San Diego Padres: Bob Melvin was right to pull aces vying for no-hitters

San Diego Padres manager Bob Melvin lifted Yu Darvish in the middle of his Opening Day start despite six no-hit innings. One day later, Melvin pulled Sean Manaea after tossing seven innings of no-hit ball. And he has no regrets.

No-hitters were once the ultimate achievement a pitcher can reach on a given day. But as they’ve become more common over the years — and with starters usually not allowed to throw more than 110-120 pitches in today’s baseball — the accomplishment doesn’t have the same value it once did.

San Diego Padres manager Bob Melvin has long term in mind

Darvish exited his start after 92 pitches on Thursday, and Manaea — whom Melvin managed in Oakland — was lifted after 88 pitches on Friday. Both pitchers went deeper into their starts than most starters have in their openers, but because Major League Baseball had a shorter spring training due to the lockout, its hard to question Melvin’s decision to pull his starters during their no-hit bids on back-to-back nights.

While Melvin, who is in his first season managing the Padres, acknowledged to reporters that tossing a no-hitter is “a life-changing thing,” it’s clear he wanted to protect his pitchers.

“With the shortened spring, you’re talking about 60 and 70 pitches that guys have thrown,” Melvin told MLB.com reporter AJ Cassavell. “I was a little uncomfortable with [Manaea pitching] the seventh, to tell you the truth. You’re targeting more like five [innings] to start the season — maybe six. Seven was an extreme.”

And he’s right.

A team like the San Diego Padres, with postseason and championship aspirations, should be focusing on the bigger picture, rather than push starters past their limits in their first starts of the season. As great as it would’ve been to see Darvish or Manaea pitch a no-hitter, the Padres would much rather have them healthy for a championship run in October.

While pulling Darvish or Manaea from their starts does not guarantee they will remain healthy the rest of the season, Melvin simply couldn’t risk their health. And while leaving them in would not guarantee they would get hurt, the injury risk is minimized in doing so.

Former Cy Young Award winner Johan Santana pitched a no-hitter in 2012, the first in Mets franchise history. Manager Terry Collins pushed Santana to 134 pitches to complete the feat. At the time, Santana’s ERA was lowered to 2.38 for the season. After the no-hitter, he pitched to a 8.27 ERA over the remainder of the season, according to USA Today’s Ted Berg.

He busted his pitching shoulder and needed surgery to repair a torn anterior capsule. And he has never appeared in a Major League game again. The no-hitter was the last great moment of a career that was cut short much too early.

So, while Melvin’s decision to pull Darvish and Manaea may have upset some fans, it’s hard to argue with his logic. He was trying to protect his pitchers and keep them healthy — not just for the sake of the team, but for the players themselves.

Kudos to Melvin for making the right call.