Red Sox: Predicting the 2018 Opening Day 25-man roster
By Sean Penney
Starting Rotation
Chris Sale, David Price, Drew Pomeranz, Rick Porcello, Brian Johnson
The top four in the rotation are locks. Sale, the runner-up in the AL Cy Young race last year, remains among the elite starting pitchers in baseball. He’s the ace of this staff and presumably the starter for Opening Day – even if Cora isn’t ready to confirm it yet.
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Pomeranz had a bit of an injury scare this spring but appears back on track. For now, I’ll optimistically project him to make the Opening Day roster.
Price and Porcello both have much to prove in the wake of disappointing seasons but they aren’t in danger of losing their spot in the rotation. Certainly not to start the season. Both are former Cy Young winners being paid a lot of money. The Red Sox aren’t giving up on either no matter how frustrating they can be.
The fifth spot in the rotation is a glaring question mark. Eduardo Rodriguez is the top choice for that role but he’ll likely begin the season on the disabled list. Steven Wright is making progress but also probably won’t be ready.
Johnson may end up winning the spot by default. Roenis Elias and Hector Velazquez loom as depth options but nothing from Johnson’s spring performance suggests he’s fallen behind either of them.