OnlyBucs

534B494E4E59484F525345200 wrote: Watson can pitch in games in which we are way behind or way ahead, or he can come in early in games when we have plenty of time to undo the harm he does.  Those are lower leverage than being closer. 
What do you consider way ahead, I kinda thought 4 runs were pretty good.


Yeah, let's start with 5 and go from there.

4249414D4849521711665F474E4949084549260 wrote: An article over at BD had an interesting idea today that maybe Chad Kuhl would look pretty good coming out of the bullpen.



Taillon to the Rotation

Chad Kuhl to the bullpen

Johnny Barbato to the icy void


Kuhl did hit 100mph yesterday.  I never saw him throw that hard before. 



Kuhl had his "Jeff Locke" game.  Pitched well when a possible demotion was near.


Jeff Locke never threw anywhere close to 100mph, Jeff Locke ain't to Kuhl, he obviously has more speed than Locke.

6E767473736475726F6E781D0 wrote: An article over at BD had an interesting idea today that maybe Chad Kuhl would look pretty good coming out of the bullpen.



Taillon to the Rotation

Chad Kuhl to the bullpen

Johnny Barbato to the icy void


Kuhl did hit 100mph yesterday.  I never saw him throw that hard before. 



Kuhl had his "Jeff Locke" game.  Pitched well when a possible demotion was near.


Jeff Locke never threw anywhere close to 100mph, Jeff Locke ain't to Kuhl, he obviously has more speed than Locke.


I agree with that. I think he could be a pretty interesting late innings reliever.

Hurdle sure did an about face. On Thursday the Trib reported:

As Clint Hurdle sorts out the back end of the Pirates bullpen, the idea of loosely defined roles isn't an option he will consider.



“In a vacuum, that's sounds great for people that aren't tied to the game or don't pitch in the bullpen,” Hurdle said Thursday, a day after closer Tony Watson blew a second consecutive save chance. “It sounds like it makes all the sense in the world. You just float out there and wait for the phone to ring. It does, but that's not how it works, unfortunately.



“There was a time I thought it might work like that, but then you talk to people involved. They do like some routine. They like some rhyme.”



I found that quote disturbing because it seemed to dismiss a reasonable solution. But today the Trib reports:



“There's not a closer,” Hurdle said. “Depending on the lineup, depending on the game situation, Felipe could pitch the eighth. He's going to be in the same role he's been in. Nicasio's going to be in the same role he's been in. One of them will pitch the ninth inning.”



Nicasio transitioned from a starter to reliever in 2014 when he was with the Colorado Rockies. He made 53 relief outings and got his lone save in 2015 with the Los Angeles Dodgers. In 28 outings this season, Nicasio has a 1.35 ERA and 25 strikeouts.



After being traded for Mark Melancon last July, Rivero was heralded as the closer in waiting. Armed with a 100 mph fastball and a nasty changeup, Rivero went into Friday's game with a 0.58 ERA in 31 outings.



Why not choose Nicasio or Rivero?



“I don't feel the best thing for the club to take two of our hotter pitchers ... the hottest pitcher is Rivero — fourth-best in the game right now, by any numbers you want to grab — and put him in the ninth inning not knowing when you're going to get there, how many reps he's going to get,” Hurdle said.



“(Rivero) has got 31 touches. He's been used aggressively. We plan on maintaining that. Nicasio is not far behind him, and his numbers are also very solid. It's the same role. Could one of them come in in the seventh, get the last out and pitch the eighth? Yeah, then the other guy would get the ninth. It's the role they've been doing. It's just, theoretically, it'll be bumped back.”



I like the idea of using Rivero or Nicasio as needed. Glad Hurdle changed his mind.