The Red Sox pitching staff has suffered another blow.
Garrett Whitlock has been placed on the 15-day injured list with right elbow ulnar neuritis, the club announced Friday afternoon. Second-year righty Brayan Bello has been recalled from Worcester and will take Whitlock’s spot in the rotation, putting him in line to pitch Saturday against Cleveland.
Ulnar neuritis is irritation and inflammation of the ulnar nerve, which runs along the inside portion of the elbow and can lead to pain, numbness, tingling and weakness of the involved hand. Whitlock said the sensation he’s been feeling is “hard to describe” but that despite his prior history with Tommy John surgery there is no concern he might need the procedure again.
“We’re not concerned with it being anything like Tommy John so I’m not really worried about the ligament at this point,” Whitlock said.
Whitlock said he began feeling discomfort prior to his last start on Saturday and that he felt the sensation a couple of times during the outing against Milwaukee. Red Sox manager Alex Cora suggested Whitlock could have been able to pitch through the issue if they were in the thick of a playoff chase, but with it still being so early they decided to take a more cautious approach.
“There’s no need to push right now,” Cora said. “Probably if it’s later in the season he’ll push through it but right now it doesn’t make any sense.”
The injury is the latest setback for Whitlock, who underwent Tommy John surgery in July 2019. Then a minor league starter with the New York Yankees, Whitlock spent 2020 recovering during the COVID-19 pandemic and was picked by the Red Sox in that winter’s Rule 5 Draft.
Upon his arrival Whitlock made an immediate impact out of the bullpen, but last season the team’s attempt to transition him back into the starting rotation was disrupted when Whitlock suffered a hip injury that limited him throughout the summer and eventually required surgery.
Whitlock started this season on the injured list and has made three starts since being activated on April 11. So far Whitlock is 1-2 with a 6.19 ERA, though sandwiched between two rough outings was a gem in which he allowed one run over seven innings, the deepest he’s pitched into a game since 2018, when he was pitching for the Yankees’ High-A affiliate.
Despite that history, Whitlock and Cora said they aren’t too concerned about the issue. There are no plans for Whitlock to undergo an MRI and if all goes well he could be activated as soon as he’s eligible on May 10.
“Hopefully it’s something that’s it’s only two (starts) and he’ll be back but obviously we’ve got to be cautious,” Cora said.
The Red Sox bullpen should get a lift this weekend as top set-up man Chris Martin (right shoulder inflammation) is expected to be activated from the injured list on Sunday.
Martin was scheduled to make a rehab appearance in Worcester on Friday night, and Cora said if all went well he’d be back with the big league club.
“He feels good, he’s ready to go today and hopefully everything goes well, he feels fine, we’ll give him one day and he’ll be back on Sunday,” Cora said.
James Paxton (right hamstring strain) may also be nearing a return. The veteran left-hander is slated to make his fifth rehab appearance in Worcester on Sunday, but he has not been effective against Triple-A hitters, going 0-3 with a 10.32 ERA over his first four outings.
Cora said they aren’t sure if this will be Paxton’s last rehab start and that mechanics, not health, is the issue now.
“He’s feeling OK, not great, as far as mechanics and all that stuff,” Cora said. “Healthy? He is, but obviously still going through the process of his mechanics, he was on track and then we had to slow him down so that’s why we have to be very smart about this.”
Cora said lefty reliever Joely Rodriguez (right oblique strain) threw a bullpen on Friday and will face live hitters next time. Shortstop Adalberto Mondesi (ACL rehab) is taking ground balls and swinging the bat, and right-hander Wyatt Mills (right elbow inflammation) is playing catch.
The Red Sox bolstered their bullpen depth Friday by claiming right-handed reliever Justin Garza off waivers from the Los Angeles Angels. He was subsequently optioned to Triple-A and will join the bullpen in Worcester.
Garza, 29, has appeared in 21 big league games, all with Cleveland during the 2021 season. That year he posted a 4.71 ERA with 29 strikeouts over 28.2 innings, and this season he has made six appearances with the Angels’ Triple-A affiliate, allowing four runs on six hits in 8.1 innings.
Originally an eighth-round pick by Cleveland out of Cal State Fullerton in the 2015 MLB Draft, Garza has appeared in 137 minor league games (50 starts) and posted a 4.65 ERA.