KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Thursday is sink or swim day for Jose Contreras, as the starting pitcher is guaranteed at least one more shot to fix things and turn his poor season around.
At 0-4 with an 8.31 ERA, it would seem that it couldn't get any worse for the right-handed veteran. Oh, but it can, especially if he is demoted to the bullpen in order to get himself fixed.
"Just give him the next start [against Detroit] and then we figure out,'' Guillen said. "We talk about Jose more than anyone the last couple week. That's the conversation of the day. Hopefully, like I say earlier, the stuff is there. There's no doubt. Maybe a lack of concentration, maybe a bad mistake at the wrong time. He made one mistake, and all of a sudden, everything goes south. He can't recover from that. We have to be better than that.''
Possible replacements in house? Well, Clayton Richard headlines a list of mediocrity, followed by the likes of a Lance Broadway or Wes Whisler.