Mathieson, Zagurski optioned; bullpen appears set
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Mathieson, Zagurski optioned; bullpen appears set
Matt Gelb, Inquirer Staff Writer
CLEARWATER, Fla. -- And then there were 12 healthy pitchers in camp.
The Phillies optioned Scott Mathieson and Mike Zagurski to minor-league camp Saturday morning. With Brad Lidge and Brian Schlitter injured, it appears the team's pitching staff is set.
That is, of course, barring a trade or last-minute waiver acquisition. And I wouldn't rule that out.
UPDATE 11:46 a.m.: For what it's worth, Rich Dubee said the bullpen is not set despite there only being seven pitchers in camp. He could be blowing smoke up your you-know-what, but in an interesting development, Mike Stutes has returned from minor-league camp for the day. He'll pitch in today's Grapefruit League game after Kyle Kendrick and Ryan Madson.
So as it stands, here is your opening day bullpen:
RHP Ryan Madson
RHP Jose Contreras
LHP J.C. Romero
RHP Danys Baez
LHP Antonio Bastardo
RHP David Herndon
RHP Kyle Kendrick
Obviously, closer is a question. That comes down to Madson or Contreras.
But to me, seventh inning is just as big a question. The trickle-down effect of losing Lidge means Contreras is bumped from the seventh. The pitcher who was mostly responsible for that inning over the previous three seasons, Chad Durbin, is in Cleveland.
Look at that list and pick out a guy who can be trusted right now to be the regular seventh-inning man. Yeah.
For reference, here is how the Phillies handled the seventh inning in 2010. Small sample sizes, beware, of course:
| Rk | G | PA â–¾ | AB | HR | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chad Durbin | 36 | 123 | 108 | 2 | 2.15 | .259 | .333 | .454 | .787 |
| 2 | Roy Halladay | 29 | 121 | 115 | 3 | 6.00 | .313 | .336 | .461 | .797 |
| 3 | Cole Hamels | 22 | 81 | 76 | 4 | 7.00 | .211 | .250 | .434 | .684 |
| 4 | Joe Blanton | 15 | 60 | 55 | 6 | 3.00 | .400 | .433 | .782 | 1.215 |
| 5 | Kyle Kendrick | 13 | 47 | 43 | 1 | 1.00 | .326 | .370 | .419 | .788 |
| 6 | J.C. Romero | 18 | 47 | 39 | 1 | 0.63 | .308 | .426 | .410 | .836 |
| 7 | David Herndon | 14 | 46 | 43 | 0 | 4.50 | .302 | .333 | .326 | .659 |
| 8 | Jose Contreras | 11 | 43 | 39 | 1 | 4.00 | .333 | .395 | .462 | .857 |
| 9 | Danys Baez | 12 | 40 | 36 | 1 | 1.50 | .333 | .400 | .583 | .983 |
| 10 | Roy Oswalt | 9 | 30 | 26 | 1 | 1.50 | .154 | .267 | .308 | .574 |
| 11 | Jamie Moyer | 7 | 25 | 22 | 0 | 1.67 | .182 | .280 | .227 | .507 |
| 12 | Antonio Bastardo | 8 | 21 | 16 | 0 | 0.33 | .250 | .429 | .313 | .741 |
| 13 | Nelson Figueroa | 5 | 19 | 14 | 0 | 0.25 | .286 | .444 | .429 | .873 |
| 14 | Ryan Madson | 1 | 6 | 5 | 0 | .400 | .500 | .400 | .900 | |
| 15 | Mike Zagurski | 2 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1.00 | .333 | .500 | .333 | .833 |
| Team Total | 162 | 713 | 640 | 20 | 2.33 | .289 | .352 | .456 | .808 |
By the way, in case you were wondering, the seventh inning was the Phillies' worst (by OPS) in 2010.
| Split | PA | AB | HR | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st inning | 5.11 | 700 | 634 | 17 | 2.20 | .274 | .333 | .416 | .750 |
| 2nd inning | 3.33 | 659 | 621 | 26 | 5.54 | .259 | .291 | .448 | .739 |
| 3rd inning | 3.06 | 659 | 603 | 20 | 3.16 | .240 | .286 | .385 | .671 |
| 4th inning | 3.06 | 656 | 603 | 14 | 3.59 | .239 | .290 | .375 | .665 |
| 5th inning | 3.50 | 664 | 607 | 23 | 2.63 | .245 | .299 | .418 | .717 |
| 6th inning | 3.44 | 680 | 620 | 19 | 2.98 | .258 | .310 | .406 | .716 |
| 7th inning | 5.00 | 713 | 640 | 20 | 2.33 | .289 | .352 | .456 | .808 |
| 8th inning | 2.28 | 663 | 581 | 10 | 2.43 | .224 | .299 | .339 | .638 |
| 9th inning | 4.35 | 568 | 498 | 15 | 2.37 | .249 | .336 | .390 | .726 |
In 2009, the seventh inning was the team's best (a .664 OPS against and 3.47 ERA). And in 2008, the seventh inning was also the team's best (a .635 OPS against and a 2.61 ERA).
What does this all mean? Hard to say. The seventh is usually the inning in which a starting pitcher may tire and a reliever is brought in with men on base.
After Durbin, Roy Halladay (.797 OPS), Cole Hamels (.684) and Joe Blanton (1.215) faced the most batters of any Phillies pitcher in the seventh inning. Those numbers for Halladay and Blanton are not pretty, so that is less blame upon the relievers.
And yes, the Phillies have a rotation of four aces and hope the seventh inning is pitched by a starter. On some nights it will be. On others it will not.
Is Baez that guy to take over in the seventh? The guess is he will be the first choice, merely by default.
But remember 2008. Durbin entered that season as the long man / mop-up guy. In a few months, he had taken over the seventh and became a trusted reliever.
The Phillies must hope either Bastardo, Herndon or Kendrick follows the same route.
Have a question? Send it to Matt Gelb's Mailbag.
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Are they both protected because they are on 40 man roster? I'd had to lose Mathieson; he's got potential.— terrycindyian- I'll take my chances with Herndon or Bastardo over Baez.— scootch
- 7th probably one of the "Bs" (Bastardo or Baez) depending on the opposing lineup; let's hope the starters have many strong games...— M60tanker
- Chol & Dubee will give Herndon a long look, but the job is currently Baez's - he may lose it quickly.— Ed3
- What we've determined is that starters have covered the seventh inning, and with Lee and Oswalt over a full season, they will continue to pitch the seventh. Unless Manuel starts to have a quick hook, that's what we'll continue to see.— tgray83
- Kendrick over Mathieson? Really? I don't think that will last long.— Phront_Runner
- What is dubee's problem with Mathieson..?
Kendrick would be a weak fifth starter on the Pirates, for crying out loud!!— patrickstar - Baez has had some good years in the Majors. It's true last season was not one of them. Reliever are notoious for being up and down from season to season. If Baez and Romero return to form the Phillies bullpen will be just fine. Lidge needs to be completely shutdown until he is 100 percent healthy. They need him strong and healthy come playoff time if they are ever going to win another World Series.— Paul SoTX
- This bullpen has been completely neglected that past 2 years and could prove to be their achillies heel.— Citizenc92
- as much as I dislike kendrick, you have to keep him on the roster. He is rotation depth in case of injury. Worley should be behind him on the depth chart (at this moment)— therev
- Gag. Why on earth do we still have to keep Baez around? I'd rather see Mathieson or Zagurski on the mound instead of him. I'd like to keep Worley in AAA so he can really keep on top of his game. I see an incredibly bright future for that kid.— bingbangbong
- I thought Zagurski out pitched Bastardo by a ton. I guess they need Baez as a translator for Contreras. It seems to me the Phillies aren't making these decisions based on merit. Just reputation.
- It would be nice if Baez earned the money he is being paid and step up and be that guy. Hopefully he can rebound from a poor 2010 season.— BillHicksLives!
- as I've written so many times, this is the worst team in baseball for a kid to break in with. all winter long, we read about the chance (the need) for 2 or 3 kids to make the bullpen this year, to make up for the bloated payroll after Cliff Lee's signing. That was before we believed that Romero was coming back. Add to that the guarantee that Baez and Herndon were automatic keepers because of previous commitments, and Kendrick seems to be untouchable to Charlie, and you have the perfect recipe for why Scott Mathieson and Vance Worley and Michael Stutes must be feeling awfully bad today.
The fact is, THEY NEVER HAD A SHOT! Bastardo is the only kid kept simply because he's a lefty and Schlitter got hurt.
Many of us were actually happy to read back in December that the 'pen would need to be staffed by a couple of kids, because we knew how relatively weak our bullpen was last year and we knew the realities of dealing with Baez, Herndon, Romero and Kendrick from last year. But here we are, and those four all kept their jobs ! Just amazing.— advantasux - Challenger...if Herndon isn't the definition of a kid, then I don't know what is. He'll be 25 most of the season, and if reports of his improved slider are accurate, he should put up a decent year. Last year was his first in the majors, so he isn't in the pen because they owe him 2+ mil. I'd rather see Kendrick and Worley stretched out in AAA and one of Stutes, Mathieson, or Schwimer go north.— JammRock
- Got tired of seeing Kendrick get hit hard every inning and during the third inning of today's game at Bright House I had enough and left. Earlier I had come from watching Mathieson show off his slider, spitter and fastball in a morning minor league game for two innings. He is major league ready.— Dull
- I think Mathieson will be back before you know it. I watched him and he looks like he's ready. Give him the ball!!!— Phillyexp
- I don't see Kendrick lasting as a bullpen guy. He doesn't throw strikes. I thought Mathieson would make it with Lidge on the DL but I also like Herndon. I think we'll see Mathieson soon enough. I think Bastardo's past experience in the majors gave him the edge over Zgurski but I agree: based strictly on spring training Zagurski was better. He surprised me so maybe he'll be back. I can see in in an Eyre type of role.— s
- I'm with JammRock. My bullpen today would have Herndon instead of Kendrick and Mathieson. I'd also have a very short leash for Baez. If he hasn't turned it around then give someone like Stutes a shot. But you forget last year and start with him in the pen.— s
- Herndon or Bastardo will step up and claim that 7th inning spot. If there are holes, we have Stutes, Worley, Mathieson and even Zagurski (I am surprised) waiting in AAA. This is the first year I can remember that our pitching staff has deep, quality support waiting to be called up, if needed.— eman
- Herndon is your man, cholly. Let's Go Phightins!— flyerdup
- If its Baez....the phils lose that game.— hititwheretheyaint
- So, what deal is in the works, Dubee? Who stays and who goes?— CouchKing
- Good to see Herndon make it again. I hope Stutes isn't going in a deal.— Joe at the shore
- And Stutes did well again today, lowest era of Spring Phils staff... Is Dubee giving him another shot or just a filler 'til they head North...— M60tanker
- Get real, this bullpen won't be set all year— shawnmac
- Why is Baez the 7th by default? He was the worst RP in the 7th last year. Bring back Moyer, he was the best.— P Even
- after spending so many millions, they didnt want to spend a couple extra million on Durbin. he would have been a great insurance policy. they didnt plan on that, and should have with Lidge always having some issues. Baez scares me to death.— Big D phillies fan
- Baez,Herndon,KK,Bastardo,JC?
Wow this is dark to the Fab Fours light. The evil vs their good.
How in the hell did Stutes NOT make this bullpen? Just Wow!— argonne - those stats are so wrong. the phillies gave up an average of 5 runs in the first inning? that means after the first inning the other team has 5 runs. try again gelb and get your stats straight.— cje246
- Cut Baez already— Obie74
- How long are the Phillies going to hold on to Zagurski? Most ushers are in better condition than him.— Disco Dave
- They're spending more than $70 million on the rotation this year, so there shouldn't be a 7th inning to worry about. If the 7th is a problem, then the rotation is underachieving. And this team goes as far as the rotation carries them. Therefore, no call for this peice.— JodyMac
- JodyMac is right. The 7th should not be a regular concern with the rotation. You have Contreras and Madson for the 8th and 9th which I'm pretty comfortable with (in reverse order maybe). That leaves Romero, Bastardo, Baez, and Herndon for the 7th when you to use your bullpen there. Baez may have sucked last year but you have to give him a shot to start. His spring hasn't been bad.— s
- Herndon is apparently in possesion of a picture of RAJ with a goat.— NewMick314
