Kenny Rogers went 3 and 2/3 for Toledo yesterday, marking a solid return to the mound. Kenny allowed just three hits and no runs, and made a typically stunning defensive play for the final out of his appearance. Rogers struck out two and walked none, throwing 51 pitches.
Rogers hopes to be rejoining the rotation some time in June. The only problem is exactly whose spot he's going to take. There's no question that Kenny deserves to come right back into a rotation spot, the only problem is that his replacement, Chad Durbin, has been out pitching both Nate Robertson and Mike Maroth as of late.
I know that at the start of the year I was calling for Durbs' head. I wanted him out, Andrew Miller in, and then Miller to the minors when Kenny came back from injury. So far though, Durbs has proved me totally wrong, with a solid 5-2 record (should be 6-1 after an undeserved loss on Friday) and has looked completely unhittable in several of his starts. Durbin may not be the prettiest pitcher- he lets in runs, walks a few, and looks shaky every now and again- but he gives the team a chance to win pretty much every time he comes out nowadays.
If I were Jim Leyland, this is what I would do- let Durbin keep his well-earned spot, and have Kenny take over Mike Maroth's position in the line-up and either trade Mikey or move him to the pen. As rough as that is for Mike, he often looks like the odd man out in a otherwise solid pitching rotation. If it came down to playoff time, Mike Maroth might be the last Tiger pitcher I want to see on the mound. Maroth has been here through the bad times and now the good, but it might be time to see him off. The Tigs need another reliever at the moment to shore up the bullpen, and Maroth might be enough bait to lure someone into sending over a half-decent set up guy.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment