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I am not looking for any trade secrets, but just a few general opinions. What do you guys (and gals) think about David Bush?



I have him and (until this past start) I have been kind of successful in moving him in and out of my rotation to take advantage of matchups hoping for a hot streak. I use him as my last starter. He sure isn't helping in wins or K's but his ERA hasn't crushed me and his WHIP is good (again, I have used him on most of his better starts).



Is he just a soft-tosser waiting to get lit up like a gas can if his control goes south or does he have potential? I am using a reserve spot for a pitcher currently on the DL who has better potential/better team, but he will not be off until late June earliest. My other option is to do the MR space filler, or the waiver tango for other marginal starters with decent matchups.

It really depends what pitchers are out there in FA land. I'm of the view that you should have 7 or 8 starters so you can mix and match starts. Although 6-8 might be marginal, mixing and matching can make a difference....if you're smart.

Free Agent market has the likes of Jeff Francis, Jason Johnson, Sidney Ponson, Josh Fogg, Kyle Lohse, and Brian Moehler in it.

He's always had good control; it's superb so far this year. On the other hand, his K's have dropped. I really like to look at the K/9 and BB/9 stats individually rather than the K/BB stat. The K/BB stat suggests he's better this year, but looking at each individually, you hate to see the K's drop. Nevertheless, he still has a far better differential than most pitchers, and he's still at an age where the improvement in control could be legitimate and the strikeout rate could go back up. He is a legitimate 4 pitch guy, after all.



So, yeah, I really like him. That said, he's in the toughest division and doesn't get to easy-out the opposing pitcher since pitchers don't bat in his league, so you are probably doing well to pick and choose your spots.



[ May 27, 2005, 12:57 AM: Message edited by: bjoak ]

Thanks for the opinions, guys. It looks like they are going to have him go on Saturday on short rest vs MIN to give Halladay another day. His match up next week is favorable @OAK probably vs Saarloos. That, plus Millwood going on the DL certainly means I will be leaving him in.