And according to Girardi, he can. For the Yankees, perhaps the brightest spot in this weekend's series loss to the Marlins was Hughes, who so impressed his manager with a perfect inning of relief Saturday that Girardi was prepared to use Hughes out of the 'pen again the following day -- but only if the Yankees had a lead to protect.
Hughes, it seems, has become the eighth-inning setup man of choice for the Yankees, thanks to his success out of the bullpen in recent games. He has graduated to the point where Girardi is not afraid to use him in back-to-back games, and is not afraid to use him against the league's best hitters.
"He's adapted so well," Girardi said. "We've been really pleased with what he's done down there. It's a pat on the back to him, because it's not easy doing what you're not used to doing.""It's still the same mound," Hughes said. "The preparation is a little different, but once you get out there, it's the same as if you're starting a game."
Which is something Hughes won't be doing for a while. When the Yankees made this decision to put Hughes in the bullpen, they did so under the premise that it would be temporary -- two weeks or so, general manager Brian Cashman said, was likely the limit.
The Yankees didn't want to keep Hughes in the bullpen for too long, because they valued him as a starter. And a prolonged relief assignment would sap Hughes' endurance, to the point that he would no longer be able to last deep into games.
That day, when the Yankees made their announcement, Girardi was asked how he would handle the situation if Hughes showed a bullpen aptitude like that of Joba Chamberlain, whom the Yankees thrust into a similar situation late in 2007.
Girardi responded by saying it would be a nice problem to have. And now, it's a nice problem that he does have.
Realizing how valuable Hughes has become to his bullpen, Girardi said he has ditched all plans to send Hughes back down to Triple-A, preferring success now to endurance later. Though the Yankees still envision Hughes as a starter in the long run, he may not be one again for a while.
Cashman's two-week window has come and gone, with Hughes compiling a 2.08 ERA in 8 2/3 innings out of the bullpen, striking out 12 and walking two. And because the Yankees are treading carefully with former setup man Brian Bruney, easing the previously injured reliever back into action, Hughes has become a valuable bridge to closer Mariano Rivera.
"We haven't talked about it lately," Girardi said of sending Hughes back to Triple-A. "Our starters are all healthy and have been throwing the ball pretty well. Right now, we like having him down there, so we really haven't talked about it lately."
I still think Hughes will be a good starter, and that's where I think they Yankees should have him once the 2010 season begins. They're going to need someone to replace Andy Pettitte anyway. But for now I really love what I've seen from Hughes coming out of the pen. His fastball is the best we've ever seen it, and his curveball has been excellent as well. Mix in the occasional cutters and changeups and you can see why he's been so nasty."He's getting really important innings, and learning how to pitch in pressure situations and tight situations," Girardi said, "which is a real good thing."
That said, Brian Bruney would still be my eighth inning guy. And that's not a knock on Hughes, because I'm sure he could handle the role just fine, but eventually he will go back into the rotation, whether it's this year or next, and Bruney will remain in the pen.
With Mariano at the end, Bruney in the 8th, Phil Coke and Hughes sharing the seventh inning duties, and Alfredo Aceves working as a super utility pitcher - basically doing it all, middle relief, long reilef, short relief, whatever - the Yanks should have a very solid bullpen for the remainder of the year. Mix in guys like David Robertson, who despite his rough inning last night has still been very imporessive, and you only add depth to an already strong unit.
It's amazing what getting rid of a little dead weight and replacing it with guys who throw strikes can do for a bullpen.
What do you think, should Phil Hughes remain in the pen for the rest of the season?
12 Comments:
i clearly believe that hughes should still be in the starting rotation, and joba should be back in that pen. but clearly what i think is irrelavant to what the yankees are gonna do............... so we'll leave it at that. but he should go back to the rotation (hughes)
I understand where you're coming from, and if Joba continues to stink as a starter I might start to change my mind. I'm still hoping he can find his fastball, which he's going to need whether he's a starter or reliever.
Trade him for a good young slugger from some team. Matsui, Damon, Posada ain't gettin' any younger.
Trade Hughes for a slugger? What? Why?
They can sign Matt Holiday or Jason Bay in the offseason and not have to give up anything.
oh yes good point
I like Hughes in the pen for now. However, I still see him as a future starter. Honestly though, Aceves may earn himself a chance in the rotation with the way things are going for him. We win yesterday if he pitches one more inning like he should have.
The experiences that Hughes accumulates in the bullpen are likely to help him when he is transitioned back into a starting pitcher.
If he doesn't get close to 150 innings pitched this year (including his Scranton work) that will push him back a bit in his development as a starter. However, the advantages of pitching in high pressure situations and using his "stuff" at 100% effort and intensity throughout this season will outweigh not reaching his innings, I hope. I'm starting to believe that this could be a really good thing, even in the long term.
I just want him to hit 170+ innings this year and I'm happy... so I guess the rotation.
Joba stays in the rotation. He'll learn how to become more efficient. He's certainly not stinking as a starter; although I guess you just mean his short outings.
When Joba doesn't have his velocity it is because his mechanics are bad. Joba does not need to hit 97-98. He just needs his fastball to be 93-95 and with his 3 other pitches he will become a great starter.
Yankees do need Wang to get back to being the old Chien Ming Wang. Because Hughes is still being used as Wangs caddy during the game Wang pitches. Once Wang starts pitches deeper in the game, you have Bruney in the 8th, Hughes/Coke in the 7th depending on lefty righty matchups. Aceves and Robertson and Tomko. The only weak link is Tomko. Ideally you like to have another quality lefty in the bullpen instead of Brett Tomko.
I'm not sure Hughes will pan out as a starter. He has brief flashes of success, then falls completely flat on his face. I have been impressed with his performance out of the pen, however, and think this is probably where he'll end up down the road.
Hughes still deserves another chance in the rotation down the road either this season or next.
I can't for the life of me understand what goes through Girardi's head with his bullpen management. Hughes has been solid out of the pen and is very infrequently used. When he does come in it is usually only for one inning. I think it's safe to say a former starter can give you more than just a single inning, so why not leave him in for two?
whether or not wang doesn't shape up it should be
hughes = starter
joba = pen
whether or not wang doesn't shape up it should be
hughes = starter
joba = pen
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