When they first made the move effectively trading Albers for Nieve, they gave a bunch of lame reasons about the big strikeout and arm durability. A couple of days ago, Garner stated he wanted Nieve to get into some late inning closer situations. I wish they has said that upfront. It would have better for Nieve's confidence.

I'm not sure they can afford to totally give up on Nieve as a starter, but if they do want him to be a late ining guy, it makes sense to have him in AAA, as he will presumably get more opportunities there. Not only because of the presence of Qualls and Lidge here, but also because Round Rock actually has late inning leads.

All in all, based on what Albers has shown tonight (great movement on that fastball), I have no problem with them using him in Buchholz' spot. Assuming Nieve is effective in RR, I bet we see him later in the year in some close games. It may make them more comfortable dealing a reliever in the offseason.