Keying the Rotation

[Edgy MD]

So, now that Dickey is pretty much the number one starter, and being that his only competition for that role is somebody the team is trying to nurse back from injury, is it not advisable that the team consider keying the rotation to Dickey --- pitching him every fifth day, rather than every fifth game, and therefore using days off to occasionally either skip Johan or bump him back a day or so? Try and make sure the off days fall with either Santana or Young?

[smg58]

No argument from me. Dickey is pitching at a level where you have to try to maximize the innings you can get from him.

[Benjamin Grimm]

I agree with maximizing Dickey, at least as long as this crazy run of his lasts. But I think Terry's opinion (rightly or wrongly) is that extra rest messes with Johan. That seems to be the lesson he took from Santana's two post-no-hitter starts.

[Edgy MD]

Yeah, but Terry was regretting getting him two extra days rather than one. He's still on a program, I think, of getting Johan rest when he can.

If not, then this becomes easier --- skip number five whenever there's a day off.

[G-Fafif]

It's tempting, but then you're screwing with four other pitchers, three of whom have been pitching pretty to very well and one who is Johan Santana who except for two starts since his no-hitter was pitching extraordinarily well just about every start. R.A., meanwhile, has thrived on four days' rest and thrived on five days' rest. I'd prefer to get the most possible out of each starter as is.

Besides, a disruption to the five-man rotation is always just a rainout or something worse away.

[G-Fafif]

If everybody stays in place, R.A. figures to have three starts before the ASG: Sunday night vs MFYs, Friday 7/29 at LA and Thursday July 5 home to Philly.

July 10 is the All-Star Game.

[Ceetar]

G-Fafif wrote: If everybody stays in place, R.A. figures to have three starts before the ASG: Sunday night vs MFYs, Friday 7/29 at LA and Thursday July 5 home to Philly. July 10 is the All-Star Game.

That works for me. I'd bring back Dickey to start the first game after the break too, to insure he faces both the Braves and the Nats, but that's getting ahead of ourselves.

But with the exception of t he last place Phillies, the Mets don't play a division rival until after, so there isn't a lot of worry about aligning the rotation that way.

[Edgy MD]

I'm not trying to propose anything radical here. Keying the rotation to make sure your top guy goes every fifth day is pretty common.

Since they have two post-surgical pitchers that they want to buy an extra day of rest for here and there anyhow, it's really keying the rotation to keep the top three as close to schedule as possible.

[Ceetar]

Edgy DC wrote: I'm not trying to propose anything radical here. Keying the rotation to make sure your top guy goes every fifth day is pretty common. Since they have two post-surgical pitchers that they want to buy an extra day of rest for here and there anyhow, it's really keying the rotation to keep the top three as close to schedule as possible.

I'm okay with it via skipping Chris Young, I don't like the sliding Dickey forward that puts everyone on 6 days rest though.

[Frayed Knot]

G-Fafif wrote: If everybody stays in place, R.A. figures to have three starts before the ASG: Sunday night vs MFYs, Friday 7/29 at LA and Thursday July 5 home to Philly. July 10 is the All-Star Game.

- So, at least pre-ASG, moving him up a day or so is NOT going to but him an extra start so it makes sense to stick with a strict rotation for now and not change things around after Thursday's off day.
- Re-ordering things after the break is a possibility but the break itself buys everyone a few extra days anyway so I'm not sure you want to give the rest of the staff even more.
- Down the road if/when pennant/WC implications are involved it's worth considering.

[Edgy MD]

Even just taking advantage of Thursday's off day, you bump Young, and you get Niese/Dickey/Santana against the Yankees, all on standard four days rest, instead of Niese/Young Dickey. That sort of thing can buy you a few games over a season.

Again, it's nothing radical. Hodges, Johnson, and Valentine all keyed their rotation to make sure their top starter got no more rest than was deemed medically appropriate, and off days were used to maximize the chance to use better starters rather than lesser ones.

[TransMonk]

Ceetar wrote: I'm okay with it via skipping Chris Young...

Or Gee...until Young shits the bed, I have the least amount of cahnfidence in Gee's starts (although, I'm still optimistic with Gee).

But, I'm in agreement...after the All-Star break, Dickey should be pitching every 5th day. Whether we're skipping Johan, Young or Gee should really depend on the standings and how each individual pitcher feels and performs.

[Guest LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr]

Key the rotation to him, use him on throw days in the bullpen, use him on other off days in the 'pen, have him replace Ojeda on the postgame show.

[Frayed Knot]

TransMonk wrote: Ceetar wrote: I'm okay with it via skipping Chris Young... Or Gee...until Young shits the bed, I have the least amount of cahnfidence in Gee's starts (although, I'm still optimistic with Gee). But, I'm in agreement...after the All-Star break, Dickey should be pitching every 5th day. Whether we're skipping Johan, Young or Gee should really depend on the standings and how each individual pitcher feels and performs.

I suppose a lot of this depends on whether they think a guy like Young needs more work due to his lengthy lay-off or would better off with less due to the problems that caused it.
With Gee a case could certainly be made that he faded last season at least partially on account of hitting innings totals not previously reached. Throwing in a five-day break here and there might help that.

[nymr83]

If you don't use either of the two remaining offdays before the all-star break to flip the rotation, you end up with RA Dickey on normal rest for the All-Star game, all ready to 1-hit the American League's best players (plus Jeter) in the first All-Star Complete Game in ages!

[Edgy MD]

"So I was at CitiField the other day, all psyched to see R.A. Dickey. And I'm heading through the turnstiles, and who do you think is ripping my ticket? R.A. Fucking Dickey, that's who! I'm thinking, 'that's strange.' Before getting to my seat, I want to grab a beer. And wouldn't you know that it's R.A. Dickey pouring the fucking beer. Smooth, too. Not too much head. And he's pouring the good stuff, too. I don't go up to the Budweiser counter. Maybe Hefner is over there pouring that shit, I don't know. Anyhow, we settle into our seats, and R.A. Dickey is introducing the lineup, exorting cheers from the crowd, wiping down the odd wet seat for a latecoming patron. He sings the Nationalfucking Anthem, and he don't cheat on the high notes, neither. I get a tear in my eye, because, you know, my father served in Korea, and then he introduces himself as he jogs out to the mound."

"You'd think it would come off as arrogant, but it wasn't. Because he's Dickey. Fuck 'em all, he's fucking DICKEY, you know? Here I am, calling in to FAN the night before, saying 'Terry has to use this guy as much as he can --- let him carry the team as far as he can.' Maybe Terry was listening, maybe he wasn't, but here he's giving Dickey a chance to carry the whole goddam organization. I'm half wondering if he's gonna do some Bugs Bunny shit out there by playing every position. But he doesn't. Because that would be stupid."

"But he gets through the first inning untouched with two strikeouts because, you know, he's ridiculously awesome. Makes Adam Jones look like a piece of shit. Punk that guy is. In my day, I tell you.... Anyhow, he gets Jones and starts walking to the dugout, and then walks right past it, through the gate, into the stands and starts in with what I can only call his 'between-innings duties.' He's signing copies of his book, he's shooting fucking tee shirts, he's selling popcorn, he's giving advice on filling out my All Star ballot. Fuck you, Jason Bay, I'm not voting for you."

"Second inning, he throws a few out of the strike zone, and then he has sort of a visit to the mound with himself. It culminates with him rolling his eyes back in his head like Luke FUCKIN' Skywalker using the force. And then bam! thwak! pow! Baltimore Orioles are going down like nameless Joker henchmen in Batman. The Adam West one. The only one. That one they're doing now is sick shit. I won't let my kid watch that shit."

"Third inning, he's in the booth filling in for Darling. Saying something about critical theory with regards to the hit-and-run. He's of the Horkheimer school while Mex was sticking with Walter Benjamin. Heady stuff that was about two beers past me, but impressive nonetheless. Fourth inning, he's throwing on the side. HE'S IN THE MIDDLE OF A GODDAM START and he's THROWING ON THE SIDE to get ready for his next start!"

"He completes the game, strikes out everybody, drives in three runs, stabs a liner behind his back like he's Curly Neal, coaches third during the eighth-inning rally. I don't know what he's doing between the other innings --- scanning the waiver wires, negotiating his contract on behalf of the team with his own agent, doing a neurological workup on Jayson Bay, I don't know. I swear he was probably wiping babies' asses at the Koala Kare station. But anybody who says that calling in to WFAN is a waste of time is full of it. We're riding Dickey 'til he drops. I had a great night, drank way too many beers, and I'm feeling no pain."

"Listen, I've got to go now, I'm home. Yeah, she's gonna be pissed, but fuck it. Third house on the left, R.A."

[Lefty Specialist]

Just pray he doesn't trim Bob Ojeda's bushes between starts.