With all of the Red Sox’s starting pitchers set to be healthy and active as of this weekend, Alex Cora was met with a big decision about the rotation.
The Boston manager revealed his ruling Wednesday afternoon ahead of the club’s series finale against the Los Angeles Angels in Anaheim, Calif.
Three days before Garrett Whitlock is scheduled to re-join Boston’s slate of starters, Cora announced Corey Kluber will be moving to the bullpen. It marks the Red Sox’s second starter-to-reliever shift in a week, as Nick Pivetta was moved from the rotation to the ‘pen last Wednesday.
“We had that conversation with Corey, very professional, he understands,” Cora said Wednesday on “Gresh & Fauria,” as transcribed by WEEI. “He signed here to be a starter, but right now he’s struggling and obviously the kids are throwing the ball well, there are a lot of off days coming up. So, we decided to make a change. We were just waiting for Tanner (Houck) to see how he felt after his start.”
Kluber, who signed a one-year, $10 million deal with Boston back in January, struggled after he was named the Red Sox’s Opening Day starter. The veteran right-hander owns a 2-6 record on the campaign with a 6.26 ERA, the highest mark on the club among pitchers with 20-plus innings under their belt. Kluber also has struggled with command, as he walked three-plus batters in four of his nine starts.
With Kluber now out of the equation, Boston’s five-man rotation is set to include James Paxton, Chris Sale, Whitlock, Houck and Brayan Bello.
