Tuber Times 2062.26: Offseason Glance - Starting Rotation
Posted: Fri Mar 21, 2025 4:43 am
Tuber Times
31 July 2062
Boise, Idaho
**********************************
by Stubby Bardenwerper
Woah, brother. This is just ugly. So much so that we're typing this up late at night so we could get a few drinks in to manage the depression. We won't cover injury issues that took out some players that were going to be relied on in 2062. Looking at what's there now is hard enough.
Starting Rotation
36yo RHP Mahad 'Furball' Einan
17 GS, 9-4, 4.48 ERA, 96.1 IP, 2.8 K/BB, 1.51 WHIP, +1.9 WAR
Teague has used something like this over the 2062 season:
'Furball' Einan
37yo RHP Phil 'Brewmeister' Cole (22 GS, 9-7, 4.15 ERA, 121.1 IP, 2.7 K/BB, 1.28 WHIP, +1.6 WAR)
36yo LHP Muneer bin Khairy
(23 GS, 7-10, 4.51 ERA, 133.2 IP, 1.9 K/BB, 1.43 WHIP, +1.2 WAR)
27yo RHP Buddhapalita Kankipati
(23 G, 18 GS, 6-2, 3.13 ERA, 97.2 IP, 2.0 K/BB, 1.18 WHIP, +0.6 WAR)
36yo LHP Juan Guzmán
(28 G, 16 GS, 7-8, 5.13 ERA, 105.1 IP, 1.3 K/BB, 1.62 WHIP, +0.7 WAR)
*woof* That is one terrible sight to see 4 out of 5 pushing their late 30s and the one below that milestone marker has excellent talent but little to no stamina (he has averaged 77 ppg). And if you say, "Hey, that's just five. Surely more pitchers have been used than that over a season." You're correct, but the other arms are of no consequence to mention. Now let's make things worse. Phil Cole was in the last year of a $12.5m/year deal and wanted a 4-year extension. Not good business. So Cole was sent to Vancouver just to get some kind of return for him. And Einan? The "ace"? He is not just 36 but has a player option for 2063 so it's possible, maybe likely, that he will not be returning. bin Khairy is in the last year of a deal and is seeking an extension. Thorny ground for a guy of his age and unpredictable results. Guzmán belongs in the bullpen. He can master the art of being a starter for stretches of games but inevitably loses his focus so he's not a reliable option.
Who is in the wings waiting to ride in the 2063 cavalry? Well, there's 26yo RHP Tariku Jabiri who has posted a 5.02 ERA in AAA in 2062. 22yo LH prospect Felipe Ledesma has put up dominant numbers in AAA and is the future, but that future is not quite now. 29yo LHP Jack McNeil has put up serviceable numbers in Salt Lake City. 27yo RHP Robert Carlson has had some good starts at the ML level...look, the way things are now, the Spuds are screwed in 2063. But no one, and especially Teague, wants the potentially potent, young Spuds offense to go to waste. So there is the highest urgency to sort this out prior to March 2063. Fortunately, the bullpen is not so ugly (at least at the back end...somewhat soft in the middle).
2063 status: Fucked
31 July 2062
Boise, Idaho
**********************************
by Stubby Bardenwerper
Woah, brother. This is just ugly. So much so that we're typing this up late at night so we could get a few drinks in to manage the depression. We won't cover injury issues that took out some players that were going to be relied on in 2062. Looking at what's there now is hard enough.
Starting Rotation
36yo RHP Mahad 'Furball' Einan
17 GS, 9-4, 4.48 ERA, 96.1 IP, 2.8 K/BB, 1.51 WHIP, +1.9 WAR
Teague has used something like this over the 2062 season:
'Furball' Einan
37yo RHP Phil 'Brewmeister' Cole (22 GS, 9-7, 4.15 ERA, 121.1 IP, 2.7 K/BB, 1.28 WHIP, +1.6 WAR)
36yo LHP Muneer bin Khairy
(23 GS, 7-10, 4.51 ERA, 133.2 IP, 1.9 K/BB, 1.43 WHIP, +1.2 WAR)
27yo RHP Buddhapalita Kankipati
(23 G, 18 GS, 6-2, 3.13 ERA, 97.2 IP, 2.0 K/BB, 1.18 WHIP, +0.6 WAR)
36yo LHP Juan Guzmán
(28 G, 16 GS, 7-8, 5.13 ERA, 105.1 IP, 1.3 K/BB, 1.62 WHIP, +0.7 WAR)
*woof* That is one terrible sight to see 4 out of 5 pushing their late 30s and the one below that milestone marker has excellent talent but little to no stamina (he has averaged 77 ppg). And if you say, "Hey, that's just five. Surely more pitchers have been used than that over a season." You're correct, but the other arms are of no consequence to mention. Now let's make things worse. Phil Cole was in the last year of a $12.5m/year deal and wanted a 4-year extension. Not good business. So Cole was sent to Vancouver just to get some kind of return for him. And Einan? The "ace"? He is not just 36 but has a player option for 2063 so it's possible, maybe likely, that he will not be returning. bin Khairy is in the last year of a deal and is seeking an extension. Thorny ground for a guy of his age and unpredictable results. Guzmán belongs in the bullpen. He can master the art of being a starter for stretches of games but inevitably loses his focus so he's not a reliable option.
Who is in the wings waiting to ride in the 2063 cavalry? Well, there's 26yo RHP Tariku Jabiri who has posted a 5.02 ERA in AAA in 2062. 22yo LH prospect Felipe Ledesma has put up dominant numbers in AAA and is the future, but that future is not quite now. 29yo LHP Jack McNeil has put up serviceable numbers in Salt Lake City. 27yo RHP Robert Carlson has had some good starts at the ML level...look, the way things are now, the Spuds are screwed in 2063. But no one, and especially Teague, wants the potentially potent, young Spuds offense to go to waste. So there is the highest urgency to sort this out prior to March 2063. Fortunately, the bullpen is not so ugly (at least at the back end...somewhat soft in the middle).
2063 status: Fucked