Pittsburgh Pirates Wake-Up Call – What would Playoff Hurdle be like?

In our daily Wake-Up Call, we get you ready for the day with a complete look at all things Pittsburgh Pirates.

As I sit back and watch the MLB postseason, I wonder how the Pittsburgh Pirates would handle a long postseason run. I really wonder how Clint Hurdle would manage the team over the course of a month, when every game and every decision is amplified. This postseason, we’ve seen closers get used in the eighth inning and starters used on three days rest, and I wonder if Hurdle would do the same. Back in 2013 in the NLDS against the Cardinals, the Pirates used four starters in the first four games of the series, similar to what the Cubs are doing this year. When Gerrit Cole was used twice in 2013, it was on five days rest. That’s the benefit you have when you are up in the series, as the Pirates were when they were up two games to one then. When you’re playing from behind, like the Dodgers were this year, using your ace on fewer than five days rest becomes an option. I doubt Hurdle would do that.

Would Hurdle ever have opted to use Mark Melancon over Tony Watson in the eighth inning in a close game? How about if they had made the playoffs this year, when Melancon was clearly better than Watson? Hurdle receives a lot of negativity from fans for his in-game moves, but I’m inclined to think that Hurdle would be willing to take more risks in the postseason. We saw him use Cole leading up to the end of the 2014 season when the division hadn’t been clinched by the Cardinals yet. That move didn’t end up paying off, as Edinson Volquez was hit hard in that Wild Card game, but it was a move to try to win the division, and a risky one at that. We saw him xstart Sean Rodriguez at first base last postseason, a move that was controversial at the time, and didn’t really pay off, considering Pedro Alvarez pinch-hit for him before he got an at-bat, thus shortening the bench from the early-going. However, this season we saw Hurdle go for long stretches of time when he was willing to use his bench frequently and pull starters earlier than he usually did in the past, maybe indicating a slight change in mentality from Pirates manager.

Unfortunately we won’t know how Hurdle manages a long playoff run for at least a year, but it will be intriguing. I am willing to bet he’d take more risks than people think.

Baseball Talk Around the Web

• The American League Championship Series is already set. Want to know what to expect from the Indians and the Blue Jays? Tim Kurkjian of ESPN gives a full preview of the series.
• In case you missed it, the legend of Tim Tebow grows. A man reportedly was having a seizure in Arizona at an Arizona Fall League game, and Tebow went over and laid his hands on the man, who then began breathing. Tebow stayed with the man until help arrived. He is indeed a miracle worker.
• There are plenty of exciting rookies in this year’s postseason. Karl Buscheck of Bleacher Report gives us the best rookie performances in baseball history.

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