Bruney and K-Rod: Interesting Bullpen Dynamic

When the Mets announced that they had signed Brian Bruney to minor league contract this past Monday I thought to myself…..’interesting’.  There are a couple of layers that go along with that assessment of the situation.  First off, from strictly a baseball standpoint, I thought it was a no lose move.  The 28-year old righty is a power arm that has recorded 234 strikeouts over 239 career innings.  He was traded from the Yankees to Washington in December after finishing the 2009 season 5-0 with a 3.92 ERA (39 IP, 36K) for the Bombers.  Certainly there are concerns as to whether Bruney will ever be able to handle high pressure situations (something he failed to do as a closer in Arizona and an 8th inning guy in New York), but he’s likely never been put in a spot where expectations are lower.  Not necessarily a good thing, but if Dan Warthen can eventually work some magic and get the 230+ pounder to throw more strikes (Bruney had 20 BB in 17 innings this year for Washington) then the spacious confines of Citi Field may be to his liking.

What may not be to Bruney’s liking is his new bullpen mate, Francisco Rodriguez.  Herein lies the ‘interesting’ part.  Just last June the two relievers nearly came to blows during pregame warm-ups in Citi Field ( click here to check out a video clip of the encounter)....TO READ MORE OF THIS POST AND OTHERS LIKE IT HEAD TO METSZILLA.COM BY CLICKING HERE: http://www.metszilla.com/?p=3631