According to reports, Ricky Nolasco will return to the Minnesota Twins rotation on Saturday. He’ll join the rotation while lefty, Tommy Milone will go to the bullpen.
Nolasco will be activated to start Saturday and Milone will go to the bullpen. So May and Pelfrey remain in rotation.
— Rhett Bollinger (@RhettBollinger) April 30, 2015
Oh the joys of overpaying for a starting pitcher. Look me in the eyes with a straight face and tell me that Nolasco deserves a spot in the rotation with the way he’s pitched during his time in Twins uniform. You can’t do it, you are laughing right now. It’s hard to justify this move based on performance.
In Nolasco’s only start this year, he gave up six runs in three innings of work. He also issued four walks. Let’s not forget that great 5.38 earned run average Nolasco had under his belt in 2014.
Milone hasn’t been lights out by any means since his first start of the season. Since pitching 7.2 scoreless innings against the White Sox, Milone has struggled. He’s given up five home runs in his last three starts and has seen his ERA rise from 2.08 to 4.76.
What will manager, Paul Molitor do if Nolasco struggles like he did in his only start? Will he stick with the struggling veteran? Molitor has shown during his short tenure that he’s not afraid to shake things up if they are not working. If Nolasco struggles, his return to the rotation could be a short one.
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