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Burnett bullpen session: A.J. Burnett threw an effective bullpen session on Sunday, tossing 42 pitches in 8 1/2 minutes. The right-hander is recovering from Tommy John surgery and has made progress in recent bullpen sessions. His target return date is still sometime in late May or June.

Hmm...so what happens if our staff continues to give us quality starts? What do we do with AJ when he is ready? I have always been of the school of thought that if it ain't broke don't fix it.

I go to that same school djm, but if AJ comes back and can pitch anywhere close to 2002 form....

 

Look, I'd say once he's ready, ease him back in with a few bullpen appearances. But if he's good to go, you can't keep that kind of dominance out of the rotation. 2002 he threw 204 innings, allowed only 153 hits with 202 K's and 5 complete game shutouts. Batters hit .206 against him.

 

Let's wait & see how he progresses first.

I'd personally like to see AJ start a few times in the minors. I'm not extremely impressed with Oliver, I'd like to see him in Philly on Friday before I make anymore judgments on him, but you just can't pass up the oppurtunity to have AJ Burnett in your rotation. You just can't. I know the bullpen could use some work and this and that. But the fact of the matter is, what would you rather have? AJ dominating 7-9 innings once a week? Or AJ dominating one inning maybe two or three times a week.

 

If the starters are still performing at this level when AJ returns, I almost feel bad for the NL East.

First of all, 42 pitches in 8 minutes is a hell of a lot, so his elbow has to be doing just fine. And if we have the problem of six starters, why not go with a 6 man rotation? I know it's unorthodox, but Beckett has had injury problems, as has Pavano, and AJ will be recovering. Plus, it takes workload off Willis, and it keeps everyone fresh. Just a thought, and McKeon has done out of the ordinary stuff before, so why stop?

I generally agree that you don't mess with a good thing, but Burnett is a special case. He has been conditioned to come back to start. Pitching from the start of the game and the end of it may not seem that big of a deal, but it is to someone who hasn't pitched in a year. He's been working on his stamina and routine all winter and spring to be get back to pitch deep every 5th day.

And, hey, can't a good thing turn great too?

 

TSwift, it is a myth that 5-man rotations have extended the careers of starting pitchers. High pitch counts are often attributed as the cause. A 6-man rotation is not necessary, and mean instead of one of our pitchers changing his routine all six would.

First of all, 42 pitches in 8 minutes is a hell of a lot, so his elbow has to be doing just fine. And if we have the problem of six starters, why not go with a 6 man rotation? I know it's unorthodox, but Beckett has had injury problems, as has Pavano, and AJ will be recovering. Plus, it takes workload off Willis, and it keeps everyone fresh. Just a thought, and McKeon has done out of the ordinary stuff before, so why stop?

 

Jack said last year he would never use a six man rotation.

 

Nor would any other manager. The pitchers hate it, too long between starts. It's also a waste of a roster spot.

I saw Burnett sweating like he just worked out sunday noon when i went to the stadium, i figured he threw a bullpen.

 

Great news to hear Burnett is recovering very good with no pain.

AJ is probably not going to be ready to "start" anytime soon

 

 

and I dont think we should rush him back, we'll do great without him and when he is ready we will be better than great.

 

the point is that if we dont really need him, why risk losing him permanently

 

 

 

let him ease himself back in slowly

 

 

cause he would make a great guy to have in middle relief until he is ready to throw 80+ pitches a night

 

imagine having to face one of our starters for 6 or 7 innings and then have to face AJ for 1 or 2.

 

solves a lot of problems and lets AJ take his time in coming back while still getting good work in while not over straining himself. plus he will be filling a BIG need

Hmm...so what happens if our staff continues to give us quality starts? What do we do with AJ when he is ready? I have always been of the school of thought that if it ain't broke don't fix it.

I'm pretty sure Oliver is the odd man out. Can anyone say, "Trade bait?"

First of all, 42 pitches in 8 minutes is a hell of a lot, so his elbow has to be doing just fine. And if we have the problem of six starters, why not go with a 6 man rotation? I know it's unorthodox, but Beckett has had injury problems, as has Pavano, and AJ will be recovering. Plus, it takes workload off Willis, and it keeps everyone fresh. Just a thought, and McKeon has done out of the ordinary stuff before, so why stop?

a 6 guy rotation is something McKon would do (unorthodox)

 

it would keep all our guys fresh and we wouldnt have to take anyone out of their groove

that is, unless, someone starts sucking it up, then AJB goes into the 5 man rotation

Jack would do a 4 man rotation before a 6 man.

Oliver would become our top, left-handed set-up dude to spell Foxy when the inning holds a few lefties.

solves a lot of problems and lets AJ take his time in coming back while still getting good work in while not over straining himself. plus he will be filling a BIG need

Trust me it's already been decided. He's coming back to start.

That is how the club has been conditioning him since he started throwing the ball last October.

They aren't going to throw away 5 months of specialized conditioning because all five of our starting pitchers have been doing well.

 

 

it would keep all our guys fresh and we wouldnt have to take anyone out of their groove

that is, unless, someone starts sucking it up, then AJB goes into the 5 man rotation

It would give them rest but they would not be quite as sharp. Pitchers perform better when they're pitching on shorter rest.

I think Burnett is going to have to be a starter when he comes back we wont want to have him pitching more than once or twice a week, while trying to recover. I think Oliver is could move to the pen or possiably be trade bait.

I see Oliver going to the Pen. Burnett is here to start. He did great things 2 years ago, and he should be given another shot to do so again. Damn injury bug...Spooneybarger would be our solution be he is injured.

I think the best we can hope for is a lights out AJ when he comes back, and a lights out Oliver until then. Honestly, I saw Oliver pitch on Saturday in person, and I wasn't really impressed. He doesn't have that much pitchwise, his fastball is decent at best, and he is a momentum killer. He is basically a contact pitcher who relies on flyball outs to get by. A move to the pen probably wouldn't suit him well, because he A) is used to the starting routine and a move from one to the other is not as easy as Carl and Dontrelle made it look and B) He doesn't have the overpowering stuff you look for in a reliever. It would be a lefty version of Braden Looper, except throwing softer. If he is lights out until we suddenly have a plethora of starters, we can hopefully trade him to a team that has suffered an injury or otherwise needs a starter and use his JRS-boosted value to pick up someone that would actually be effective coming out of the pen.

I think the best we can hope for is a lights out AJ when he comes back, and a lights out Oliver until then. Honestly, I saw Oliver pitch on Saturday in person, and I wasn't really impressed. He doesn't have that much pitchwise, his fastball is decent at best, and he is a momentum killer. He is basically a contact pitcher who relies on flyball outs to get by. A move to the pen probably wouldn't suit him well, because he A) is used to the starting routine and a move from one to the other is not as easy as Carl and Dontrelle made it look and B) He doesn't have the overpowering stuff you look for in a reliever. It would be a lefty version of Braden Looper, except throwing softer. If he is lights out until we suddenly have a plethora of starters, we can hopefully trade him to a team that has suffered an injury or otherwise needs a starter and use his JRS-boosted value to pick up someone that would actually be effective coming out of the pen.

true, very true...As for AJ, I say he should go down to AAA for a few starts, and then take it easy in the pen. Then...showtime. We need a healthy AJ, I say we give him time!

how can you figure that just because he is rehabbing and conditioning himself as a starter that it means that when he comes back he will immediately be a starter?

 

 

AJ is a starter, so why would they get him in a different training and conditioning routine

 

but that doesnt mean that when he is ready resume competitive pitching that he is ready to throw 80+ pitches a night

 

but you dont want him to get out of a starters routine, so you train him accordingly

 

 

Im betting that when he comes back he will throw every 4 to 5 days out of the pen for 1 or 2 innings

 

thereby keeping in a starters routine and still easing him back in terms of pitch counts

First of all, I dont think we should see AJ until after the ASB. I want him to get some starts under his belt in the minors. Sure, he should dominate them in all likelihood, but that is not a bad thing. You can foster his confidence and a dominating mentality back again. He will give Josh a rush for his money for staff ace. And they both need that competition.

 

When he does come back, I would expect Oliver or Willis to be moved. Oliver could be traded or sent into the pen, while Willis could be moved into the pen. It will depend on who is most effective as a starter at this point. I also think a close eye will be kept on Dontrelle's arm, but he needs to start and finish this season more than Oliver does because D is in our future plans. He needs to build up the physical and mental conditioning - both of which he is more than apt to do.

 

TSwift, I like unconventional ideas like a 6 man rotation. I am not so quick to dismiss it like others here - and especially with McKeon at the helm. But it is improbable. Interesting idea though.

 

I am not comfortable with the idea of AJ becoming a closer. I think that is ridiculous. But when he does come back, we have some big commodities to make a deal with. We just got to stay in contention until he does come back. And dont rush him back. Oliver, by the way, is going to put up very good numbers. You will see...

i would be willing to bet just about anything that we will never use a 6 man rotation for anything considered an extended stretch of time.

 

 

perhaps that will only be done if there are a lot of doubleheaders coming together.

as long as AJ keeps progressing, im happy