Indeed.
Think about where some of these players started out on our spring depth chart.
We knew Paxton was out for the first 4 months or so, but here was our "all healthy" rotation depth chart:
1. Eovaldi
2. Sale
3. Paxton
4. Wacha
5. Pivetta
6. Hill
7. Houck
8. Whitlock
9. Crawford
10. Winckowski
11. Seabold
12. Bello
Some could argue Houck & WShitlock were always meant for the pen, but either way, we just started our 9 through 12 starters, or 7 through 10, in our last 4 games (3 v NYY and 1 v TBR.)
We've used 14 pitchers in relief, not counting Plawecki & JBJ). We've used 13 over 9 innings. Danish is 4th in relief IP, and Schreiber is 7th and moving up. Nobody had them on their radar, last winter or early spring.
Who expected Cordero to have 195 PAs, at this point (10th on team?)
Who expected Refsnyder to be at .968 after 74 PAs.
Duran's 93 PAs (12th on team) may have been expected, but maybe not his ,809 OPS.
In some ways, our bench and depth have held us together long enough to stay relevant. They may not be needed as much, going forward, but they should not be forgotten.
Sure, some of these guys have had some very rough outings, and some stats look god-awful, but when we've needed them most, many have stepped up and delivered, unlike some of our most famous vets.