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The bullpen is an excellent area to save money... especially after you've built a competitive team and start drafting towards the bottom of the order. Nearly ML ready college relievers are almost always available at the bottom of the 1st and 2nd rounds... Unless they have major injury or personality red flags, I find these guys rarely flame out and are usually ML ready in under two years. This can be a HUGE cost savings. Granted, you are NOT going to be developing other positions in the minors... but if you don't get too attached to your older players... you can sell high and drive other positional prospects into your farm system via that route.
In one of my fictional leagues, I went a good four year stretch when my entire bullpen combined was cheaper than almost every other starting roster spot.... Over that stretch, I probably paid a total of $4m to $8m for the entire seven man pen against a total payroll of $115-$130m. Usually had 3-4 guys at the minimum with the other 3-4 guys somewhere in early arbitration. That gravy train didn't last forever, and some long term higher dollar contracts eventually got handed out... I had one lefty and one righty that were just too good to let walk... But that was some great financial flexibility when it lasted.
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