The Pirates have no plans to put a full stop to rookie starter Gerrit Cole's season, but he admitted Saturday to MLB.com that the team will limit him at some point over the season's final month, in order to have him available for the postseason.
"And I'm OK with that. They [pitching coach Ray Searage and manager Clint Hurdle] are openly communicating with me, letting me know what's going on," Cole said. "Doing things to extend my season is fine; I just don't want to be distracted by having to keep track of innings or pitches while I'm on the mound."
The team has yet to announce their plans for Cole, but it appears as if he will be skipped on scheduled off days, and will then move to the bullpen in the playoffs.
Cole has surpassed his innings total from last season by eight already, and is likely to finish the season with around 170, including the minors, nearly 40 more than last season.