The bizarre two game home-and-home series between the Pittsburgh Pirates and Detroit Tigers continues at PNC Park tonight.
A lot has changed in the last hour, as Michael Morse was designated for assignment and A.J. Schugel was called up to join the team in the bullpen.
This was a move accomplished to protect the team since Francisco Liriano no longer is starting tonight’s game and Ryan Vogelsong will be on the mound in his stead.
Vogelsong (1-0 4.50 ERA) will get the ball tonight against Shane Greene (0-0 0.00 ERA). In a small sample size, Vogelsong has fared well against the Tigers posting a 2-0 record with a 2.13 ERA in two career starts. During his time in Spring Training, Vogelsong pitched 14.2 innings and allowed 13 runs, 10 of which were earned, good for a 6.13 ERA.
Pirates manager Clint Hurdle had a familiar term to describe Vogelsong, based on a Styx song one year his junior.
“He wanted to come back,” he said. “Even through the process of making the change in the rotation, he said he would go out and give everything he has. This guy is a blue collar man, you can throw him out there and he’ll be ready. He will be prepared.”
Hurdle expects Vogelsong will still be stretched out as a starter as he did throw 100 pitches in his last Spring Training start.
“I don’t imagine a whole lot of rust will come off him, but we’ll see,” said Hurdle. “It is all about him being effective and the quality not the quantity.”
Schugel’s path returns to majors
Schugel can cross one thing off his list. He certainly does not need to know what the weather in Toledo is anymore.
The former utility infielder was drafted as a pitcher in the 25th round of the 2010 MLB Draft. There was one problem with that though … he never had pitched before.
“There have been bumps along the road, but at this point, I have it figured out what to do, how to do it and how to get guys out,” Schugel said.
Schugel was initially called up April 12 of last season by the Arizona Diamondbacks and made his major league debut on the same day, so the territory is familiar to him.
Hurdle determined that this was not the spot for Tyler Glasnow or Jameson Taillon to get called up and Rob Scahill was on paternity. This was by no means a default situation.
“One of the last men standing in Spring Training was A.J.,” said Hurdle. “He pitched extremely well in a number of different roles. He has the length and volume to give us if needed so we felt very confident to give him the opportunity.”
Schugel was surprised to get the call-up so early, but knows his job now is to get guys out and whether it is one pitch or multiple innings, he is ready to do just that.
Bottom of the Ninth
Hurdle did confirm that the move to DFA Morse was a numbers game. Simply put, Morse lacked defensive versatility.
“If you are going to go one short on the bench, you want to maximize versatility,” he said. “With the guys we have on the bench, Joyce can play a couple corner positions, you have a catcher and Rodriguez and Figueroa can play pretty much anywhere.”
Liriano considered his right hamstring discomfort to be a minor thing. He felt it during his final few pitches of a side session and noticed it being sore and uncomfortable.
Other notes: Jung Ho Kang (left knee surgery) has been cleared to play in a game with no restrictions. Earlier Wednesday, he played five complete innings on both sides of the ball … Jared Hughes (left lat muscle strain) threw a live BP simulated game in Bradenton and the initial reports were positive … Jameson Taillon (Tommy John/hernia) who is making his first start of the season today with the Triple-A Indianapolis Indians, will be treated like a normal pitcher but there may have to be conversations as to whether there needs to be an innings limit for him … Elias Diaz (right elbow discomfort) had worked up his way to playing catch on flat ground but had continued discomfort and as a result has sought out multiple opinions. They are focused on the lateral (outside) part of the arm.
