Amidst the ups and downs of the 2025 regular season for the Red Sox (62-51), one of the constants has been the continued maturation of 26-year-old Brayan Bello (7-5, 3.19 ERA).
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Bello entered last season as the opening day starter, coming into 2024 with all sorts of hype in the wake of signing a six-year, $55 million contract during spring training.
And while the final record looked good on paper (14-8), Bello struggled to find consistency out of the gate.
Through his first 21 starts in 2024, Bello was sporting a 5.16 ERA through 111.2 innings pitched - an average of 5.1 innings pitched per outing and a record of 10-5. Not atrocious, but certainly not the type of production you’d want to see from your No. 1 starter.
But in his final 9 starts, Bello went 4-3 with a 3.02 ERA, averaging an additional third-of-an-inning pitched per start through his final 50.2 innings pitched.
That strong finish has carried over into 2025, which began for Bello on April 22 after missing the first month of the season with a right shoulder strain.
In addition to Bello now having the valuable experience of taking his lumps under one of baseball’s largest microscopes, Red Sox manager Alex Cora told the media on Monday that he thinks the righty’s maturation goes deeper than that.
Here’s Cora’s exchange with NESN’s Tom Caron from Monday’s pregame media availability:
Tom Carron: “We talked about [Brayan Bello] going deeper into games. But just the last couple starts, he’s had a couple of innings where the pitch count got up, and then he came back with an eight-nine-pitch inning after that. Whereas a couple years ago, that might have gotten away from him.
“How much maturity is he showing us this year? How much has he changed in his ability to bounce back from an inning where he battles?"
Alex Cora: “Yeah - I think mentally he’s a lot different than last year early in the season. I joke around the kids - you know, he can pitch in day games now. But having his family here means a lot. Haven't seen any of the Netflix thing, but that's what people bring up. You know, the whole conversation in right field and him missing his kids and his wife. They've been here most of the time. That really helps.
“And although he's not a veteran, he's been around this group for a while. Just like [Ceddanne Rafaela] right? They’re still young. We committed a lot of money to both of them. They've been through the lows of lows, and now they're enjoying this part of the season, and they have learned what it takes to play in this city. And so far so good.”
TC: “Keeping his emotion check is part of that. How much better is he at that now then when he first came up?”
AC: “A lot better, a lot better. He's still emotional, which is part of it. But he's been able to vent, and then get back to what he needs to do. And like you said, there's been games there that the pitch count is getting up, and then all of a sudden you're like, ‘Oh shoot, we're in the 6th inning, 7th inning, and he was efficient.’
“So keep attacking, keep using your stuff in the zone. Very versatile pitcher compared to what he was two years ago. Two years ago, we wanted him to throw the change-up 40% of the time. Now change-up is just part of the mix. Cutter, sinker, four-seamer, slider, change-up. And [this is] a lineup that has a bunch of lefties, so probably one of those pitches is going to pop up today more than usual. And he can do that, which is awesome.”
Bello takes the bump for Boston on Monday night as they open a three-game series against the Royals (56-56). They’ll go for their sixth win in a row after consecutive series wins against the Twins (52-59) and Astros (62-50).
The Royals will throw lefty Bailey Falter (7-5, 3.73 ERA). First pitch is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. ET.
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