.

In the previous article, Dr. D opined that the Mariners' 2017 bullpen would be an admirable attempt to cobble a bullpen out of zero money.  Problem is, the M's are paying very nice money to their two platoon setup guys.  ... Well, $6M to a reliever used to be nice money.  Could be that I'm stuck in 1997 dollars.

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MARK RZEPCZYNSKI

You and I know what WE see when we look at a guy like Zip.  The whole point of going over to Ron Shandler is that he has ZERO emotional engagement.  No matter how objective you are, and Dr. Detecto is beatifically so, you are still not allowed to perform heart surgery on your daughter...

What SSI said about Zip is right here:  CLICK THIS LINK  The executive summary is that we like him very well, at least as well as we like Yovani Gallardo and probably as well as we like Mike Hargrove.  The upside for me would be if he returned to a sharper 2 pitches, and was used one-batter-at-a-time when you couldn't walk a lefty.  

Zip does seem to get a big lefty, say Shin-Soo Choo, to hit the ball moderately hard into fair play inside the park.  He seems as able to catch Heffalumps as he is able to catch rabbits.  In Strat-O-Matic terms, you roll his card on the white die a lot and that's cool if the other guy has a masher's card on the board.  That's just an impression; maybe we're off track on that point.

...

OK, that's what we sez.  What RON SHANDLER said about Zip is right here --- > 0.  Zip's not in the book.  Which tends not to be true of, let us say, Clayton Kershaw or Aroldis Chapman.  (Or Dan Altavilla.)

I like Jerry Dipoto.  I do.  But, man, there have been some Mileys and Camineros.  Dipoto gave up a metric tonne to get Nate Karns, and then by his own gavel pronounced Karns DOA.  Does JeDi's reputation imply that we gotta pull back on our Rzepczynski scorn, or no?

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STEVE CISHEK

Cishek DOES make the cut in Shandler's book of 1,500-odd major league pitchers and hitters, so that's all right.  His general claim on Cishek is:

1) Wow, in 2016 he did really good for somebody with a trashed hip

2) Don't pay for saves, 'cause of Edwin Diaz, but if something happens to Diaz, collect your 20 saves

3) BPX on a 100 index:  133 (9.9 strikeouts, 3.3 walks) 

4) No biggie on the platoon splits this time around, in 2017 ... (huh.)

Hm.  Shandler likes Steve Cishek quite well.  Better than I do, anyway.  Still gotta hope that one of our three young flamethrowers hits the "parlay" with Diaz.

Enjoy,

Dr D