The Boston Red Sox only added two pitchers at the trade deadline — Dustin May and Steven Matz — and neither addressed Boston's greatest needs.
May is far from the front-of-the-rotation starter the Sox needed to follow Garrett Crochet, although his second outing in a Red Sox uniform was the best of his season so far. Matz is yet another lefty in Boston's 'pen, and it could've used another arm to bring all the depth necessary for a playoff run.
The Red Sox's lack of bullpen additions has forced them to use Aroldis Chapman more than they'd like down the stretch. Isaiah Campbell entered Boston's August 16 game against the Marlins with a 7-2 lead and let up three hits to allow them to come within two runs. Chapman entered an easily winnable game to get the final out. The appearance rendered him unavailable for the following game, which Miami won after Dane Myers and Jacob Marsee homered off Greg Weissert and Matz, respectively, in the ninth inning (subscription required).
The Red Sox's bullpen has been mostly solid all season, and its combined 3.44 ERA ranks third in MLB. Still, Boston can't rely on Chapman being available to prevent a disaster every day. Fortunately, the Sox expect internal bullpen reinforcements in the coming weeks.
Red Sox announce Justin Slaten rehab assignment to begin on August 19
Alex Speier of The Boston Globe on August 18 reported Justin Slaten is expected to begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Worcester the following day. The righty has been on the injured list with shoulder inflammation since May 29, and the Red Sox have sorely missed his presence.
Slaten has posted a 3.47 ERA and a 0.90 WHIP with three saves on five opportunities in 23.1 innings. His body of work has been better than the numbers suggest, thanks to a few blowups — Slaten didn't allow a run over nine appearances and posted a 0.60 WHIP in April, and his 10 most recent appearances have been scoreless.
In his short first half, Slaten was a solid setup man for Chapman, and his return could help the Red Sox avoid any unnecessary appearances for the closer as the postseason nears. Keeping Chapman fresh will be critical to the Sox's playoff chances, with gritty teams like the Yankees, Tigers, Blue Jays and Guardians coming their way before the season's end.
Slaten has been out of action for quite a while, and the Red Sox did not announce a potential date for his activation. Hopefully, he can come back and pitch as well as he did before his injury, which would make up for some of the bullpen depth the Sox didn't get at the trade deadline.