If we assume Capuano makes the starting rotation, how long is his leash?

[brewjihad]

Dave Bush 2007 ERA: 5.12

Chris Capuano 2007 ERA: 5.10

 

Not saying that that means everything, but I don't think Capuano should be discredited too much for the losing streak. If he had won that game against Harang where he went 8 innings and gave up 1 run (Balfour gave it up in extra innings) this wouldn't be an issue right now.

[Oldcity]

The greatest irony in the world would be Cappy having a nice April and people calling him the team's new ace.

Sounds vaguely familiar...

 

[logan82]

The greatest irony in the world would be Cappy having a nice April and people calling him the team's new ace.

Sounds vaguely familiar...

Flashbacks to 2006 when Cappy had just come off of 18 wins and Sheets was hurt maybe?

[hauser42]

The greatest irony in the world would be Cappy having a nice April and people calling him the team's new ace.

Sounds vaguely familiar...

Flashbacks to 2006 when Cappy had just come off of 18 wins and Sheets was hurt maybe?

 

Ben Sheets was hurt again? I read he is not injury prone he just wants some rest during the season each year.

[gregmag]

The thread title seems a bit misleading, but I can understand how "yet another gratuitous shot at people whose cautious optimism that Capuano can help the team in some capacity I reflexively trash on a weekly basis without actually considering their point of view" could have seemed a bit long. But to answer the "question," yes, if Capuano pitches badly over a meaningful number of starts, and there's someone better in the wings to replace him, I would put the better pitcher in the rotation. You sure got us dumb Capuano fanatics with that one. Well played.

 

Greg.

[TuesdaysWithRillo]

So you'd rather have Vargas and his low 90's fastball? And as others have mentioned, he's an upper 80's guy anyway

I'd rather have neither. Manny Parra and Dave Bush should be the 4 and 5.

[datrain711]

how long is his leash if he starts off slow? how long should he be given to turn things around?

I don't know, personally I just cringe at the thought of having someone in the rotation who isn't pitching with full confidence. Especially if the reason is because he is a lefty.

[markedman5]

Unless he gets it together their is no way Yost puts him in the rotation to start the year.

 

 

I'm not giving up on him but he has to earn that spot.

 

He pitched his way out of the rotation last year and at least so far(its still early) has shown nothing to indicate his problems are behind him.

[sbrylski]

Unless he gets it together their is no way Yost puts him in the rotation to start the year.

 

I strongly disagree. I think he's almost assured a spot right now.

 

As for the leash, I think 10-12 starts.

[markedman5]

Really?

 

So you think that Cappy can continue to go 2 innings and give up 6 runs for the rest of the spring and Yost will still put him in the rotation?

 

Come on.

[sbrylski]

Really?

 

So you think that Cappy can continue to go 2 innings and give up 6 runs for the rest of the spring and Yost will still put him in the rotation?

 

Come on.

Yes. I don't put much stock on ST, where guys try new things and are simply getting geared up to perform. Nor to I consider 12 innings when I have over three years of data to use. That data suggests he'll be a solid #4 pitcher for us next season with a mid-4.00s ERA.

 

[TooLiveBrew]

Well we'll just have to hope that DM & Yost aren't into 2 IP samples of work, and instead rely upon Chris's hundreds of MLB IP & what their coaches have to say.

[DrWood]

I think sbrylski is half right. the numbers don't really matter, but if cappy doesn't have command and his stuff has deteriorated, that's when they could pull the plug.

[DonMoney4Mgr]

If he begins the year in the rotation, I would say a very short leash, maybe two starts. I am of the belief they still need to upgrade their starting pitching. Cappy or Bush, Vargas, Gwynn, and a prospect for an upgrade at SP. What team would go for that? I don't know. May be a topic for the trade thread. (a guy like Bannister for KC would be nice though)

[rluzinski]

If fans completely ignored the results of spring training , they'd be better off. As DrWood says, what's more important is what the scouts/coaches think about his performances. If Cappy has an 85 MPH fastball and still can't locate his off speed pitches by the end of spring training, that's different.

 

Provided that the Brewers believe that Cappy is still the same Cappy as years past, he's probably going to get a decent amount of starts before he'd get benched. If he has a 5.25 ERA after 5 starts, they probably aren't going to give up on him.

[fondybrewfan]

If Cappy is struggling after 2 starts, Gallardo could very conviently come back from his injury and take his spot in the rotation, we went Weeks to AAA last year, we can do the same with Cappy, I dont care how much the guy makes. You have to pay him either way

[DrWood]

"completely ignored the results of spring training" might be a bit extreme. I think you can ignore the first week or two. The rest means something, maybe not much, but something.

[RightFieldCoder]

In March of last year Cappy was "clearly" the "Ace" of the team. People said we were crazy to consider Sheets over Cappy. Now some people don't even think he should be a starter?

[markedman5]

It would be one thing if he hadn't lost his spot at the end of last year but he did.

 

Cappy is not in the same situation as Sheets, Yo or Suppan. He has to show in spring training that the troubles he went through last year are a thing of the past. He has to show command and the ability to get people out on a consistent basis.

 

If he doesn't then its time to give somebody else a chance.

 

 

My take on what Yost and Melvin have said is that Sheets, Yo, and Suppan are the only guys who have a spot locked up.

 

Everyone else has to earn it.

 

Cappy needs to earn the spot. If he is pitching effectively and its close between him and the other guys then by all means go with the veteran.

 

If he keeps getting hammered he doesn't get the spot unless Ned has no better alternatives.

 

Lets hope its a moot point and it he starts to show some progress.

[Ennder]

How he throws means a lot more than how many ERs he gives up. There are certainly reasons to be concerned considering he looked pretty bad after his injury last year and then had surgery in the off season. It could be something as simple as messed up mechanics or something more sinister like a loss in velocity.

[markedman5]

I hear you Ender.

 

It just seems that Cappy for some reason is held to a lower standard then a guy like Turnbow.

 

Cappy has an 18 ERA this spring and its no big deal. Turnbow walks 2 guys and gives up a couple of runs and people want to buy him a bus ticket out of town.

 

I hope they can figure it out with Cappy and it is mechanics and not something with his arm.

 

All I'm saying is he should show at least something before we pencil him in to the rotation.

[TooLiveBrew]

Cappy has an 18 ERA this spring and its no big deal. Turnbow walks 2 guys and gives up a couple of runs and people want to buy him a bus ticket out of town.

Capuano... Spring Training. Turnbow... control problems for the bulk of 2007's regular season.

 

Apples - Oranges

[DrWood]

I definitely don't get it about Turnbow. He's usually good for some drama (strikeouts or earned runs), which probably polarizes people.

[Beer and Braunies]

Cappy has an 18 ERA this spring and its no big deal. Turnbow walks 2 guys and gives up a couple of runs and people want to buy him a bus ticket out of town.

Capuano... Spring Training. Turnbow... control problems for the bulk of 2007's regular season.

 

Apples - Oranges

I'm hoping you're saying it is apples to oranges because Turnbow did a decent job at a reliever and Cappy was mostly awful after the first month of last year. How bad does Cappy have to get before people will say he shouldn't be starting anymore? He had a good month last year, a good first half of 2006 before a below average second half, and an average first half to 2005. Cappy had his shot, and it's someone else's turn until he can prove he deserves to be in the rotation. Turnbow was a much bigger asset to this team than Cappy was last year. If you replace Cappy with CV, I'm sure CV would have outperformed Cappy. You replace Turnbow with Wise, it's not pretty. Cappy should be getting so much more heat than what he is, Turnbow has actually done something since last May.

 

[Mr QL]

Cappy should have to earn his spot. I don't see anything wrong with that. You want the best possible rotation don't you?