Bats rotation taking form after Monday’s moves
[caption id=”attachment_5764" align=”aligncenter” width=”580"]
via Pat Pfister[/caption]
A plethora of moves were made on Monday, all of the players optioned to Louisville, of the pitching variety. RHP Dylan Axelrod, RHP Carlos Contreras, RHP Daniel Corcino, LHP Ryan Dennick and LHP David Holmberg were all optioned to Louisville. RHP Jon Moscot, OF Felix Perez and C Ramon Cabrera were optioned to the minor leagues and they could end up here in Louisville as well.
This time of year there are always question marks when it comes to the Opening Day roster on minor league clubs. The only benefit for Triple-A teams is that you can make a pretty educated guess on who will be filling out the roster the first game of the season. That being said, with the moves made today, the rotation is beginning to take form for the Bats.
The no brainer’s in my opinion are David Holmberg and Dylan Axelrod. Both had a shot to make the major league Opening Day roster so they should definitely be in the starting rotation here in Louisville. Carlos Contreras and Daniel Corcino are interesting names to keep an eye on. They are interchangeable and either both could be in the rotation or they could split up and one take a bullpen role.
I mentioned Jon Moscot being sent to minor league camp, that doesn’t necessarily mean he will end up here in Louisville, but that would be my guess. He has spent parts of the last two seasons in Pensacola, finishing his 2014 here in Louisville. He would be the fourth pitcher I would lock into the rotation on Opening Day.
The final spot in the rotation will most likely fall to Josh Smith. He pitched here all of last season and has been spending Spring Training in minor league camp. He led the team in wins (10), innings (159.0), and ERA by a starter, (4.70). He was a good option last season for manager Jim Riggleman, the only issue was the high pitch count early on the game forcing him to be relieved after five innings on most nights.
The final name out of the players optioned to Louisville is Ryan Dennick. He should be back in the bullpen where he showed great success last season, earning him a September call-up and making his major league debut on September 2, at Baltimore, pitching one inning and striking out a batter. He led the International League in appearances (57), and posted a team leading 2.36 ERA during the season.
The rotation is by no means set in stone until players break camp on April 5, but by what we saw today in the moves being made, we can make an educated guess on who will be taking the ball to start games this season in a Louisville Bats uniform.
