Tanner Houck probably knows the stretch of the Massachusetts Turnpike between Worcester and Boston like the back of his hand by now.
The 25-year-old pitcher has been back and forth between the Red Sox and Triple-A Worcester since he recovered from an injury and officially got called up in mid-July.
The Red Sox have benefitted from being able to move him up and down around starts, and the right-hander has had a great attitude about the arrangement, despite how it probably impacts his salary.
But all that patience and flexibility finally is being rewarded. Boston on Tuesday optioned rookie Jarren Duran to the WooSox and recalled Houck. And manager Alex Cora insinuated he'll remain on the big league roster as the team makes a playoff push.
"He's been awesome," Cora told reporters in his media availability ahead of the Red Sox's series opener against the Minnesota Twins. "He's been awesome, so looking forward to him (pitching) tonight and stay with us and pitch every five days and be part of this, finally, on a more consistent basis. He earned it. He deserves it, and I think, you know, obviously, he's been helping us to get better and he will keep doing that."
In 34 2/3 innings pitched so far this season, including two April appearances preceding his injury, Houck has earned 46 strikeouts with an ERA of 3.12.
Only Chris Sale has a lower ERA than Houck amongst Boston's starting rotation, though the lefty mentor only has two starts under his belt since returning from his own rehab assignment.
Houck will try to keep that up, still in search of his first win on the mound this year, Tuesday against the Twins. First pitch is at 7:10 p.m. ET.
