What was once an intriguing stretch-drive addition, has become another acquisition-gone-(potentially)-wrong for the Red Sox.
Alex Cora announced prior to Thursday night's game that James Paxton has been diagnosed with a Grade 2 tear in his lat, ending his 2022 season before it got going.
Paxton had been returning from Tommy John surgery, but suffered the lat injury last week while making his first appearances in a Florida Complex League game.
The 33-year-old lefty hasn't pitched in a major league game since his first appearance in the 2021 season. He signed a one-year, $6 million deal with th Red Sox prior to the lockout this past offseason. The club can pick up a two-year option for the next pair of seasons at $13 million a year. If they decline the opportunity to lock him up, Paxton has a $4 million player option for 2023 he can exercise.
"It’s hard because I saw the progress, I saw the stuff and we know the player," Cora said. "When he’s healthy he’s really good. The angle and the cutter and all that. It’s disappointing but there’s nothing you can do about it. This is where -- we knew coming into the season there was a chance probably 50-50, he wasn’t 100 percent sure he was going to come back and we were getting excited about it. The fact he was going to throw two or three innings that day, it was like OK he might be here in September, but it’s disappointing but like I always say in these cases it’s more about the person. I can’t even imagine going through the whole process and this is what happens. But he’s in good spirits and he’ll be OK. He’ll pitch at the big league level at one point, he will, and he’s going to be dominant."
