FORT MYERS, Fla. - The Red Sox now know who they are going to roll with in their starting rotation to begin the 2024 season.
Brayan Bello. Nick Pivetta. Kutter Crawford. Garrett Whitlock. Tanner Houck.
The announcement came from Red Sox manager Alex Cora Friday afternoon, with the accompanying news that Cooper Criswell would be starting the season in the Triple-A Worcester rotation.
"We feel comfortable with the rotation," Cora said. "We feel comfortable with these guys. They’ve done an amazing jo, all of them. They’ve thrown the ball well. I do believe without making promises, that Coop will contribute during the season."
The manager added, "They're doing well, they're healthy, which is the most important thing. You guys have been talking about these guys since before I got here with Tanner and then when we got Whit in ’21. Yeah, people are going to talk about, is he a reliever? Is he a starter? You know what, he's a starter. Let's put that to rest. If he struggles, then we'll pivot but we see him as starter and I've been saying all along, the days of the hybrid, all that stuff, we’ll wait until October to do that. Over 162, we need these guys to go five, six innings every turn, regardless of the results for this to happen. Both of them have made huge adjustments with the repertoire, with the delivery. With everything they put the work in with in the offseason. People forget that they were coming from hip surgery and back surgery. For a regular human being to go to work, you know, after those type of surgeries, it’s a grind. Imagine for an elite athlete. It’s all about your body. It was tough for them last year, they were behind. They showed trends of being really, really good and at one point they weren't good but we feel very comfortable with them."
Crawford, Whitlock and Houck all cemented spots in the starting rotation after impressive spring trainings, easing some of the burden the team found itself with after Lucas Giolito's season-ending elbow surgery.
Houck threw a live batting practice session inside the cages Friday due to steady rain throughout the day. He came away from the 77-pitch exercise in good spirts, with a reflective tone.
"It means a lot," he said of being named to the rotation. "Put in a lot of work in the offseason. Grinded. Changed some things up. Really pushed myself to get better each day in, day out. I said at the beginning of camp this is the best I have felt in a while. I think all of that work paid off. Obviously, I’m super thankful to Bailey, AC and everybody who made the decision. It’s tough. We have an incredible group of guys in there. Just super blessed to have that opportunity to go out there and compete.
"I mean, 2023 definitely had my own things I was dealing with. Behind the scenes, I definitely wasn’t fully 100 percent after the back surgery. I felt like I was, but I wasn’t. Getting through last year, pushing through what I was going with and then obviously getting hit in the face and coming back … Second to last outing of the year was absolutely terrible and I bounced back at the end. I think it set me up for a great offseason to really jump forward in terms of who I am now compared vs. then. I think my cutter is a lot better of a pitch this year. My slider is more consistent than it was last year, as well as everything else is taking a tick up stuff-wise. I think just being fully healthy definitely has a lot to do with that."
The decision was a tough pill for Criswell to swallow considering the solid impression made throughout camp, with the 27-year-old giving up just six runs over 18 1/3 innings, striking 17 and walked just three.
"Obviously, the news stinks. But like I said in the past, just know your role and stick to that," Criswell. "It seems right now they want me to stay ready and stay stretched out if something happens to a starter."
The Red Sox also optioned Zack Kelly to Triple-A, with the righty having fallen slightly behind due to an oblique injury. Kelly has been back throwing and figures to be game ready over the weekend.
- Both Kenley Jansen and Chris Martin appear trending toward being ready for duty come Thursday's Opening Day in Seattle. The pair of veteran relievers are slated to pitch over the weekend and then again during one of the exhibition games against the Rangers in Texas.
- The Red Sox will participate in a split-squad Saturday, with Bello starting in Bradenton against the Pirates and Pivetta going in a night game at JetBlue Park against the Twins. Also in the starting lineup vs. the Bucs will be the Red Sox' top two prospects, Marcelo Mayer and Roman Anthony.
- Both Joely Rodriguez and C.J. Cron have exercised their right to opt-out of their current minor-league deals if the team doesn't put them on the 40-roster by Sunday. If they aren't on the Opening Day roster, the players will need to be released. Roberto Perez, who had the same opportunity as Rodriguez and Cron, did not opt-out.
