The Boston Red Sox have several unanswered questions with pitchers and catchers reporting to spring training Tuesday.
One MLB writer believes the next few weeks could provide some answers.
The Mookie Betts trade saga seemingly has come to an end, meaning the Red Sox and their fans can firmly focus on the 2020 season. ESPN’s David Schoenfield named starting pitchers Chris Sale and Nathan Eovaldi as the “one thing to watch” in spring training this year.
Here’s what Schoenfield wrote in a piece published Monday on ESPN.com:
While the Betts/Price trade finally was completed, we’re still waiting for a manager to be named. And we’re still waiting for the penalties from the investigation into Boston’s sign-stealing scandal to be revealed. Once the dust settles, however, the biggest story of the spring will be the health of Sale and Eovaldi. Sale made his final start on Aug. 13. Eovaldi did return to start the down the stretch, but had a 6.21 ERA over those eight starts.
Sale finished last season with a 6-11 record, a 4.40 ERA and 218 strikeouts in 147 1/3 innings pitched before being shut down in August. Eovaldi, meanwhile, split time between the rotation and the bullpen in 2019, finishing with a 2-1 record, a 5.99 ERA and 70 strikeouts in 67 2/3 innings pitched.
With both men signing big contracts last offseason, this is their time to show they are ready to go for 2020.
