The Boston Red Sox have been bitten by the injury bug at just about every corner this season. Though it looks like things could be progressing in a positive direction for Alex Cora’s squad, they’ll need to get creative this week to fill out their starting rotation.
Nathan Eovaldi and Garrett Whitlock both found themselves on the injured list last week, and the Red Sox will arrive soon to their spots in the rotation. Luckily for Boston, a day off on Monday allowed Nick Pivetta to jump one spot and take the mound for Tuesday’s contest against the Oakland Athletics. Past that, they’ll need to get creative.
Wednesday represents Pivetta’s originally scheduled day to pitch, meaning the Red Sox need to find a replacement, likely from the minors.
Connor Seabold will take the mound for Triple-A Worcester on Tuesday, while Red Sox manager Alex Cora has already said he didn’t believe they would call-up top-rated pitching prospect Brayan Bello. That leaves two likely options, a bullpen game or a second spot start for No. 10 prospect Josh Winckowski.
Winckowski wasn’t overly impressive in his first major league game, but a second chance under the bright lights would likely give Boston a more fair look at the prospect.
Rich Hill and Michael Wacha are in-line to make their starts on Thursday and Friday, with the recently promoted Kutter Crawford a likely candidate to make the start Saturday to round out the week’s rotation.
Here’s how Boston’s starter could potentially line up for the week:
Tuesday (6/14) – RHP Nick Pivetta
Wednesday (6/15) – RHP Josh Winckowski/Bullpen
Thursday (6/16) – LHP Rich Hill
Friday (6/17) – RHP Michael Wacha
Saturday (6/18) – RHP Kutter Crawford
Boston will need to find a way to fill a few more days passed Saturday, as Whitlock and Eovaldi are ineligible to return until June 24, but this potential rotation should help Boston get closer to that return date.
