When you think about it, pitchers are kind of pre-sorted into tiers through the machinations of their managers and organizations. No. 1 starter, No. 2 starter, opener, bulk guy, LOOGY, closer, set-up man, multi-inning reliever -- these are all inherent parts of the pitching hierarchy in 21st century baseball.
What's murky about it, perhaps now more than ever, is what the relative value of a pitcher -- whatever his role may be -- is as compared to an everyday position player. Increasingly, we also are starting to wonder how much current usage trends, with their deep bullpens, two-times-through-the-order restrictions, and on-and-off-the-disabled-list shuffling, have eaten into the starter's role as the king of the pitching kingdom.