Fogg remains

All the papers are talking about Mac sticking with Fogg, for now. See here, here, and here. All reports quote Mac:

"There is a little bit of a track record there with Josh and he's done fine over the last couple of years. But the fact is you've got to produce every year," said McClendon.

"Everybody in that locker room has to produce, not just Josh. If you don't produce, you're not going play. It's just that simple. Eventually, you have to find somebody who can do it. That's not a threat. That's just the way this business is.

And Joe Rutter has a little more:

"I don't know what that leash is," he said. "I know this: I want to continue to make progress. This team is starting to turn the corner and I don't want to go backwards."

So Fogg is still in the rotation. If Fogg is left in the rotation, he will turn in a quality start here and there. Blind squirrels, nuts, etc. Fogg didn't produce at the level the team needs last year, he's not doing it this year, and he's never shown a consistent ability to be effective the second time through a lineup. Fogg will be fine no matter what happens. All signs point to him having a long and useful career in relief pitching. He's a lousy starter, but he's still a good pitcher. Point to the record of his production, tell him that, and get him to the bullpen where he could do some real good.

Nobody will ask me, but my leash for this guy would be two or three more starts at most. At some point you run the risk of him getting lucky, turning in two quality starts, and then scuffling for four more. One step forward, two steps back is not progress. I can understand not removing him now since his replacement is at Nashville. We want to haste slowly with the addition of minor-league talent to the big-league club.