The Orioles are in a great spot to make the postseason for the second time in three years. They face a difficult decision as to how to configure their postseason roster, specifically the pitching staff. What does the Off The Warehouse staff think the O's should do with their pitchers?
Matt Baggette
Starters: Chris Tillman, Wei-Yin Chen, Miguel Gonzalez, Bud Norris
Bullpen: Zach Britton, Andrew Miller, Darren O'day, Tommy Hunter, Brad Brach, Kevin Gausman T.J. McFarland
Tillman and Chen are no doubters to start.Norris has been consistent this year. Norris also strikes me as a high energy guy that would either thrive or wilt in the playoffs,I am banking on thriving. Gonzalez has been real good lately. He never seems to get rattled and pitched great in his one playoff start in 2012. Gausman moves to the pen and can come in in a jam and strike guys out and be long man insurance. O'day,Miller,Hunter and Britton can make it a six inning game. Brach can be used in any number of ways,as a long man if someone struggles,to come in in a jam in the middle of a game. I don't want to see Matusz on a mound in the playoffs unless the Orioles are facing the Angels,as he owns Josh Hamilton. I am taking only 11 pitchers so they can have an extra man on the bench.And yes at this moment Ubaldo Jimenez is not on my roster.
Christopher Mills
Starters: Chris Tillman, Bud Norris,Wei-Yin Chen, Miguel Gonzalez
Bullpen: Kevin Gausman, Brad Brach, Tommy Hunter, Brian Matusz, Darren O'Day, Andrew Miller, Zach Britton
Tillman is on a tear, allowing 3 earned runs or less in his last 16 starts. He's found his groove and is a no-doubter for the top slot. Norris gets my second spot because of his home and road splits. He has been by far the O's best starter at OPACY and his road numbers are significantly worse. He also had the best WHIP of any O's starter this season. If you want to maximize on matchups, Norris goes here. Chen follows for obvious reasons - he's the next best pitcher, he's a lefty, and most importantly, his 1.6 BB/9, which leads the staff (starters and relievers) by far, and is key in the playoffs. Gonzo has been Mr. Consistency this season and is an easy choice to round out the staff. Gausman struggled a bit the last couple months or I might have had him in the rotation. He excelled in the bullpen last season and his HR/9 and strikeout potential make him very valuable as a long man in the playoffs.
The bullpen is fairly easy, though that's not to say Buck won't break with convention, as is often the case. I include Matusz because a specialist always comes in handy and even though his numbers aren't dazzling, I don't see a better option. Brach gets lefties out extremely well, but he's not a one-batter pitcher. TJ could also sneak in if the Orioles go with a 12-man pen in the playoffs, but I don't see a need or a place for him. He's been very ineffective this season. The rest are elementary, and if the O's starters can get through 6 innings, a 7-8-9 of Miller, O'Day and Britton is all but a lock right now. I have full confidence in the O's pitching going into the playoffs.
Nathan Mullenax
Starters: Chris Tillman, Wei-Yin Chen, Miguel Gonzalez, Bud Norris
Bullpen: Kevin Gausman, T.J. McFarland, Tommy Hunter, Brian Matusz, Andrew Miller, Darren O'Day, Zach Britton
Tillman, Chen, and Gonzalez are the easy picks for starters. Tillman is our best pitcher and Chen and Gonzo have been solid all year, and came through with good starts in the 2012 postseason. However, I don't put Gausman in the rotation for the postseason, and I actually made that decision before Gausman's recent struggles on the mound. Norris gets the nod from me because he has more experience in the Majors and he has been just a bit more consistent on the mound this year.
Gausman, however, will be included as the long man out of the pen. He would be a great asset if, say, Norris makes me look foolish by giving up three runs in the 3rd and loading the bases with one out in the 4th. Gausman has the ability to get you out of an early jam with his strikeout stuff and continue to pitch for an inning or two. The inclusion of Matusz may be a surprise, but I would use him strictly as a lefty specialist in the postseason. While he hasn't been very effective this season, he can still get the job done against left-handed hitters and pitched well overall in 2012. I chose McFarland over Brach (who does basically the same job as Tommy Hunter) because I wanted another lefty option in the pen, and he could be very useful if the O's find themselves going to extra innings, as they did multiple times in the 2012 playoffs.
Pat Maher
Starters: Chris Tillman, Wei-Yin Chen, Miguel Gonzalez, Bud Norris
Bullpen: Kevin Gausman, Andrew Miller, Zach Britton, Tommy Hunter, Brad Brach, Darren O'Day, Brian Matusz
Take away Chris Tillman's two one inning debacles in Pittsburgh and Texas, his ERA for the season sits at 2.73, which would be good for 7th in the American league. Wei-Yin Chen has proven that he can finally consistently give the Orioles 6-7 good innings per start, a vast change from years past when he seemed to hit a brick wall after the 5th inning. Miguel Gonzalez, who spent some time down in the minors as the Ubaldo Jimenez experiment ultimately came to a close, has given up more than three earned runs a grand total of three times this season. These three pitchers look like the locks for a playoff rotation come October. Bud Norris fills out this rotation, taking the last spot from future phenom Kevin Gausman. While Gausman currently features a slightly better ERA, Bud Norris has pitched to a better WHIP, H/9, BB/9, and SO/9 so far this season. I have no doubt in my mind that Kevin Gausman will be a top of the rotation starter very soon, but Bud Norris has stated his case to be a starter come playoff time.
Kevin Gausman will feature as the long man for the Orioles' playoff bullpen, replacing the current long-man Ubaldo Jimenez, who has not earned himself a spot on the playoff roster this season (which is a damn shame). Brad Brach comes in as the middle reliever, sporting a 2.61 ERA and 1.123 WHIP, which is more than enough to earn his place on the bench in left-center field. Lefty-specialist Brian Matusz beats out lefty TJ McFarland because of McFarland's tendency to give up a lot of hits in his appearances (McFarland sports a 1.443 WHIP compared to Matusz's 1.371). At this point, we get to the no-brainers. Despite failing in his role as closer in the beginning of the season, Tommy Hunter has found his old form in the mid-late inning set up role. Trade deadline acquisition Andrew Miller has pitched as advertised and has a keen ability to get the big outs when needed. Darren O'Day is arguably the best reliever in game this year, earning himself a t-shirt night, an honor shared by Oriole greats such as Felix Pie, Ty Wigginton, and Koji Uehara. Last and most certainly not least, the O's trot out their closer, Zach Britton. Zach Britton has been a pleasant surprise after he was thrown into his role replacing Tommy Hunter. Britton has looked absolutely unhittable at times and will prove an important piece in making a deep playoff run.
Ultimately, the starting pitching will prove to being the key in that deep run, however having one of the best bullpens in the game will prove most valuable in times where one run could determine a world champion.
No comments:
Post a Comment