The Giants still have 13 pitchers on the roster for some reason

The Giants spent most of the last few days making us happy, which means it's time to start nitpicking. Why didn't they win all of the games before that? What's up with (utility player averaging an at-bat every other game)? Harumph. Harumph!

Apologies in advance, then, but when Mike Broadway came into the game on Wednesday, I thought, "Oh, that's right! Mike Broadway is on the team!" This is a pretty good sign that your team has too many pitchers. Let's check his log:

• April 19 - Pitched an inning (20 pitches)
• April 20 - N/A
• April 21 - N/A
• April 22 - Pitched an inning (11 pitches)
• April 23 - N/A
• April 24 - N/A
• April 25 - N/A
• April 26 - N/A
• April 27 - Pitched a third of an inning (4 pitches)

There is something to the idea of avoiding bullpen fatigue in a long, long season, especially for a team that has postseason dreams. An inning saved now is an inning earned in October. But those 2⅓ innings could have been absorbed pretty harmlessly by just about anyone else in the bullpen. A combination of arms would have done well enough, without stretching them too thin, I would thin.

Or take Steven Okert:

• April 19 - Pitched two innings (26 pitches)
• April 20 - N/A
• April 21 - Pitched two-thirds of an inning (8 pitches)
• April 22 - N/A
• April 23 - N/A
• April 24 - Pitched a third of an inning (5 pitches)
• April 25 - N/A
• April 26 - N/A
• April 27 - Pitched two-thirds of an inning (19 pitches)

Sort of the apples to Broadway's oranges because he's a lefty who's used in match-up situations, but if he didn't exist, someone would have had to take those innings.

Now MASH THE TWO OF THEM TOGETHER into some horrible affront to nature:

• April 19 - Pitched three innings (46 pitches)
• April 20 - N/A
• April 21 - Pitched two-thirds of an inning (8 pitches)
• April 22 - Pitched an inning (11 pitches)
• April 23 - N/A
• April 24 - Pitched a third of an inning (5 pitches)
• April 25 - N/A
• April 26 - N/A
• April 27 - Pitched an inning (23 pitches)

Other than bringing this hypothetical pitcher back to pitch two days after a three-inning outing -- which we've seen before -- nothing would make me think, "Whoa, whoa, whoa, give this guy a breather, Boch!" That would be a pretty typical reliever workload.

Now, the twist is I don't think it matters a whole bunch when it comes to the bench. The Giants haven't needed a ton of pinch-hitters in close-and-late situations, and, more importantly, they don't exactly have a 25-year-old Bill Mueller waiting for them in the minors. Their choices are a) contact-challenged outfield sluggers, b) an unexciting middle infielder, or c) a third catcher. Before you answer, remember that Andrew Susac is still working through some injuries. He's not quite a third catcher, at least not yet.

I would still take Susac over the 13th pitcher. That's just a personal preference, and you can yell at me for being dumb when the Giants have to make every reliever go five innings in a 38-inning game later this month. The point stands, though: If the Giants really wanted to go with 12 relievers, like a normal team, it wouldn't really be that hard of a transition.

The only trick would be finding a hitter off the bench who makes the whole thing worthwhile.

No, he's ... he's ... he's taken. Now please leave I have something in my eye please go.