Red Sox Option Brayan Bello To Worcester In Somewhat Surprising Move

The Boston Red Sox optioned pitcher Brayan Bello to Triple-A Worcester before Monday night’s series opener against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards.

The move, which eliminates a logjam in the rotation, comes one day after Bello started Boston’s series finale against the Milwaukee Brewers at American Family Field. The 23-year-old allowed three runs on five hits over 4 2/3 innings in that outing, his second start with Boston since returning from the injured list. He struck out three and walked two while throwing 82 pitches in the Red Sox’s 12-5 win.

The Red Sox recalled left-hander Brennan Bernardino in a corresponding roster move Monday. Bernardino, whom the club recently claimed off waivers from the Mariners while transferring Zack Kelly to the 60-day IL, made his MLB debut last season, appearing in two games with Seattle. The 31-year-old made his first appearance in the Red Sox organization last Friday, tossing two scoreless innings for Worcester.

Bello being optioned to Worcester seems to suggest that Tanner Houck will remain in Boston’s rotation. It looked over the offseason like Houck might slot back into the bullpen, where he thrived in 2022, but the Red Sox kept him stretched out and he’s been solid in four starts this season.

The Red Sox had been operating with a six-man rotation. It came amid a grueling stretch schedule-wise, though. Boston now has three off-days over the next three weeks, including one this Thursday. So, returning to a five-man unit makes sense, with Bello being the odd man out — at least for now — while Houck remains entrenched alongside Chris Sale, Corey Kluber, Nick Pivetta and Garrett Whitlock.

Bello, the Red Sox’s top pitching prospect at the time of his 2022 big-league debut, flashed intriguing upside last season and almost certainly will return to Boston before long.