A Convenient Problem: The Pitching Logjam

If you want to control their innings/pitch counts, why not go to a system where one of them starts and the other comes on in the 4th/5th inning? It would save the bullpen, too.

I don’t think a rule about having him not warm up on consecutive days is materially different than some kind of pitch count per start. It still involves innings that have to be made up by other relievers. And to pitch in the rotation, he’d have to be up to the normal schedule of bullpen sessions anyway. So you only bring him back if he’s up to the task of major league pitching and I think he would pitch less and more effectively in a bullpen.

If he started, with Leake we’d have two starters with caps on their innings in the rotation. That doesn’t seem wise. I think jch’s idea is pretty interesting, but it would also burn a bullpen spot, as probably neither Leake nor Volquez would be available until their next co-start.

In the first two months of 2002, Scott Williamson did not pitch on back to back days. It was a team rule that he was not allowed to pitch two days in a row. He also wasn’t allowed to warm up on back to back days, because he had Tommy John Surgery in April of 2001.

Matt Morris did not make a single start in 2000, recovering from 1999 Tommy John Surgery. He did not pitch in back to back days the entire season, his first big league appearance was May, 30, rather when he did pitch it seemed he often went multiple innings.

Ryan Dempster returned from from Tommy John Surgery in August of 2004, after going under the knife in August of 2003. He pitched on back to back days on only four occasions in 2004 and once he pitched 3 days in a row. Of course he was pitching under Dusty and the Cubs were in a playoff chase. But Dusty has shown to have learned from his mistakes, he has treated Bailey, Volquez, Cueto, and Leake with care.

This proves that if an organization puts limits on a pitcher, he doesn’t have to warm up or pitch on back to back days. The Reds started out 2002 pretty hot, they were in first place for a lengthy period of time, but they were able to hide Williamson in the bullpen the first two months of the season. Pretty much the rule with Volquez should be that if he warms up, he pitches, and he pitches clean innings. Make him the 7th or 8th inning guy and don’t try to get him up quickly so he can clean up a mess.

Another thing to keep in mind is that pitching out of the bullpen usually requires that he be able to warm up quickly. A starter coming off of surgery will probably have a hard time with that.

Ron Robinson had a similar problem in 1990 after coming off of 2 elbow surgeries. They wanted him to pitch in the bullpen, but he could never get warmed up enough, so they traded his ugly ass for Glenn Braggs.

John Smoltz, Billy Wagner, David Wells, Matt Morris, Jason Isringhausen, Tom Gordon, Jon Lieber, Erik Bedard, Paul Byrd, Chris Capuano, Billy Koch, and Rafael Soriano.

lets see if somebody will still pay him about the $10 M he is still owed between the rest of his 2010 contract and his buytout!

trade Cairo for a solider relief pitcher!

Harang has been worth waaaay more than his contract. he just did all his damage at the front end.

I love Harang, but its a business and we have some young guns, I think he is pitching better this year than he has the past two.

Regardless, as I put in the title of the post “convenient problem” No matter what the starting 5 looks like the others should absolutely be utilized in the bullpen.

Volquez, Bailey, Harang, Cueto, Chapman, LeCure, Arroyo, Leake

It doesnt matter how you look at it, it is nice.