PHILADELPHIA -- Jacob Arrieta had a front-row seat on Opening Day, when Phillies manager Gabe Kapler pulled Aaron Nola after just 68 pitches.
Arrieta does not expect that to happen to him if he's pitching well Sunday afternoon in his Phillies' debut against the Marlins at Citizens Bank Park.
"You've got to use the eye test," Arrieta said before Thursday's home opener. "If a guy is rolling, then you may extend him a little bit longer, and if you have high-stress innings -- one or multiple -- then you kind of reevaluate and go from there. But I think you've got to watch the game and see how it unfolds, and if you're cruising then you would obviously like to continue to stay out there. It's tough to plead your case -- if you're struggling -- to stay in the game, so it just depends on how the game unfolds and how things progress. But if I'm rolling, I intend to be out there for quite a while."
Arrieta threw 68 pitches Monday in a simulated game in Clearwater, Fla., and he threw 35 pitches in a bullpen session before Thursday's home opener. He said he could pitch beyond that -- again, if he is cruising -- and he will plead his case, if necessary.
"We pitch one out of every five days, so if there's an extra 20 pitches in there that we can give our team, then we want to do that," he said. "So, yeah, I'm always trying to plead my case."
Arrieta said the fact he is a former National League Cy Young Award winner and World Series champion gives him a little more authority to make that argument.
"Yeah, absolutely," Arrieta said. "Yeah, if it's done smartly, for sure."