The Phillies reliever has had a miserable 2013, among other miserable 2013s in the bullpen, and will no longer be called upon to try and not make a six-run lead a nine-run lead.  The Phillies announced the release of their recently re-signed on the cheap 2008 alum this afternoon, to the delight of a city brimming with enthusiasm for the start of Philly Beer Week.

May 5, 2013; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Chad Durbin (45) reacts to giving up a home run during the eighth inning against the Miami Marlins at Citizens Bank Park. The Marlins defeated the Phillies 14-2. Mandatory Credit: Howard Smith-USA TODAY Sports

Durbin’s 9.00 ERA and 25 hits over 16 innings pitched were deemed unsuitable.  Joe Savery, who hopefully did not unpack his things from his last visit, will sling his bag back over his shoulder and make the trip from Lehigh to fill Durbin’s spot.

Is this the first of many roster moves to try and fix the Phillies?  Nobody would call the release of Durbin as the fuse lit to blow up the team, so perhaps the Phillies still believe, as they hover around .500, that if they dump some of the more adamantly incompetent pieces, they can still make a run at this thing.

After all, the Nationals are only one game better, and they’re the future 2013 National League champions.

No, I will not stop bring that up, no matter how big and how awkward of a shoehorn I need to use to get it in there.

For the time being, enjoy your Beer Week, Philadelphia.  Chad Durbin is gone.  It’s a step.

Chances were the guy coming out was going to walk two batters, induce a ground out, give up a run, give up a sac fly, and hand it off to the next young, unproven IronPig.  Sometimes, Jonathan Papelbon came out, and that was nice.  And things weren’t always bad.  Remember when Phillippe Aumont struck out Jose Reyes?  Hysterical.

That’s the word the bar owner used to describe me to the police after I broke one of his tables with the traditional celebratory table kick.

But the Phillies knew that the bullpen was going to be a project this winter, and their abundance of youth out there needed some counterweight in the form of proven vets who could lend some stability out there.  Mike Adams was assimilated with Papelbon in the back of the pen, and now Chad Durbin is here, and with him comes that indomitable 2008 spirit that for some reason Ryan Howard and Chase Utley can’t seem to muster without shattering or tearing some important body part.

Now, there’s plenty of reason to think that any number of young guys could have been transformed into an effective late inning guy for a decimal of the cost of one of these vets.  But the Phillies wanted Durbin, because shut up, they just wanted him, okay?  God.

The Phils hope the veteran right-handed reliever stabilizes the middle innings and nurtures the organization’s young and talented relievers along the way.  They also hope Durbin can help them get back to the postseason.

–Todd Zolecki

That’s a lot of stuff to need from Chad Durbin, who is only one Chad Durbin.  But the guy has proven how effective he can be, and “effective” was a luxurious adjective in the Phillies’ 2012 bullpen.

Gonna have to hose him down to get all that McCann off him though. Howard Smith-USA TODAY Sports

Durbin’s deal is over $1 million, and he could make $350,000 if he plays his cards right, and he could even get tabbed for 2014 if he feels like it.

Year to year, the bullpen and relievers in it are touch and go. For instance, Chad Qualls.  35-year-old Durbin could very well not be able to take on the effective relieving/babysitting/post season-getting to duties that the Phillies are hoping for.  Hey may have never wanted to leave, but that was 2010.  Did anybody want to leave the Phillies back then?  Guys who had been hurdling toward the Phillies full force the past few seasons could be frantically pumping the brakes at this point, having not liked what they saw in 2012.

So go ahead.  Point out a flaw in this plan.  You got some kind of issue with forking out $1 million+ contracts to relievers on single-year deals even though gambling on young cheap arms they already have would be acceptable, or asking Chad Durbin to shoulder most of the team’s problems (Meanwhile Papelbon gets rich being mishandled by Charlie Manuel)?

Well, the Phillies have an answer for you.

It’s $1 million with a team-controlled option for 2014.

October 2, 2012; Pittsburgh, PA, USA; Atlanta Braves relief pitcher Chad Durbin (32) pitches against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the eighth inning at PNC Park. The Pittsburgh Pirates won 5-1. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

Last year, the Phillies bullpen was a disaster. This year, Ruben Amaro is intent on not making the same mistake twice.

MLB.com’s Todd Zolecki reports the Phils have brought back one of the lynchpins of the 2008 bullpen that was instrumental in the Phillies winning their second world championship, signing Chad Durbin to a one-year, $1.1 million contract, with $350,000 in possible incentives. There is also a team option for a second year.

Durbin had a solid year for Atlanta last year, going 4-1 with a 3.10 ERA in 76 appearances. Zolecki noted Durbin had a 2.33 ERA from April 18 through the end of the regular season, and carried a 0.83 ERA in 28 appearances against the National League East.

Durbin’s chief negative is that he does not strike many people out, instead relying on a high ground ball percentage to record his most of his outs. According to Fangraphs, 47.7% of his outs came via the ground ball last year and he struck out just 19% of the hitters he faced. For his career, those numbers are 41.9% and 15.4%.

Durbin’s propensity for ground balls could be interesting with weak defensive corner infielders Michael Young and Ryan Howard. And by interesting, I mean, potentially disastrous.

Not only that, Durbin’s pattern has been to follow one solid year with one that is, well, pretty much garbage right after it.

From 2007-2012, his ERA was 4.72, 2.87, 4.39, 3.80, 5.53, and 3.10. I’ve been on cruise ships with less movement.

Because Durbin relies on ground balls to get his outs, he is more susceptible to back luck and chance. It also doesn’t help that he’s averaged 3.9 BB/9 over his career.

It also calls into question just how much experience the young, dynamic arms that already exist on the roster will actually get in the Majors this season. Amaro was stocked with cheap arms with dynamic stuff, but has instead decided to roll the dice on another veteran arm with worse pure stuff, but more veteran “moxie.”

Still, the signing of Durbin makes some sense. He’s one of the few bullpen arms that has experience throwing multiple innings, and has experience in the later innings and in the playoffs, something that could be useful with a ‘pen stocked with youngsters. He’ll join Jonathan Papelbon, Mike Adams and Antonio Bastardo as a late-inning option, likely leaving three jobs available for some combination of Phillippe Aumont, Justin De Fratus, Jeremy Horst, Jake Diekman, B.J. Rosenberg and Mike Stutes.

And, if nothing else, bringing Durbin back is a fun bit of nostalgia, harkening back to a more golden age.

Now, if only we could somehow get Brad Lidge a deal…