As the first road trip of the 2012 season gets under way today in Los Angeles, Kevin Correia takes the hill against the Dodgers.
Correia, 31, surprised many with an 11-7 record in the first half of 2011, securing himself his first all-star appearance.
Coming into the 2011 season, Correia got the opening day start and led the way for the younger pitchers on the staff.
Not only did he lead by example with his stellar performances, but he showed the Pirates young pitchers what kind of preparation it took to be successful in the majors.
“He’s been our lead guy through the first half,” manager Clint Hurdle said. “He’s established a mindset and a momentum for our pitchers to follow.”
Before Correia became a Pirate, he earned a spot in the San Diego Padres rotation and had a good 2009 season, but didn’t fare so well in 2010.
If only Correia can replicate his away splits to his home splits.Last season, Correia went 10-3 with a 2.64 ERA on the road, but finished with a 2-10 record and a 7.71 ERA at home.
Luckily, the Pirates schedules allowed Correia to make his first start of 2012 on the road in Los Angeles, a place he is familiar with. Correia has made 13 appearances at Dodger Stadium.
With injured pitchers Charlie Morton and A.J. Burnett coming back from rehabilitation stints soon, the Pirates need to bump someone out of the rotation. Kevin Correia is the odd man out right now.
After seeing this link at RumBunter.com, the Pirates are willing to entertain offers for a possible Kevin Correia trade according to this article at the Boston Globe. Below is the write-up on Correia from the article:
8. Kevin Correia, RHP, Pirates - The Pirates would entertain a deal for the veteran righty, according to major league sources. A serviceable pitcher, Correia could be a back-end piece. You can add him to the mix of available guys of that ilk (Blanton, Lannan, Slowey, etc.).
The Pirates should not trade Kevin Correia, yet. Correia can be a valuable piece of the puzzle in 2012, especially if injuries occur and they most likely will. Erik Bedard is a ticking time bomb and assuming he will not get hurt is playing with fire.
If the Pirates trade Correia and one of their starters get hurt, who till take their spot in the rotation? The list is not impressive, with the likes of Brad Lincoln, Jeff Locke, Rudy Owens and Justin Wilson.
Locke started four games in 2011 for the Pirates, going 0-3 with a 6.48 ERA. Lincoln started eight games, finishing 2-3 with a 4.72 ERA. Owens had a year to forget in AAA Indianapolis in 2011, finishing with a 5.05 ERA.
The Pirates can also suffer multiple injuries to the starting rotation, take last year as an example. At the end of the season, Maholm, Correia, Morton and Karstens all missed starts down the stretch due to various injuries.
If this team stays in contention through July and two pitchers get injured, they will need a veteran like Correia to fill the void.
There is no need to cut ties with Correia early in the season. The return on Correia will not be much regardless of when he gets traded, but if the Pirates wait teams out till the trade deadline, the return will most likely be much better.
If the Pirates wait a couple months, maybe it becomes clearer that Rudy Owens are in fact ready to big effective Major League pitchers. Maybe Correia takes over for an injured Erik Bedard and pitches with the same success he had in the first half of 2011.
Or the most likely scenario, Correia pitches out of the bullpen in 2011, then gets traded for a higher return than the Pirates would have received in April or May.
The quote from Manager Clint Hurdle above should not be forgotten, as Correia was a big part of these young pitchers success in 2011.
Kevin Correia got this starting staff moving in the right direction last season with his leadership and preparation habits and cutting ties with him this early in the season could be a mistake.
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