Houston Astros: Team should consider tandem starts in post season

The Houston Astros have more starting pitchers than they know what to do with heading into the 2017 MLB playoffs. A very good problem to have.

The Houston Astros have the following options as bullpen choices with starting pitching experience. Lance McCullers, Charlie Morton, Mike Fiers, Collin McHugh, Joe Musgrove, Brad Peacock and Chris Devenski.

Every single one of those pitchers came up through the minor leagues as a starting pitcher and other than Devenski has spent time in the rotation this season. This is a great luxury to have knowing you have multiple guys who can put up quality innings should the team need to pull a starter early due to ineffectiveness, injury or if a game goes into extra innings.

However the Astros can also use a strategy they are the original purveyors of in the minor leagues. And that strategy is tandem starts.

The quality that separates a starting pitcher from a reliever is two fold.

The number of quality pitches they can throw. Starters generally have three or more whereas relievers are generally limited to two pitches they can throw effectively. (Example: Lance McCullers has a fastball, curveball and changeup at his disposal whereas Ken Giles is strictly a fastball-slider guy.)
The ability to pitch through the batting order more than once effectively.

This is what makes the idea of a tandem start so interesting. Especially with Lance McCullers’ limited amount of innings pitched in his injury plagued second half of the season meaning he is less likely to be able to go past five innings.

Charlie Morton is who I would give the game four nod to as things stand at the moment (depending on how he performs this evening against the Boston Red Sox) as he has had a great September going 3-1 with a 2.35 ERA and 29 strikeouts in 23 innings.

However the best part about this is that should an Astros starter have a start like Brad Peacock had last night where he is decently effective but can only get through five innings, the team now has the ability to bring in a Collin McHugh or a Lance McCullers that can go through the batting order and throw up to three innings should the team need that.

…the Astros can also use a strategy they are the original purveyors of in the minor leagues. And that strategy is tandem starts.

Last year the Chicago Cubs had little to no faith in their bullpen on their way to becoming World Series champions. They trusted no one other than Aroldis Chapman and his arm nearly fell off against the Cleveland Indians as the Cubs made him throw 15.2 innings in 13 appearances over 17 games.

By the end of the World Series his fastball went from the low 100’s that he could hit regularly to high 90’s by game seven nearly costing the Cubs their first World Series in 108 years (his ineffectiveness this year has partially been blamed on his overuse in last year’s post season.)

While it’s not certain how these Astros starters will feel coming out of an unfamiliar role in the bullpen, we’ve seen Joe Musgrove and Chris Devenski thrive after those demotions from the rotation to reliever.

If you add any combination of Lance McCullers, Mike Fiers, Charlie Morton, Brad Peacock or Collin McHugh to the bullpen, you have a dearth of options that can extend the game and rest other relievers.

You wouldn’t have to pull a move like the team did in the 2015 American League Division Series during game five where they pulled Dallas Keuchel in from the bullpen in the ninth inning on two days rest.

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Or the way the team had to go to Roger Clemens in game four against the Atlanta Braves in 2005 during their 18 inning marathon game thus pushing Clemens to game three of the National League Championship series because he pitched three innings in the aforementioned game four.

While it isn’t something the team should plan on doing (why pull someone if they’re rolling going into the sixth inning), if a starter can only get through five innings, it is best to let their bullpen know “Hey, you may get called in to close the game out in the sixth or seventh inning.”

Establishing those roles going into October can help pitchers prep for what will be required of them in getting their bodies ready should that call come. It hopefully won’t come to that and the Astros’ starters will pitch well into the sixth inning and beyond.

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But if a starter is struggling it is nice to know you have multiple guys waiting in the wings who can clean up the mess while not stretching out the bullpen. The Astros have an advantage no other team has going into October. And when it comes to playoff baseball you have to think creatively and consider all options. Including tandem starts.

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