Cubs hoping Marshall, Grabow can mentor young bullpen

MESA, Ariz. - Not only will be youth be served in the Cubs bullpen at the start of the regular season, it will be sitting at the head table.

That's one reason lefty Sean Marshall didn't mind moving from a candidate to start to the bullpen again.

Ever the good soldier, Marshall expressed only a little disappointment that lefty Tom Gorzelanny and right-hander Carlos Silva would start while Marshall and Jeff Samardzija will work in relief to start the season.

"It's good; it's fine," Marshall said. "I can't be disappointed by any reason. I'm still in the major leagues. They obviously see some value in me as a pitcher as a whole, especially in the bullpen.

"We do have a young bullpen, and I do have some experience, not as much as a guy like John Grabow, but I think that I can help the pitchers down there, and I can help use my experience to my advantage to get guys out."

Barring a trade, the Cubs will open the season with three rookie relievers: Justin Berg, James Russell and Esmailin Caridad. On top of that, closer Carlos Marmol is only 27, and he has been the full-time closer only since last August.

Pitchers such as Marshall and the 31-year-old Grabow will be counted on for both performance and leadership.

"You don't want to fill their heads up with too much," Grabow said. "I just tell them to watch some of the older guys and see how they go about getting themselves prepared to pitch that day. Find your own routine, something that's comfortable for you. Get yourself comfortable out there so that when the phone rings, you're not surprised, and you're ready to go."

Getting over a bad game is another major hurdle for young relievers to clear.

"Really good arms; really good stuff," Grabow said of the kiddie corps. "It's just a matter of not to overreact. They're going to have their little lumps here and there throughout the season and it's how they react to it. I just tell them to have a quick memory and that you can always redeem yourself the next day. That's the biggest thing when you're young, when you're a rookie, how you react when you have a bad game. I just try to tell them that once you leave the field, it's over with. Go out the next day and try to help the team win."

For his part, the 27-year-old Marshall has worked in 134 big-league games, starting 59. As a reliever last year, he had an ERA of 3.23. His ERA as a starter was 5.24.

In some ways, he may have been a victim of his own success and versatility.

"It's a positive way to look at it," he said. "I realize I'm an asset in the bullpen. I enjoy coming in big situations and enjoy getting to work on a little more regular basis than a starter and especially as a fifth starter because I was the fifth starter last year.

"At the beginning of the season, we had a couple of extra off-days so the rotation kind of rolls around without you being included sometimes. It's a good opportunity for me to start the season pitching every other game or every third game or so and getting locked in and getting some guys out."

It's not as if Marshall "lost out" in the battle for a starter's job. He has kept his ERA under 2.00 most of the spring.

"Pretty good so far," he said. "I know I've got to get some outings in. My first two outings were in relief. I'll work on getting my arm cranked up quick because it's going to be cold in the cities we're going to go to in two weeks or so. Adapt to bullpen life."

But he has no complaints with how things were handled.

"I guess from the beginning of spring it was a competition," he said. "I tried my best to win the competition, and I felt like I couldn't have been any better. But I do realize that because I did pitch well and our bullpen was maybe lacking just a touch of experience, I'm able to help out there. I can't be disappointed because I'm pitching right now as good as I can, and I feel like I'm improving."