Being the top pitching prospect of the Boston Red Sox comes with a great deal of expectations for Brayan Bello.
Ahead of his Major League Baseball debut Wednesday night against the Tampa Bay Rays at Fenway Park, Red Sox manager Alex Cora is trying to temper those expectations surrounding the 23-year-old.
"With Bello, we expect him to go out there and have fun," Cora said, per NBC Sports Boston. "Obviously, everybody knows about the stuff and what he's done this year. But it's his MLB debut against one of the best teams in the big leagues. We just want him to go out there and enjoy the moment."
The hype around Bello is generated from his dazzling performances in the minor leagues and his meteoric rise through Boston's farm system. Across 15 combined appearances at Double-A Portland and Triple-A Worcester this season, the hard-throwing right-hander has posted a 10-4 record with a 2.33 ERA. To go along with that, Bello has recorded 114 strikeouts and issued only 33 walks in 85 innings pitched.
While Bello's call up to the Red Sox has generated a massive amount of interest, Cora's trying to keep things in perspective when it comes to the results Bello produces in his first outing in the major leagues.
"Like I said yesterday, if it's three innings and five runs, that doesn't mean he's going to fail at this level, or if he goes seven innings no runs, it doesn't mean he's going to be a Hall of Famer," Cora said, according to NBC Sports Boston. "It just means he's a big leaguer. It's fun to have these days. The good thing about these kids is they come here and they know what the purpose is, to pitch and try to give us a chance to win."
Bello and the Red Sox look to take the rubber game of their three-game series with the Rays on Wednesday. First pitch from Bello is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. ET, and you can watch the game, plus an hour of pregame coverage, on NESN.
