We don't really know if Gowdy had an increase in velocity over the course of the season. From his performance it really looks like he started relatively strong and then hit a wall in the middle. Less usage at the end might have helped him touch 93 or 94 again. Sustaining that is a completely different question.
Nobody has recommended the team release him. Yes me included as everyone overreacted to a suggestion that there was a 20% chance he could be released. To me that occurs if there are medical reasons why the team doesn't really think he'll get back much sustained velocity and if he did, it might not be for a couple more years (at which time they'd lose him like Biddle).
Gowdy will get more chances than most because of his bonus and the baseball knowledge that made him a 4-pitch pitcher. At some point though, he needs to perform and the team needs to make an honest assessment over whether they should devote playing time to him versus others. This is similar to the logic why the team can't sign 50 $100K Latin American prospects for $5 million as a viable strategy. The team just can't develop that many players. Better to have one for a million. 2-3 in the $500K range, 4 more in the $200-$300K range and then a dozen or so low level signings. Concentrate your development resources on 20-30 signees every year rather than 50+. At some point a prospect hanging around for years waiting to get healthy must be released to make room for the healthier prospects with better odds of success.
