Options For Tuesday Night's Start Against Cubs
The injury bug has not been too kind to the Pittsburgh Pirates both on the offensive and pitching side of the ball. In total, the Pirates have 10 different players on either the 10-day or 60-day IL, and it is beginning to expose some of the inexperience on this team. As a result, the Pirates have dropped to 18-28 and just came off a series where they were outscored 37-8 by the Atlanta Braves. However, one injury that the Pirates have yet to address is the one that saw Trevor Cahill exit after just two innings in his last start. He has been placed on the 10-day Injured List and the subsequent move was that Kyle Crick was activated from his 10-day IL stint. The move still leaves Pittsburgh with only four starters and a hole in the rotation for the series opener against the Chicago Cubs.
The Pirates have used a total of seven different starting pitchers this year, which isn't too bad for almost being two months into the season. Will Crowe and Miguel Yajure are the only two pitchers aside from the starting five at the beginning of the year that has made starts for this team. However, there are a couple of different routes the Pirates could go to name a starter for that opener as they fix their rotation. They aren't just looking for a starter, but a stopper of sorts as the rotation has been getting batted around. Over the last seven days, Pirates starters have had a 9.00 ERA, good for second-worst in baseball and they need someone to turn in a quality outing. Today, we look at some options the Pirates could turn to as they try to plug a hole in their rotation.
RHP Chad Kuhl (0-1, 6.32 ERA)
The first option for the Pirates, and probably the easiest out of any of them, would be for the team to activate Chad Kuhl off the Injured List to make the start. Kuhl went on the IL on April 22nd with right shoulder discomfort. It was not a good start to the year for the Pirate's Opening Day starter, as he had a 6.32 ERA through his first four starts of the season. The biggest problem for Kuhl was the walks as he allowed 16 free passes in 15.2 innings of work. These walks were coming back to bite him as he ended up allowing more runs (14) than hits (12) on the season. In fact, he wasn't getting hit hard at all really with an opponent batting average of .222 in those four games.
He was sent down to Triple-A Indianapolis on a rehab assignment on May 18th and looked good in his first appearance. He threw three scoreless innings of work in the game and allowed just one hit while striking out five. However, the most impressive stat for Kuhl on the night would probably be the fact that he allowed just the one walk. If the Pirates deem that Kuhl is ready, he could slide right back into the Pirates rotation and try to show that he is fully healthy. The rehab stint would put him on six days rest if he were to return on Tuesday, which would put him right back into the mix. However, with Kuhl, it is unsure how much length he will give you, and for a bullpen that has been taxed that could be a problem to start the series.
Miguel Yajure (0-1, 3.68 ERA)
Another option the Pirates could use is going back to their young pitching prospect Miguel Yajure for his third start of the season. In his first two outings, Yajure has looked good despite mixed results. Overall, he is 0-1 with a 3.86 ERA, but in his last start with the Pirates, he pitched really well going five innings of one-hit ball while walking one and striking out five. Overall, Yajure does a nice job of changing speeds, using his fastball, cutter, and change-up in tandem to mix speeds and breaks of his pitches. He isn't a guy who will light up the radar gun, but he knows how to manipulate his pitches and keep a batter guessing throughout an at-bat.
Yajure's last start came with the Indianapolis Indians on May 20th, so he would be right in line to fall into the rotation for Tuesday's game. If the Pirates don't think Chad Kuhl is ready to return from the Injured List, this is the next best move that makes sense for the team. The Pirates would have to make a move to clear a spot for Yajure, but luckily they most likely won't have to designate anyone for assignment. The most likely candidate to get sent down is reliever Kyle Keller, who has only spent a few weeks with the Big League club. This move would reward Yajure for a solid start in his last outing with the Pirates and would allow him to build off that experience with a possible longer-term spot in the rotation.
Clay Holmes (1-0, 3.38 ERA)
If the Pirates would rather stand pat with the 26 guys they have right now, an option for them would be to have one of their bullpen guys as a spot starter. Luis Oviedo pitched two days ago and Kyle Keller has never started in his professional career, so for me, that would leave Clay Holmes to take the start. After a rough outing at the beginning of the year, Holmes has really come back down to earth as of late. He lowered his ERA from 23.14 after a bad outing on April 6th, all the way back down to a more respectable 3.38 entering play on Tuesday night. Holmes knew this was his last chance in the Majors with the team that drafted him back in 2011, and the 28-year-old is making sure he takes advantage of every opportunity.
Holmes last pitched on May 23rd, however, he only worked 0.2 innings in that game. The last full appearance he made was on May 20th, putting him right in line with that May 25th start. However, the big problem with Holmes is going to be the length he could go into a ball game. He hasn't started a Major League game since September 30th, 2018, against the Cincinnati Reds, and he has been generally relegated as a one to two-inning pitcher. The question would become just how much does Shelton want
to task his bullpen at the start of the series. If Holmes would get the call and could give the Pirates at least four strong innings, it may be a move that Shelton and his staff may want to consider.
Chase De Jong (2-0, 3.60 Triple-A)
As the only guy who has yet to throw a pitch for the Pirates in 2021 on this list, Chase De Jong would come up with something to prove. He was cut on the last day of Spring Training 2021, where he posted one of the best ERAs on the club of just 1.88 over 14.1 innings of work. He supplemented that by having a hot start to the season at Triple-A Indianapolis, in his first two starts. He allowed just two earned runs in his first 11 innings of work and has pitched to a 3.60 ERA this season through four starts. He has struck out 28 batters in 20.1 innings of work and has walked just eight. He has struck out at least six batters or more in every game and allowed two earned runs or less in three out of four starts.
The problem with recalling De Jong would be that the Pirates would have to once again make a move to Designate someone for Assignment. They have made several of these moves already this season, and they would have to make another tough decision. The current roster already has 14 pitchers, and it would likely be one of the pitchers on the staff that gets designated. And, when guys like Chad Kuhl return from the injured list, De Jong would most likely he would be the guy that gets sent down. He is just 26 years old and could be a guy the Pirates want to use in the future, and designating him for assignment would open him up to being taken by another team.
The Pittsburgh Pirates (18-28) are back in action tomorrow night when they take on the Chicago Cubs (24-22) at 6:35 pm. The Pirates have not yet named a starter for tomorrow against Jake Arietta (4-4, 4.46) for the Cubs. You can watch the game on AT&T Sportsnet, listen on 93.7 The Fan, or follow along with us on Twitter at @Buccos_Cove.
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