Are reliever-turned-starters here to stay?

Baseball is a game of trends.

Remember when the Rays first introduced the concept of an opener? It wasn’t long before other teams began to employ the same tactic. The same went for the use of analytics, which became a league-wide phenomenon that helped every team make its on- and off-field decisions.

Given the success this season of Jordan Hicks and Reynaldo López, will the signing of relievers to become starters become all the rage in offseasons to come?

“Teams have tried this before; it just doesn’t usually work,” a National League executive said. “You see it in Spring Training a lot where teams might not be saying it publicly but try to stretch guys out. It hasn’t typically gone well.”

“There aren’t enough starters,” an AL executive added. “So people will try to get creative.”

Another AL executive pointed to two factors that could make this trend become more common.

“Especially with the expectation starters may not have to go three times through the order, this may become more common,” the exec said. “I also think as teams have gotten better at optimizing pitch shapes, more teams will try and tweak or add a third pitch that previously prevented a reliever from starting.”

Hicks is 3-1 with a 2.44 ERA in his first nine starts for the Giants, who signed the long-time reliever to a four-year, $44 million deal in January with the plan to convert him into a starter.

López -- who had two strong seasons as a reliever in 2022-23 after an up-and-down career as a starter -- inked a three-year, $30 million deal last November with the Braves, who made the deal with the idea of using him in the rotation. López is 2-1 with a 1.34 ERA in his first seven starts of 2024, allowing one or zero earned runs in six of those outings.

“These two guys are working out really well, but it will be interesting to see how it goes as the season goes on,” the NL executive said. “Will there be fatigue? They both have really good stuff and always have, but it’s a different role for them.”

Although López topped the 180-inning mark in both 2018 and '19, the right-hander hasn’t thrown more than 66 innings in a season in the past four years. He’s at 40 1/3 innings through seven outings.

Hicks’ workload will be even more of a focal point as the season progresses. The righty’s career-high of 77 2/3 innings came during his rookie season in 2018, and he’s only thrown more than 41 2/3 frames twice between 2019-23, even in the '22 season when he made eight starts for the Cardinals. He’s already thrown 48 innings in nine starts this season.

“Hicks is going to hit his career-high pretty quick,” the exec said. “What happens after that? Do they manage him differently? They may have to.”

National treasure

The two-year, $13 million contract the Nationals gave Trevor Williams prior to the 2023 season didn’t get much attention, and after the right-hander went 6-10 with a 5.55 ERA in 30 starts last year, there was little reason to think the 32-year-old would make much noise in 2024.

Eight starts into his season, Williams has been one of the best pitchers in the game, giving Washington a potential trade chip to use this summer. Williams is 2-0 with a 1.04 ERA over his past five starts, giving him a 4-0 record and 1.94 ERA in eight outings this season -- seven of them resulting in Nats victories.

Williams has shown flashes in the past, but this has been the best stretch of his nine-year career. If he’s able to pitch well for the next month or two, Washington could find itself with a very valuable asset as the Trade Deadline approaches.

“He’s an obvious Trade Deadline kind of guy, but those types of guys are where scouts become so important,” an NL executive said. “Whatever team is going to make that trade for him better feel really good that he can keep it up.”

Center of attention

The Rockies’ recent seven-game winning streak didn't do much for their place the NL West standings; they remain in last place with a 15-29 record. But the performance of Brenton Doyle this season -- and during the streak, in particular -- is opening some eyes around the league.

Last season, the 26-year-old became the first rookie outfielder in history to win an NL Gold Glove, but his offensive numbers left much to be desired. In 126 games, Doyle had 10 home runs, 48 RBIs and 22 stolen bases -- respectable numbers, for sure -- but he struck out 151 times in 431 plate appearances and posted a .593 OPS.

“He was missing balls by three feet last year,” an NL executive observed.

In his first 43 games this season, Doyle has five home runs, 13 RBIs and eight steals to go along with an .785 OPS. His baserunning and fielding metrics are elite, but now that he’s shown the ability to impact the game offensively, teams around the league are viewing him differently.

“Next to [Ryan] McMahon, he may be Colorado’s best offensive player,” the executive said of Doyle, who batted .348/.464/.696 with two home runs, five RBIs and four steals during the winning streak.

The strikeouts remain an issue -- he has 50 in 174 plate appearances -- but after getting all but 21 of his plate appearances in the bottom third of the batting order in 2023, Doyle has been moved around the lineup this year, getting his opportunities to show what he can do in a more important spot.

“If you can play that type of plus defense, you don’t have to hit a ton to become a really good player,” the exec said. “He’s a crazy athlete. He probably could have played any sport he wanted to.”

Doyle became the first player to reach the Majors from Shepherd College in West Virginia, a school that made news last year when alum Tyson Bagent became the Bears starting quarterback. A fourth-round pick in 2019, Doyle’s best comp might be Kevin Kiermaier, a four-time Gold Glove winner who hit enough to be one of the Rays’ most valuable players for nearly a decade.

“If you can add some offense like Kiermaier was able to, you become a really valuable player,” the exec said.