Tuesday, April 1, 2008

Phillies Sign Rudy Seanez

Immediately after Pat Gillick was reminded how many bullpen pitchers Charlie Manuel likes to use on a daily basis, he went out and got another one.

Rudy Seanez, cut in Spring Training by the Dodgers, has supposedly signed with the Phillies. Seanez had a solid 2007, pitching in 73 games, going 6-3 with a 3.79 ERA and a strikeout per inning. However, there were reasons he was cut: he's 39 years old and had a 7.71 ERA in Spring Training. This is a strangely similar move to the signing of Jose Mesa last year, without the reminder of horrible memories of yore. In 2006, Mesa had a 3.86 ERA with the Rockies, and after not performing well with the Tigers early last year, the Phillies picked him up and he actually wasn't too bad for the team last year. Though you'll notice, Mesa's not back this year. It's hard to imagine them having the same kind of success with Seanez. At the same time, the veteran presence in the bullpen can certainly help for now until they get a better option.

2 comments:

Brian Raab said...

I wouldn't worry too much about Seanez's spring struggles. He only pitched 4 2/3 innings in the Cactus League due to a strained groin. His age is a minor concern, but he pitched in a career-high 73 games last season.

He won't vastly improve the bullpen, but he should be at least as effective as Mesa was last season, if not more so. Speaking of age concerns, Mesa was 2 years older than Seanez when they signed him last year (and that's if his listed age is to be believed).

Charles Berman said...

Seanez can't hurt as another competent option in the bull pen. Lord knows there are enough inconsistent pitchers who are liabilities to melt down, and if Charlie Manuel is going to continue to indulge his habit of making pitching changes like they were going out of style, he will need a lot of arms at his disposal. I'm happy with backup options being as plentiful as possible.