The Red Sox desperately need starting pitching. For several weeks the club has worked with a three-man rotation and a series of openers to fill the gaps when necessary. That approach has sufficed for now but isn’t a recipe for long-term success.
But with the trade deadline approaching and reinforcements coming from within, the Red Sox might soon have some tough rotation decisions to make.
Familiar ones, too.
Throughout their Red Sox careers, Tanner Houck and Garrett Whitlock have see-sawed between the starting rotation and the bullpen, and while the long-term goal has been for both to become fixtures in the rotation, circumstances could soon force one or both back into relief roles.
Red Sox manager Alex Cora said as much Wednesday, noting that they would soon have a conversation with the pair to map out their next steps as Houck recovers from his facial fracture and Whitlock from his elbow bruise.
“It all depends on the role that we want them. We’re going to have time, kind of, so that’s something we’ll meet today and talk about what we want to do, how we want to build them up, what role they’re going to have in the last two and a half months of the season, and depending on what we decide the rehab might be different,” Cora said. “We need starters, someone has to start, so we’ll talk about it and whatever decision we make then we’ll go from there with the rehab.”
Who makes the cut will ultimately be a numbers game. The Red Sox could add one or even multiple starting pitchers ahead of next week’s deadline, and when Chris Sale returns — likely in mid-August — he will get a spot in the rotation as well.
That could leave only one or possibly no open spots once Houck and Whitlock are ready, meaning the club would have to decide if they should bump someone else from the rotation or move them to the bullpen for the stretch run and reassess things over the offseason.
Houck, for his part, affirmed his view that he’s a starting pitcher.
“I was starting before and I see myself starting going forward,” Houck said on the field prior to Wednesday’s game. “I haven’t talked to (Cora) mainly just been focused on getting back and getting healthy, but I see myself as a starter now and for the long haul. I’m sure as things get a little bit closer and rehab assignments start getting handed out I’ll find out more information then.”
Of the two, Houck seems more likely to return to the rotation this summer. Houck’s injury was a freak occurrence and the club isn’t worried about how he’ll fare once he’s back, but given that Whitlock has been on the injured list three times this year — twice with arm-related issues — Cora acknowledged they need to be careful.
That being said, they do believe Whitlock can still start and that his recent issues haven’t stemmed from pitching a starter’s workload. If he goes to the bullpen it would be more a product of the roster and the time on the calendar.
“We don’t think it’s related to that but it’s something we’ve been talking about for a while here and now ‘x’ amount of games left maybe the bullpen is what we need to do in a different role so we can get him as soon as possible,” Cora said.
Cora reiterated that nothing has been decided and that both could still return as starters.
“You never know,” Cora said. “We’ll talk about it.”
Houck and Whitlock threw their first bullpen sessions this week and will follow the normal progression back in the coming days and weeks. Each will throw another bullpen and then a two-inning session before advancing to live batting practice and rehab outings.
Corey Kluber (right shoulder inflammation) also threw his latest rehab outing in Worcester on Wednesday. He is expected to return to his prior bullpen role upon his activation, though Cora didn’t rule out the possibility he could serve as a bulk reliever following an opener in a similar fashion as Nick Pivetta and Chris Murphy.
“We might consider it,” Cora said.
A couple of weeks ago Alex Cora made headlines when he answered a question about the state of the club’s 26-man active roster, which was perceived by many as a shot at the front office.
“At the end of the day, the place that we like is to play in October. It’s not about how many prospects you have or where your farm system is,” Cora said pregame on July 8. “They might be one or 30th, whatever. The one that really counts is how many games you win in October, how games you play in October. And that’s what we’re shooting for.”
Wednesday, while answering an unrelated question and expressing his opinion that organizations should ultimately be judged by how many championships they win, Cora brought up the reaction to his past comments and set the record straight.
“I’m not saying it in a bad way, I think people took it like I was taking a jab at the front office, no, this is the nature of the game,” Cora said. “That’s the way I see it, we still have time to make a run but I said it a few weeks ago you win 15 out of 20 you’re back in the hunt, and I think we’re close to doing that.”
Cora added that he hasn’t spoken to Chaim Bloom about the matter, but he feels like they’re on the same page.
“Not really, he knows where I’m at. I know how it works, people take pieces and they use that for clickbait or whatever they want to call it,” Cora said. “You (beat writers) are here and you listen to what I said. Some people pick pieces of what I said and use it to their advantage, and I don’t take it personally, I’ve been in that business.”
Entering Wednesday the Red Sox were 14-5 over their last 19 games and a season-high seven games over .500. They have worked themselves back into the playoff conversation but still have work to do as a fourth place team below the American League Wild Card cutline.
Does he think the Red Sox have a path to a championship? Cora rhetorically asked if anyone thought they had a chance this time in 2021, noting that they wound up finishing two wins away from the World Series while other teams in a similar spot have gone all the way.
“It’s too early for that, you say the Braves a few years ago, nobody thought they were going to win the championship and they added a few guys and they ended up winning. The Nationals a few years ago, nobody thought they were going to win it and they did,” Cora said. “I always think my teams have a chance to win the World Series, that’s the way I see it, that’s why I work on a daily basis and I still feel that way.”
Trevor Story had a nice day at the plate in his latest rehab outing on Wednesday, going 2 for 3 with a double in the Worcester Red Sox’s 10-8 loss to the Rochester Red Wings.
Story, who once again started at shortstop, played five innings in the field, as did catcher Reese McGuire, who went 0 for 3. Kluber pitched two innings of relief, allowing three runs on three hits with a walk, two strikeouts and a home run. Bobby Dalbec hit two home runs, bringing him to 24 on the season at Triple-A.