The Wild Card Series round of the 2020 postseason was thrilling and gave us a taste of what's to come during the rest of this unprecedented month in baseball history. But deploying a pitching staff in a three-game series is one thing; doing that in a five-game series, especially when
The Wild Card Series round of the 2020 postseason was thrilling and gave us a taste of what's to come during the rest of this unprecedented month in baseball history. But deploying a pitching staff in a three-game series is one thing; doing that in a five-game series, especially when there are no days off in the schedule, is quite another. So how will each team in the Division Series round attack this new format, which poses unique challenges as the eight remaining clubs vie to advance one step closer to the ultimate goal of a World Series title?
With the help of each club's MLB.com beat writer, we break down what pitching staff strategies may be utilized to reach the League Championship Series.
American League
Rays: The Rays will lean on Blake Snell, Tyler Glasnow and Charlie Morton to provide the bulk of innings in the ALDS against the Yankees. If the series extends past Game 3, the Rays will likely turn to Josh Fleming and Ryan Yarbrough to pitch the bulk of innings and it’s likely that the club utilizes an opener ahead of the Game 4 starter. The Rays will prioritize having multi-inning relievers on their roster, such as Shane McClanahan, who is still waiting to make his Major League debut after not pitching in the Wild Card Series against the Blue Jays. If the series extends to a fifth game, manager Kevin Cash will likely call on Snell to provide at least a pair of innings and maybe Glasnow for a high-leverage spot out of the bullpen. -- Juan Toribio
Yankees: The Yankees have one easy call entering their ALDS against the Rays, handing the ball to Gerrit Cole for Game 1 fresh off a 13-strikeout, no-walk gem against the Indians in the Wild Card Series. Beyond that, manager Aaron Boone says they are still ironing out their rotation, though they will start Masahiro Tanaka, J.A. Happ, Deivi Garcia and Jordan Montgomery in some order. The idea of giving Cole a second start on short rest has been raised, but they’ll wait to see if that’s necessary before deciding. Boone’s bullpen use in Game 2 at Cleveland gave a good idea of how they’ll try to soak up most of the late outs -- Chad Green, Zack Britton and Aroldis Chapman will all be leaned upon heavily. Adam Ottavino was bypassed in favor of Jonathan Loaisiga, but Boone said he still sees lanes in which Ottavino can succeed. -- Bryan Hoch
Astros: Starting pitchers -- and starters pitching in relief -- combined to throw 16 1/3 of their 18 innings in a two-game Wild Card Series sweep of the Twins. Houston won’t have that luxury in the ALDS. Framber Valdez will start one of the team’s three guaranteed games in the ALDS and could be their Game 1 starter on Monday. That could conceivably allow him to start Game 5 on short rest, but he won’t be available in relief. Zack Greinke, Jose Urquidy and Lance McCullers Jr. are in the pool of starters rested and ready for the Division Series. Among Houston's relievers who threw the most innings, only three worked back-to-back games more than twice. Ryan Pressly threw consecutive games eight times, posting a 2.45 ERA. Enoli Paredes did it five times, posting a 2.25 ERA. And Blake Taylor did it four times, not allowing a run. Andre Scrubb (5.40 ERA), Brooks Raley (0.00) and Cy Sneed (5.40) threw back-to-back games twice, and Josh James (0.00) once. More >
Athletics: Given their six starting pitchers on the roster, the A’s are in a good spot to cover innings should they have to go five straight days with a game. Chris Bassitt -- who was dominant over seven innings in his postseason debut -- lines up for Game 1 on regular rest. It remains to be seen how Oakland handles the order of their starters. Left-hander Sean Manaea did not pitch in the Wild Card Series due to the White Sox lefty-mashing offense, but he figures to get a start in the ALDS, possibly Game 2. His best start of the season came against the Astros last month, when he tossed seven innings of one-run ball. Frankie Montas and Jesús Luzardo likely slot in for starts in Game 3 and 4 in some order. Should a Game 5 present itself, the A’s will have to decide between Mike Fiers and Mike Minor, though either would likely have a short leash as the A’s rely on a dominant bullpen that topped the Majors with a 2.72 ERA in the regular season. As evidenced by closer Liam Hendriks throwing 68 pitches over Games 2 and 3 of the Wild Card Series, the A’s will ride their bullpen as much as they they can. More >
National League
Braves: The Braves are entering the NLDS with just three legitimate starters, but manager Brian Snitker says his primary concern is protecting the assets within his rock-solid bullpen. While he is not excited about the possibility of having to use some of his relievers four times within a five-day span, he knows there’s a good chance this could happen if the series were to go the distance. Closer Mark Melancon and Shane Greene are the only Braves relievers who pitched on three consecutive days this year. There might be some hesitancy to give this same workload to Chris Martin, who has dealt with back issues in the past. But as Will Smith cruised through back-to-back appearances in the Wild Card Series, he provided indication he too might be capable of delivering in high leverage situations over three straight days. Exactly how much stress is placed on the bullpen will be determined by how effective Max Fried, Ian Anderson and Kyle Wright are with their respective starts. More >
Marlins: As the rotation goes, so should go the Marlins. The power arms in their rotation, they believe, give them a fighting chance against anyone. Sandy Alcantara, who threw 6 2/3 innings in Game 1 of the Wild Card Series against the Cubs, is lined up to face the Braves in Game 1. If he doesn’t get the nod, Pablo López could see his first postseason action. Sixto Sánchez is available for either Game 2 or Game 3. In whatever order, those are the top three. Rookie left-hander Trevor Rogers, in the bullpen for the first round, will rejoin the rotation. The fifth starter is up in the air due to José Ureña’s fractured right forearm. That could be a bullpen game. Miami’s ‘pen logged 6 1/3 scoreless innings against the Cubs. Brandon Kintzler and Yimi García each pitched in both games. Their usage shouldn’t be an issue, unless they are forced to go four or five straight days. More >
Dodgers: As they did last week, Walker Buehler and Clayton Kershaw will start Games 1 and 2. One scenario would be to again piggyback Buehler with Julio Urías. The Dodgers are trying to thread the needle with Buehler and his blister, pitching enough to win now within limits so he’s available in later rounds. Rookies Tony Gonsolin and Dustin May get Games 3 and 4 with an opener possible. If a Game 5 happens, Urías would be rested enough to pitch several innings in an all-hands-on-deck game. For remaining innings, the Dodgers boast the deepest bullpen in the game. Assume Kenley Jansen and Brusdar Graterol share closer duties. Blake Treinen and Joe Kelly are nasty, if unpredictable. Pedro Báez, compromised by a groin injury, is a pretty good fifth reliever. Dylan Floro should return to pitch out of jams. Jake McGee, Victor González and Adam Kolarek provide three lefties with different looks. More >
Padres: Ten days ago, the Padres felt they were one of the teams best equipped to handle five games in five days -- with a deep bullpen and frontline starters Dinelson Lamet and Mike Clevinger. But both Lamet (right biceps tightness) and Clevinger (right elbow impingement) have been sidelined with injuries. Their return this month is questionable. Forced to scramble, San Diego extracted only six innings total from its starters against St. Louis. That’s a formula the Padres won’t be able to follow over five days against an excellent Dodgers offense. They need more innings from their current starters, Zach Davies and Chris Paddack. And they need to find another starter or two somewhere. Lamet and Clevinger would be ideal. But the Padres might be forced to move Garrett Richards and/or Adrian Morejon back into the rotation. More >
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5 games in 5 days: How will each staff do it? - MLB.com
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