In his first three starts in the rotation, after he started the season in the bullpen, righty Paolo Espino put up a 2.57 ERA, a 4.60 FIP, five walks, 10 Ks, and a .245/.310/.396 line against in 14 innings pitched, but then he gave up four runs on five hits in 4 1⁄3 IP in his June 29th outing, and his manager, Davey Martinez, said after the 35-year-old’s 26th appearance overall in ‘22, he and his staff were watching closely to monitor Espino’s return to a starting role.
“We talk about Espino, how good he is, and we had to be careful because all of a sudden his role changed and he’s been going every five days,” Martinez explained in discussing the fact that he pulled Espino after just 66 pitches.