Jake Peavy has been scratched from his next start. Rotator cuff tendonitis is the current issue, which is apparently unrelated to the surgery that cut his 2010 short. In any event, this pretty much ensures that he’ll be held back to start the season. The hunt for a #5 starter is un-officially on as Ozzie refuses to count Peavy out, but I don’t see how doing anything but erring on the side of caution would be wise in this situation. Peavy will be re-evaluated in the next couple of days and I suspect a more concrete decision will be made at that point. Nobody has emerged as a clear fill-in for the 5th spot but the hope is that not much will be needed.
The hunt for a closer, however, is officially off. Ozzie has named Matt Thornton, he of the "easy heat" to that role. I know that I said it didn’t matter much, as the title is somewhat ceremonial, but I do believe this is the proper choice. A kid as young as Sale, if he was named to and thrived as a closer might fall in love with that title. It doesn’t matter how good a closer is, he’d be worth much more as a starter and Sale certainly still has that possibility for the future. We’ve recently seen some of that with Neftali Feliz in Texas being unsure if he should make a stab at the rotation after experiencing some success finishing up games for the AL Champion Rangers. Looking forward to seeing Matty Ice close out contests this season.
Is Ozzie considering Sale at all for the 5th slot if Peavy can't go?
ReplyDeleteI don't think so. Cooper's big concern was pulling the kid one way and then the other so I think they'd like to stay consistent with at least for the whole season.
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