Red Sox Opening Day roster projection 2.0: Giolito, Grissom injuries shake things up

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Opening Day is just weeks away, and days ago the Boston Red Sox were feeling confident about the team's progress.

Since then, multiple injuries have come up that have derailed Boston's momentum. Lucas Giolito likely needs season-ending surgery and Vaughn Grissom has a groin strain that will keep him sidelined past Opening Day.

Now, there's a second starting rotation spot available and no true starting pitchers to occupy it. Polishing up the Red Sox rotation has gotten twice as difficult in Giolito's absence.

Boston has plenty of infield talent to play second in Grissom's stead, but that's precisely its issue. The Red Sox need to decide which of their infield prospects will start.

There is still plenty of spring training left for Boston's coaches to make these decisions. And there's still time to sign additional talent to fill in the gaps. But for now, it looks like the Red Sox are going to try and work with what they already have.

Red Sox Opening Day roster projection 2.0: Lucas Giolito, Vaughn Grissom injuries shake things up

Red Sox Opening Day starting rotation:

Brayan Bello
Nick Pivetta
Kutter Crawford
Tanner Houck
Cooper Criswell

Bello is the only given in the starting rotation as he's the lone bonafide starter on Boston's staff. Nick Pivetta and Kutter Crawford both performed well for the Sox last season and they're the next-best choices behind Bello and Giolito, who is likely to be out for the season.

Tanner Houck has 41 starts worth of experience under his belt and he's upped his velocity this offseason. Houck is also focusing on throwing more strikes, which will always benefit the Red Sox and their shoddy defense. All the changes Houck has made to his game make him one of the better fits for the rotation than his other starter/reliever counterparts.

Chief baseball officer Craig Breslow recently stated that Cooper Criswell is also making a case for a starting spot. He has starting pitching experience from his days with Triple-A Durham and he's a consistent strike-thrower.

Red Sox Opening Day bullpen

Garrett Whitlock
Brennan Bernardino
Chris Martin
Kenley Jansen
Josh Winckowski
Isaiah Campbell
Justin Slaten
Greg Weissert

With Houck and Criswell breaking the starting rotation, there's room for two new additions to the bullpen.

Justin Slaten has been turning heads at spring training and has a real shot to make the roster. This spring training, he's made four appearances and he's posted a 0.00 ERA. In his four innings of work, he's allowed two hits and racked up four strikeouts without a walk.

Greg Weissert arrived in Boston from the New York Yankees this winter as part of the Alex Verdugo trade. He's also logged a 0.00 ERA with four strikeouts in the Grapefruit League this spring, and he has some big-league experience to compare that to. In 29 games with the Red Sox's arch-rival, Weissert registered a 4.60 ERA and 33 strikeouts over 33.1 innings.

Boston's bullpen is quite low on lefties, so some southpaws may have a shot to crack the 'pen, like Chris Murphy or Lucas Luetge.

Red Sox Opening Day infield

Triston Casas (1B)
Bobby Dalbec (2B)
Trevor Story (SS)
Rafael Devers (3B)
Connor Wong (C)
Reese McGuire (C)
Enmanuel Valdez (INF)
Pablo Reyes (INF)

Triston Casas, Trevor Story and Rafael Devers own their spots in the infield. With Grissom injured, the Red Sox will likely turn to Bobby Dalbec, their most experienced backup. He's played 294 games with the Sox and he's shown flashes of power at the plate.

Enmanuel Valdez and Pablo Reyes will hold the infield bench spots. Dalbec has been getting more playing time in spring training and he's posted better offensive numbers than Valdez and Reyes while facing slightly more difficult pitching.

Red Sox Opening Day outfield

Jarren Duran (LF)
Ceddanne Rafaela (CF)
Tyler O'Neill (RF)
Masataka Yoshida (DH/OF)
Rob Refsnyder (OF)

Red Sox prospect Ceddanne Rafaela has earned Alex Cora's vote of confidence this offseason and he's showing out at spring training. Rafaela's impact has been more noticeable than that of Wilyer Abreu, who's had his moments this spring, but Rafaela is just playing better.

Rafaela hasn't been heralded for his plate presence, but his eye has shown signs of serious improvement. He's been getting on base at a higher clip while Abreu is logging extra-base hits with less frequency. Rafaela's speed and defense are too good to pass up if Abreu is having struggles at the plate.

Notable Red Sox starting the season in the minor leagues

Wilyer Abreu (OF)
David Hamilton (INF)
Romy González (INF)
Lucas Luetge (LHP)
Chris Murphy (LHP)

Due to Rafaela outshining Abreu in spring training, he may have to spend some time in Triple-A to get his command back. David Hamilton hasn't seen any playing time this spring and he's likely to need more time to get ready before he sees the big-league roster. However, if there's another infield injury like Grissom's or like Story's issues of the past few years, we may see both Hamilton and González sooner than expected.

Luetge and Murphy both have a real chance at some playing time this year as two southpaws in a righty-heavy staff. Murphy has pitched much more successfully than Luetge this spring — they've posted 1.80 and 6.00 ERAs, respectively — so we may see Murphy first.