Pitching Change

Yesterday, Kevin Slowey finished the 7th inning with a no-hitter intact. Ron Gardenhire did not bring Slowey in the 8th to finish what he started, instead bringing in the relief. They went on to immediately blow the no-hitter, and the shut-out in that inning. Gardenhire was booed, Slowey was "disappointed," but most importantly, the Minnesota Twins won the game, and Slowey will go on to pitch another day.

The reason Slowey was pulled was simple. He finished the 7th inning with 106 pitches, averaging 15 per inning. To finish the no-hitter, he would finish with close to 140 pitches. This would be fine, if he didn't miss his previous start due to elbow tendinitis. Even if he weren't experiencing elbow issues though, 140 pitches is a lot. Just ask Al Leiter.

It must be devastating to not be allowed to finish an attempt at a no-hitter, but the Twins are in the midst of another divisional showdown in the AL Central. Baseball is entering it's last 1/4 portion of the season, and the Twins need Slowey, ranked 2nd in their depth chart to win more games than just last night's. If this were April, and not August, maybe he would have been allowed to start the 8th, but games are more important now and the Twins need to keep winning to hold off the Chigago White Sox.

Slowey is not an example of pitchers being coddled, just of one avoiding injury. Baseball has changed though to ensure teams get the most years out of their most coveted arms. This is seen by the Yankees, with the "Joba Rules," and now with Phil Hughes, the Nationals with Stephen Strasburg, and many other teams. Teams don't want to overwork their young players to make them last as long as possible. Games are limited to 100 pitches, seasons are limited to 150-200 innings.

The Rangers though, with Nolan Ryan, have a different approach, trying to extend pitchers' outings by one more inning, one more at-bat, to see the pitcher battle back against the opposition. They haven't seen any big injuries due to their strategy, and have a scary team destined for a divisional title. A World Series win this year could force a change to other teams' strategies of how they work their pitchers.

Statistics mean nothing to the individual. If a pitcher is going to need Tommy John surgery or reconstructive shoulder surgery, there is little to do to prevent that. Bob Gibson pitched 3 complete games in one World Series. Pitchers back then pitched more innings, more complete games than pitchers now. Part is due to relievers and closers being able to shut down the opposition at the end of games, but part is due to pitcher coddling. Teams want to see long term benefit from their investments rather than short term brilliance.

Hopefully teams take note of the Rangers' pitching strategy and stop coddling so much, seeing pitchers go late into games is fun. Too much money is invested in the young guns though, and innings and pitch count will be here to stay.