Smyly has been bad this year but it certainly is possible that he can end up pitching much better. If he doesn't, I think he would last long. He started the season in the rotation for the Rangers but was awful. His time in AAA for the Brewers organization was also pretty bad, so performance wise, he has not got it done yet in either the AL or in the minors. I don't see this as a huge move for our GM. I hope he is still working on another starting pitcher.
I expected to see VV going back to the pen, where he has done better than in his recent starts. OTOH, Pivetta has had plenty of starts and of late, he also has not been good enough. Maybe the pen will give him a chance to get back on track. Clearly, the Phillies need arms to start and to shore up the bullpen. Naturally, Pivetta wants to remain a starter but as noted above, he worked himself out of the rotation based on his performance. If he is smart, he will work on doing the job he is asked to do. I still think he may end up being a decent starter, but we will see.
The GM needs to get some breaks on adding players who turn out to actually help the team. Last year, the veterans added during the season didn't really do all that much. The Bruce addition was an early success and with the actually out of pocket cost for next year, they should have a spot on the roster for him. I see him as a bench bat and back up outfielder who likely will get starts and a decent number of at bats.
