San Francisco Giants: Is Barry Zito Headed to the Bullpen?

Barry Zito has begun to throw again and should be able to return in a week or two.

The Giants surely won't rush Zito back, as Ryan Vogelsong has taken his spot in the rotation and has pitched extremely well.

Zito, prior to the sprained foot, was 0-1 with a 6.23 ERA. Zito has only pitched 13 innings on the season, as his third start went only 1.2 innings before he injured his foot. 

Nearly every Giants fan has lost all faith in Barry Zito. Zito is currently making $18.5 million and he is the highest paid player on the Giants roster. 

Ryan Vogelsong was drafted by the Giants back in 2000, although never was able to make an impact. He then headed off to Pittsburgh. In 2004, Vogelsong made 26 starts for the Pirates. He went 6-13 with a 6.50 ERA.

Vogelsong never was able to make a name for himself in Pittsburgh and went to Japan to play for two years. 

Vogelsong returned to America for the 2009-2010 season, but never was able to settle down with an MLB team. He signed a minor league contract with the Giants at the beginning of the 2011 spring training. 

Vogelsong has taken the place of Zito in the rotation and has made three starts. He is 2-0 with a 3.05 ERA and a 0.97 WHIP. He has a 17-7 K:BB ratio as well.

Vogelsong came up big in his last start in front of the fans of the team that drafted him, carrying a no-hitter against the first place Rockies into the sixth inning. He ended up giving up a hit in 6.1 innings and got the win. 

Ryan Vogelsong certainly has had an interesting path back into the majors. He has pitched very well this season, but has not made it past seven innings in three starts. 

While Vogelsong really isn't a proven pitcher, Barry Zito has seen his win total drop in every season since signing his huge contract with the Giants. Since 2007, his win totals have been 11, 10, 10 and nine. 

Zito has not had an ERA lower than 4.00 since signing with the Giants as well. Zito hasn't received a ton of run support, but has not pitched very well either. 

With Barry Zito getting paid the type of money that he is, he should be in the starting rotation. Ryan Vogelsong has been a nice fill-in and the Giants will let him pitch himself out of the rotation. 

Barry Zito should start back in the bullpen when he returns and Vogelsong should remain in the starting rotation. The Giants did sit Aaron Rowand in favor of Andres Torres last season, even though Aaron Rowand is the third highest paid Giants player.