Red Sox News: Garrett Richards has been reborn since joining the bullpen

Red Sox righty Garrett Richards has found himself in the bullpen

When Chaim Bloom signed Garrett Richards before the 2021 season it was met with mixed results. On the surface, it felt like another reclamation project for the young CBO but this time with was with someone who had pitched well in the past. Unfortunately for the Red Sox he never quite got it figured out while in the starting rotation, but it’s been a completely different story since becoming a reliever.

On August 11th, it was announced that the Red Sox would be demoting Richards to the bullpen after months of inconsistency. One night he’d go out and look like a Cy Young contender and the next he’d get shelled by the opposition. However, as a reliever for Boston, he has been more than any of us could have ever asked for and he’s becoming one of Alex Cora’s most trusted arms.

Since being moved to the bullpen on the 11th he’s been the second-best relief pitcher on the staff, only behind Garrett Whitlock. In that span, Whitlock has a 0.4 WAR with Richards right on his heels at 0.3, per FanGraphs. He’s made five appearances in that two-week window and owns a 0.90 ERA through 10 innings of work. His ERA is the lowest of any Red Sox reliever in that time frame and it’s been great to see.

Richards ran into instant pushback from Red Sox Nation after handing out numerous excuses for his poor starts. This is a team that has seen some bad pitching over the years but more often than not we’ll hear guys wear it and take the blame. Garrett didn’t quite do that, and whether it was not owning a coat or the umpire’s strike zone, he didn’t like to carry it. Since getting sent to the bullpen he has been reborn into a quality pitcher that can be relied on, and not soon enough.

For the first half of the season, Boston was able to rely heavily on their bullpen as their starting rotation was hit or miss. Now that the starters have their games firing on all cylinders the bullpen is showing to be overworked and taxed after the load they had to carry. Having a guy like Whitlock step up in big scenarios and adding Richards who can also eat innings has been a godsend for the Sox.

We saw a similar tactic from Cora back in 2018 where he’d take starters on their off days and put them in the bullpen to try and save his actual relievers. While we’re still very far away from the postseason, it feels like the club is making those efforts now to rest their battered relief squad. Martín Pérez was also moved from the rotation to the pen but has seen different results than Richards. The southpaw has gotten beaten up and beaten down since his move whereas Richards has taken the positional change in stride and is thriving.

More from Red Sox News

• Red Sox Nation deserves far more from Fenway Sports Group
• Bizarre trade deadline comes back to haunt Red Sox after Nathan Eovaldi departure
• Red Sox’ Moneyball-style offseason continues with Corey Kluber contract
• Rich Hill’s Red Sox departure puts him within striking distance of unique MLB record
• Red Sox offseason takes another nasty hit with Nathan Eovaldi departure

I’m not the biggest fan of Richards and I highly doubt he’ll be back with the Sox for 2022 as he has a $10M team option versus only a $1.5M buyout. While I appreciate what he’s been doing as a reliever and I hope he’ll continue to be an asset in the postseason, I’ve seen enough of him in a Red Sox uniform. Bloom has accumulated several long relievers in his bullpen and I think that’s some of his Tampa history coming back. The Rays are known for using relievers left and right so having several that can go two or three innings is great, which seems to be Chaim’s game plan.

It’s been refreshing to see Garrett re-tool his game and become a strong reliever for this club. As we get into the final month of the season the Red Sox will need him to be as sharp as he can be and this is the best way to use him. I can’t begin to figure out what switch has flipped for him but he’s a far better reliever than he ever was a starter for this club. Whatever he’s done since going to the bullpen is working and I sure as hell won’t complain if he keeps it going.