With Estaban Yan struggling on Wednesday, and Nate Robertson throwing a mighty fine game yesterday, the race for that final spot in the rotation is still up for grabs.
Nate threw four solid innings. Although he did give up five hits, he also struck out six. The biggest thing in their favor is the fact that he’s a lefty, which means under most scenarios, he’ll make the team. It’s just whether he’ll be coming out of the pen or not.
I’m not as excited about the signing of Urbina, and I really hope they don’t throw a lot of money his way. Now I’ve never pitched, but paying a premium for a pitcher who comes into most games with no runners on base at the top of inning isn’t a good idea in my opinion. I know Rodney is hurt, but there’s no way Patterson couldn’t get the job done as well as anyone else. Urbina has lost 10 games the last two years. Not something you want to see from your closer.