By far the best in MLB. Nobody runs a better 4 out there (Thornton, Dotel, Linebrink & Jenks).

We were the best in the first half of the season. Linebrink got hurt and Dotel struggled a little bit in the 2nd half. Hopefully we stay healthy.

Best in the MLB? I don't know about that.

Thornton and Jenks are studs.

Dotel and Linebrink are explosions wanting to happen.

_________________
"He is a loathsome, offensive brute
--yet I can't look away."

Name me a bullpen that has 4 guys with better numbers.


up to 5
players


Picks left Player TEAM W L ERA G GS CG SHO SV SVO IP H R ER HR HBP BB SO

M Thornton
.............................CWS 1 1 1.96 19 0 0 0 0 2 18.1 16 4 4 1 0 9 25
S Linebrink
.............................. CWS 2 2 2.04 18 0 0 0 1 2 17.2 18 4 4 1 0 5 18
B Jenks
.............................. CWS 0 2 3.18 17 0 0 0 11 12 17.0 16 7 6 3 0 5 15
O Dotel
.............................. CWS 1 1 1.10 19 0 0 0 0 1 16.1 9 2 2 1 0 11 17 12. L Broadway

Sorry. Couldn't cut and paste that very well.

Look at the ERAs.

Plus all 4 of them have left a lot of inherited runners on base all year long.

No doubt for 2 months they have been great. But are Linebrink and Dotel going to keep that up for the entire season? Doubtful at best. If there is an award for best bullpen after 2 months, they definitely get it. But let's look at the numbers come September.

_________________
"He is a loathsome, offensive brute
--yet I can't look away."

Of course. It could go bad. I'm just talking right now. But it won't be horseshit. I pretty much know that.

Another good thing is none of them have been overused. Especially recently with the starters going very deep for the last 10 or 12 games.

The Mets bullpen with K Rod, Putz, and a couple others have been pretty strong too.

_________________
"He is a loathsome, offensive brute
--yet I can't look away."

Putz hasn't been better than the 4 the Sox have. Check out his numbers. He's been average to slightly below average.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?playerId=5640

does this get them closer to a championship?

Yeah maybe not, but as a 4 man group, they are pretty strong as well.

KRod -- 0.73 ERA 14 Saves

Putz -- 3.81 ERA 2 Saves 10 Holds

Parnell -- 2.11 ERA 10 Holds

Felliciano -- 2.25 ERA 8 Holds

_________________
"He is a loathsome, offensive brute
--yet I can't look away."

Not bad. AL hitters are a lot tougher than NL hitters. Plus they don't have the DH. They face a lot of bench guys hitting for pitchers. Keep that in mind too.

Take a look at the Reds bullpen:

Arthur Rhodes 0.47 ERA, 8 holds

Nick Masset 0.95 ERA, 2 holds

Danny Herrera 1.45 ERA, 2 holds

David Weathers 2.41 ERA, 7 holds

F. Cordero 1.57 ERA, 14 Saves

_________________
"He is a loathsome, offensive brute
--yet I can't look away."

Sox bullpen is awesome, especially the back end 4 as you guys have been saying.

Putz has been a huge disappointment in New York, letting down in the 8th unlike he did in the 9th in Seattle, and now he's hurt and out for 3 months.

The Brewers are the surprise great bullpen, with Hoffman perfect, and Coffey or Villanueva setting him up.

But the best in baseball is Boston. 5 guys with ERA's under 3, all with 20 or more appearances. Papelbon is the goods at the end of it too.

But the Sox are top 3 or 4 in the game, for sure.

Too bad the lineup is an absolute joke.

Didn't a certain ESPN "Sunday Night Baseball" analyst whose name shall remain nameless call the Chicago White Sox bullpen the best in baseball when he & Jon "White Collar" Miller called one of the Southsiders' games last season? I thought so...

For some reason, I think dumbass Morgan went a step further than that and called them one of the best bullpens in the history of baseball - or something crazy like that.

However, they have been awfully good this year, just as they were for the first half of last season. ODotel in the 7th, Linebrink in the 8th and Jenks in the 9th was a nearly automatic combination if they could get through 6 with the lead. Everything went to hell when Jenks got hurt and they tried to have Linebrink close, Dotel do set-up work, etc. For some reason, those guys just seem to excel when they know their roles. When you mix it up, they are completely lost.

You ask for a team with 4 guys with better numbers. Then when you are given the numbers produced by the Mets bullpen (which are better) you proceed to try to justify your position (the Sox having the best 4 in baseball) rather than acknowledging that the numbers the 4 Met players have amassed are superior. K Rad is the #1 closer in Baseball. Jenks is a guy who has lost 4-5 MPH off his fastball and while still a good closer, no longer lights out. Dotel has great stuff, but locates poorly too often, resulting in too many walks and too many pitches left over the plate on 0-2 or 1-2 counts. He will get torched several more times this season. Putz has not been as good so far this season( and now hurt) as some may have expected. but he is no longer in a closers role and adjusting to his new role. i would take the mets bullpen over the Sox any day.

_________________
Go Cubs!!!!

You would think that Dusty would have screwed that up by now too. But they have been outstanding.

_________________
Go Cubs!!!!

Steve, you're wrong. Those numbers technically arent better than the Sox four guys, although the Reds guys numbers ARE so you could have gone that way instead of pointing out the Mets. And you're not really gonna contest the point he makes about DH's are you? I dont like the DH personally but its obvious that it benefits pitchers in the NL to not have to face a DH. Jenks has struggled a bit this year, but when he's statistically your worst RP you have a damn good bullpen. Like Meat said though its just a shame the lineup is a joke and the SP's have been inconsistent.

_________________
Fare you well, fare you well
I love you more than words can tell
Listen to the river sing sweet songs
To rock my soul

I think the Sox bullpen is highly overrated. Inconsistant issues for Jenks and Dotel.

When the best thing on your team is your Bullpen, that also is not so good.

_________________
""I am now done at the Score."
Mike North, June 24, 2008

Jenks has inconsistent issues?? Care to explain that?

Save percentage:

'05 - 76.9% (including playoffs)
'06 - 91.1%
'07 - 87%
'08 - 88.6% (including playoffs)
'09 - 92.9%

He looks very consistent and very good to me.

would love to have jenks as the closer of my team.

This is like trying to tell me a fat ugly chick has a great personality

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"That's what the internet is for. Slandering others anonymously." Banky
“Been that way since one monkey looked at the sun and told the other monkey ‘He said for you to give me your fuckin’ share.’”

ERA is a poor indicator of a closers (or any relievers) performance. The closers job is to close games and Bobby has done that at a consistently high level.