Pitcher Maximization

by GuyinNY on May 1, 2008 11:30 PM EDT

I'm curious as to how the community feels about bringing up pitchers. Given a top prospect fresh out of high school, what do you think is the best way to bring the pitcher along? Furthermore, I'm curious as to how you guys who would handle your major league staff if it was carrying a young starter or two, like the Yankees.

This season seems to represent a swing in the pendulum against pitch counts and inning caps, as the Rangers have decided to unbridle their farmhands to a certain extent, the Phillies are letting Cole Hamels go deeper into starts, and most notably, Roy Halladay is (efficiently) throwing a ton of innings.

Teams remain loathe to incur the Year After Effect for most of their starters, but we seem to be seeing a move back towards heavier use of their starters.

Personally, I'm giddy to see pitchers more willing to work with a mind towards relying on their defense so they can go deeper into games and spare the bullpen. And I'd definitely run my farm to build up arms as much as possible, even if that means running the risk of incurring some injuries along the way.

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Speaking of going deep into starts

Any notice Felix Hernandez’s pitch counts this season? I understand them not wanting to baby him to some extent, but the kid’s still so young and his pitch counts are just ridiculous and are a red flag. I think he would have done much better in his most recent start if he wasn’t left out there for so long…

Hey fish, leave those kids alone!

by The Congo Hammer on May 2, 2008 1:21 AM EDT 0 recs

Felix

Well, in fairness to the M’s, I think we have to consider a few things :
1) They found extra rest for Felix after his complete game.
2) His pitch totals, while higher than most, have been consistent (115-117) and spaced out over 7+IP.
3) The Mariners are going for it this year, and Felix may well be the best pitcher in baseball. Yes, he’s not out of the “injury nexus” yet, but Felix also already has two full MLB workloads under his belt. The M’s are simply loosening the reigns and trying to build Felix’s arm up.

I'd argue that, done within reason, the Mariners owe Felix this opportunity to build his arm up and see just how good he can really become.   There's also a school of thought which says that an arm injury for Felix is inevitable due to his mechanics and if that is the case, it would behoove the M's to get as much as they can out of El Cartuela.  Personally, I'd find an extra day for Felix here and there and be quick to pull him when he doesn't have his best stuff, but otherwise? I'm going to ride Felix this season and if there's a pennant race, then I'm really going to let loose.  Felix Hernandez is blossoming into an ace and part of that role is the ability to shoulder a very heavy workload.  The only way to do that is to build your arm up through pitching and adapting to a heavier workload.   The key is just to avoid letting it become abuse (130+ IP in back to back outings this season, etc.)

I’d really love to know how some of the pitching experts who visit this board (HuskerBob, and if he’s out there, Will Carrol) feel about this.

by GuyinNY on May 2, 2008 10:10 AM EDT up 0 recs

I'm no expert

But I would have him pitch deeper into games but occasionally bump a start back. I would also have him skip about 3 starts. Probably one halfway to the all-star break and two after the all-star break. This way he will go deeper into games and be more effective for the stretch run and even having a little left for the playoffs if they make it.

I think it’s pretty obvious getting extra rest counters the higher workloads. When done within reason. We see this in the Japanese league and in college ball. The problem with college ball is some teams go above and beyond. Instead of going 110 to 125 pitches they are getting close to 150.

by pedrophile on May 4, 2008 2:39 PM EDT up 0 recs