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04-17-2004, 04:55 AM
<b>Next start could determine role on staff</b>
HOUSTON -- Brewers right-hander Matt Kinney will not exactly be pitching for his job when he takes the mound against the Astros on Saturday, but he will be pitching with something to prove.
The Brewers finally get their first off-day of the season on Monday, and they do not play again on a Monday until May 31. That means Kinney and every other member of the five-man starting rotation will be forced off their normal every-five-days schedule at least once in the next two months.
Right-hander Wes Obermueller is the first to get off schedule. He will be available to pitch out of the bullpen this weekend in Houston.
After next week, whoever falls into the No. 5 starter's spot -- currently occupied by Obermueller -- will be needed only twice in the following 24 days.
Who that No. 5 man is depends partly on Kinney. If he pitches well on Saturday, manager Ned Yost and pitching coach Mike Maddux will probably keep him in the starting mix. If he struggles again, Obermueller could take Kinney's spot and Kinney could be bumped to bullpen duty, like he was at times last April and May.
"He may be," Yost said. "We'll see. If he rebounds, then we'll move [Obermueller]. If he struggles, then we've got options."
Obermueller is 1-1 with a 3.75 ERA in his first two starts.
Going into Saturday's matchup with Astros spot-starter Brandon Duckworth, Kinney is 0-1 with a 7.15 ERA. He struggled with control throughout his last start, a 5 1/3-inning stint against the San Francisco Giants. Kinney surrendered Barry Bonds' 660th home run on a pitch that was supposed to be way inside but instead caught the heart of the plate. In all, he walked four and surrendered six runs on seven hits.
The next day, Yost invited Kinney into his office to discuss the outing.
"It wasn't about Barry at all," Kinney said. "It was about the fact that I didn't make good pitches."
If the pressure is on Kinney to bounce back, he was not showing it.
"I had a bad game, that's all," he said before taking the field for batting practice Friday afternoon. "I just have to go out and do what I've been doing the last couple of years."
HOUSTON -- Brewers right-hander Matt Kinney will not exactly be pitching for his job when he takes the mound against the Astros on Saturday, but he will be pitching with something to prove.
The Brewers finally get their first off-day of the season on Monday, and they do not play again on a Monday until May 31. That means Kinney and every other member of the five-man starting rotation will be forced off their normal every-five-days schedule at least once in the next two months.
Right-hander Wes Obermueller is the first to get off schedule. He will be available to pitch out of the bullpen this weekend in Houston.
After next week, whoever falls into the No. 5 starter's spot -- currently occupied by Obermueller -- will be needed only twice in the following 24 days.
Who that No. 5 man is depends partly on Kinney. If he pitches well on Saturday, manager Ned Yost and pitching coach Mike Maddux will probably keep him in the starting mix. If he struggles again, Obermueller could take Kinney's spot and Kinney could be bumped to bullpen duty, like he was at times last April and May.
"He may be," Yost said. "We'll see. If he rebounds, then we'll move [Obermueller]. If he struggles, then we've got options."
Obermueller is 1-1 with a 3.75 ERA in his first two starts.
Going into Saturday's matchup with Astros spot-starter Brandon Duckworth, Kinney is 0-1 with a 7.15 ERA. He struggled with control throughout his last start, a 5 1/3-inning stint against the San Francisco Giants. Kinney surrendered Barry Bonds' 660th home run on a pitch that was supposed to be way inside but instead caught the heart of the plate. In all, he walked four and surrendered six runs on seven hits.
The next day, Yost invited Kinney into his office to discuss the outing.
"It wasn't about Barry at all," Kinney said. "It was about the fact that I didn't make good pitches."
If the pressure is on Kinney to bounce back, he was not showing it.
"I had a bad game, that's all," he said before taking the field for batting practice Friday afternoon. "I just have to go out and do what I've been doing the last couple of years."