San Diego Padres call Sean O’Sullivan to opening rotation - MLB News
San Diego Padres made a slightly unexpected move as they called upon Sean O’Sullivan to the Majors as a starting pitcher. He has been a part of the Tucson Padres, the Triple-A affiliate of the San Diego ballclub and has experienced
a fair amount of success this season.
Bud Black, the manager for the Padres, felt that the call back was well deserved and Sean has been pitching well. This is the first time he will be back in the Majors since 2011 where he pitched in 12 games with little success.
"Sean has pitched very well … it's much deserving," said Black.
Bud also said that Sean was one of the guys who were considered after the spring training but could not make the final cut in what he described as a tough decision.
"He was one of the guys who it came down to making a tough decision at the end," Black said.
He has maintained a good form this season, posting a 7-4 winning record in 18 starts thus far for his |Triple-A team. He has a 3.88 ERA in what is described as a hitter friendly league.
Sean made his professional debut in 2006 for the Orem Owlz, a Rookie Class affiliate of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. He was a third round pick by the Angels in 2005 MLB Amateur Draft out of the Valhalla High School. He broke
into the Majors in 2009 where he posted a 4-2 winning record in 12 games. It remains to be Sean’s best performance at the Major League level thus far.
The Padres had the option to go with Tim Stauffer for the opening spot but decided against it keeping in view a role of a reliever being more suitable for him. Bud Black feels that O’Sullivan has the stamina to go deep into the
game which is important.
"With Stauff, he's been away from making starts for a while," Black said. "The pitch-count issue won't be a problem with Sean. I think this [O'Sullivan] works better for starting a game."
It is a great opportunity for Sean to make a strong comeback and stake his claim for a spot on the opening rotation on a permanent basis.
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