SF Giants Pick Prospect Kickham to Start Tuesday

Kickham gets the call. It wouldn't have surprised me if it was Heston, but Kickham has earned it as well. If he gets a half-dozen starts in while Vogie is down, it's going to help his development enormously. I'm glad they were able to stay within the organization for the replacement.

from SFgate.com
http://blog.sfgate.com/giants/2013/05/26/danger-looms-for-sf-giants-after-win-against-rockies-4-2-homestand/

UPDATE, 5:40 p.m.: Michael Kickham, a 24-year-old left-hander who has thrown five excellent games in a row for Triple-A Fresno, will take Ryan Vogelsong’s spot in the rotation and start Tuesday night’s game in Oakland, manager Bruce Bochy just announced.

“He’s been throwing the ball as well as anybody down there, better, really,” Bochy said. “He’s really pitching well with all his pitches. He had another good outing his last start.”

Bochy said there was a lot of debate over this decision, but ultimately the brass wanted to keep the bullpen intact, ruling out Chad Gaudin.

Kickham is 3-4 with a 4.33 ERA in 10 starts for the Grizzlies, but those overall numbers are not as relevant as what he has done in his past five starts. He has allowed six earned runs in 31 1/3 innings with nine walks and 29 strikeouts. He is a big left-hander, at 6-4, 220, and becomes the first player from the Giants’ 2010 draft to reach the majors, beating the likes of Gary Brown and Heath Hembree. He was taken in the sixth round.

Buster Posey caught him in a bullpen session or two in spring training and said, “He’s got good stuff. That’s all I remember.”

“He’s a left-hander we think a lot of,” Bochy said. “He was in major-league camp. I look forward to watching him. He needs to go out and pitch the way he’s been pitching, and he’ll be fine.”

No corresponding moves have been announced.

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