Warm-up area for relief pitchers in baseball
In
baseball
, the
bullpen
(or simply the
pen
) is the area where
relief pitchers
warm up before entering a game. A team's roster of relief pitchers is also
metonymically
referred to as "the bullpen". These pitchers usually wait in the bullpen if they have not yet played in a game, rather than in the
dugout
with the rest of the team. The
starting pitcher
also makes their final pregame warm-up throws in the bullpen. Managers can call coaches in the bullpen on an in-house telephone from the dugout to tell a certain pitcher to begin their warm-up tosses.
Each team generally has its own bullpen consisting of two pitching rubbers and plates at regulation distance from each other. In most
Major League Baseball
parks
, the bullpens are situated out-of-play behind the
outfield
fence.
Etymology
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The term first appeared in wide use shortly after the turn of the 20th century, and has been used since in roughly its present meaning. Previously, in the late 19th century latecomers to ball games were cordoned off into standing-room areas in foul territory. Because the fans were herded like cattle, this area became known as the "bullpen", a designation which was retained when those areas became the spot where relief pitchers would warm up. According to the
Oxford English Dictionary
the earliest recorded use of "bullpen" in relation to baseball is in a Cincinnati Enquirer article published on May 7, 1877,
[1]
in which writer O.P. Caylor, using the original meaning, noted in a game recap: "The bull-pen at the Cincinnati grounds with its 'three for a quarter crowd' has lost its usefulness. The bleacher boards just north of the old pavilion now hold the cheap crowd, which comes in at the end of the first inning on a discount."
Locations
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In most major league ballparks, the bullpens are located out of play just behind the outfield fences. In some ballparks both bullpens are adjacent to each other while in others the bullpens are separated with each team's bullpen located on the side of the field corresponding with the same team's
dugout
. Often the outfield walls in front of the bullpen contains see-through areas to allow the bullpen to be more easily seen by both fans and the manager in the dugout, as well as to allow the players in the bullpen to more easily see what is occurring on the field.
For a time, many fields had their bullpens on the field of play, usually in foul territory, down the line from each team's dugout. This location has fallen out of favor as the bullpen mounds are considered a tripping hazard for fielders attempting to catch foul fly balls and the lack of enclosure leaves players exposed to being hit by line drive fouls or stray practice pitches.
[2]
As of the 2023 season,
Oakland Coliseum
and
Tropicana Field
are the only major league ballparks whose bullpens are located in foul territory.
Wrigley Field
featured an unusual orientation to its bullpen. During a
major renovation
in 2017, the bullpens were moved from foul territory to underneath the outfield bleachers, making it the first and only enclosed bullpen in a major league park.
Bullpen cars
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Between 1950 and 1995, varying numbers of MLB teams used vehicles to transport pitchers from the bullpen to the mound. These
bullpen cars
ranged from golf carts to full-sized cars. The 1950
Cleveland Indians
were the first to use a bullpen car. The last use of a bullpen vehicle in this time was a motorcycle and sidecar used by the
Milwaukee Brewers
in 1995.
[3]
However, the
Arizona Diamondbacks
,
Detroit Tigers
,
[4]
and the
Washington Nationals
have since given relief pitchers the option of using a bullpen cart in the 2018 season.
References
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]
External links
[
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]
- Media related to
Bullpen
at Wikimedia Commons