The Pirates are open to the idea
of using the opener next season. Shortly after completing
the trade that sent right-hander Ivan Nova to the
White Sox, Pirates general manager Neal Huntington acknowledged that Pittsburgh
has discussed the possibility of filling his rotation spot with an
"opener" and an innings-eating "follower," a strategy that
turned out to be surprisingly successful for the Rays last season.
That's only one option for the
Pirates as they look to round out their rotation. Huntington said they aren't
committed to it yet. Pittsburgh will continue to look at starters who are
available as free agents or on the trade market. Jordan Lyles could
compete for that spot with current candidates like Nick Kingham and Steven Brault.
Or maybe the Pirates will eschew
traditional every-fifth-day roles and trot out an opener: a reliever who starts
the game.
The Rays utilized the opener most
often, mainly out of necessity to prop up their injury-ravaged rotation, but
other clubs adopted the strategy as the year went on. The Twins experimented
with the opener in September. The A's used Liam Hendriks in
the role to start the American League Wild Card Game. The Brewers created their
own terminology, referring to their starters as "initial out-getters"
as they bullpenned their way deep into the postseason.
It's different from an old-fashioned
"bullpen game," because one pitcher is still responsible for covering
most of games started by openers. But that "follower," as Huntington
called it, doesn't have to face the top of the lineup, which is typically
stacked with a club's best hitters, three times in one game. Statistics show
that most pitchers are significantly less effective the third time through the
order.
The Pirates might not do it at
all if someone establishes himself as a reliable fifth starter, but Huntington
said he's had conversations about the concept with manager Clint Hurdle. It
would require a deep, durable bullpen with plenty of viable relief options
waiting in Triple-A. But they wouldn't need to put that plan into action as
often as the Rays did because they have four established starters: Jameson
Taillon, Chris Archer, Trevor
Williams and Joe Musgrove.
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