Bochy: Kickham has made his last start, will go to bullpen

After his second outing of less than three innings in his MLB debut season, Bruce Bochy has made his decision on Mike Kickham and has announced it on Jim Bowden’s radio show:

June 15, 2012; Atlanta, GA, USA; San Francisco Giants relief pitcher Chad Gaudin (57) pitches in the first inning against the Atlanta Braves at Turner Field. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Shirey-USA TODAY Sports

In Chad Gaudin‘s four starts, he went longer than four innings — his shortest one was against the Marlins when he had to be taken out. His other three were at least five innings long, so this looks to be the logical move here. Gaudin’s start will come on Saturday against the Dodgers. I expect Kickham to at least make the first cut when Santiago Casilla comes back, but it will be interesting to see what happens once Ryan Vogelsong returns either at the end of July or in August, assuming the rest of the bullpen stays healthy.

The Giants and Reds square off today for game two at 4:10PM PST.