The Boston Red Sox could use some fresh arms. They've had injuries in the rotation, and the bullpen has been taxed to this point. It feels like Brennan Bernardino is pitching in every game, and his arm won't last if the Sox continue to lean on him so heavily.
Luckily, there might be some reinforcements on the way. Kutter Crawford updates are slowly starting to creep in. Meanwhile, Zach Penrod was optioned to Triple-A and made his first appearance there Wednesday morning. The lefty tossed a perfect inning with no strikeouts.
Then there's Chris Murphy. The left-handed pitcher made his first rehab appearance of the year in High-A on Wednesday night. It was his first professional baseball game since September 27, 2023.
Murphy started the game, pitching the first inning. He struck out the first batter he faced. Murph didn't allow a run on one hit. He didn't walk anyone and struck out two batters. 10 of the 13 pitches he threw were strikes.
Red Sox reliever Chris Murphy dominates in first rehab outing with High-A Greenville
Murphy seemed to throw the curveball the most. He only threw two fastballs. Ian Cundell of SoxProspects was at the game and had fantastic notes.
Murphy made his major league debut in 2023. He was a solid left-handed bullpen option during the season; however, an elbow injury and season-ending surgery led to a long road back to The Show.
With such a long layoff, it's unsurprising to see the 26-year-old start in High-A and only get one inning of work. Don't be surprised if Murphy isn't in High-A for too long, and don't be surprised if he's getting multiple innings soon.
In his first rehab outing, we got to see Murphy's fantastic curveball, and we saw him throwing strikes. The Red Sox could use more bullpen depth. When he's activated from the 60-day IL, Murphy will likely be optioned to Triple-A like Penrod was. However, that doesn't mean he won't be used in the major leagues at some point.
Murphy gives Boston another legitimate big league arm to help keep everyone fresh, and his multiple minor league options will give the Red Sox flexibility to move him between Boston and Worcester to keep as many rested arms in the 'pen as possible down the stretch. We saw some great things from him in 2023. His first rehab appearance on Wednesday was extremely encouraging, and it's beyond exciting to have Murph back in the fold.