The Boston Red Sox already were going to need to lean on an opener with the way their starting rotation is constructed. But with Chris Sale on the injured list to begin the season, more creativity will be required.
Sale shouldn’t miss much of the beginning of the regular season. A bout with pneumonia at the beginning of spring training has put him about two weeks behind, so he’ll begin the season on the IL. He hopes to be back activated as soon as he’s eligible to return, in which case he’d likely only miss a pair of starts.
But in the interim, the Red Sox are going to have to fill that void — so how will they do it?
A few things seem obvious. Eduardo Rodriguez effectively will become the ace, followed by Nathan Eovaldi and Martin Perez.
Judging by the organization’s affinity for Ryan Weber (detailed in this piece by The Athletic), it seems likely he’ll get a shot to be the fourth starter, and if that pans out, maybe a full-time spot as the No. 5 guy in the rotation when Sale is healthy.
So a scenario sans Sale would look like this:
Eduardo Rodriguez
Nathan Eovaldi
Martin Perez
Ryan Weber
Opener/Bullpen Game
Granted, of Weber’s 18 appearances with the Red Sox in 2019, only three were starts, and he doesn’t have a lengthy history of starting. However, he’s shown that he can stretch out, which is what Boston probably is looking for more than anything.
There also are a few other options either for a fifth starter role with Sale out, or just as an opener if they don’t go the Weber route.
Hector Velazquez and Brian Johnson both were important parts of the 2018 Red Sox as spot starters/long relievers. Both flamed out in 2019 — and it led to Johnson being DFA’d over the offseason — but they do have a fair amount of starting experience in the big leagues. Since Johnson is just a camp invite and not on the 40-man roster, someone would have to be designated for assignment (or traded) in order to create a roster spot for him.
If they did that though, one would think to begin the season Weber still would spearhead the Red Sox’s bullpen games as the opener.
That would look like this:
Eduardo Rodriguez
Nathan Eovaldi
Martin Perez
Hector Velazquez/Brian Johnson
Ryan Weber/Bullpen Game
The Red Sox also could consider just interspersing two bullpen days among the rotation. But considering the bullpen was absolutely taxed mere weeks into last season because of the starters’ inability to go deep into games plus having to lean on openers, that’s a dangerous game to play right out of the chute.
But if Ron Roenicke believes in the ability of his relief arms to be effective enough in those bullpen games, then that might be something they’d be willing to gamble with.
In such a scenario, the rotation would look something like this:
Eduardo Rodriguez
Ryan Weber/Bullpen Game
Nathan Eovaldi
Martin Perez
Opener/Bullpen Game
All of this is to say it seems quite likely Weber gets a shot as either a starter or opener to begin the season, then they will go from there. Of course, there’s still a chance the Red Sox could try to make some sort of addition through free agency or by way of a trade.
They do have *some* internal options, though those aren’t necessarily ideal. But then again not having your ace to begin the season isn’t ideal, so the solution no matter what is going to be imperfect.
