Lopez Valuable In Pen

There’s one Red Sox player we really discuss save one mass article about the bullpen or a brief mention here and there in the comments section, yet the mention often comes with gripe and frustration. When he does well, nobody seems to utter a peep. When he fails (which happens much rarer than even I thought), people don’t react. This player is Javier Lopez- the unsung hero of the 2008 bullpen and someone who the Red Sox have been able to utilize at a relatively cheap price and receive great value.

Lopez has been a godsend against left-handed hitters this season, the main reason why he has a job in the Red Sox bullpen. He’s held LHH to a line of just .178/.333/.289. Yes, those are more walks than you’d probably like to see (12 in 26.2 IP isn’t bad, though), but isn’t a slightly higher OBP relative to the batting average better than a higher slugging percentage? Lopez, overall, has a 2.36 ERA, which is very formidable, most of that due to the amount of baserunners his fellow bullpen mates have stranded for him.

It also seems like Lopez is getting better and better as the season progresses. In April, he was shaky- 5.00 ERA, .278 BAA, 6/5 K/BB in 9 IP. Since April, Lopez has thrown 16.2 innings for a .225 BAA, 6 walks, and an ERA well under two. What we have with Lopez is someone who can throw multiple innings on an occasion where the bullpen needs rest, someone who can get a lefty out in a big situation or be able to clog the floodgates during an opposing rally, and even throw high-leverage quality innings.

I found some more statistics that help Lopez’s cause. His WPA during his time with the Red Sox is +1.34, meaning I’m not just making up the fact he’s been big in high leverage situations (Delcarmen is +0.30, for comparison). Lopez is also able to get the opponent to ground into a killer double play in a big-time spot because of his tendency to throw ground balls- he led the entire bullpen in 2007, higher than Okajima and Delcarmen. Also, in the Baseball Prospectus statistic Quality of Batters Faced, Lopez has retired hitters with a cumulative .765 OPS, holding them to just a .693 OPS.

Let’s hope Lopez is able to continue what he’s done thus far- retire LHH, get ground balls, continue with his low ERA and BB/9 totals, and keep that stunning WPA where it is. Along with the work of David Aardsma, Lopez has proven to be one of the exclamation points in a somewhat disappointing bullpen.