After two quality starts for the San Francisco Giants, you would think it’s a no-brainer that ECU alum Carson Whisenhunt stays on the roster.
But it’s apparently not that easy.
AroundtheFogHorn.com’s Jeff Young wrote about why keeping Whisenhunt on the roster through the rest of the season is crucial. A no-decision against the Pirates and a win over the Mets were big for a team struggling with injuries to its starting pitching and the less-than-stellar outings by veteran Justin Verlander.
The main reason to keep him, Young writes, is due to Whisenhunt being eligible for the Rule 5 draft this winter. The Giants knew that they were going to protect him from that by adding him to the 40-man roster. Being added to the team was another step and, if he makes the expanded roster, it will all become a moot point.
Young writes in part, “The Giants now need to be careful with this decision. They do not want to promote him and then send him back down, thereby potentially burning a minor league option year this late in the season. That would be a waste, but it is something they have done recently with Wade Meckler.
An option year is used when a player spends at least 20 days in the minors on an optional assignment. This does not include a rehab assignment. A player does not immediately lose an option year when he is optioned. That point is often confusing.”
Photo credit: Carson Whisenhunt (Ishika Samant, Getty Images)
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