The Boston Red Sox might end up losing two of their top relievers this winter, but on Monday, they lost a bullpen depth piece, too.
Red Sox left-handed relief pitcher Robby Scott was claimed off waivers by the Cincinnati Reds. The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal was the first to report the Reds were getting Scott. The Reds’ pickup opens a spot on Boston’s 40-man roster, which now sits at 39.
Scott has appeared sporadically over parts of three seasons with Boston. The best season of his young career came in 2017 when he appeared in 57 games, posting a 3.79 ERA with a 0.981 WHIP for the American League East champions.
Scott’s 2018 campaign was much more of a struggle. He made just nine big league appearances, allowing six earned runs in nine games, spending parts of the season bouncing back and forth between Boston and Triple-A Pawtucket. He was very good with the PawSox, though, allowing only 10 earned runs in 45 games, with nearly 12 strikeouts per nine innings.
The bullpen figures to be an area of focus for the Red Sox this winter. Right-handed relievers Craig Kimbrel and Joe Kelly both are free agents, and Boston reportedly has interest in some of the other names on the free agent market, including right-handers Adam Ottavino and David Robertson.
