Red Sox bullpen has three spots up for grabs for Opening Day roster
Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora says that the final three spots in the bullpen remain up for grabs as we head into the final week of spring training.
We have less than a week to go before Opening Day and the Boston Red Sox still haven’t sorted out their bullpen.
Manager Alex Cora told reporters at JetBlue Park on Thursday that there are three spots up for grabs in the bullpen as the team finalizes its roster for the season opener in Seattle on March 28.
Alex Cora says there are three spots up for grabs in Red Sox bullpen
— Rob Bradford (@bradfo) March 21, 2019
With the Red Sox expected to carry eight relievers, we can surmise that Cora has five names in mind who he considers locks to make the roster. While the manager hasn’t revealed which five, we have a pretty good idea of who those handful of relievers are.
Matt Barnes is an obvious choice considering he’s the frontrunner to get the first crack at being the team’s new closer. Ryan Brasier has been slowed by a toe infection this spring but his breakout 2018 season earns him a spot. Heath Hembree is coming off a down season but the coaching staff trusted him enough to log the fourth most innings of any reliever on the team. The veteran has a solid track record and set a career-high strikeout rate last year.
Brian Johnson and Brandon Workman haven’t pitched well this spring but both are out of minor league options. Johnson has value as a long reliever who can make the occasional spot start. Workman has been a reliable bullpen option the last two years following two seasons lost to injury. Boston won’t want to risk losing either of them so we’ll assume they will be on the roster.
That leaves eight relievers to fill the final three spots. The candidates are Colten Brewer, Bobby Poyner, Tyler Thornton, Marcus Walden, Jenrry Mejia, Hector Velazquez, Darwinzon Hernandez, and Durbin Feltman.
Let’s do this by process of elimination.
A strong spring has everyone excited about Hernandez. He’s allowed only one run and tallied 12 strikeouts over 11 innings while making a pair of starts and four relief appearances. Hernandez showed why he’s the top pitching prospect in the Red Sox farm system. He also showed why he needs a bit more polishing in the minors. The talented lefty walked eight batters, including three in his last appearance. The 22-year old shouldn’t be expected to work on those control issues at the big league level, especially when he has a mere six innings at Double-A under his belt.
Hernandez has the upside to be a very good starting pitcher so the Red Sox can’t risk hindering that development by rushing him to their bullpen. He should open the year in Portland’s rotation and work his way up to Pawtucket. If he dominates at those levels, Boston can consider making room for him in their bullpen in the second half of the season to help keep his innings total in check.
Feltman has been pegged by many as the closer of the future but the future hasn’t arrived yet. 2 2/3 scoreless innings this spring isn’t enough to accelerate that timeline. Feltman has only 23 1/3 innings of pro experience, all of which came in A-ball last year. The 2018 third-round pick has the ability to fly through the system but the leap from a short stay in Salem all the way to Boston is unrealistic.
When asked if anyone from minor league camp had a chance to make the Opening Day roster, Cora mentioned Mejia as a possibility. That’s a bit surprising considering the right-hander hasn’t appeared in the majors since 2015. A third failed drug test resulted in a lifetime ban that MLB overturned to allow him to return but he has to earn his way back. I don’t think he’s shown enough this spring to deserve the opportunity.
Now we’re down to five pitchers for three spots.
One of those spots should go to Walden. He’s been the team’s best reliever this spring, posting a 1.42 ERA and piling up 13 strikeouts with only four walks over 12 2/3 innings. If the remaining bullpen roles are truly up for grabs, it’s hard to argue that Walden hasn’t grabbed the bull by the horns.
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The opposite can be said about Thornburg. He’s having an absolutely brutal spring, owning a 10.50 ERA while allowing a pair of homers and a staggering six walks in only six innings. This isn’t the same pitcher who once served as the closer for the Milwaukee Brewers.
However, Thornburg has a history of starting slowly in spring training so these results can be taken with a grain of salt. The Red Sox seem to believe in his upside. His $1.7 million salary becomes guaranteed if they don’t cut him by Monday yet they still have him scheduled to pitch next week. That’s a strong signal that they intend to take Thornburg with them to Seattle.
Velazquez proved his usefulness out of the bullpen last year when he posted a 2.63 ERA in 39 relief appearances. He’s also one of the top choices to make a spot start when needed though. We’ll see Velazquez at some point this season but I’m not convinced he’ll be on the Opening Day roster.
That leaves a coin flip between Brewer and Poyner, neither of whom have exactly dazzled this spring.
Poyner’s ugly 6.52 ERA if inflated by a five-run shellacking at the hands of the New York Yankees. Outside of that meltdown, he has allowed only two earned runs over nine innings. He could get the nod if the Red Sox decide they need an extra lefty in the bullpen, which may depend on how they intend to use Johnson. We should note though that Cora seemed comfortable without a lefty specialist last year so which hand a pitcher throws with won’t be the determining factor.
Brewer has been a bit better this spring, sporting a 4.00 ERA with 10 strikeouts in nine innings. His first taste of big league action didn’t go well with the San Diego Padres last year but the Red Sox were enticed enough by his potential to trade for him. They’ve altered his mechanics, encouraging him to pitch more upright, and seem pleased with the results.
Next. Betts should lock in contract extension now. dark
That’s enough to make Brewer my final choice to earn a spot to begin the season, joining Thornburg, Walden, Barnes, Brasier, Hembree, Johnson, and Workman. Brewer or Walden could get squeezed simply because they still have minor league options yet these are the eight most deserving options.