The Boston Red Sox Saturday, March 27, 2021
No one wants to say it, but it sure looks like the Red Sox are ... rebuilding
Alex Speier
Baseball officials typically contort themselves to sidestep the “R-word.” The suggestion that a team is “rebuilding” is almost too painful to acknowledge.
What does it mean to rebuild?
“Ooooooh boy,” said Pirates general manager Ben Cherington.
“It was a landmine I tried to avoid,” said former Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. “I didn’t want to concede and say we’re going to be terrible. I didn’t care for it very much.”
No one cares for the term. Yet a look at what the Red Sox have done in the 17 months since the arrival of Chaim Bloom from Tampa Bay as chief baseball officer suggests an extreme organizational pivot that is consistent with the notion of a rebuild.
The Red Sox disassembled a massive chunk of their major league roster so they could reconstruct it in a way meant to be stronger. They chose to ship out superstar Mookie Betts and another cornerstone in Andrew Benintendi while waving goodbye as Jackie Bradley Jr. headed to Milwaukee as a free agent. Familiar faces David Price, Mitch Moreland, and Brandon Workman were traded, too.
Of the players on the current 40-man roster, 23 are new to the organization since Bloom’s introduction, tying the Sox with the Padres for the most imports during that time. Nine of the newcomers were added via trade, primarily moves designed to replenish a farm system and young talent base that had eroded in recent years. Free agents have been brought aboard but on short-term deals suggesting transience.
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The splashy, all-in blockbuster deals of recent offseasons have been replaced for now by moves meant to give the Red Sox a chance to at least tread water in a ferocious AL East, and perhaps to swim. Yet as they attempt to rebound from a last-place season in 2020 (“It felt like gut punch after gut punch,” said outfielder Alex Verdugo), all the moves seem governed by a mandate: Do no harm to the future.
What is that if not a rebuild?
“The way we see it is that we’re constantly building,” said Red Sox president/CEO Sam Kennedy. “Building a minor league system, building a competitive major league team, building by adding international signings.
“I think we always need to be building towards that next championship. For us, that’s number five in this incredible era. I’ll let others select the terminology.”
Speeding up the process The decision to fire former president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski less than one year after a World Series title came in response to foreboding circumstances. Bloom took over a team that had carried the largest payroll in baseball for the second straight year but had slipped behind the Yankees and Rays in the standings with a big league roster and minor league system that were worse than both teams’.
“When I came here,” said Bloom, “I felt really strongly that we were not at the top of the division and we were not positioned to get there unless we started making some difficult decisions and thinking more long- term.”
The notion of “sustainability” — a vision of a team with not only a loaded major league roster but a farm system rich enough to fill big league gaps due to injuries and departures — became the organization’s North Star.
‘“The way we see it is that we’re constantly building. ... I think we always need to be building towards that next championship.”’
Sam Kennedy, Red Sox president/CEO
Beyond Rafael Devers, the team inherited by Bloom lacked the sort of elite young major league-ready talent featured in other organizations. He faced a forking road.
The Red Sox could try to paper over emerging holes on the big league roster while slowly rebuilding the farm system through the draft and international signings. Yet such an organic approach, even when picking at the top of the draft, typically takes years, with the potential for hitting a valley like the one endured by the Phillies for much of the last decade.
Trading established players and even stars is a way to shorten the timetable, particularly given that players with big league and even minor league track records can be evaluated with much greater accuracy than amateurs. In that sense, what is typically thought of as rebuilding represents a desire, in Cherington’s words, to “hit the gas pedal” to build a young talent base and move as quickly as possible through the most painful stage.
“You can have a great draft, but it’s still going to take you five years,” said Amaro. “If you trade properly and target the right players, you can shorten that window pretty quickly.”
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But doing so comes at a price. In the case of the Red Sox, it was a brutal season in 2020 and skepticism about their position relative to their AL East peers in 2021, along with something of an identity crisis.
They still are projected to carry a payroll in excess of $200 million as calculated for luxury-tax purposes, behind only the Dodgers in investment in the coming season. Despite their continued willingness to spend near the top of the league, much of that money is tied into contracts signed years ago, including those for the departed Dustin Pedroia and Price as well as the injured Chris Sale.
The familiar outfield of Betts, Benintendi, and Bradley is gone. The fact that Betts was dealt one year shy of free agency and Benintendi was traded two years before a potential foray onto the open market is unsettling for fans who’d seen those players grow.
“It’s hard to part with beloved players,” said Kennedy. “It’s hard for the organization. It’s hard for the fan base. But sometimes it’s necessary to do as you’re building towards championships.
“It sounds counterintuitive obviously when you trade away one of the greatest players ever and one of the greatest people [in Betts]. But we feel it’s in the best interests of the longer-term goal of playing baseball in October on a more frequent basis.”
Parallel paths Every move made by the Red Sox, even if it is to bolster the 2021 club, reflects their determination to safeguard or improve the future. In some respects, they view their mission this year as developing the core of a sustainable contender — and taking a step away from the uncomfortable middle ground they occupy.
Spring has offered glimpses of hope for coming years, perhaps even this one. You can squint and imagine a lineup with Xander Bogaerts, Devers, and Alex Verdugo complemented by the prodigious power of Bobby Dalbec and Triston Casas, Jarren Duran’s game-changing dynamism, and a well-rounded talent in Jeter Downs. Daydreams about who might be available to the Red Sox with the fourth overall pick in this year’s draft add more light on the horizon.
Yet while building toward the future, they are trying to operate on a parallel path to field a team that, if not the on-paper equal of the Yankees and other elite AL teams, has enough talent to enter 2021 with some sense of possibility.
“Every year that we’re here trying to do this is sacred,” said Red Sox GM Brian O’Halloran. “It’s an opportunity for us and for our fans to watch a Red Sox team compete for a championship. We have to take that seriously.”
That outlook distinguishes the notion of this Red Sox rebuild from the more shameless practice of “tanking” — a willing acceptance of losing at the big league level in an effort to improve draft position.
Still, the Sox built cautiously for the coming year. Seven players (Marwin Gonzalez, Garrett Richards, Martín Pérez, Hunter Renfroe, Matt Andriese, Kiké Hernández, and Hirokazu Sawamura) signed big league deals, none guaranteed for more than two years or $14 million. The emphasis on short-term deals prompted suspicions among multiple agents.
“Some players are like, ‘I’m not even really interested in going to Boston right now,’ ” said one agent. “What every agent says is, ‘Let’s be careful about running the deal [as a one-year deal with an option], because Chaim is just going to trade him.’ There’s a feeling among agents [that] if the deal is structured this way, it just doubles the value for Chaim to flip him in July.”
If the Sox aren’t within reach of a wild-card berth by the July 31 trade deadline, it would be unsurprising to see another round of veterans traded. But if they outperform expectations (officials of three teams project them with a low-to-mid-80s win total), team officials suggest they’d be open to trading and taking on payroll in pursuit of a postseason spot, potentially even surpassing the $210 million luxury-tax threshold.
Wait till 2023? Kennedy points to the offseason of 2012-13 — when the Red Sox followed a last-place finish and a midyear, salary-shedding blockbuster deal with the Dodgers by firing Bobby Valentine, hiring John Farrell, and signing several free agents to short-term deals — as one that harbors similarities to the team’s current position.
“We were seeking to hold onto really important pieces in our minor league system and building a roster that gave us more flexibility,” said Kennedy. “[And] we’ve got Alex Cora coming back now. That’s a huge lift for everyone.”
Cora’s energy and ability to draw the best out of his players offer hope. But in 2021, the division is better, and the odds of a rabbit-from-a-hat 2013-style championship are steeper.
How long might it take to achieve perennial contention? When might the Red Sox return to big-splash acquisitions?
Executives and agents believe that Bloom and the Sox will achieve sustainability — but describe them as being in the middle of a years-long process that started with the trade of Betts. The 2023 season is commonly identified as a reasonable projection for the Sox to reestablish themselves as an industry heavyweight.
“The same reason Andrew Friedman went out to LA and succeeded, Chaim is going to succeed,” said one agent. “Everyone thought Andrew was going to go out and spend left and right. He didn’t. I think that’s the same thing Chaim is doing.
“There’s going to be a two- or three-year period where they’re not very good. Maybe they’re in the second year of a three- or four-year stretch. I think they’re a much, much better team in ’22, but everything would have to go perfectly for them to be a playoff-caliber team in ’22. I think it will be ’23, but we’ll see.”
The Sox hope to defy such conservative predictions. Yet they do not dismiss them. In their current building — or, perhaps more accurately, rebuilding — goals and ambitions do not come with a fixed date.
“The goal of having a sustainable, championship team means that you want to look up and say you have an elite major league roster and also a development pipeline,” said Bloom. “I think we’ve taken steps towards that, but I don’t think we can look in the mirror and say we’re there yet.
“But I think we have a lot of things moving in the right direction.”
Introducing the 2021 Red Sox roster
Julian McWilliams
The Red Sox have put the shortened 2020 season behind them. COVID-19 is still a factor, but more manageable. The Sox are scheduled to play the standard 162 games. With all the turnover to the roster, and the Yankees and Rays expected to be atop the American League East again, expectations for the Red Sox — outside of their dugout, at least — lean toward missing the playoffs for the third straight year.
Nonetheless, Alex Cora returns as manager, and the Sox brass believes the team can be competitive. Here are the players who will lead that charge.
Infield 1B Bobby Dalbec
He proved his power was real by the end of last season and carried it over to the spring. Dalbec also has shown he’s a complete player who can make an impact in more ways than one this season.
2B Kiké Hernández
Cora believes Hernández has untapped talent. He made his mark as a utility player for the Dodgers for six seasons. He’ll have a chance to play second base and hit leadoff, a spot where Cora believes he can thrive.
SS Xander Bogaerts
He’s the team’s one consistent presence. He’s a fixture at shortstop, looking to have yet another All-Star- caliber season.
3B Rafael Devers
His offense will be there, but questions about his defense remain. He led the majors in errors last season (14). This is a huge year to determine whether Devers, only 24, can remain at third base.
Outfield LF Marwin Gonzalez
He brings a veteran presence and the ability to hit from both sides of the plate and play multiple positions. He likely will fill in at left field in the absence of Franchy Cordero. He gives the Sox much-needed versatility.
CF Alex Verdugo
He was the team’s best player last season. He isn’t afraid of the limelight and will take over center field with Jackie Bradley Jr. a Brewer. Verdugo can hit, and it’s not a stretch to foresee a batting title in his future.
RF Hunter Renfroe
Alex Cora has been impressed with Renfroe’s athleticism, calling him the second-best center fielder on the team, behind Alex Verdugo. Renfroe will play mainly right field, and his power will fit well at Fenway.
Catcher Christian Vázquez
He has proven to be one of the best all-around catchers in the league. Vázquez is a throwback who wants to play as many games as possible and has his eye on winning his first Gold Glove.
Kevin Plawecki
A serviceable backup catcher who can swing it a bit.
Designated hitter J.D. Martinez
If there’s any player who’s in need of a bounce-back season, it’s Martinez. He has his video, he has the 162-game season. This year, in large part, will determine whether the 33-year old Martinez is on the decline or not.
Starters LH Eduardo Rodriguez
He missed all of last season because of COVID-19, which led tomyocarditis, but he hasn’t seemed to miss a beat this spring. He’s the Opening Day starter for good reason.
RH Nate Eovaldi
A key for Eovaldi every year is to stay healthy. The last time the righthander pitched more than 150 innings was 2015. There is no question about his stuff. When healthy, he can be dominant.
LH Martín Pérez
He can eat innings and has proven to be a reliable starter. He’s also a veteran leader, something this pitching staff lacks in the absence of Chris Sale, who is recovering from Tommy John surgery.
RH Garrett Richards
The Sox are enamored with his pure stuff and are confident there is more talent to tap into.
RH Nick Pivetta
Acquired at the end of last season from the Phillies, he found success with the Sox in 2020. If he can build on that, he can be a key contributor.
Bullpen RH Adam Ottavino
He is coming off a down year, albeit a small sample size, with the Yankees, but his sweeping slider and high velocity should help solidify the back end of the bullpen.
RH Matt Barnes
Barnes finished 2020 on a high note and is looking to keep that going as the team’s closer. He will be a free agent at the end of the season.
RH Garrett Whitlock
A Rule 5 draftee picked up in the offseason from the Yankees, Whitlock turned some heads during spring training. He could turn out to be a steal.
RH Matt Andriese
He has the ability to serve multiple roles. His versatility and knack for filling up the zone make him a quality addition to the staff.
RH Hirokazu Sawamura
A big arm with big expectations coming from Japan. Sawamura is expected to be a key contributor to the bullpen.
LH Darwinzon Hernandez
He missed a chunk of last year after contracting COVID-19 and never quite got the ball rolling when he returned. The Sox are still high on the 24-year-old after his impressive 2019 campaign (57 strikeouts, 30⅓ innings) and believe he can regain his form.
LH Josh Taylor
He missed a large part of 2020 because of COVID-19 and didn’t look the same once he returned. Taylor was one of the Sox’ best relievers in 2019.
He’s a versatile reliever who can eat innings. Ryan Brasier will likely start the season on the injured list, giving Brewer a chance to prove his worth.
RH Austin Brice
He has shown glimpses of being a productive reliever with a unique three-quarter arm slot who can be effective in spurts.
Utility Michael Chavis
A roster spot appeared to be a long shot, but he performed well during the spring, allowing him a shot to recapture his play from the first half of 2018.
Christian Arroyo
He’s out of minor league options but made an impression in the spring and could earn a spot on the Opening Day roster. His contributions will mainly be as an infielder.
NESN’s Red Sox booth was revealing in an otherwise awful 2020 season. What’s on deck for 2021?
Chad Finn
There’s one roster relevant to the Red Sox that did not require any significant rebuilding after the dismal 2020 season: NESN’s in-game broadcast team.
With their candor, humor, and easy chemistry, the three-person booth of play-by-play voice Dave O’Brien and analysts Jerry Remy and Dennis Eckersley was often the only satisfaction to be found in watching the 24-36 Red Sox last season.
“It was kind of weird last year because we got positive feedback from whatever fans were watching,” said Remy, the former second baseman who has been a Red Sox broadcaster since 1988. “Like anybody in any profession, it makes you feel good when you get recognized for doing a good job.
“We felt like we did a good job. The best we possibly could with a lousy team.”
O’Brien, who has called Red Sox games since 2007, first on WEEI before moving to NESN for the 2016 season, said, “Our interactions weren’t always about what was on the field, which could be very tough to watch. We decided, I think collectively, maybe even subconsciously, that we were just going to enjoy each other’s company.
“We could talk about anything. You never know what’s going to come up. And there’s nothing I felt I couldn’t bounce off Rem or Eck. Nothing.
“We should be able to do that too, even with a better product on the field. If anything, I think we should be able to build off what we did last year.”
They should have plenty of chances. O’Brien, Remy, and Eckersley are all back this season. O’Brien will call the vast majority of the scheduled 162 games, with Worcester Red Sox voice Mike Monaco as his fill- in.
‘“We felt like we did a good job. The best we possibly could with a lousy team.”’
Jerry Remy on the Red Sox booth in 2020
Remy is scheduled to work 103 games and Eckersley 75, and NESN said the popular three-person booth will be in use for at least as many games as it was last season, which probably means in the 50s.
Eckersley, the authentically irreverent Hall of Fame pitcher who has been with NESN since 2003, said the positive reception from viewers probably encouraged NESN to put them together often again this season.
“I think it’s sort of a natural thing for me and Jerry; you know our history,” said Eckersley, who was teammates with Remy from 1978-84. “But we’re not stupid enough to be chirping about something silly when there’s a game on the line. Everybody knows that. So that’s probably why that happened.
“I thought it was just natural for me and Jerry, and I think Dave did a nice job. He doesn’t get enough credit.”
Said O’Brien, “It’s my job to be the point guard of the broadcast, to set up Jerry for the 3-point shot and Eck for the dunks.”
Perhaps the most memorable interaction last season occurred during a late-season broadcast, a meaningless game against the Orioles in which neither team had much to play for beyond pride. Eckersley and Remy slipped into a discussion, moderated by O’Brien, about how baseball affected the way they look at life, and how they wish they’d been able to enjoy the game more when they were playing. Conversations in the broadcast booth during lost seasons don’t get more compelling or poignant. It was superb television at a time when a viewer probably wasn’t expecting it.
“The discussion that we had about how they never enjoyed themselves the way they wish they could have when they played because there was so much stress and pressure on them really sticks with me,” said O’Brien.
“I had two former NFL quarterbacks call me after that game and say, ‘You have no idea how right that was.’ And I think that a lot of people, even outside sports, felt that way about their jobs or their careers, and it really touched a nerve. That came out of nowhere. And that’s just the way it is with those guys.”
There are some tweaks to the NESN lineup. Jahmai Webster takes over as the in-game reporter, replacing Guerin Austin, whose contract was not picked up. Webster, who joined NESN in 2016, should be familiar to Red Sox fans. He estimates that he’s worked approximately 120 games the past couple of years.
And there is a welcome addition to the broadcast booth. Ellis Burks, who starred in center field for the Red Sox from 1987-92, will be an analyst on some games, while also joining the NESN studio programs.
“It has always been my dream to spend my whole career with one team,” said Burks, who has spent his post-playing career working as a special assistant in front offices, most recently with the Giants. “Since that didn’t happen, what better way to come back to my first team than to cover them on a daily basis, and be a part of a network like New England Sports Network, and bring it full circle?”
Mo Vaughn, Kevin Youkilis, and Jonathan Papelbon will contribute weekly to the studio shows. Tom Caron returns as the primary host, with Adam Pellerin also contributing. Analysts include holdovers Jim Rice, Tim Wakefield, and Lenny DiNardo.
Remy and Eckersley are both pleased with the number of games they’re scheduled to work. Road games, at least for the early part of the season, will be called from the NESN studios in Watertown. Neither Remy nor Eckersley is much for traveling, so they enjoy doing those games from the studio, which will be upgraded this year. But they’re both looking forward to getting back to Fenway — most likely in early May — and having some normality return.
“We love to be there Opening Day,” said Remy. “There’s no question about it. But I think this is a smart way to do it, and we’ll be back when it warms up a little bit and more people are vaccinated.”
“We haven’t been to Fenway a long time,” said Eckersley. “So I would have been jazzed to do that on Opening Day. But we would have been probably in some sort of quarantine. We would probably have to go straight to the booth and be stuck, trapped like rats. No communication with anybody. That wouldn’t have been fun.
“We can wait a little longer and make sure it’s right.”
This season, Red Sox manager Alex Cora has to make up not just for 2020, but for 2019 as well
Tara Sullivan
Alex Cora spent his spring calmly corralling the elephant in the room, consistently patient, contrite, and forthcoming about the season-long suspension he served away from baseball.
With the real circus just around the corner, Cora heads toward Opening Day ready to answer as many questions as there are about his role in the Astros’ sign-stealing scheme of 2017 that cost him the 2020 campaign. Exiled by Major League Baseball and the Red Sox — who parted ways with him as details of the cheating came to light — Cora could do nothing but watch from afar as the team he once managed to a championship limped through the pandemic-shortened season.
So of course it was no surprise that the spring saw him deliver many variations on the same theme: Gratitude.
“This is what I love to do,” he said. “I have a passion for the game, I enjoy it, and I’m blessed to be back.”
Yet as much as the season is framed by Cora’s second chance, his return isn’t simply a referendum on what he learned from a year outside the game. The 45-year-old manager also must answer the lingering questions about his last year in the game, when a dramatic dropoff from the 2018 World Series championship saw the Red Sox unable even to mount a defense since they didn’t make the playoffs. The third-place finish would beget the front office change from Dave Dombrowski to Chaim Bloom, which in turn begat this current chapter of cost-shedding and rebuilding.
Since Cora’s stunning managerial debut, when his magic touch was heralded for everything from bilingual communication to management of the pitching staff, the Sox have parted ways with Mookie Betts, David Price, Jackie Bradley Jr., Andrew Benintendi, and even Dustin Pedroia, who officially retired after years of chronic injuries. The failures of 2019 no doubt hastened the shift in organizational philosophy from funding lucrative contracts like those awarded to Chris Sale and Nate Eovaldi to shipping out expensive stars before they had to pay them, a la Betts.
But hindsight also exposes Cora’s 2019 effort as misguided in many ways, from a hands-off offseason with his players that allowed too many of them to report out of shape, to a hands-off spring training with his pitchers that didn’t allow enough of them to get ready for the season. The declaration Cora made at the offseason baseball writers dinner — “If you guys thought last year was special, wait till this year” — haunted him, as everything that had gone right in 2018 went wrong a year later.
And then, he cheated himself out of the chance to make it right.
So when he sits on that Fenway Park bench for Thursday’s opener against the Orioles, he isn’t just making up for one lost year, but two. He intends to do it not by ignoring the past, but by knowing that his past is his alone, and doesn’t have to apply to everyone. With a reconstructed roster and renewed purpose, it’s all eyes ahead.
“There’s no past in this group,” Cora said, “only a present and future, which is great. Where we’re at, what has happened the last few years here, we need to turn the page. That’s the nature of it. If we keep living in the past, we’re going to pay the price.”
Of course, it’s not so easy for Cora to escape his own past, and the one-season price he paid is stuck on his résumé for the rest of his baseball life. But the fact that he has accepted that so seamlessly, welcoming every chance to own up to his mistake and acknowledge his regret, is the best indication he can indeed move past it.
“If I don’t talk about it, there’s some books coming out that are going to talk about it. It’s not going away,” he acknowledged to reporters in Florida. “I’m ready for it. This is part of the process. I’m not one that hides from making mistakes or admitting mistakes, and I’ve been doing that. This is something that is going to follow me the rest of my career.
“But at the same time, I’ve got a job to do — help this team to get back to where we belong. The other stuff, that is part of my life, something that really happened and I paid the price. Maybe [talking about it] is the way for me to get it out of my system.
“At the same time, I’m pretty good about separating things. This is my story. It’s not their story. And their story is about to be written starting April 1.”
The blueprint: Dodgers’ balanced approach in team-building is exactly what the Red Sox aspire to
Peter Abraham
The Tampa Bay Rays won the American League pennant last season with a luxury-tax payroll of $85.1 million. The only AL team with a smaller payroll, the Baltimore Orioles, was tanking.
But when they arrived at the World Series, the Rays were taken out in six games by the Los Angeles Dodgers, a team running their playbook with more than double the payroll.
The Dodgers hired Andrew Friedman away from the Rays in 2014 to become their president of baseball operations. The Dodgers have a .606 winning percentage since then and have made the postseason every year, winning three pennants.
Los Angeles is the envy of all of baseball with a productive player development system that allows Friedman to make trades and sign free agents from a position of strength while at the same time having lowered the team’s luxury-tax payroll 20 percent from where it was in 2015.
In Dave Roberts, the Dodgers also have a widely respected manager who has created a clubhouse environment that fosters success.
The Dodgers are 7-2 favorites to repeat as World Series champions, something no team has done since the Yankees won three in a row from 1998-2000.
This is the model the Red Sox hope to follow with Chaim Bloom as chief baseball officer.
If only it were that easy.
Friedman inherited a team that won 94 games in 2014 with 26-year-old Clayton Kershaw the ace of the pitching staff. The closer, Kenley Jansen, also 26, was emerging a dominant force.
The Dodgers also had three future All-Stars — Clay Bellinger, Joc Pederson, and Corey Seager — in their farm system.
In 2019, Bloom took over an extremely talented major league roster in Boston but also a prospect pool ranked in the lower third of the sport. He has since worked diligently at expanding the base of talent to give the Red Sox greater flexibility.
Twenty-three of the players on the 40-man roster have been acquired on Bloom’s watch.
In infielder Jonathan Araúz, lefthander Connor Seabold, infielder Jeter Downs, catcher Ronaldo Hernandez, infielder Blaze Jordan, outfielder Jeisson Rosario, third baseman Hudson Potts, righthander Garrett Whitlock, catcher Connor Wong, and second baseman Nick Yorke, the Sox have added 10 legitimate prospects via trades, the draft, and the Rule 5 draft.
If some of those players click, the infusion of talent should allow the Red Sox to make better, Dodger-like decisions.
“When I was with the Rays and the Red Sox and Yankees were employing some small-market discipline while also having the financial might, I felt like we had no chance of competing,” Friedman said after Bloom was hired.
“When they were going out and trying to build through free agency, I felt like we would have an opportunity to be able to compete with them and be able to tighten it up and figure it out. When large- revenue teams find that right balance, it makes them dangerous.”
That’s the goal for the Sox, to strike that balance.
The Dodgers had the prospects to acquire Mookie Betts from the Red Sox with enough still on hand to sign him to a 12-year, $365 million extension knowing other positions would be manned by cost-controlled, inexpensive players.
They followed that up by signing righthander Trevor Bauer for potentially three years and $102 million.
“It’s finding that right balance between the disciplines of a smaller-market team coupled with having the financial might to make different types of deals,” Friedman said.
Friedman and his staff also have drafted wisely. Walker Buehler, a 26-year-old righthander poised to be their ace once Kershaw retires, was the 24th overall pick of the 2015 draft.
The 2016 draft produced catcher Will Smith, infielder Gavin Lux, and righthanders Tony Gonsolin and Dustin May. Smith, Gonsolin, and May all played prominent roles in helping Los Angeles win the Series last season.
Friedman also made small trades that turned out to be important, acquiring utility players Kiké Hernández and Chris Taylor and catcher Austin Barnes when they were prospects. All three were on the championship team.
There were mistakes, too. Brandon McCarthy was signed for four years and $48 million before the 2015 season and started only 29 games over three years before being traded.
Friedman also sent outfielder Yordan Álvarez to the Astros in 2016 for reliever Josh Fields.
Fields had a 2.61 ERA over 124 appearances for the Dodgers before being released in 2019. Alvarez was the 2019 AL Rookie of the Year for Houston, posting a 1.067 OPS.
Bloom wants to put the Sox where they are in a position to overcome the inevitable mistakes. For now, they have $32.1 million in dead money on their payroll.
The Red Sox beat the Dodgers in the 2018 World Series and are 108-114 since then, without returning to the postseason. The Dodgers have only gotten better. They’re the blueprint.
Garrett Whitlock, who last pitched in Double A, officially makes Red Sox Opening Day roster
Peter Abraham
FORT MYERS, Fla. — What has been evident for several weeks became official Friday when Red Sox manager Alex Cora said that Rule 5 pick Garrett Whitlock has made the Opening Day roster.
The 24-year-old righthander has impressed the Sox since the early days of camp, and even more once games started. He has worked nine innings and allowed one run on eight hits with 12 strikeouts and no walks.
“Obviously with everything he’s done throughout camp — not only on the field, but the way he acts and the way he conducts himself — that adds to the equation,” Cora said.
Whitlock had a 2.41 earned run average in 42 games as a Yankees minor leaguer from 2016-19, but he was left unprotected after undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2019. The Red Sox took him with the fourth pick of the Rule 5 draft at a cost of $100,000.
To retain Whitlock, the Sox must keep him on the active roster the entire season. A Rule 5 pick cannot be optioned to the minors in his first season with the new team, but can be placed on the injured list.
Some Rule 5 players are used sparingly, but the Sox see Whitlock as a legitimate bullpen option who could evolve into a starter despite having no experience above Double A.
“He’s getting better and better,” Cora said. “It’s one of those — as a manager, president of baseball operations, GM, whatever — it’s a great moment when you tell somebody that you’re going to be a big leaguer. His reaction was priceless.
“It’s all about him. The organization did their homework, and we decided to draft him. From there on, it was up to him. He did everything possible to make the team, and I know he’s not going to stop. Try to keep getting better, studying the game, doing all the right things for him to get to the next level.”
Christian Vázquez, who was accidentally hit in the face with a thrown ball Thursday, was given the day off to attend to a personal matter in Miami. He’ll be examined again on Saturday. “He was feeling better last night,” said Cora. “He felt better this morning.” The expectation is Vázquez will be ready for Opening Day.
Moving day Infielder Jonathan Araúz, a Rule 5 pick last year, was optioned to the alternate site.
The Sox also assigned catcher Chris Herrmann, utility player Danny Santana, outfielders César Puello and Michael Gettys, and righthanders Kevin McCarthy and Marcus Walden to the minors.
The camp roster is down to 28 players. That does not include outfielder Franchy Cordero, who is on the COVID-19 injured list.
The biggest decision remaining is whether Cordero will be on the Opening Day roster. His bid gained steam Friday, as he played six innings in left field and was 1 for 3 with a triple to center in a 7-3 loss against the Rays.
“It seems like he’ll be OK,” Cora said. “You saw him running the bases today, hit the ball to center field, moving around well in the outfield. It’s just about now how he’s going to feel tomorrow.”
The other decision will be on the final spots in the bullpen. Righthanders Austin Brice, Colten Brewer, and Phillips Valdez are competing for two jobs.
Being out of minor league options could play in Brice’s favor, while Brewer’s advantage is being able to go multiple innings, although he didn’t help his cause by allowing four runs over two innings against Tampa Bay.
Martinez returns J.D. Martinez was originally in the lineup as the right fielder but flipped spots with Puello and was the DH. “It was more about him,” Cora said. “He didn’t feel strong enough.” Martinez missed the previous two games after a run-in with bad sushi. He was 0 for 2 with a walk … To avoid facing the Rays for a third time, Nick Pivetta threw six innings and 96 pitches in a B game at Minnesota’s complex … Matt Andriese will face Pittsburgh in Bradenton Saturday.
Friday’s Red Sox spring training report: Rays unload for four homers
Peter Abraham
Score: Rays 7, Red Sox 3.
Record: 13-10-1.
Breakdown: Willy Adames, Yandy Díaz, Tristan Gray, and Mike Zunino homered for the Rays, accounting for six runs. Jeter Downs had a two-run shot for the Sox, who were held to five hits by four Rays pitchers. Thaddeus Ward started for the Sox and allowed one run over 1⅔ innings.
Next: The Sox play the Pirates in Bradenton at 1:05 p.m. Saturday. Matt Andriese will get the start. The game will be on WEEI-AM 850.
Red Sox’ total value is put at $4.8 billion, second in majors to Yankees
Michael Silverman
They trail the Yankees by nearly $2 billion, but the Red Sox still rank as the second-most valuable team in Major League Baseball, according to valuations from Sportico released Thursday.
Accounting for the current value of Fenway Park, real estate parcels in the Fenway neighborhood, an 80 percent stake in NESN owned by the Red Sox’ parent company Fenway Sports Group, and the $3.6 billion value of the team itself, Sportico “conservatively” calculated the total value of the Red Sox to be $4.8 billion.
The Yankees are valued at $6.75 billion, including related businesses worth $1.16 billion, which trails the Red Sox’ industry-leading $1.2 billion.
“The Red Sox offer one of the most attractive situations among MLB baseball teams, because in addition to the team, they have a very profitable regional sports network and then also extremely valuable land around Fenway that can be developed eventually,” said Sportico co-author Kurt Badenhausen.
“You see the value in these assets with the recent investment by RedBird that makes the Red Sox and Fenway Sports Group one of the most valuable sports assets in the world.”
RedBird Capital Partners recently invested $750 million in Fenway Sports Group in a private deal that valued the sports conglomerate at $7.35 billion and will turn RedBird into the third-largest stakeholder at FSG, which also owns Liverpool Football Club and half of Roush Fenway Racing. The RedBird investment, as well as the inclusion of NBA superstar LeBron James and business partner Maverick Carter as part-owners of FSG, is awaiting MLB approval.
“LeBron has been very successful in just about everything he’s done on the court and off the court, and having him in the fold can only help Fenway Sports Group even with a very limited ownership interest in the company,” said Badenhausen.
Sportico quantified the economic impact of the pandemic last year on all clubs. For the Red Sox, who hosted only 30 fan-less games in the shortened season, revenues plunged 70 percent, from $492 million in 2019 to $147 million.
Based on team value alone, the Red Sox at $3.6 billion rank fourth, trailing the Yankees, Dodgers ($3.75 billion), and Cubs ($3.67 billion).
Sportico calculated the total value of the 30 major league teams at $66 billion, which works out to an average value of $2.2 billion.
John Henry, principal owner of FSG, also owns the Globe.
Fenway Real Estate, another FSG subsidiary, announced plans last year to expand its real estate holdings with a large, mixed-use development project built on assorted parcels around the ballpark, and is already constructing a new performance venue behind the ballpark.
Using a different methodology, Forbes last April estimated the Red Sox value at $3.3 billion.
Union president says MLB players ready to discuss moving All-Star Game from Georgia in wake of voter-restriction laws
Michael Silverman
The 91st MLB All-Star Game is scheduled to be played in Atlanta this July. But on Thursday, in the wake of voting-restriction legislation signed into law by the Georgia governor, the executive director of the MLB Players Association said the players are ready to discuss moving their annual midsummer exhibition out of Georgia.
“Players are very much aware” of the Georgia voting bill, which places restrictions on voting that some believe will make it particularly difficult for Black voters to reach the polls, said Tony Clark in an interview with the Globe. “As it relates to the All-Star Game, we have not had a conversation with the league on that issue. If there is an opportunity to, we would look forward to having that conversation.”
The bill supported by the Republican-majority state legislature drew national attention Thursday, with President Joe Biden describing it and similar attempts in other states as “pernicious” and “un-American,” and that it “makes Jim Crow look like Jim Eagle.”
A Los Angeles Times column on Thursday called for MLB to move the All-Star Game out of Atlanta.
In 2016, the NBA decided to move its 2017 All-Star Game out of Charlotte, N.C., a reaction to a bill enacted by the state that limited anti-discrimination protections. In explaining the decision, the league said it was acting on its “longstanding core values,” which “include not only diversity, inclusion, fairness, and respect for others but also the willingness to listen and consider opposing points of view.”
Clark usually speaks with the baseball media in Florida and Arizona each March after meeting in person with the 30 teams, but the pandemic made that impossible this spring training.
Clark touched on a number of other topics, including the impending — and likely contentious — talks over the expiring collective bargaining agreement.
▪ He lauded the pending approval of MLB for NBA superstar LeBron James to become a part-owner of the Red Sox by becoming a partner in the team’s parent company, Fenway Sports Group.
“I think anytime a player perspective can be brought to a room full of non-players, there’s value,” said Clark, who played with the Red Sox in 2002, midway through a 15-season, six-team major league career.
Even an NBA player?
“Even from another sport, in this instance,” said Clark.
James and business partner Maverick Carter are becoming the first Black partners in Fenway Sports Group. Diversity among minority and majority partners in ownership groups around MLB is low. The Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sports recently gave MLB team presidents and general managers a grade of “C- plus” for racial hiring.
“I think diversity is key to growth, and would like to see more of it as a result of our players’ collective goal of growing the industry,” said Clark.
▪ Clark spoke in generalities about areas of focus for the players in the next CBA. They include a more competitive environment, focused on incentivizing and rewarding success on the field; getting younger players who are producing for their teams more fairly compensated; and getting more meaningful free- agent contracts for veteran players.
▪ Asked if President Biden, with former Boston mayor and strong pro-labor Labor Secretary Marty Walsh serving in his Cabinet, would be beneficial to the union during CBA talks, Clark said, “Having a pro-labor administration is more helpful from our perspective than the opposite. We’ll see.”
▪ MLB teams have spent less on free agents and doled out shorter-term contracts than in recent winters. Clark did not sound surprised.
“This offseason market seems to have drawn distinctions between clubs that want to compete and grow their fan bases and ensure the long-term well-being of their franchises over some others,” he said. “We saw some engage and we saw some that didn’t.
“It perhaps goes without saying that baseball ownership still remains a lucrative long-term endeavor. And our player window for our guys to play still remains remarkably short.”
▪ Usually, management and the union would have held formal sit-downs by at least spring training. Clark said this year, those talks will begin during the regular season.
▪ The offseason was notable in that MLB tried but failed to get the players to shorten the season and start it later, as well as for anti-player sentiment coming from Kevin Mather that cost Mather his job as president of the Seattle Mariners.
“Disappointing? Yes. Surprising? No,” said Clark.
▪ About reports that MLB informed teams in a memo of plans to use Statcast technology as a tool to analyze spin rate and crack down on pitchers using foreign substances, Clark said, “Those memos were leaked memos. We have since reached out to the league for a conversation. The rules themselves are on the books and haven’t changed. But the memo, we were not aware of, and we are actively engaged with the league to discuss.”
Eduardo Rodriguez is scratched from Opening Day start with ‘dead arm’
Peter Abraham
FORT MYERS, Fla. — Eduardo Rodriguez will not start on Opening Day, Red Sox manager Alex Cora said Friday. The lefthander is dealing with what’s known as a dead arm.
Nate Eovaldi will face the Baltimore Orioles next Thursday at Fenway Park in his place.
Rodriguez pitched only two innings in his last spring training start Monday, throwing 45 pitches without his usual velocity before throwing the equivalent of two more innings in the bullpen.
The team had Rodriguez skip his bullpen session Wednesday. He played catch Thursday and felt better, but the Sox still decided to remake their rotation to open the season.
“The last one wasn’t a great one as far as his stuff and his body,” Cora said. “We’ve been very straightforward with him. His body is going to dictate what we’re going to do with him. So his schedule got pushed back.”
Cora said Rodriguez could simply be delayed a few days and isn’t necessarily going to be placed on the injured list. Rodriguez is scheduled to throw a bullpen session Saturday. That will determine his next step.
“Their bodies are going to let us know how we treat them,” Cora said. “Eddie was honest about it. We were talking the last few days, and that’s the decision we made.”
It’s common for pitchers to have a dead arm during spring training as they build up following an extended break. It’s fatigue, as opposed to injury.
“I think that it’s just dead arm,” Cora said. “He didn’t feel as strong as the previous outings — arm-wise, shoulder, arm. There’s nothing specific there. He’s pushing. He pushed hard for Thursday.
“But I think the smart thing from my end is to play it smart. Take the decision away from the player. We made the decision for him. As far as the schedule, it doesn’t add up.”
RodrIguez started four games in spring training, allowing four earned runs on 11 hits over 13⅔ innings, with 15 strikeouts and only two walks.
Rodriguez did not pitch last season after being diagnosed with myocarditis, an inflammation of the heart muscle that was triggered by his contracting COVID-19. The arm issue is not related to the myocarditis, Cora said.
Rodriguez was also the pick to start Opening Day in 2020 before he was shut down. Now, he has missed another chance.
“Like I told him yesterday, ‘Hey man, the way you’re throwing the ball, the way your career is going, at one point in your career, you will be an Opening Day starter, and maybe more than once,’ ” Cora said. “He took it as a professional.
“With him, the communication is very clear. It’s very genuine. For him to accept it and think about the future and not the first game of the season is a testament to who he is right now as a pitcher, as a person, and as a leader on this team.”
The Sox did not make Rodriguez available for comment.
Eovaldi started Opening Day in place of Rodriguez last season. He allowed one run over six innings against Baltimore in a 13-2 victory.
Eovaldi will not start another Grapefruit League game before the opener. He threw in the bullpen Friday and will likely repeat that Monday as his preparation.
“He’s built up,” Cora said. “As far as the pitches and all that, he’s ready to go. It’s just a matter of how we manage his week.”
If Rodriguez comes out of Saturday well, he could start the second game of the season, depending on where the Sox slot in their other starters.
“Now we’re kind of, like, rescheduling everything,” Cora said. “We’re going over plans. We had it all set up, but now we have to sit down and go over our situation, where we’re at days-wise, all that.
“We’ll make a decision. The thing about this is, it’s opening weekend. That’s why it’s such a big deal, because it’s opening weekend. But if this happens during the season, it’s not a big deal. You skip one guy, move another one, and then make a decision based on your schedule, where they’re at.”
* The Boston Herald
Rule 5 pick Garrett Whitlock makes Red Sox’ Opening Day roster: ‘His reaction was priceless’
Steve Hewitt
Since the first day of spring training, Alex Cora has been enamored with new pitcher Garrett Whitlock.
On Thursday, after a strong camp, the Red Sox manager informed Whitlock that he made the Opening Day roster.
The Red Sox took Whitlock from the Yankees in December’s Rule 5 draft, and though the 24-year-old right-hander hasn’t pitched above Double-A, he’s pitched well enough to be one of the 14 pitchers Cora will take with him to Fenway Park on Opening Day. In four appearances this spring, Whitlock has pitched nine innings, given up one earned run and struck out 12.
“With everything he’s done throughout camp, not only on the field but the way he acts and the way he conducts himself, that adds to the equation,” Cora said. So, we were very pleased to tell him yesterday. We’re going to be careful with him, obviously. He’s a Rule 5 pick and he hasn’t pitched in a while, but everything that we’ve seen has been good. He will be with us as another addition.”
Whitlock was selected as an 18th-round pick by the Yankees in 2017 and dominated in the minors before having to undergo Tommy John surgery in July 2019. He didn’t pitch at all in 2020, and the Yankees left him off their 40-man roster after the season was over, which made him eligible to be selected in the Rule 5 draft.
The Red Sox snatched him up, and now will be part of their bullpen to start the season. Whitlock must now stay on the 26-man roster for the entire season or be offered back to the Yankees.
Cora wasn’t surprised that Whitlock made the roster as a Rule 5 pick.
“You can be a Rule 5 or a 10-year vet, but the way he threw the ball, you guys saw it,” Cora said. “He’s getting better and better. It’s one of those, as a manager, president of baseball operations, GM, whatever – it’s a great moment when you tell somebody that you’re going to be a big leaguer. And his reaction was priceless. It’s all about him. The organization did their homework, and we decided to draft him. From there on, it was up to him. He did everything possible to make the team, and I know he’s not going to stop. Try to keep getting better, studying the game, doing all the right things for him to get to the next level.”
Franchy makes progress
Franchy Cordero played six innings in left field and went 1-for-3 with a triple at the plate in Friday’s loss to the Rays, the next step in determining if the outfielder will make next week’s Opening Day roster. Cora will see how he feels on Saturday, but he sounded encouraged.
“It seems like he’ll be OK,” Cora said. “You saw him running the bases today, he hit that ball to center field, moved around well in the outfield. It’s just about now how he’s going to feel (Saturday). It was a tough day today. Hot and it was a slow-paced game. For him to get his reps was good, but (Saturday) we’ll know more. But it seems like he’s doing well, he’s doing well.”
Vázquez leaves camp
After being scratched from Thursday’s game because of a facial injury he suffered, Christian Vázquez had to leave Fort Myers to deal with something at home in Miami, Cora said. The catcher should be back in camp on Saturday, when he will go through more testing on his injury.
Vázquez suffered an eye contusion and laceration under his left eye when he was hit with a thrown ball during pitchers’ fielding practice drills.
“He was feeling better last night, he was feeling better this morning,” Cora said. “He’ll be back in camp (Saturday). There’s more testing. The goal is for him to be ready for Thursday.” …
The Red Sox made some roster moves on Friday. They sent infielder Jonathan Araúz, a 2019 Rule 5 pick who spent 2020 in the majors, to the alternate training site. Six players were reassigned to the minor leagues: Chris Herrmann, Danny Santana, César Puello, Michael Gettys, Kevin McCarthy and Marcus Walden.
Red Sox’ Eduardo Rodriguez will not start Opening Day due to ‘dead arm’
Steve Hewitt
For a second consecutive year, Eduardo Rodriguez has hit a roadblock that will keep him from being the Red Sox’ Opening Day starter.
Rodriguez will not make his long-awaited Opening Day start next Thursday against the Orioles as the Red Sox left-hander deals with what manager Alex Cora described as a “dead arm.”
Rodriguez didn’t look sharp as he pitched only two innings in his last start on Monday, when he finished his work in the bullpen after. Cora said that the lefty had to miss a bullpen session on Wednesday, and the way the schedule was going, they decided it was smart to push the ace’s first start of the regular season back.
Cora said the decision has nothing to do with the myocarditis that kept Rodriguez out last season. Nathan Eovaldi will take his place as the Opening Day starter for a second consecutive season.
“I think that it’s just dead arm,” Cora said. “He didn’t feel as strong as the previous outings arm-wise – shoulder, arm. There’s nothing specific there, but it’s one of those that, if he wants it. He’s pushing. He pushed hard for Thursday. But I think the smart thing from my end and from our end is to play it smart, take the decision away from the player. We made the decision for him.”
The Red Sox were waiting to see how Rodriguez reacted Friday after playing catch on Thursday, but Cora said he felt good after. Cora said they wanted to get ahead of possibly having to put Rodriguez on the injured list to start the season. Even though the setback isn’t related to the myocarditis, the Red Sox are obviously being very careful with Rodriguez.
Rodriguez will throw a bullpen session on Saturday, which will go a long way into determining his status going forward.
“The thing about this is it’s opening weekend,” Cora said. “That’s why it’s such a big deal, because it’s opening weekend. But if this happens during the season, it’s not a big deal. You skip one guy, move another one, and then make a decision based on your schedule, where they’re at. But now, because everything was so structured up until now, now we have to scrap it a little bit. We’ll have more news in the upcoming days.”
Though it seems like it should be a minor issue, it’s another tough break for Rodriguez.
After a breakthrough 2019, the lefty was in line to be the Red Sox’ Opening Day starter in 2020 after Chris Sale needed Tommy John surgery. But then he tested positive for COVID-19, and the myocarditis wiped out his entire year.
Rodriguez looked strong in his first three starts of the spring, and Cora named him the Opening Day starter on March 17, a deserving nod after not only all he went through, but how good he looked. But then came this week’s setback.
“It sucks for him because going into ’20, he was supposed to be the Opening Day starter,” Cora said. “Going into ’21, we announced it and now he’s not. But like I told him yesterday, ‘Hey, man – the way you’re throwing the ball, the way your career is going, at one point in your career, you will be an Opening Day starter, and maybe more than once.’ He took it as a professional. As you guys know, with him, the communication is very clear. It’s very genuine. For him to accept it and think about the future and not the first game of the season is a testament to who he is right now as a pitcher, as a person, and as a leader on this team.”
* The Providence Journal
For second straight season, Rodriguez will miss Opening Day
Bill Koch
For the second time in as many seasons, Eduardo Rodriguez will miss out on making an Opening Day start for the Red Sox.
Boston manager Alex Cora delivered the unfortunate news on Friday morning. Rodriguez is suffering through what is commonly referred to as a dead arm and will not take the ball on Thursday against the Orioles. The Red Sox have not ruled out placing Rodriguez on the injured list to begin the 2021 campaign.
Rodriguez did not pitch for the club in 2020 after testing positive for COVID-19 and developing myocarditis, an inflammation of his heart muscle. The left-hander threw just a pair of short bullpens at Summer Camp prior to being shut down from all physical activity. This is the first real setback Rodriguez has experienced since resuming his workouts in the offseason.
“He pushed hard for Thursday,” Cora said. “But I think the smart thing from my end, from our end, is to play it smart. Take the decision from the player — we made the decision for him.”
Nathan Eovaldi is expected to make his second straight start for Boston on Opening Day. Eovaldi started the opener last season against Baltimore and will do so again at Fenway Park next week. He’s not scheduled to appear in another spring training game prior to beginning his third full season with the Red Sox.
“He’s built up as far as the pitches and all that,” Cora said. “He’s ready to go. It’s just a matter of how we manage his week.”
Rodriguez finished just two innings in his most recent spring start against the Rays on Monday. He went to the visiting bullpen in Port Charlotte and built up to his scheduled pitch count, but it was a different outing compared to his first three in Grapefruit League action. Rodriguez breezed through his first 11 1/3 innings, striking out 14 against no walks.
“He didn’t feel as strong as the previous outings arm-wise,” Cora said. “Shoulder, arm — there's nothing specific there.”
Rodriguez was razor-sharp in his third start against the Twins, striking out six against no walks and allowing just two hits. He needed just 51 pitches to record 15 outs. Cora announced that Rodriguez would front the rotation after that outing but was ultimately forced to pull back.
“Their bodies are going to let us know how we treat them,” Cora said. “Eddie was honest about it. We’ve been talking the last few days. That’s the decision we made.”
This could have been viewed as something of a limited window for Rodriguez to serve as Boston’s ace. Chris Sale remains sidelined due to Tommy John surgery, but it’s reasonable to expect he’ll be available to start on Opening Day in 2022. Sale is signed to a long-term deal with the club through 2024, and the Red Sox hold a club option on the left-hander for 2025.
“Like I told (Rodriguez) yesterday, the way he throws the ball and the way his career is going, at one point in his career he’s going to be an Opening Day starter — maybe more than once,” Cora said. “He took it as a professional.
“With him, the communication is very clear. It’s very genuine. For him to accept it and think about the future and not the first game of the season, it’s a testament to who he is as a pitcher, as a person and as a leader on this team.”
Rodriguez will be a free agent for the first time after this season. He enjoyed a breakout 2019 campaign, striking out 213 in 203 1/3 innings and finishing sixth in the American League Cy Young Award voting. Rodriguez will celebrate his 28th birthday on April 7.
“If this happens during the season it’s not a big deal,” Cora said. “You skip one guy, you move the other one and you make decisions based on your schedule and where they’re at. But now, because everything was so structured up until now, we have to scramble a little bit.
“We’ll have more news in the upcoming days.”
Around the bases
Pitcher Garrett Whitlock learned early Friday morning that he had made the team. He was a Rule 5 draft pick from the Yankees, meaning that if he didn’t make the team he would have to be offered back to the Yankees. “It’s a great moment when you tell somebody, ‘You’re going to be a big-leaguer,’ ” Cora said. "And his reaction was priceless.” Whitlock missed all of last year because of Tommy John surgery. Over nine innings this spring he surrendered just one run. ... It was Nick Pivetta’s turn to pitch on Friday in Port Charlotte against the Rays, but instead he worked a B game in Fort Myers. ... Franchy Cordero made his third start of the spring. He struck out twice but also tripled off the center-field wall in Boston's 7-3 loss. If Cordero makes the Opening Day roster, it will likely mean Michael Chavis would be optioned to Triple-A Worcester.
* MassLive.com
Boston Red Sox notebook: No. 2 prospect Jeter Downs homers; Franchy Cordero triples; Franklin German (from Yankees trade) shows ‘good composure’
Christopher Smith
Red Sox No. 2 prospect Jeter Downs blasted a two-run homer in the Boston Red Sox’s 7-3 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays in Grapefruit League action Friday.
Downs — who Boston acquired with Alex Verdugo and Connor Wong for Mookie Betts and David Price in February 2020 — is 5-for-14 (.357) with a .500 on-base percentage, .786 slugging percentage, two home runs, five RBIs, four runs, four walks and five strikeouts this spring.
“He does a good job controlling the strike zone,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. “He knows what he wants to do at the plate. Even in the last at-bat when he chased a pitch up, he knew. He knew right away he was out of the zone. That’s something we’ve been impressed (with). The bat will play. He’s a good defender. I know he had that tough game (defensively) the second game of spring training. But he’s a work alcoholic.”
Cora has mentioned several times this spring how both Downs and Wong are able to slow down the game.
“One thing for sure: It’s a very slow pulse and that helps him out,” Cora added about Downs. “People might see him and they be like, ‘Low energy guy. He is not into it.’ That’s not the case. Offensively, he understands what he wants to do. He understands the strike zone and that is why his bat is going to play.”
Franchy Cordero triples
Franchy Cordero might end up being ready to play Opening Day after a delayed start to spring training (COVID-related IL).
How Cordero feels Saturday will be important after he played six innings in left field Friday.
Cordero went 1-for-3 with a triple, run and two strikeouts. He is 4-for-10 (.400) with a triple, two runs, one walk and two strikeouts in four Grapefruit League games.
“You saw him running the bases today. He hit that ball to center field,” Cora said. “He moved around well in the outfield. It’s just about now how he’s going to feel tomorrow. It was a tough day today. It was hot. It was a slow-pace game. And for him to get his reps, it was good. But we’ll know more tomorrow. But it seems like he’s doing well.”
German shows ‘good composure’
Right-hander Franklin German — the prospect who the Red Sox acquired from the Yankees with Adam Ottavino — pitched 2 innings, allowing two runs on a two-run homer by Mike Zunino.
“Good composure, good fastball, good breaking ball,” Cora said. “He’s still young obviously. He hasn’t pitched at this level. But I saw it. Good body, too. Very loose. ... Great guy in the clubhouse. Knows what he needs to do to be prepared.”
Eovaldi to start Opening Day
Nathan Eovaldi will make the Opening Day start with Eduardo Rodriguez unable to pitch because of dead arm. Eovaldi was scheduled for a bullpen Friday and another one again Monday.
“He is built up as far as pitches and all that,” Cora said. “He’s ready to go. It’s just a matter of how we manage his week. Probably two bullpens before he faces the Orioles.”
Other pitching notes
~ Matt Andriese will start Saturday for the Red Sox.
~ Eduardo Rodriguez (dead arm) will throw a bullpen Saturday.
~ Nick Pivetta was scheduled to pitch in a B-game Friday.
~ Hirokazu Sawamura, Darwinzon Hernandez and Matt Barnes were set to pitch in a simulated game Friday.
Eduardo Rodriguez has dead arm: Boston Red Sox starter to throw bullpen Saturday after being ruled out for Opening Day start
Christopher Smith
Eduardo Rodriguez will throw a bullpen Saturday, manager Alex Cora said following the Red Sox’s 7-3 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays in Grapefruit League action Friday.
Rodriguez was scheduled to start Opening Day next Thursday against the Orioles at Fenway Park. But he has been scratched because of dead arm.
The lefty did not look right against the Rays on Monday. He allowed two runs (one earned), three hits and two walks while striking out one in just 2 innings. He then simulated two more innings in the bullpen.
He was scheduled to throw a bullpen Wednesday but did not. He played catch Thursday.
“I think it’s just dead arm,” Cora said before Friday’s game. “He didn’t feel as strong as the previous outings arm-wise. Shoulder, arm, there’s nothing specific there. ... He pushed hard for Thursday, but I think the smart thing from my end and from our end is to play it smart.”
Nathan Eovaldi will make the Opening Day start instead.
Eovaldi was scheduled for a bullpen Friday and another one again Monday.
“He is built up as far as pitches and all that,” Cora said. “He’s ready to go. It’s just a matter of how we manage his week. Probably two bullpens before he faces the Orioles.”
Rodriguez did not pitch in 2020 because of myocarditis (inflammation of the heart), which he was diagnosed with after having COVID-19.
“It sucks for him because going into ’20 he was supposed to be the Opening Day starter,” Cora said. “Going into ’21, we announced it and now he’s not. But I told him yesterday, I said, ‘Hey, man. The way you throw the ball, the way your career is going, at one point in your career you will be an Opening Day starter. Maybe more than once.’ So he took it as a professional. With him, I think the communication is very clear. It’s very genuine. And for him to accept it and think about the future and not the first game of the season, it is a testament to who he is right now as a pitcher, as a person, as a leader in this team.”
The lefty was Boston’s top starting pitcher in 2019. He finished sixth in the American League Cy Young voting. He went 19-6 with a 3.81 ERA and 1.33 WHIP in 34 starts.
Boston Red Sox roster moves: Jonathan Araúz, Kevin McCarthy among players demoted as Opening Day group comes into focus
Chris Cotillo
The Red Sox made a series of roster moves Friday morning, optioning infielder Jonathan Araúz to the alternate training site and reassigning six players to minor-league camp.
Catcher Chris Herrmann, utility man Danny Santana, outfielders César Puello and Michael Gettys and right-handed pitchers Kevin McCarthy and Marcus Walden were all reassigned. Of those players, only McCarthy -- who tossed seven scoreless innings in Grapefruit League play -- was a candidate to make the Opening Day roster.
McCarthy, a longtime Royal who signed a minor-league deal with Boston over the winter, appeared to be competing with Phillips Valdez and Colten Brewer for the final spot in the Opening Day bullpen, but it now looks like that competition is down to Valdez and Brewer (unless the Red Sox add a free agent in the coming days). McCarthy might not be with the organization long, as he can exercise an upward mobility clause in his contract Sunday. That means, as SoxProspects’ Chris Hatfield recently explained, the Red Sox have to offer McCarthy to every team and either let him go or add him to the 40-man roster if another club wants to add him to its 40-man.
Santana, who signed a minor-league deal last month, seemed like a candidate for an Opening Day roster spot but has been sidelined by a foot infection and is a ways away from returning to action. Araúz, who struggled defensively during camp, will join the infield at Triple-A Worcester after spending all of 2020 in the big leagues as a Rule 5 draft pick. Herrmann, Puello, Gettys and Walden will likely start the year in Worcester as well.
With the moves, the Red Sox have 30 players remaining in camp, including Chris Sale and Franchy Cordero, who are both on the injured list. Sale will miss the start of the season and reliever Ryan Brasier will join him on the IL due to a right pinkie fracture, meaning Boston has two roster decisions to make early next week. The first is choosing between Valdez, Brewer or a free agent for the final bullpen spot. The second is deciding if Cordero, whose arrival to camp was delayed by COVID-19 protocols, is ready to go for the opener. If not, Michael Chavis will likely make the team as a bench option.
The club would also need to make additional moves if either Eduardo Rodriguez or Christian Vazquez will miss time, though neither player seems particularly likely to be placed on the injured list at this point.
Boston Red Sox injuries: Christian Vázquez still will undergo more testing but feels better after ball struck his face; Ryan Brasier throws another live BP
Christopher Smith
Christian Vázquez still will undergo more testing but he feels better after an errant throw struck him in the face during a practice Thursday, Red Sox manager Alex Cora said Friday.
He was scratched from Thursday’s game with what the team called an “eye contusion and laceration under his left eye. He already has undegone some testing.
“Christian has to deal with something at home in Miami,” Cora said pregame Friday. “He won’t be in camp (today). He felt better last night. He felt better this morning. He’ll be back in camp tomorrow. There’s more testing. The goal is for him to be ready for Thursday.”
The Red Sox will open the regular season Thursday against the Orioles at Fenway Park.
Brasier throws another live BP
Ryan Brasier threw another live batting practice Thursday. There’s a good chance he will begin the regular season on the IL after dealing with a right pinkie fracture this past offseason. He also is behind after leaving camp for a personal reason in February.
“He threw a live BP yesterday, so that was good,” Cora said. “We’re waiting for him to come back and give us an update on how he feels and where he’s at physically. He feels like, toward the end of bullpens and live BPs, leg-wise, he’s not where he’s supposed to be. That’s obvious. That’s part of that. As far as the arm, he looked good yesterday. No soreness. He’s still obviously getting treatment for his hand and all that. Hopefully, he can keep building up and be with us sooner rather than later.”
Rodriguez scratched from Opening Day
Eduardo Rodriguez has been scratched from his Opening Day start because of dead arm. Read more in- depth about Rodriguez’s situation here.
Garrett Whitlock, Boston Red Sox Rule 5 pick, makes Opening Day roster: ‘His reaction was priceless,’ Alex Cora says
Chris Cotillo
The Red Sox have informed Rule 5 pick Garrett Whitlock that he will make the team’s Opening Day roster, manager Alex Cora announced Friday.
Whitlock, a right-handed pitcher the Red Sox nabbed from the Yankees in December, has been one of the stars in spring training, allowing a single run in 9 innings (1.00 ERA) while striking out 12. Cora and other team decision-makers have repeatedly praised Whitlock throughout camp and informed him of the decision Thursday.
“With everything he has done throughout camp, not only on the field but the way he acts, the way he conducts himself, that adds to the equation,” Cora said. “We were very pleased to tell him yesterday. We’re going to be careful with him, obviously. He’s a Rule 5 pick and he hasn’t pitched in a while. Everything we have seen has been good.”
Whitlock will begin the season as a member of Boston’s bullpen, though his exact role is unclear. While Cora believes that the “game will dictate” how Boston will use the lanky righty, it appears he’ll most often be utilized as a long reliever and occasional spot starter.
With Whitlock on the 26-man roster, the Red Sox will have a Rule 5 pick on their roster for the second straight season. Infielder Jonathan Araúz spent the entire 2020 season on the major-league roster after being taken from the Astros last winter.
MLB rules dictate that the Red Sox must keep Whitlock on their active 26-man roster (or the injured list, if he gets hurt) for the entire regular season or be forced to offer him back to the Yankees. Considering how impressive the 24-year-old has been during spring training, it appears Boston will do everything in its power to keep him in the organization.
“He could be a Rule 5 guy or a 10-year vet, but the way he threw the ball, you saw it,” Cora said. “He’s getting better and better.
“It’s a great moment when you tell somebody that they’re going to be a big-leaguer,” Cora added. “His reaction was priceless. It’s all about him. The organization did their homework and we decided to draft him. From there on, it was up to him and he did everything possible to make the team. I know he’s not going to stop trying to get better, studying the game and doing all the right things to get to the next level.”
Eduardo Rodriguez scratched from Boston Red Sox Opening Day start because of “dead arm,” Alex Cora says
Christopher Smith
Eduardo Rodriguez was scheduled for the Red Sox’s Opening Day start next Thursday. He has been scratched because of dead arm, manager Alex Cora said.
Nathan Eovaldi will start on Opening Day instead.
Rodriguez still might avoid the IL and make his first turn through the rotation.
“As you know, the last one (his start Monday) wasn’t a great one as far as like his stuff and his body,” Cora said. “And we’ve been very straightforward with him. His body is going to dictate what we’re going to do with him. So his schedule got pushed back. He didn’t throw a bullpen. He was supposed to throw a bullpen two days ago. He didn’t throw it. He played catch yesterday. He felt fine.”
The lefty allowed two runs (one earned), three hits and two walks while striking out one in his 2 innings Monday. He then simulated two more innings in the bullpen.
“I think it’s just dead arm,” Cora said. “He didn’t feel as strong as the previous outings arm-wise. Shoulder, arm, there’s nothing specific there. ... He pushed hard for Thursday, but I think the smart thing from my end and from our end is to play it smart.”
Cora said the Red Sox will have more information either after Friday’s game or Saturday.
“Next step is to throw a bullpen,” Cora said. “So when he throws a bullpen, then we address the situation again.”
Rodriguez did not pitch in 2020 because of myocarditis (inflammation of the heart), which he was diagnosed with after having COVID-19.
This has nothing to do with the myocarditis, Cora said.
“It sucks for him because going into ‘20 he was supposed to be the Opening Day starter,” Cora said. “Going into ‘21, we announced it and now he’s not. But I told him yesterday, I said, ‘Hey, man. The way you throw the ball, the way your career is going, at one point in your career you will be an Opening Day starter. Maybe more than once.’ So he took it as a professional. With him, I think the communication is very clear. It’s very genuine. And for him to accept it and think about the future and not the first game of the season, it is a testament to who he is right now as a pitcher, as a person, as a leader in this team.”
The lefty was Boston’s top starting pitcher in 2019. He finished sixth in the American League Cy Young voting. He went 19-6 with a 3.81 ERA and 1.33 WHIP in 34 starts.
* The Worcester Telegram & Gazette
Red Sox future will be on display at Polar Park as alternate camp begins Thursday
Joe McDonald
WORCESTER — Baseball will be played Thursday at Polar Park. Even though the date will be April 1, this is not a joke.
Since the Triple-A schedule was pushed back one month, the Worcester Red Sox’ inaugural season remains on hold, but the Boston Red Sox will hold their alternate camp site at Polar Park until the minor league season begins. Similar to last summer at McCoy Stadium in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, the Sox’ alternate camp will be used for intrasquad games and workouts. It’s not known whether or not fans will be allowed to attend the workouts, but there could be a streaming option to watch.
“We’re excited to get going,” said Worcester native Brian Abraham, the Red Sox director of player development.
A total of 70 players can be on the alternate site roster, but the Red Sox will likely have 30 to 35 players ready for Thursday at Polar Park. The club needs to make sure it's covered in case of injuries at the big league level. Boston’s Triple-A staff will run the camp, so WooSox manager Billy McMillon will get his first taste of Polar Park. The Red Sox will also continue to run their minor league camp in Fort Myers, Florida.
“We’re preparing for a regular season, and at any point, guys can be called up to the majors,” Abraham said. “It’s go time. Numbers matter, and there is a sense of urgency, like in a normal year when you start the season, but the alternate does provide us with some flexibility. It is an important area for our major league depth, so guys need to be ready to compete if the big club calls.”
Here are some of the players to watch for during alternate camp:
Pitchers: Tanner Houck (RHP), Connor Seabold (RHP), Eduard Bazardo (RHP), Kevin McCarthy (RHP), Marcus Walden (RHP), John Schreiber (RHP), Bryan Mata (RHP), Jay Groome (LHP), Matt Hall (LHP), Kyle Hart (LHP), Caleb Simpson (RHP) and Ryan Weber (RHP).
Catchers: Chris Herrmann, Connor Wong, Ronaldo Hernandez and Jett Bandy.
Infielders: Jeter Downs, Jonathan Arauz, Danny Santana, Josh Ockimey, Hudson Potts and Chad De La Guerra.
Outfielders: Jarren Duran, Marcus Wilson, Cesar Puello, Michael Gettys, Jeisson Rosario and Gilberto Jimenez.
“There’s going to be some exciting young talent in Worcester this year,” Abraham said.
Right-hander Tanner Houck, who impressed in Boston at the end of last season, will start the season at the alternate camp site in Worcester. Until the Triple-A season begins in May, the Red Sox haven’t decided where the majority of the club’s prospects will start. Major League Baseball tweaked the minor league roster limits for 2021, so the WooSox will be allowed to carry 28 players. Double-A Portland also will carry 28, while 30 players are allowed for the A-ball rosters.
“There are a lot of decisions yet to be made, and within a month’s time a lot can change,” Abraham said. “There are a lot of different factors that come into play. We can project all we want what we think will happen, but the rosters we’ve projected won’t be the same by the time May rolls around.”
Off the field, these players still have guidelines to follow. Many will be living in a local hotel, but those players with families are allowed to live on their own. Unlike last summer, scouts will be allowed to attend alternate site camps under safety protocols.
Last summer’s alternate camp was a success, and there’s optimism again for this season.
“These players understand they need to be ready for a potential major league call-up, while also keeping them ready for the Triple-A season,” Abraham said. “It’s a huge advantage just understanding what the day to day is going to be like.”
The WooSox open the season on the road May 4 against the Buffalo Bisons. Worcester returns home to host the Syracuse Mets at 3:05 p.m. May 11 at Polar Park.
* RedSox.com
E-Rod has 'dead arm'; Eovaldi in for opener
Mark Feinsand
The Red Sox have a new Opening Day starter.
Eduardo Rodriguez, who had been announced as the club’s starter for the opener against the Orioles, is dealing with “dead arm” according to manager Alex Cora, so Nathan Eovaldi will draw the Opening Day assignment Thursday at Fenway Park.
“The way we presented it to [Rodriguez] and to the pitching staff -- especially in this season that there's a lot of unknowns -- their bodies are going to let us know how we treat them,” Cora said. “Eddie was honest about it, we've been talking the last few days and that's a decision we made.”
Rodriguez threw just two innings in his most recent start on Monday, showing diminished stuff during the outing that raised a red flag. The left-hander didn’t throw his scheduled bullpen session Wednesday, though he played catch on Thursday and “felt fine,” per Cora.
“He didn't feel as strong as the previous outings, arm-wise; shoulder, arm, there's nothing specific there,” Cora said. “He pushed hard for [Opening Day], but I think the smart thing from my end is to play it smart, take the decision out of the player. We made the decision for him.”
Rodriguez went 19-6 with a 3.81 ERA in 2019, finishing sixth in American League Cy Young Award voting. He missed all of 2020 while recovering from myocarditis, but Cora said this latest issue is not related. Once Rodriguez’s schedule was pushed back this week, it became difficult for the Red Sox to keep him lined up for the opener.
“It sucks for him, because going into ’20, he was supposed to be the Opening Day starter; going into ‘21, we announced it and now he's not,” Cora said. “I told him, ‘The way you throw the ball, the way your career is going, at one point in your career, you will be an Opening Day starter -- maybe more than once.
“He took it as a professional. I think the communication is very clear, very genuine. For him to accept it, think about the future and not the first game of the season is a testament to who he is right now as a pitcher, as a person, as a leader on this team.”
This will mark the second straight Opening Day assignment for Eovaldi, who went 4-2 with a 3.72 ERA in nine starts in 2020. Now in the third year of a four-year, $68 million contract, Eovaldi has a 6.60 ERA this spring, though he threw 5 2/3 scoreless innings against the Orioles in his most recent start. Cora said Eovaldi will throw bullpens on Friday and Monday, then start Thursday.
It is not yet known whether Rodriguez will be forced to open the season on the injured list, as the Red Sox will assess his status in the coming days. He is slated to throw a bullpen session on Saturday, then possibly another early next week, after which an IL decision will be made.
Cora said he and his staff were still working to line up starters for the rest of the season-opening homestand against the Orioles and Rays.
“It’s such a big deal, because it’s Opening Weekend,” Cora said. “If this happens during the season, it's not a big deal; you skip one guy, you move the other one, and you make decisions based on your schedule and where they’re at. Because everything was so structured up until now, now we have to scramble a little bit.”
Sox showing swagger: 'Don't sleep on us'
Ian Browne
It took about an hour of Spring Training for the Red Sox to feel the difference in team culture having Alex Cora back as manager.
After missing last season due to his role in the Astros' sign-stealing scandal, Cora instantly picked up on his previous relationships while forming new ones just as easily.
Behind Cora, the Red Sox, who had a smooth camp mostly devoid of major injuries, will take some swagger with them going into the season, even after finishing 24-36 a year ago.
Cora ran a smooth camp that has his team enthused about what is to come starting on Thursday, when the season starts at Fenway Park against the Orioles at 2:10 p.m. ET.
"Don't sleep on us," Red Sox lefty Eduardo Rodriguez proclaimed early in camp.
Best development Rodriguez showed no ill effects after missing all of last season due to myocarditis, though a late bout with dead arm will keep the lefty from taking the ball on Opening Day. Rodriguez looked much like the pitcher who had 19 wins and 213 strikeouts two years ago for the majority of camp, giving the Red Sox hope that he would return to form in 2021. Rodriguez might even be better than his breakout 2019 season in the sense that he looks more aggressive than ever in pounding the strike zone. Given the late dead arm issue, the Sox will have to keep a close eye on how Rodriguez responds to his workload, especially given all the time he missed.
Unfortunate event New acquisition Franchy Cordero got a late start to Spring Training due to a positive COVID-19 test and then needing a couple of weeks to clear the necessary protocols. Given his history of injuries, the Red Sox took it slow with him so his status for Opening Day remains questionable. Cordero is projected as Boston's primary left fielder against righties.
Player who opened eyes The Red Sox opened Spring Training hoping Bobby Dalbec would seize the job as the starting first baseman, and that's exactly what the right-handed-hitting masher did. Ranked the club's No. 3 prospect by MLB Pipeline, he belted two grand slams and had six homers overall with a week left in camp. Dalbec, a natural third baseman, has also looked smooth on the other side of the infield. The team continues to be impressed by Dalbec's poise and work ethic. It is intriguing that Cora plans on using Dalbec as the No. 9 hitter. That could be a lot of homers at the end of the batting order.
Wow moment Nathan Eovaldi's history of arm problems are well-chronicled. But perhaps they are a thing of the past. Eovaldi sure made it seem that way when he came out firing in his second Grapefruit League start against the Twins. Of his 66 pitches, 10 purred in at 100 mph or more. For perspective, Eovaldi -- who will assume Opening Day duties for the second straight season -- has only thrown 10 pitches or more at triple digits four times in his entire career in the regular season.
In case you missed it I had a chance for a nice change-of-pace in early March when I drove across the state of Florida to Miami to watch D'Angelo Ortiz play at Westminster Christian School. A junior, D'Angelo is the 16-year-old son of Red Sox icon David Ortiz. It was a blast to sit next to David during D'Angelo's game and discuss the prospect of his son being drafted by 2022.
Whitlock makes roster; Franchy gets in reps
Mark Feinsand
The Yankees' loss is now officially the Red Sox's gain.
Right-hander Garrett Whitlock, who was selected from the Yankees' system as a Rule 5 Draft pick in December, was officially told Thursday that he would break camp on Boston's season-opening roster.
"With everything he's done throughout camp, not only on the field, but also the way he acts, the way he conducts himself, that adds to the equation," manager Alex Cora said. "We were very pleased to tell him yesterday."
Whitlock, who is ranked the Sox's No. 30 prospect by MLB Pipeline, hasn't pitched in the regular season since 2019, when he went 3-3 with a 3.07 ERA in 14 starts at Double-A Trenton before an elbow injury ended his season. He underwent Tommy John surgery and missed all of 2020 before being selected by the Red Sox in the Rule 5 Draft.
"The organization did their homework, we decided to draft him, and from there on, it was up to him," Cora said. "He did everything possible to make the team. I know he's not going to stop trying to keep getting better, studying the game, doing all the right things for him to get to the next level."
The Yankees' 18th-round pick in the 2017 Draft, Whitlock has worked primarily as a starter during his three Minor League seasons, though he hasn't pitched at a level above Double-A.
Cora didn't say how he envisioned using the 24-year-old during the season, but it's clear that after his impressive spring -- he's allowed one run over nine innings, striking out 12 without issuing a walk -- Whitlock could find himself pitching some important innings.
"He can be a Rule 5 [Draft pick], it can be a 10-year vet, but the way he threw the ball, he's getting better and better," Cora said. "It's one of those that as a manager, as a president of baseball operations, GM, whatever, is a great moment when you tell somebody that you're going to be a big leaguer. His reaction was priceless."
April ready? Franchy Cordero played his third game in five days as he tries to prove he's ready for Opening Day following a late start to camp after testing positive for COVID-19.
Cordero went 1-for-3 with a triple and run scored in Friday's 7-3 loss to the Rays in Port Charlotte, Fla., which was just the fourth game of the spring for the left fielder.
"It seems like he'll be OK," Cora said. "You saw him running the bases today. He hit that ball to center field, moved around well in the outfield. It's just about now how he is going to feel tomorrow. It was a tough day today; hot, a slow-paced game. For him to get his reps was good, but we'll know more tomorrow."
Catching a break Christian Vázquez, who suffered a left eye contusion and laceration when an errant throw hit him in the face during batting practice Thursday, was back home in Miami on Friday to deal with a personal matter.
Cora said the catcher was feeling better on Friday morning, though he would undergo further testing when he rejoins the team on Saturday.
"The goal is for him to be ready for Thursday," Cora said.
Step by step Ryan Brasier, who is recovering from a fractured right pinkie (as well as a late arrival to camp this spring for personal reasons), threw a batting practice session on Thursday. The right-hander is likely to open the year on the injured list, but Cora seemed encouraged by his progress.
"He feels like towards the end of bullpen [sessions], towards the end of live BPs, leg-wise, he's not where he's supposed to be -- and that's obvious," Cora said. "But as far as the arm, he looked good yesterday; no soreness. He's still obviously getting treatment for his hand and all that, but hopefully he can keep building up and be with us sooner rather than later."
Roster redux The Red Sox optioned infielder Jonathan Araúz to the alternate training site on Friday. The club also reassigned catcher Chris Herrmann, infielder/outfielder Danny Santana, outfielders César Puello and Michael Gettys and right-handers Kevin McCarthy and Marcus Walden to the Minor Leagues.
Up next The Red Sox travel to Bradenton, Fla., on Saturday to take on the Pirates at LECOM Park. First pitch is scheduled for 1:05 p.m. ET, and fans can watch the action free on MLB.TV.
* ESPN.com
Eduardo Rodriguez scratched from Opening Day with dead arm, Nathan Eovaldi to start opener for Boston Red Sox
Joon Lee
A week ago, the Boston Red Sox announced Eduardo Rodriguez as the team's Opening Day starter, but for the second straight season, the left-handed starter will be scratched from the season's first game, this time after dealing with a dead arm.
Rodriguez missed Opening Day last year after being diagnosed with myocarditis, an inflammation of the heart linked to the coronavirus.
In place of Rodriguez, Nathan Eovaldi will take the bump for Boston on Thursday when they face off against the Baltimore Orioles at Fenway Park.
Red Sox manager Alex Cora said Rodriguez communicated in recent days that his arm wasn't feeling up to full strength. In his fourth start of spring training, the lefty struggled against the Rays, pitching two innings and dealing with command issues while allowing 2 runs, 3 hits and 2 walks while striking out one.
"The last one wasn't a great one as far as his stuff and his body. We've been very straightforward with him. His body is going to dictate what we're going to do with him, so his schedule got pushed back, he didn't throw a bullpen," Cora said. "He was supposed to throw a bullpen two days ago. He played catch yesterday and he felt fine. With the schedule the way that it is, he won't be able to post on Thursday, so we'll see how it plays out when he gets back to the mound."
Cora clarified that the 27-year-old could avoid a stint on the injured list and that the missing start is unrelated to the myocarditis that led to Rodriguez missing the 2020 season.
"He didn't feel as strong as the previous outings arm-wise. Shoulder, arm, there's nothing specific there, but it's one of those; he's pushing, he was pushing hard for Thursday, but the smart thing from our end is to play smart, take the decision out of the player and we make the decision for him," Cora said. "As far as the schedule, it doesn't add up. He played catch yesterday; he hasn't thrown a bullpen; and you start adding days and you run out of days."
Later Friday, Cora said Rodriguez would have a bullpen session on Saturday.
Rodriguez was Boston's best starter in 2019, finishing sixth in the American League Cy Young voting and posting a 19-6 record with a 3.81 ERA and 1.33 WHIP in 34 starts.
* WEEI.com
Eduardo Rodriguez scratched from Opening Day start
Ryan Hannable
Eduardo Rodriguez will not be on the mound next Thursday afternoon at Fenway Park.
Speaking to reporters Friday morning, Red Sox manager Alex Cora announced Rodriguez has been scratched from the start because of a dead arm.
Nathan Eovaldi will start in his place.
Rodriguez may avoid a trip to the injured list and make a start during the first time through the rotation. The next step will be throwing a bullpen and seeing how things go from there.
The left-hander only pitched two innings on Tuesday before simulating two more in the bullpen, so it was evident at the time something wasn't right.
Both Cora and Rodriguez dismissed the dead arm theory at the time.
The Red Sox will host the Orioles Thursday at 2:10 p.m.
* NBC Sports Boston
Eovaldi to replace E-Rod as Red Sox Opening Day starter
Nick Goss
The Boston Red Sox begin the 2021 MLB season next week, but their planned Opening Day starter won't be on the mound.
Red Sox manager Alex Cora announced Friday that Nathan Eovaldi will replace Eduardo Rodriguez as the starter against the Baltimore Orioles in Thursday afternoon's opener at Fenway Park.
What's wrong with Rodriguez?
“I think that it’s just dead arm,” Cora told reporters Friday. “He didn’t feel as strong as the previous outings ---- arm-wise, shoulder. There's nothing specific there. He pushed hard for Thursday, but I think the smart thing from my end and from our end is to play it smart. Take the decision away from the player. We made the decision for him. As far as the schedule, it doesn’t add up."
Cora confirmed this current issue has nothing to do with the myocarditis condition Rodriguez endured last season after battling COVID-19. The 27-year-old veteran missed the entire shortened 2020 season as a result of his bout with COVID-19 and myocarditis.
Rodriguez struggled in Monday's spring training start versus the Tampa Bay Rays. He pitched just two innings and allowed two runs, three hits and two walks with one strikeout.
"The last one wasn't a great one as far as his stuff and his body," Cora said. "We've been very straightforward with him. His body is going to dictate what we're going to do with him. So his schedule got pushed back, he didn't throw a bullpen. He was supposed to throw a bullpen two days ago and he didn't throw it. He played catch yesterday and he felt fine.
"With the schedule the way that it is, he won't be able to post on Thursday, so we'll see how it plays out when he gets back to the mound."
* BostonSportsJournal.com
Rodriguez scratched from Opening Day start with “dead arm,” Eovaldi gets the call
Sean McAdam
With the start of the 2021 regular season less than a week away, the Red Sox already have their first hiccup.
Eduardo Rodriguez, who had been tabbed as the team’s scheduled starting pitcher for their April 1 opener against the Baltimore Orioles, was scratched from that assignment Friday morning due what manager Alex Cora termed “a dead arm.”
Nathan Eovaldi, who had the assignment last year when Rodriguez was sidelined by COVID-19, will again start the opener for the Sox.
The announcement comes days after Rodriguez was pulled after just two innings in his most recent start, finishing his work for the day with another two innings in the bullpen. At the time, the Red Sox downplayed the move, insisting that Rodriguez was simply not feeling 100 percent.
“The last one wasn’t a great one as far as his stuff and his body,” said Cora. “We’ve been very straightforward with him. His body’s going to dictate what we’re going to do with him. His schedule got pushed back. He didn’t throw (a between-start) bullpen. He was supposed to throw a bullpen two days ago and he didn’t throw it. He played catch (Thursday) and felt fine.
“With the schedule the way it is, he won’t be able to post on Thursday. We’ll see how it plays out when he gets back to the mound. Nate is going to start Opening Day; he’s in line to do that. There’s no problem with that. The way he presented to him and to the pitching staff, especially in a season with a lot of unknowns, their bodies are going to let us know how we treat them. Eddie was honest about it. We’ve been talking the last few days and that’s the decision we made.”
Cora emphasized that Rodriguez’s issues are not at all related to his COVID-19 diagnosis last year, nor the resulting case of myocarditis which followed as a side effect.
BSJ ANALYSIS
Cora insisted that this setback isn’t considered serious and suggested the move was mostly precautionary
“He just didn’t feel as strong as the previous outing,” said Cora, again referencing the start by Rodriguez earlier this week. “Arm-wise, shoulder … there’s nothing specific there. He pushed hard (to pitch the opener), but I think the smart thing from our end and from my end is to play it smart. Take the decision (away) from the player. We made the decision for him. As far as the schedule, it doesn’t add up.
“He played catch (Thursday) … he hasn’t thrown a bullpen. So you start adding days, and you run out of days.”
It’s unclear whether Rodriguez will start the season on the Injured List. With an off-day on the second day of the season, he could still take a turn in the rotation the first time through, with the Sox juggling their remaining starters.
“We’re going to wait for him to show up today and see how he feels after playing catch (Thursday),” said Cora. “He felt good. The next step is to throw a bullpen. When he throws a bullpen, then we’ll address his situation again. We’ll have more (Saturday). We’re kind of rescheduling everything. We’re going over plans. We had it all set up, but now we have to sit down and go over our situation, where we are (in terms of days) and make a decision.”
The Red Sox spent the offseason improving their starting pitching depth, signing free agent Garrett Richards, bringing back Martin Perez, and adding veteran swing-man Matt Andriese, affording them a deeper, more experienced staff to deal with the inevitable injuries that crop up over a long season.
But even before the end of spring training, the Red Sox are already testing that depth.
And Rodriguez’s sudden availability is a pointed reminder of how uncertain the 2021 season will be for Sox pitchers, all of whom will be asked to make big jumps in workload from last year’s truncated schedule.
That’s doubly true for Rodriguez, of course, who didn’t pitch at all last year and hints at the pitfalls that lie ahead — for Rodriguez, yes, but for all the starters who will go from making a dozen starts to, in perfect world, a more typical 30-start season.
In attempting to downplay the seriousness of the setback, Cora pointed out that more attention will be paid to Rodriguez’s absence precisely because it’s the first week of the season and the pageantry associated with the season opener.
“But if this happens during the season, it’s not a big deal,” said Cora. “You skip one guy, you move the other one and then you make decisions based on your schedule and where they’re at. But because everything was so structured up until now, we have to scramble a little bit.”
That’s the “glass half-full” way of looking at this. A more sober analysis might include the realization that the Sox are already being forced to re-arrange their regular season rotation even before they break camp in Fort Myers. And it’s not unfair to ask: is this a preview of coming attractions — for Rodriguez and everyone else on the staff?
For now, though, it appears to be a mere inconvenience and a personal disappointment for Rodriguez, who had been eager to put last year behind him.
“It sucks for him,” acknowledged Cora, “because going into ’20, he was supposed to be the Opening Day start and going into ’21, we announced it and now he’s not (pitching). But like I told him yesterday, ‘The way you throw the ball, the way your career is going, at one point in your career, you will be an Opening Day starter.’ ”
But, for the second straight season, not this year.
Red Sox Notebook: In final days in Florida, Sox getting closer to final roster choices
Sean McAdam
Before losing to the Tampa Bay Rays, 7-3 in Port Charlotte, the Red Sox announced a number of roster moves.
INF Jonathan Arauz was optioned to the alternate site. Catcher Chris Herrmann, infielder/outfielder Danny Santana, outfielders Cesar Puello and Michael Gettys and pitchers Marcus Walden and Kevin McCarthy were all re-assigned to the minor leagues.
Those moves leave the Red Sox with 28 players in camp, plus two players on the IL — outfielder Franchy Cordero and pitcher Chris Sale.
The Sox have essentially two roster decisions left to make. If they activate Cordero, that will mean that either Christian Arroyo or Michael Chavis will not make the team.
The other decisions come in the bullpen, where the Sox can take two of the following three: Colten Brewer, Phillips Valdez and Austin Brice. Brewer didn’t help himself or his cause by being knocked around for three runs on four hits in two innings against the Rays. His spring ERA is 9.95.
Also, the Sox will soon shift Ryan Brasier to the IL. Braiser is behind others in camp, thanks to a return home to Texas at the start of spring training and a fracture at the base of his right pinky finger. Brasier threw a live BP session Thursday that went well.
“We’re waiting for him to give us an update on how he feels,” said Alex Cora, “just tell us where he’s at physically. Toward the end of bullpens and live BPs, leg-wise, he’s not where he’s supposed to be. That obviously part of that. But as far as the arm, he looked good. He’s still getting treatment (for the finger), but hopefully, he can keep building up and be with us sooner rather than later.” ______
Franchy Cordero played left field for six innings and went 1-for-3 with a run scored and two strikeouts. The Sox are trying to determine whether he’ll be able to start the season on the active roster, or whether he needs additional time to get ready after missing a couple of weeks with COVID-19 at the start of camp.
“We’ll sit down (Saturday) and see where he’s at,” said Cora. “It’s trending and it seems like he’ll be OK (to be activated). You saw him running the bases today, he hit that (triple) to center field, was running around in the outfield. It’s just about, now, how he’s going to feel (Saturday). It was a tough day today — hot and a slow-paced game. For him to get his reps, it was good. (Saturday), we’ll know more, but he’s doing well.” ______
The Sox informed Rule 5 pick Garrett Whitlock Thursday night what had been obvious for some time: he has made the team.
“With everything he’s dealt with, and the way he acts and the way he conducts himself, we were very pleased to tell him,” said Cora. “We’re going to be careful with him, obviously. He’s a Rule 5 pick and he hasn’t pitched in a while (before this spring after undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2019). But everything we’ve seen has been good. He’ll be with us. He’s another addition.” ______
Frank German made his Grapefruit League debut with the Red Sox, allowing a two-run homer to Mike Zunino, but he caught Cora’s eye. German came to the Red Sox in the deal that landed them Adam Ottavino, with the Sox agreeing to take almost the full value of Ottavino’s contract in order to have German thrown into the trade.
“Good fastball,” said Cora. “Yeah, the one Zunino hit, he hit it hard, but the wind was blowing hard to left field, too. Good fastball, good breaking ball. He’s still young. Obviously, he hasn’t pitched at this level. But he has a good body, too — very loose. He knows what he needs to do to be prepared. We’re very proud of him.”
* The Athletic
What will a COVID-safe Fenway Park look like this season?
Jen McCaffrey
When the Red Sox return to Fenway Park next week for the season opener, things will look a bit different at the park, which in 2020 was modified in unprecedented fashion to account for COVID-19 issues and to keep players distanced in a season without fans.
This year won’t see a full return to 2019 status, but it will certainly be closer to the old version of normal. For starters, no more player suites. The team will be back in the clubhouse. The return of fans to the stands means the Red Sox needed to re-think much of the Covid-safe setup they created last summer for their abbreviated season.
This year, in order to remain in compliance with MLB COVID-19 safety guidelines while also opening the stands at 12 percent capacity (roughly 4,500 fans), the Red Sox clubhouse will house about 20 players with lockers six feet apart, along with plexiglass partitions in between. The setup will be similar to what the Red Sox currently have in place in the JetBlue Park clubhouse in Fort Myers, Fla., although the physical space at JetBlue Park is much larger.
The players and coaching staff that don’t fit within the clubhouse confines at Fenway Park will have lockers set up in an adjacent auxiliary room that was once the team’s training room. The training room will move to the media interview room on the second floor above the clubhouse, a space that is directly connected to the weight room.
“Like last summer, preparing for the season here at Fenway, we’re forced to get creative,” Red Sox chief operating officer Jonathan Gilula said. “Reimagining the different physical spaces and redefining operational procedures in order to provide the appropriate levels of physical distancing and limited density in the different areas of the clubhouse and other facilities.”
Last year, in a park without fans, players were separated into corporate suites on the third level of the park. While the players seemed to enjoy the physical space, they were separated as a team without one communal space to congregate. Meanwhile, they’d often walk down to the field through the stands, a setup that wouldn’t work this year with fans sitting in two- and four-person pods throughout the park.
“Health and safety was the priority and that’s what guided us last year,” Gilula said. “With fans coming back we needed to determine a solution that provided a healthy and safe environment and we’ve done that while using the locker room with some of those provisions prescribed but also there probably is a benefit to having the guys in one space. But only if we were able to position it in a healthy and safe manner.”
Meanwhile, part of the right field concourse will be sectioned off for a batting cage as well as a strength and conditioning area. The player’s parking lot, which sits at the corner of Jersey Street and Van Ness Street, will be tented and used as an open-air player lounge, dining space and meeting area.
Unlike last year, the bullpens will not be expanded into the concourse, as that area will be accessible to fans. The auxiliary tents in the stands where players sat during the games last summer will also not be in place this year.
“Per MLB guidelines, the auxiliary seating areas are not a requirement in 2021,” Gilula said. “But MLB wants to limit the number of folks in the dugouts for social distancing, so provisions are in place for players not playing in the game to have alternate seating arrangements.”
That could still mean players have seats in the stands or in the clubhouse.
As for the visiting team, the concourse area outside the visiting clubhouse will be open to fans and therefore not allowed for overflow space of the visiting team like last year. Instead, part of the visiting team will have lockers in the visiting clubhouse with the rest of the players and staff in an expanded clubhouse area in the service corridor along the third base and left field line. The visiting club will also have access to what was previously the grounds crew and game day staff locker rooms where expanded training and dining spaces will be housed.
As noted, fans in attendance will be seated in two- or four-person pods throughout the park. Fenway Park will be divided into five ‘neighborhood zones’ where ticket holders can access their seats through designated gates based on their neighborhood. For example, bleacher seats fall under neighborhood four, and fans with those tickets will be asked to enter and exit through the closest gate, Gate C on Lansdowne Street.
Prior to entry, fans will be required to complete a health screening survey found on the MLB Ballpark App and tickets to games will be issued digitally through the app for contactless scanning.
Inside the park, fans will be required to wear face coverings and abide by physical distancing measures. There will be heightened sanitation procedures as well with the Red Sox partnering with an air purification company as well as a company specializing in UV technology to clean hard surfaces.
The Red Sox are also working with the staff at Polar Park in Worcester, which will serve as the Red Sox alternate site in April, to set up similar distancing and safety protocols.
“I think everyone understands the conditions we’re working under, the spirit with which we’re approaching them to maintain the health and safety of everyone involved,” Gilula said.
With dead arm, health concerns, Red Sox scratch Eduardo Rodriguez from opening day start
Chad Jennings
For the second year in a row, Eduardo Rodriguez has been scratched from an Opening Day start.
Nine days after the Red Sox lefty was given the honor, Alex Cora announced on Friday that Rodriguez has been pushed back due to concern about a dead-arm period at the end of spring training. Coming back from COVID-19 and myocarditis, Rodriguez had been terrific throughout camp, but his last start was a dud — he needed 45 pitches to get through just two innings on Monday — and the Red Sox grew concerned that he might not be at full strength in time for Thursday’s opener.
“I think that it’s just dead arm,” Cora said. “He didn’t feel as strong as the previous outings arm-wise — shoulder, arm. There’s nothing specific there, but it’s one of those that, he wants (to start Opening Day). He’s pushing. He pushed hard for Thursday. But I think the smart thing from my end and from our end is to play it smart, take the decision away from the player. We made the decision for him.”
It’s not particularly unusual for a pitcher to experience some arm fatigue in spring training, but the timing is bad for Rodriguez, and the concern is compounded by last year’s medical issues.
The 27-year-old lefty had a career year in 2019 and was slated to make his first Opening Day start in 2020, but he was diagnosed with COVID-19 at the start of summer camp — the summer reboot of spring training — and wound up missing the entire season when he developed myocarditis, a heart issue and known side effect of the virus.
But, for more than a month, spring training was overwhelmingly positive for the left-hander. He showed up healthy and had a 2.31 ERA with no walks and 14 strikeouts in his first three exhibition starts. After his third start last Wednesday, Cora announced he would be the Opening Day starter.
On Monday, though, Rodriguez labored through two innings, walking two, striking out one, and building his pitch count in the bullpen after he was pulled from the game.
“Building up, building on my strength,” Rodriguez said after the start. “Build on my pitch count and working on the command. The last two starts (were) really good. Today I struggled with it, so I have to keep working on it.”
The Red Sox, though, had Rodriguez skip his scheduled bullpen on Wednesday and ultimately informed him he would not pitch Opening Day. He played catch on Thursday, and Cora said Rodriguez’s next bullpen — and how he feels the day after — could determine whether he opens the season on the injured list or simply takes a spot in the back end of the bullpen.
Nathan Eovaldi, who started Opening Day last season, will start in Rodriguez’s place for the season opener on Thursday.
“Like I told (Rodriguez) yesterday,” Cora said. “‘Hey man, the way you’re throwing the ball, the way your career is going, at one point in your career, you will be an Opening Day starter, and maybe more than once.’ He took it as a professional. As you guys know, with him, the communication is very clear. It’s very genuine. For him to accept it and think about the future and not the first game of the season is a testament to who he is right now as a pitcher, as a person, and as a leader on this team.”
Rodriguez is in his final year of team control and on track to become a free agent if he doesn’t sign an extension. He has gradually gotten better year after year and finished sixth in Cy Young voting in 2019. If he’s going to become an Opening Day starter, though, it will have to wait at least another year.
One roster decision set
The Red Sox made their first official roster decision on Friday, announcing that Rule 5 pick Garrett Whitlock has made the Opening Day roster. The decision was not a surprise given the way Whitlock has pitched in spring training, but it was meaningful in that it adds another young arm to the Red Sox bullpen.
“You can be a Rule 5 or a 10-year vet, but the way he threw the ball, you guys saw it,” Cora said. “He’s getting better and better. It’s one of those, as a manager, president of baseball operations, GM, whatever — it’s a great moment when you tell somebody that you’re going to be a big leaguer. And his reaction was priceless. It’s all about him. The organization did their homework, and we decided to draft him. From there on, it was up to him. He did everything possible to make the team.”
A 24-year-old with no experience above Double A, Whitlock was plucked out of the Yankees farm system and made a fast impression with his dominant performance on the mound and unassuming demeanor in the clubhouse. In four official spring outings, he’s struck out 12, walked none and allowed one run in nine innings. He pitched four innings with similar results in a simulated game on Thursday. Because he was a starter in the minor leagues, it seems likely Whitlock will be a multi-inning reliever this season, though his spring strikeout totals suggest the upside of a late-inning role or perhaps an opportunity in the rotation.
Further cuts bring more clarity
With Whitlock on the roster, the Red Sox on Friday made seven more cuts that all but set their Opening Day roster. They now have 28 healthy players in camp, leaving three more decisions — barring an outside addition — before they set a 26- man roster.
The most recent cuts were infielders Jonathan Araúz and Danny Santana, catcher Chris Herrmann, outfielders Michael Gettys and César Puello, and relievers Kevin McCarthy and Marcus Walden. Most meaningful was, perhaps, McCarthy who’s allowed no earned runs and no walks through seven innings. He’s a big league veteran but in camp on a minor league deal, which surely hurt his chances of making the team.
It seems the Red Sox have two decisions left.
1. Still planning to carry a three-man bench, they have to decide whether to go with outfielder Franchy Cordero or infielder Michael Chavis on Opening Day. Cordero, ultimately, will have that roster spot, but he missed the start of camp with COVID-19, and it’s unclear whether the Red Sox will feel he’s physically ready to break camp. If he doesn’t make the Opening Day roster, he could replace Chavis in a matter of days. Catcher Kevin Plawecki and infielder Christian Arroyo seem to have the other two bench jobs locked up.
2. The nine-man bullpen seems to have two spots up for grabs for some combination of Austin Brice, Colten Brewer and Phillips Valdez. Brice is out of options, which likely gives him a leg up. Valdez was the best of the bunch last season, but he’s been wild this spring. Brewer can throw multiple innings, which Cora has said is a priority.
It’s worth noting that Ryan Brasier, recovering from a hand injury, threw live batting practice Thursday and could be ready in a matter of weeks, so the final roster spot could be a short-term gig anyway. Also, as players are released or placed on waivers at the end of spring training, it’s entirely possible the Red Sox could fill their final bullpen spot from the outside.
Vázquez still on track
Catcher Christian Vázquez was hit in the face by a thrown baseball during fielding drills on Thursday. The ball broke his sunglasses, which cut his face, forcing the Red Sox to scratch him from the lineup. But Cora said he still expects Vazquez to be ready for Opening Day.
“He was feeling better last night, he was feeling better this morning,” Cora said. “… There’s more testing, (but) the goal is for him to be ready for Thursday.”
* Associated Press
Red Sox lefty Rodriguez scratched for opener with ‘dead arm’
Boston Red Sox lefty Eduardo Rodriguez will have to wait a little longer before returning to a big league mound.
The Red Sox on Friday scratched Rodriguez as their opening day starter because of a “dead arm.” Nathan Eovaldi will instead face the Baltimore Orioles at Fenway Park on April 1.
Manager Alex Cora said Rodriguez missed a bullpen session on Wednesday, two days after lasting just two innings in a spring training start. He played catch Thursday and felt fine, and Cora said Rodriguez would have a bullpen session on Saturday.
Rodriguez went 19-6 for Boston. He had been set to start the 2020 season opener before it was delayed by the coronavirus outbreak. The 27-year-old contracted COVID-19 and related heart problems that kept him from pitching at all last season.
Cora said the current issue is unrelated to the myocarditis.
“It’s just dead arm,” he said.
Cora said Rodriguez pushed to make start the opener, but the team took the decision out of his hands.
“Like I told him yesterday, I said, ‘The way you throw the ball, the way your career is going, at one point in your career you will be an opening day starter — maybe more than once,’” Cora said.
Eovaldi started the opener in Rodriguez’s place last year will do so again next week, Cora said. To prepare, he will have two more bullpen sessions before the team breaks camp in Fort Myers, Florida.
“He’s built up as far as the pitches and all that,” Cora said. “He’s ready to go. It’s just a matter of how we manage his week.”