Gabe Kapler sat down with Alex Pavlovic on Giants Talk to discuss the growing trend of using position players on the mound during a blowout game.
Seeing position players pitching is often fun for everyone involved. However, some might find it controversial to use a position player to pitch late in games because of the inherent risk of that player getting injured.
Regardless, Giants manager Gabe Kapler is OK with using a position player pitching, depending on the situation.
"You're down seven or eight runs, the likelihood of you coming back and winning that game is slim, closer to none," Kapler said on the Giants Talk Podcast. "So it does make sense to use position players probably a little bit earlier in games."
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SIGN UP HERE Kapler added that one of the reasons why managers don't do so is because it essentially signals to the opposing team that they are giving up. He follows that up by saying when it comes to how grueling and strenuous the regular season is, it does make sense for position players to pitch from time to time, especially if they're as effective as Luis Gonzalez, who has seemingly been a regular fixture on the mound.
"They're actually saving your bullpen, you're not actually getting somebody up behind the position player," he said. Kapler believes having position players pitching earlier could "drastically" change the course of games, though traditionalists may not enjoy that change.
"I think for that reason, there is going to be some trepidation still for a little while," Kapler concluded.
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At any rate, while seeing position players pitching may seem fun and full of novelty, the emergence of two-way players like Shohei Ohtani has shown it is possible to be a dual threat. Obviously, Ohtani is a generational talent, but baseball fans may see position players pitching effectively sooner rather than later.
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