What if middle relief will not be as important in a shortened season?

The Atlanta Braves have great pitching depth and it might allow them to be a favorite in a truncated baseball season

So, we are looking for a shorter season – possibly a 100-game season if we are lucky.

Who knows what will happen, as far as what the setup could be for baseball this season. But there is no doubt the season will not be a normal, 162-game schedule.

Does that mean that since starting pitchers, particularly young pitchers who are coddled, could possibly pitch longer than the six innings that is now considered a quality start?

The norm, unfortunately, is for starting pitchers to do their jobs, to go through the batting order 2-2.5 times and to get out to let middle relief do its job. Or, if they are successful, hopefully the later-innings relievers can take over and close out the game.

But perhaps with a shorter season, knowing starting pitchers will not be making 30 starts, managers can allow starting pitchers to go deeper in the games if they are doing well.

It’s an easy argument in a normal season for Braves manager Brian Snitker to say he doesn’t want Mike Soroka to go an extra inning or two if he’s cruising in a game in April so he can save his arm, save his innings for later in the season.

Why make him blow it out early in the year when he can instead turn it over to the bullpen and save his arm, save his innings for more games later in the schedule.

But what if that won’t be necessary because it will be a four-month schedule instead of a six-month schedule?

The Braves are fortunate in that their depth in the starting rotation and in the bullpen is exceptional. They could have seven starting pitchers – Soroka, Max Fried, Mike Foltynewicz, Cole Hamels, Sean Newcomb, Felix Hernandez and even Kyle Wright.

Then you look at the relievers, and they are at least six strong there, as well. Mark Melancon is scheduled to be the closer, along with Will Smith, Shane Greene, Chris Martin, Darren O’Day and Luke Jackson.

That is 13 pitchers who – if healthy – would create a strong staff. If middle relief would not be as important, comparatively, then the Braves would have a tremendous advantage to both keeping their staff fresh so they would be stronger later in a schedule.

Plus, we have talked about the possibility of piggybacking – having two starting pitchers pitch in tandem. It would be like Newcomb starting and going five innings and then having Hernandez pitch the next three. Then you would only have to use one reliever (hopefully) to close out the game.

That is a perfect-world scenario, but it is not out of the question. You combine that plan with the thought some of the starters could go longer in games (if they are doing well), and again, the Braves with their roster could be in the catbird seat.

Pitching depth in whatever form the season will be played should be important, and there may not be very many teams with a better situation for the Braves.

Listen to The Bill Shanks Show weekdays at 3:00 p.m. ET on Middle Georgia’s ESPN. You can listen online at TheSuperStations.com. Follow Bill on Twitter at @billshanks and you can email him at thebillshanksshow@yahoo.com.