Keegan Akin hurt?

[Moshagge3]

Hyde said today that Tyler Wells is going to be limited due to throwing 95 pitches in his last start. I guess if that was known it makes sense to save Akin to piggyback Wells tonight, although we've seen Akin be less effective pitching on extended rest.

[Aristotelian]

3 hours ago, Moshagge3 said:

Hyde said today that Tyler Wells is going to be limited due to throwing 95 pitches in his last start. I guess if that was known it makes sense to save Akin to piggyback Wells tonight, although we've seen Akin be less effective pitching on extended rest.

Akin could easily have pitched in the bullpen game and still been available to back up Wells. 

[Moshagge3]

3 hours ago, Moshagge3 said:

Hyde said today that Tyler Wells is going to be limited due to throwing 95 pitches in his last start. I guess if that was known it makes sense to save Akin to piggyback Wells tonight, although we've seen Akin be less effective pitching on extended rest.

Aaaaand it's Krehbiel. What on earth.

[OriolesMagic83]

I wonder if Akin is getting stretched out to start (as others have mentioned).  Just seems odd to use him for 3+ innings with such a big lead. 

[InsideCoroner]

Keegan Akin hurt… the feelings of 21,000+ Mariners fans hoping they could climb back into yesterday’s game by throwing three-plus scoreless innings. Nice job to lock down a convincing win. 

[sportsfan8703]

3.1 IP. That’s about what we’re asking from Voth and Watkins. Could Akin be given another shot at starting again soon?

[emmett16]

I think you leave him where he is this year and let him have success.  If he kills it all year maybe think about putting him in the rotation again.  

[Frobby]

He’s been so valuable where he is.   I’d just leave him there.  

[ChuckS]

59 minutes ago, Frobby said:

He’s been so valuable where he is.   I’d just leave him there.  

I can see this perspective but we realistically aren’t competing for a playoff spot this season. No harm in trying him in the rotation and moving him back to a bulk reliever role if it doesn’t work out. 

He’s already only pitching once every five days as it is. 

[Aristotelian]

2 hours ago, sportsfan8703 said:

3.1 IP. That’s about what we’re asking from Voth and Watkins. Could Akin be given another shot at starting again soon?

Why mess with anything? They are all having success in their current roles. Even if we feel a little better about Akin he is still producing value in his current role. I am just glad he is healthy.

[Frobby]

2 minutes ago, ChuckS said:

I can see this perspective but we realistically aren’t competing for a playoff spot this season. No harm in trying him in the rotation and moving him back to a bulk reliever role if it doesn’t work out. 

He’s already only pitching once every five days as it is. 

Once every four games, really.  19 out of 75.   

[ChuckS]

1 minute ago, Frobby said:

Once every four games, really.  19 out of 75.   

Fair enough but whether he is throwing three innings every four games or four to five innings every five games, roughly the same amount of innings will be eaten. 

We need viable starters badly while we seem to be overflowing with quality relievers.  There is no harm in giving him another shot. 

[Just Regular]

Until/unless roster rules change, I think baseball fans are in the early stages of digesting that except for genuine Cy Young candidates (sorry, John Means), to guys like Elias-Blood-Stearns-Neander (and almost all the other 30 GM's Elias characterizes as flat), traditional SP and RP roles barely exist.    For me its part of what makes Max Scherzer raging against the dying of the light such good baseball theater.    Boy do I wish we could get pre-surgery Bedard back today (please please let DL Hall be that), and am I curious to see if Grayson ever gets Jordan Lyles' workload.    Everyone in the game knows what Jordan Lyles on the 2022 Orioles is, even Jordan Lyles.

Late 2023 I'm setting my hopes on 50 pitch chunks of Means the same as Akin and Hall.

Tinkering with the game I'd probably prefer to outlaw Pitcher 12 and Pitcher 13 from the roster before I'd outlaw the shift.

The first four innings of the game are often a low leverage time.

[InsideCoroner]

16 minutes ago, ChuckS said:

Fair enough but whether he is throwing three innings every four games or four to five innings every five games, roughly the same amount of innings will be eaten. 

We need viable starters badly while we seem to be overflowing with quality relievers.  There is no harm in giving him another shot. 

The risk is that he doesn't perform well as a starter and loses confidence in his stuff. Akin has always performed better the first time through a line-up than the second (as a starter .858 OPS 1st time; .927 OPS 2nd time / as a reliever .561 1st time; .692 2nd time), so maybe he's just right in the two- to three-inning role. It's such a dramatic turnaround this year that I wouldn't dare tinker with it.

[Frobby]

16 minutes ago, InsideCoroner said:

The risk is that he doesn't perform well as a starter and loses confidence in his stuff. Akin has always performed better the first time through a line-up than the second (as a starter .858 OPS 1st time; .927 OPS 2nd time / as a reliever .561 1st time; .692 2nd time), so maybe he's just right in the two- to three-inning role. It's such a dramatic turnaround this year that I wouldn't dare tinker with it.

I’ve got mixed feelings about it, but I’m not too worried about shattering Akin’s confidence.   He’s seen that he can perform well in this role.   His mindset has been different this year right from day one and it would be interesting to see how that would play for him as a starter.   But, I do think he’s been very valuable in this role so I’m hesitant to change it.