Back-End Dominance: Paul Sewald's Impact on the Bullpen

The Diamondbacks bullpen has been dominating since Paul Sewald's return.

May 25, 2024; Dbacks pitcher Paul Sewald pitches against the Marlins. ; Mandatory Credit: Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports / Joe Camporeale-USA TODAY Sports

The Diamondbacks bullpen started off in some rocky waters. They lost their closer in Spring Training and struggled accordingly. Relievers had to fill some roles that they werent quite built for, among those were Kevin Ginkel and Joe Mantiply. Those rocky waters now look much more calm as Paul Sewald has returned, and since that return the bullpen's ship has been far more steady.

Sewald himself has been fantastic since returning from the injured list. He has collected 4 consecutive saves in his limited opportunities. In 7 innings he has only allowed 3 hits and one run. He has 7 K's to 1 BB and has looked exceptionally dominant in his outings. Sewald also has spoken on how he feels like there is another gear to reach in his performance this year. Read more on that here.

Even with Sewald's dominance it is possible that his largest contibution comes in his off the field presence. In Sunday's pre-game press conference Torey Lovullo spoke with the media about how much Sewald makes a difference behind the scenes.

"He is a stabilizing force, when he is not around, you know he is not around. And when he is there, you know he is there". This feeling has been echoed and was definitely a factor last season as well when the organization first traded for him.

A big benefit of having a "closer" to fill the 9th inning whenever available is that the rest of the bullpen can fill roles that they are more comfortable with. This can also fortify the back-end of the bullpen, with Ryan Thompson continuing his stretch of untouchable dominance and Justin Martinez breaking out so far this season.

Martinez in particular seems to have benefitted a lot from Sewald's presence as ther young flamethrower has been able to get his feet wet in lower leverage positions. With young relievers it can be important to not overexpose them to opponents and break confidence. The Diamondbacks have handled this well in 2024 after Martinez was able to see some leverage moments last year.

To this point in 2024 Justin Martinez has a 0.59 ERA with 15 innings pitched. His 2.80 FIP while much higher, is still great, and shows promise for him to continue to produce for the team. These outings have often come in the 6th or 7th innings, tag-teaming with lefty Joe Mantiply.

Lovullo used a powerful metaphor when speaking on Sewald's return to the bullpen. "It is like Papa's come home. We can all sleep tight. We can all sit in our own little nest and sit where we are most comfortable". The bullpen has certainly been more comfortable since his return. The Diamondbacks are 5-1 in one run games since May 5th and 11-8 overall.

Paul Sewald is a stabilizing force and a dominant closer, but almost as important, he is a leader. He is someone that young players can turn to as a mentor, and can look to as an example. His return has signaled a tide turning for the Diamondbacks, and even with an arm as important as Kevin Ginkel struggling, others are picking up the slack and holding strong.

The Diamondbacks play again tomorrow in Arlington in a World Series rematch. Tune in to everything Inside The Diamondbacks to stay up to date on the D-Backs before tomorrow's game.