Predicting Boston Red Sox’s Opening Day Starting Rotation for 2022

Predicting the 2022 Red Sox starting rotation

As we’re a few short weeks away from when pitchers and catchers are supposed to show up to kick off spring training, it’s time to start looking at what the Red Sox may put together for their starting rotation. Obviously, the elephant in the room is this beyond annoying lockout that we’re all dealing with but I’m going to be hopeful that camps start relatively on time.

For the first time since 2018 Boston had a relatively healthy rotation with Alex Cora often marching out the same names every fifth day. Though we saw some shuffling as the season was coming to a close the names in the lineup didn’t change due to health reasons. This year will also mark the first time Chris Sale will be ready to go on Opening Day since 2019, an athletic eternity.

Before the lockout went into effect the Red Sox did pick up a bushel of starting pitchers from the free-agent market in Rich Hill, James Paxton, and Michael Wacha. Boston has just one true empty slot in the rotation the fill so Chaim Bloom is filling the ring and will let ’em fight for it. With the foundation set, let’s take a look at what the rotation order and overall shape may look like.

Red Sox RHP: Nathan Eovaldi

Nathan Eovaldi has gone from Postseason hero to overpaid, to the foundation of this starting rotation in just a matter of years with Boston. Since joining the Red Sox ahead of the Trade Deadline in 2018 he has run the gauntlet with the Fenway Faithful. After a Cy Young worthy 2021 campaign, he’s earned the right to be called “Ace.”

As I mentioned in the slide above, I went back and forth between Sale and Eovaldi as my Opening Day starter. Both have the credentials and the goods to be on the mound to open the season but ultimately I settled on the big lefty. That isn’t a knock on Evo as this man has more than proven that he can take the ball in high leverage games.

I’ve become a massive Nasty Nate fan over these last few years and I’m very curious to see how he performs in his contract year. With free agency looming next winter he’ll undoubtedly want to give everything he has in the tank to raise his stock to its highest value.

A league-leading 32 starts allowed Nate to earn a 3.75 ERA, an AL-leading 2.79 FIP, 1.190 WHIP, and an MLB-best 1.7 BB/9. The fireballing Texan finished fourth in this year’s Cy Young voting just missing the top-3 by a handful of voting points. He just missed out on the honor though the argument could be made that he should’ve been a finalist.

Red Sox RHP: Nick Pivetta

What isn’t there to love about Nick Pivetta? The guy doesn’t moan and groan if his routine or schedule gets thrown off. If he has a bad day he shoulders the blame and when he does well he makes sure to heap praise on his teammates. After a stellar season with the Red Sox in 2021 he may go down as one of the best trades in Chaim Bloom’s short tenure.

Pivetta stunned when he arrived in Boston to close out 2020 and quickly became a fan favorite in 2021. He may not have the flashiest stuff in the rotation or will be considered the top dog of any staff, but he’s a damn good pitcher and can get the job done. Since Eduardo Rodriguez signed with Detroit his spot is now open for Pivetta to take it.

When I look back at Pivetta’s time with the Red Sox I’ll instantly go right to what he did leading up to the Postseason and then again in it. The man showed more emotion in the final month of the season than he probably had in his entire career. His four innings of relief in the ALDS is hero-level stuff and with each passing out you could see his confidence grow.

I have big expectations for Captain Canada in 2022 as he’s more than let Red Sox Nation know that he’s here to win. I think he has the potential to be one of those guys that can spark a team in a rut and be the backbone when they’re firing on all cylinders.

Red Sox RHP: Tanner Houck

Tanner Houck has been one of the better homegrown Red Sox pitching prospects in recent history and 2022 can mean big things for the right-hander. He stormed onto the scene as the 2020 season was winding down and instantly gave the Fenway Faithful hope for the young hurler. Now with more flexibility than ever in the starting rotation, he’s poised to cement his role going forward.

Before the baseball world went to hell I wrote that Houck has the potential to be vital for the Red Sox pitching staff in 2022. The righty recently spoke about his game plan for next season and it seems that the splitter is getting the lion’s share of his focus this winter. If he can get his splitter into the realm of quality that we know his fastball and slider to be then he’s going to be very dangerous for Boston.

Unfortunately, up to this point, he hasn’t gone deep into many games as his luck running through the lineup a third time isn’t the best. But the only way to get better at something is to continue working at it and Alex Cora is going to need to let his young starter work deeper if he’s going to be reliable in the future.

I like the idea of Houck being the fourth man in the rotation as it separates him from Sale as both have the slider as their specialty. By having that gap between the two the opposition will get a brief break before they run into another nasty slider but this time from the opposite side of the mound. 2022 will be Tanner’s chance to put the stamp on what his career can be with the Red Sox and I fully believe Houck-A-Mania will run wild this season.

Red Sox LHP: Rich Hill

If you asked me when the offseason began if the Red Sox would sign Rich Hill for the seventh time, I would’ve told you that I thought you were crazy. Well, turns out the Red Sox decide to sign Hill for the seventh time and the veteran lefty is a favorite to lock up that last rotation spot. While he’ll have to duel it out with Wacha and Paxton, it’s Hill that’s coming off of the best 2021 campaign, the odds are definitely in his favor.

There are some out there that will probably want to see Garrett Whitlock fight for this spot but he’s so damn good out of the bullpen I’d hate to lose that weapon. After what we saw Whitlock do in his rookie season he’s my top pick to fight for the closer roll in spring training. But that’s enough about him, let’s get back to D. Mountain.

At 41 years young, he posted a 3.86 ERA in 158.2 innings with a 4.34 FIP and 1.210 WHIP. He managed an impressive 8.5/3.1 K/BB ratio averaging 2.73 strikeouts for every free pass, pretty good. The veteran has more than enough gas left in the tank to hold down the fort as the fifth man in the rotation.

He’s signed to a one-year/$5M deal that could get up to $8M if he hits his incentive markers and it’s more than possible. With Hill in the rotation, this is a different look for the Red Sox as they’ve gone from a lefty-heavy pitching staff in years past to being righty dominant. It’s too early to know how this will affect things but having another veteran in the clubhouse is always a plus.