Red Sox manager Alex Cora has been forthcoming about the impact of Tanner Houck, who put together an impressive start in Saturday's 4-0 victory, and how the right-hander could have a big part in what Boston is able to accomplish this season.
Cora and the rest of the clubhouse continued to get a glimpse of that potential at Fenway Park with Houck having it all working against the visiting Minnesota Twins. And Houck's performance -- a scoreless 5 2/3 innings with two hits allowed -- garnered plenty of praise from Cora and his Red Sox teammates.
"Like I said in New York, he's a big part of what we're trying to accomplish here. His stuff is that good," Cora said after the win. "He's always one pitch away from getting out of the inning.
"I mean with him, it's kind of like Garrett (Whitlock), he's just so consistent in everything they do. He knows he has to work, keep getting better but one bad outing isn't going to take him out of who he is," Cora said, referencing Houck's three-plus inning start against the New York Yankees last week. "The stuff was really good. We saw it last year with his whole situation going up and down (to Triple-A Worcester) and for everything that we said he didn't mind that or didn't care, he did care. ... But he did an amazing job last year and we expect him to do the same this year."
Houck's teammates offered much of the same.
"He's a stud. I love watching him do his thing," Whitlock said, per MassLive's Christopher Smith. "(When) he competes like that, it's so much fun to watch him do his thing. He's got some of the best stuff in all of baseball."
Xander Bogaerts added: "I don't even think the slider was on tonight, and I mean, he didn't give up any runs -- that just to show you how effective he can be. His wipeout slider wasn't as sharp as it normally is, but still got outs no matter what. And if it's on like it's always been, he can be really good for a long time."
Red Sox outfielder Alex Verdugo, who has two home runs in the last two games, complimented Houck by explaining that when the right-hander is on his game, Verdugo knows he's not going to have to do much in the grass.
The Red Sox are 2-0 in games Houck has started this season and will return to the diamond Sunday when they host the Twins for the third game of the four-game set. First pitch from Fenway Park is scheduled for 1:35 p.m. ET, and you can watch it on NESN following an hour of pregame coverage.
