It is four starts into Gerrit Cole’s month of August, and he has an 0-3 record with a 4.69 ERA to show for it.
Pirates manager Clint Hurdle told the media prior to Monday night’s game against the Arizona Diamondbacks, that he wanted a starting pitcher to go seven innings, which would put much less of a burden on a bullpen that was massively tested this past weekend against the New York Mets.
Perhaps trying to meet that demand Hurdle stuck by Cole for 6.2 innings, this despite a 30-pitch first inning.
Monday was a tale of two starts for Cole, as he did not have his best stuff early. His velocity was up to par, however his location was not.
“I missed locations early, and they’re an aggressive swinging team, which you can use to your advantage, but if you don’t locate the ball early, they’re going to punish you,” Cole said.
Cole settled in after the third inning, with Francisco Cervelli trying to come up with a successful game plan for his pitcher.
“You have to find a way to put them back on track,” said Cervelli. “He lives with the fastball, that’s his pitch and he can throw it up to 99. At the beginning the command wasn’t there, but he came back strong and gave us a chance to win the game.”
Cole’s struggles in August however have been extremely evident as his lowest earned run average in a month this season was just under two runs lower.
In the past Hurdle has stressed pitchers being able to read hitters and their swings which in turn can serve as almost instant feedback that can serve as a signal as to whether the game plan is working or not.
Against the Diamondbacks, Cole was hit hard and tied a season high surrendering nine hits. In 23 innings, Cole has allowed 34 base runners.
Cole now has thrown 162 innings. which is a major-league career-high for him. Cole’s high in his professional career is 196.1 innings, which was set in 2013 when he pitched with the team’s Triple-A affiliate Indianapolis, as well as with the Pirates in both the regular season and playoffs.
Are his innings a concern? Not to Hurdle, who prior to Monday’s game did not place a red flag next to his name.
It is hard to ignore the numbers, however, as innings and pitch counts are monitored more than ever. Pitchers have been shut down more than ever either to keep fresh and reduce risk for injury the following season or to ensure that he is available for the playoffs.
By all appearances, Cole is healthy and not suffering a drop off with speed. In fact, Cole is turning less to his trademark fastball, though he is opting for more sinkers to induce ground balls in August.
Cole has been viewed as the ace of staff this season however this is his first true test since taking on the role. There are times where a team goes how their starting pitcher goes in a game and in Cole’s three losses in August the team was outscored 12-6.
Skipping Cole’s start would be a power play and send a message to the team, however at the same token, Cole is an emotional pitcher and it could negatively impact the team.
Cole is scheduled to make a start Saturday against the San Francisco Giants and based on Hurdle’s actions in Monday’s game, his spot in the rotation is assured.
Photo credit: Keith Srakocic/AP
