I think you have to give Cole a serious look for a post-season spot ("I'll take 'things you never thought you'd ever say' for $400 please, Alex"). Ride the hot hand and all, and he's actually been pretty solid in his last few outings-- 13 hits and 4 ER in 14.1 innings for his last 3 outings-- and routine doesn't seem to much mess with his ability to pitch. I don't think he's the savior of the bullpen or our next ace, so don't get me wrong, but if I needed someone to eat some innings with very little notice, I'd have to give it some serious thought. Most of our guys can't go more than an inning or two, and some of them just suck if they're moved into an unfamiliar role (see 8th Inning Doolittle, 9th Inning Kintzler, or Bullpen Roark). Cole seems to be adaptable whether he's a starter or a long man or just goes an inning.
I mean, it seems like it's Joe Blanton vs Enny Romero vs AJ Cole. If you have a smart manager, you never use any of them in situations, but give them a clean inning each time, then it's simply a matter of who you think is better over multiple innings. But if you intned to use this pitcher in matchups in the middle of innings, then Cole should be ruled out.
