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Previewing the 2023 Boston Red Sox rotation

By Rick McNair

ST PETERSBURG, FLORIDA - JULY 12: Chris Sale #41 of the Boston Red Sox pitches during a game against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field on July 12, 2022 in St Petersburg, Florida. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)
ST PETERSBURG, FLORIDA - JULY 12: Chris Sale #41 of the Boston Red Sox pitches during a game against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field on July 12, 2022 in St Petersburg, Florida. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images) /
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BOSTON, MA – OCTOBER 5: Nick Pivetta #37 of the Boston Red Sox pitches during the third inning of a game against the Tampa Bay Rays on October 5, 2022 at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)
BOSTON, MA – OCTOBER 5: Nick Pivetta #37 of the Boston Red Sox pitches during the third inning of a game against the Tampa Bay Rays on October 5, 2022 at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images) /

Nick Pivetta would be solid at the bottom of the rotation for the Sox

Righty Nick Pivetta is called a “gamer” regarding his pitching. Pivetta can occasionally be a very good hurler or a nightmare, but he is more than acceptable as a bottom-of-the-rotation starter. The issue is where he belongs, and circumstances have placed Pivetta in the other direction. Top of the rotation, possibly slated right behind Sale.

Pivetta uses a basic three-pitch approach – fastball, curve, and slider. Don’t expect high 90s heat or pinpoint control. At 30 years old, what you see is what you will get from the Canadian native.

In 2022 Pivetta made a league-best 33 starts; some were a horror show, and others a thing of beauty. Pivetta’s April numbers were forgettable (0-3, 8.27), and his second half was rocky, especially in September when he may have run out of gas; for the season, lefties checked in at .252 and righties at .254. Home and away showed little difference. Pivetta’s ERA (4.56) and FIP (4.42) mirrored each other.

Pivetta is into his arbitration years, and that translates into coin. In the new world of baseball, you can collect a small fortune, not pitching. Just ask James Paxton. But in 2023, the quick-working Pivetta may be placed in a situation where too much is expected out of limited ability.

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