With all the mealymouthing and caveating in February and March, you can tell how rare it is for something to happen in a Spring Training game that is (1) surprising, and (2) actually meaningful. I guess I am still going to hedge a bit and say that the following is not NECESSARILY DEFINITELY meaningful, but I think you’ll agree with me that it’s at least eyebrow-raising.
Yesterday, in a game started by Edward Cabrera, which featured five single-inning relief appearances, one of those relievers was Ben Brown.
Brown, who has been starting quite successfully all spring, threw just 24 pitches while getting four groundballs and two strikeouts, and that was it for his appearance.
The Cubs have hinted – actually, outright said – all along that Ben Brown would be stretched out this spring, and mostly he was, with the assumption being that he would head to Iowa to keep on starting if he weren’t going to be in the MLB rotation. So why the sudden switch to a one-inning appearance?
A handful of possibilities come to mind:
Maybe it was just something idiosyncratic with his schedule, and he either threw more on the side thereafter or threw before or it was an intentionally limited day. In other words, it was just a big nothing, and he’s still being stretched out. Buuuuut, it sure looked like a planned, real relief appearance, given that it was 24 pitches in a single inning, taking place in a game amidst other one-inning relievers, and featuring some of the only elevated velocity on a day when most other pitchers’ velo was down because of the extreme heat. Maybe it was a physical issue, and Brown was going to throw several innings but had to cut it short. Yeah, maybe, but typically you’d see a guy in that situation following the previous starter right away, piggy-back style, not coming after a couple other relievers. Then again, maybe because Cabrera’s day was only three innings due to long innings, Brown was not warming up in advance of Cabrera’s departure? He may have been expected to take over in the 6th inning all along. I still say this seems unlikely given the bullpen usage throughout the game (including two non-roster relievers following Brown and clearly expected to pitch that day (Corbin Martin was one of them, and I don’t see any way he was just held in reserve in case of injury)), and his elevated velocity in a one-inning burst. Obviously I hope an injury isn’t the explanation, but nothing in the circumstances suggest it. Maybe the Cubs were just picking a week to save some bullets for Brown, having seen how good he looks this spring. In that scenario, he’ll still be starting in the minors, but it’s possible his outings will be a little shorter than typical starts (three or four innings). That isn’t entirely uncommon early in the year for younger pitchers who may be needed more as the year goes on. I’m not sure doing just a one-inning spring appearance would be the way to start this process, but I suppose it’s possible. And then there is the big maybe: maybe Ben Brown is being converted to relief right now, in anticipation of being used in the big league bullpen sooner rather than later. We’ve always known that was a possibility for him, but it would nevertheless be a big surprise right now, given the emergence of his sinker as a true third pitch. It’s still valuable to have three pitches even for a reliever, of course, but Brown’s most valuable upside – if he can reach it – is inarguably as a starting pitcher.So we’ll see if this was something, or nothing. I expect we’ll find out via interviews soon enough, if not by the next time Brown appears.
Tentatively, I get the allure of having Brown available out of the bullpen from the jump, given that he might be one of the best 13 pitchers available. So, you use him out of the bullpen right away, because there isn’t a rotation spot for him. Then, if innings open up, you just try to stretch him out on the fly – and, in the meantime, maybe you got some high-quality relief innings out of him at the level where it actually matters.
The flip side, of course, is that if Brown is really close to getting that sinker locked in as part of a starter’s deployment (you use pitches differently when aiming for five+ innings, rather than just one), I’m a little leery about disrupting that whole process just to get, what, 10 or 15 good relief innings out of him in April and May? I’m not sure it wouldn’t just be more valuable to have him keep starting at Iowa.
Hence then, the article about ben brown pitched just one inning yesterday was published today ( ) and is available on Bleacher Nation ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( Ben Brown Pitched Just One Inning Yesterday )
Also on site :