The Royals are going to have a downright nasty bullpen in 2012. A lot of the younger pitchers the Royals tried out in the pen in 2011 really excelled. If they keep up the good work this year, the Royals really should have a pretty awesome bullpen. Here is a look at how the bullpen stands as of right now:

Closer: Joakim Soria: 27-year old righty Joakim Soria had the worst season of his major league career in 2011, but the Royals refused the deal him last year and that is going to wind up being a great decision. Soria pitched in 60 games (0 starts) for the Royals last year and he was 5-5 with 28 saves, a 4.03 ERA and a 1.28 WHIP. He has now pitched in 298 games (0 starts) in his first five years with the Royals and he is 13-15 with 160 saves, a 2.40 ERA and a 1.04 WHIP. Look for Soria to have a huge comeback year in 2012 for the Royals.

Set-Up Man: Jonathan Broxton: 27-year old righty Jonathan Broxton will be the Royals’ new set-up man in 2012. Broxton pitched in 14 games (0 starts) for the Dodgers last year and he was 1-2 with 7 saves, a 5.68 ERA and a 1.90 WHIP. He has now pitched in 386 games (0 starts) in his first seven years in the majors and he is 25-20 with 84 saves, a 3.19 ERA and a 1.23 WHIP. Broxton is pretty nasty when healthy, which the Royals hope he is in 2012.

Righties: Aaron Crow: 25-year old Aaron Crow pitched in 57 games (0 starts) for the Royals last year and he was 4-4 with a 2.76 ERA and a 1.39 WHIP. Crow made it to the All-Star Team as a rookie last year, so the sky is the limit for him. The Royals might be tempted to move him into the starting rotation, but they should resist and let him to continue to excel in the pen.

Greg Holland: 26-year old Greg Holland was really impressive last year for the Royals. He pitched in 46 games (0 starts) for the Royals last year and he was 5-1 with 4 saves, a 1.80 ERA and a 0.93 WHIP. Holland has now pitched in 61 games (0 starts) in his first two years with the Royals and he is 5-2 with 4 saves, a 2.97 ERA and a 1.11 WHIP. The Royals hope that Holland has an encore in 2012 that looks like his pitching line in 2011.

Louis Coleman: 25-year old Louis Coleman came out of nowhere last year and turned in a very solid rookie year in 2011. He pitched in 48 games (0 starts) for the Royals in his first taste of the majors, and he was 1-4 with 1 save, a 2.87 ERA and a 1.17 WHIP. The Royals hope that Coleman keeps up the good work in 2012.

Blake Wood: 26-year old Blake Wood improved in his second season in the majors for the Royals in 2011. He pitched in 55 games (0 starts) for the Royals last year and he was 5-3 with 1 save, a 3.75 ERA and a 1.41 WHIP. Wood has now pitched in 106 games (0 starts) in his first two years in the majors and he is 6-6 with 1 save, a 4.30 ERA and a 1.46 WHIP.

Nathan Adcock: 23-year old Nathan Adcock was a Rule 5 Pick last year, so the Royals kept him on the staff the whole 2011 season. He pitched in 24 games (3 starts) for the Royals last year and he was 1-1 with 1 save, a 4.62 ERA and a 1.48 WHIP. Unless he has a big spring, Adcock will likely start the 2012 season in AAA-ball.

Jeremy Jeffress: 24-year old Jeremy Jeffress was part of the return for Zack Greinke last winter. He pitched in 14 games (0 starts) for the Royals last year and he was 1-1 with 1 save, a 4.70 ERA and a 1.50 WHIP. He also pitched in 25 games (11 starts) in AA+AAA-ball last year and he was 3-6 with 3 saves, a 5.50 ERA and a 1.78 WHIP. Jeffress has now pitched in 24 games (0 starts) in his first two years in the majors and he is 2-1 with 1 save, a 3.91 ERA and a 1.46 WHIP.

Roman Colon: 32-year old Roman Colon pitched in 27 games (0 starts) in AAA-ball last year for the Dodgers and he was 2-1 with 3 saves, a 4.85 ERA and a 1.35 WHIP. Colon pitched for the Royals in 2009 and 2010. He worked in 48 games (0 starts) in his first two years with the Royals and he was 2-3 with a 5.33 ERA and a 1.51 WHIP. Colon will be a longshot to win a job with the Royals out of spring training.

Lefties: Tim Collins: 22-year old Tim Collins pitched in 68 games (0 starts) as a rookie for the Royals last year and he was 4-4 with a 3.63 ERA and a 1.49 WHIP. He only allowed 52 hits while whiffing 60 batters in his 67 innings last year, and those are impressive numbers. But, he has also walked 48 batters and that is way too many. If Collins starts throwing more strikes, he’s going to really hard for opposing hitters to deal with.

Jose Mijares: 27-year old Jose Mijares is a really good addition to the Royals’ bullpen. He pitched in 58 games (0 starts) for the Twins last year and he was 0-2 with a 4.58 ERA and a 1.69 WHIP. Mijares has now pitched in 186 games (0 starts) in his first four years in the majors and he is 3-6 with a 3.16 ERA and a 1.32 WHIP. Mijares and Collins will give the Royals a nice 1-2 punch from the left side in the bullpen.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE BULLPEN IN 2012: A+