Which Boston Red Sox relievers are in the circle of trust?

The Boston Red Sox bullpen has a few relievers who have earned their way into the circle of trust. Which ones make the cut?

It’s getting late in a tightly contested game. The starting pitcher has been given a pat on the back from the manager and sent to the showers. It’s up to the bullpen now. With the game potentially being put on the line with every pitch, which relievers can you trust to carry the team to the finish line? The Boston Red Sox have a few pitchers in their bullpen who have earned that trust.

Let’s start with the closers. Yes, there are two of them, as the Red Sox have ventured down the path other clubs have explored with their bullpens in recent years, mixing and matching late in games rather than splurging for a high-priced “proven closer.”

Matt Barnes has been better than ever, posting a 1.76 ERA and 0.85 WHIP through 15 appearances. He’s struck out 28 batters in 15 1/3 innings for a 16.43 K/9 that leads all American League relievers. Perhaps more importantly, he’s only walked four. Free passes were a problem for Barnes last year but his 2.3 BB/9 would be his lowest walk rate since his brief major league debut season in 2014. Alex Cora doesn’t always call on him in classic save situations. The manager hands Barnes the ball to get the most important outs late in a game, which can come before the ninth inning, proving no pitcher in this bullpen is trusted more than he is.

When Barnes is needed earlier in the game or otherwise unavailable, it’s been Ryan Brasier closing out the ninth inning. The 31-year old leads the team in saves, converting six of eight opportunities. Brasier had a couple of messy outings to begin the month but he’s settled down with a pair of flawless innings since and was brilliant in April. Brasier isn’t the typical flame-thrower teams favor in the closer role but he’s striking out nearly a batter per inning and rarely walks anyone. He was the Cinderella story of last season’s bullpen and his (mostly) solid results to begin this year makes him worthy of his high leverage role.

You would expect the two pitchers sharing closing duties to be in the circle of trust but who else can we count on to bridge the gap to them?

Setup Men

Brandon Workman has been a solid middle reliever for the Red Sox in the last two years since returning from consecutive seasons lost to injury. The Barnes/Brasier combination filling the vacated closer seat has bumped Workman up a bit in the hierarchy and he’s responded to his increased responsibilities by posting a career-best 1.50 ERA, 0.89 WHIP, and 12.5 K/9.

The only concern with Workman is that he’s walked an alarmingly high 14 batters in 18 innings. He’s never been a control artist but his current walk rate would nearly double his career 3.6 BB/0. That trend should reverse itself and we’re starting to see Workman calm down a bit with the walks, issuing only two in his last five appearances. His questionable control suggests his ERA should be much closer to his 2.67 FIP but if that figure ends up being his ERA by the end of the season then the Red Sox will gladly accept it.

The surprise breakout of the bullpen has been Marcus Walden. The right-hander was solid in his first taste of big league action last year but didn’t make enough of an impression to stick around for more than 14 2/3 innings. He split time between the rotation and bullpen during parts of two seasons with Triple-A Pawtucket but the results showed little that would have predicted his success this season. Walden is thriving, posting a 1.61 ERA, 0.76 WHIP, 10.5 K/9, and 2.0 BB/9. Cora hasn’t been shy about setting Walden loose for multiple frames and he leads Red Sox relievers with 22 1/3 innings.

The lack of the track record may leave some hesitant to include Walden in the circle of trust but he’s done nothing to warrant that skepticism this season. Walden is in the circle until he proves he no longer belongs.

Knocking on the door

These guys haven’t done enough to be considered in the circle of trust but they’ve been solid or at least shown some potential.

Heath Hembree always seems to be a guy who the Red Sox trust more than the rest of us want to. He’s logged 60+ innings in each of the last two seasons, always among the leaders in the bullpen, despite mediocre results. His current 3.63 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, and 9.9 K/9 represent a typical Hembree season. There’s a bit of uneasiness in the pit of our stomachs when Hembree takes the mound but he keeps logging a heavy workload and gets the job done at an adequate level.

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Ryan Weber made his mark by tossing four shutout innings of relief in his Red Sox debut against the Baltimore Orioles. He then followed that up with a scoreless inning during Friday’s blowout win over the Seattle Mariners. Weber has struck out six batters and hasn’t walked any in five innings. He may not stick on the roster much longer and he was underwhelming in his time spent with the three previous teams he pitched for but he’s off to a strong start in Boston. Enough to at least get him on the radar.

Two of the brightest young pitching prospects in the organization made their big league debuts earlier this season. Darwinzon Hernandez and Travis Lakins both had a short stay in Boston but gave us a glimpse of their upside. They could use more seasoning in the minors but don’t be surprised if we see them again later this year. Once they cement a spot in the majors, both are capable of earning our trust.