Speaker 1: Hey, it's Around the Park with Crook and Kipe. We've
Speaker 1: got an absolute drop-dead gorgeous day for baseball here on
Speaker 1: this Wednesday afternoon. And I'm going to ask Mike about
Speaker 1: what's going on in the bullpen when you lose two
Speaker 1: starters early in a game. And we'll talk about that
Speaker 1: right after this. Hey everybody, it's a Wednesday. It's a
Speaker 1: day game here at Oracle Park. It's also Around the
Speaker 1: Park with Crook and Kipe. And Mike, we've had a
Speaker 1: couple of nice wins on Monday and Tuesday night. But
Speaker 1: in each game, something really, really unfortunate. And it's rare
Speaker 1: when you see it once, but when you see it back-to-back,
Speaker 1: it's like, what? What's going on? And that's your starting
Speaker 1: pitcher leaves due to an injury. Like, I imagine if
Speaker 1: you're sitting in the bullpen, I mean, is it possible
Speaker 1: that you could actually sit there and prepare yourself for
Speaker 1: anything that could happen or... Does this kind of like
Speaker 1: blindside you if you're sitting down there?
Speaker 2: I mean, it can blindside you, but usually if it
Speaker 2: blindsides you, you're a rookie or you're a second-year guy,
Speaker 2: and you haven't established yourself with the kind of experience
Speaker 2: that most bullpens have. I mean, for the most part,
Speaker 2: guys in the bullpen, they've been around. So you anticipate
Speaker 2: what could possibly happen during a game. It's rare that
Speaker 2: a starter doesn't get out of the second inning because
Speaker 2: he's been ineffective with his abilities, it's usually due to
Speaker 2: injury that a starter goes down that early in a ballgame.
Speaker 2: But prior to a game, a pitching coach will tell
Speaker 2: the guys in the pen, this is what your role
Speaker 2: will be today. This is where you are. You're slotted in.
Speaker 2: If we have a starter go down, you'll be our
Speaker 2: bulk inning guy. You'll be the guy that we expect
Speaker 2: to give one time through the lineup, which is, in essence,
Speaker 2: basically three innings. And if you give any more to that,
Speaker 2: it's because your pitch count's been good and you're pitching well.
Speaker 2: So the guys know who they are. But when you
Speaker 2: see it two days in a row like the Giants
Speaker 2: have seen, it takes its toll. But that's why I
Speaker 2: really applaud what we've seen here the last two nights.
Speaker 2: Every member of that bullpen has come out, and they
Speaker 2: have been ready.
Speaker 1: Yeah, because whoever pitched on Monday in the bullpen was
Speaker 1: likely not going to pitch maybe a little bit, but
Speaker 1: not a whole lot on Tuesday. It's almost as if
Speaker 1: it's like an unfortunate opener when a starter goes down
Speaker 1: that early. That's exactly what it is. And the other thing, too,
Speaker 1: is we really have to tip our.
Speaker 2: Cap to Jesse Chavez down there, the Giants bullpen coach,
Speaker 2: because he's the guy that's getting ready. But when you're
Speaker 2: down there and you're the bulk guy, your responsibility is
Speaker 2: to get yourself in that game with your head. So
Speaker 2: even though you have a starter out there who's throwing great,
Speaker 2: you never know, like the last couple days. So what
Speaker 2: you do, you approach that game the same way a
Speaker 2: starter does. You pitch that game in your mind over
Speaker 2: and over and over again. to every player that's in
Speaker 2: the lineup that night that you possibly could face. And
Speaker 2: when your time passes, now it's the fifth inning, it's
Speaker 2: no longer the bulk inning guy's time, then that responsibility
Speaker 2: changes to the next guy, the middle relievers, and then,
Speaker 2: of course, the guys who pitch the end.
Speaker 1: I mean, even though Logan Webb has been a guy
Speaker 1: that eats up a lot of innings, he still knows
Speaker 1: that he's got to pitch deep today if he can.
Speaker 2: I think it's one of the reasons that they've asked
Speaker 2: him to take this start because this is a day
Speaker 2: where your bullpen is vulnerable. You need a guy who's
Speaker 2: going to go deep in the game, and Logan Webb
Speaker 2: is that guy. I mean, he's like six, seven innings
Speaker 2: every timeout. Plus, think what's happening. You've got the Diamondbacks
Speaker 2: coming in for four, two of which are going to
Speaker 2: be a doubleheader on Saturday. So that is a scary
Speaker 2: time for a bullpen, and that, I think, is why
Speaker 2: Logan Webb has moved into this slot.
Speaker 1: I guess you find out what you've got in the bullpen.
Speaker 1: In AAA and even AA, don't you? Yeah, that's exactly right.
Speaker 1: And I think when you, for some guys in the bullpen,
Speaker 1: I think they like that. They prefer not knowing when
Speaker 1: they're going to pitch. They don't want to think about
Speaker 1: having a start four days in a row. They just
Speaker 1: want somebody to go, hey, you're in. And I think
Speaker 1: that's the edge that bullpenners have. You can't be a
Speaker 1: good bullpenner if you don't have that trait. All right.
Speaker 1: Let's hope. No injuries for a starting pitcher today and
Speaker 1: a win. All right, that's Around the Park with Crook
Speaker 1: and Kipe. Enjoy the ballgame.