unlike Gobble this season, can get right-handed batters out as well. That’s a huge weapon to have.

I don’t even need to talk about Wolf or mention his ERA (I refuse to do so in fear of jinxing this video-game-esque start), he’s the goods and one of the best closers in baseball. But while he’s the most automatic, his three bridge men are the ones who should be getting some credit as well.

The overall talent of the 2007 middle relief corps was astonishing with Wolf, Greinke and David Riske stifling the AL in the seventh and eighth innings, but with Zack having emerged as the team’s best starter, the 2008 bullpen is even better. The relievers are providing the same type of production last years’ were. That really says something because everyone knew that crew was temporary, as Greinke and Soria are All-Star-caliber players and those guys simply don’t pitch in middle relief.

This current crew’s efficiency makes this pitching staff far better than 2007 because Greinke and Soria are allowed to thrive in their more important roles. I did not think this would happen because their talent was that good, but this setup trio has made a reality out of that and Royals fans for the first time in who knows how long, have a dominant relief unit to go along with three above-average starters.

How long can it last? Stupid question. Just enjoy it. With the often-anemic offense, these men are the driving force behind a team that’s off to its best start in five years.

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