Jared Hughes in on the verge of returning to the big league club following an injury that has sidelined him since Opening Day. Who does he replace in the bullpen when he gets back?
The Pittsburgh Pirates bullpen has been shaky at best so far this season, but help may be on the way in the form of Jared Hughes. Hughes has been on the disabled list since Opening Day, and seeing as it’s already been 15 days since Opening Day, he has been eligible to come off of the 15-day DL for a few days now. He just recently made his first rehab appearance yesterday, and seems to be ready to come back to the big league club any day now.
Jared Hughes throws 16 pitches in his rehab debut, BB, HBP, broken bat 5-4-3 DP, grounder to SS. Poor command, 90-92, all sinkers #Pirates
— John Dreker (@JohnDreker) April 20, 2016
He’s scheduled to pitch again today in Indianapolis:
Tomorrow's Indianapolis game features Tyler Glasnow vs Homer Bailey. Jung-ho Kang and Jared Hughes will also play #Pirates
— John Dreker (@JohnDreker) April 20, 2016
The speculation around Twitter seems to be that Hughes could return this weekend or early next week at the latest, barring any setbacks. He’ll come at the perfect time for the Pirates, not only because he’s proven to be a quality middle reliever over the past two seasons, but because the bullpen as a whole, especially the back-end and middle relief, has struggled. Mark Melancon is his usual dominant self, and Neftali Feliz has looked like a great off-season pickup so far. Tony Watson has had some uncharacteristic issues to start the season, but I have confidence that he’ll rebound.
After those three, however, the rest of the arms drop off tremendously. Arquimedes Caminero, Kyle Lobstein, and Cory Luebke have been awful, as each sport ERAs above six. A.J. Schugel was called up when Mike Morse was designated for assignment, and he seems like the most likely and logical option to be the odd man out when Hughes returns. He’ll have to be designated for assignment and then clear waivers in order to remain with the team, but he cleared waivers earlier this season. The Pirates didn’t have enough faith in him or room for him when the season began, and he doesn’t seem like an ideal option to keep in the pen at this point.
However, there are other options as well.
The bullpen is rounded out by Ryan Vogelsong, who currently serves as the long relief/depth starter option, and Rob Scahill, who showed promise last season, but has already given up two earned runs in 2.2 innings of work. Vogelsong doesn’t have options, and with the role he’s in and the money he’s making, he won’t be designated for assignment.
That leaves Caminero, Lobstein, Luebke, and Scahill as other possible options for Hughes to replace when he returns to the big league club. What’s interesting is that coming into the season, I don’t think anyone thought Caminero would struggle as much as he has so far this year, but his 6.75 ERA in eight innings of work, along with two home runs given up, have placed him into this situation. If it were me, I’d keep Caminero up for the time being. He showed that he could be successful last season, and his fastball has much promise and can be formidable at times. I also think he’d be claimed on waivers, and he’s not an arm I want to lose, despite his early season struggles. I’d also keep Lobstein, as he seems like the better left-handed option between himself and Luebke.
Luebke is also about to begin a rehab assignment of his own, so he’s not an option at this point:
LHP Cory Luebke is scheduled to begin a rehab assignment tomorrow for Triple-A Indy in Louisville.
— Adam Berry (@adamdberry) April 20, 2016
Once the Pirates decide to move back to the seven-man bullpen, another arm will have to go. That’s when I think Scahill gets sent to Triple-A. But Luebke is certainly on the hot seat once he returns, as are Caminero and Lobstein. If either of these three continue to struggle, don’t be surprised to see Scahill or another arm come up and replace them. The Pirates have shown they have the ability to make a flexible bullpen have success year in and year out.
Most importantly, though, Jared Hughes will certainly be a welcomed addition to the bullpen when he returns in the coming days.
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