The best bullpen in the world, two years running - Baseball Nation: But real or not, the Braves are having another excellent bullpen season. It still might be a fluke. The odds are that it probably is a fluke. No one has a bullpen this good in consecutive seasons -- with turnover, mind you.
The Braves do. Where the Rays, Orioles, Giants, and Nationals have faltered, the Braves have kept on keeping on. Kimbrel (and his ridiculous strikeout rate) are probably buoying the rankings a bit, and the strong starting pitching means less garbage time for the garbage-time pitcher, so everyone is put in a good spot.
If there was something about the Braves and their success that you couldn't put your finger on, it's probably the bullpen. It's a mighty fine bullpen. It really is the common denominator. Maybe this is a step toward appreciating how much that's worth.