Red Sox’s Garrett Whitlock Looking To ‘Contribute’ In Any Role

Garrett Whitlock doesn’t intend to be picky upon his long-awaited return to the mound for the Boston Red Sox.

Whitlock made his latest stride pitching in Triple-A Worcester. The right-hander, who was initially placed on the 15-day injured list with right elbow inflammation back on July 4, pitched 2 1/3 scoreless innings, allowing just two hits while striking out three hitters on 46 pitches on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, with the Red Sox in dire need of pitching production both in the bullpen and starting rotation, Whitlock isn’t close-minded about where he could slide in.

“Who cares? As long as I get to play, that’s all that matters,” Whitlock told reporters, according to Christopher Smith of MassLive. “As long as I can contribute, as long as I can bring something to the team, I don’t care what I do.”

Before going down, Whitlock was slated to go full-time in Boston’s starting rotation after having gone back and forth with pitching roles through his first two seasons with the Red Sox.

Whitlock first broke out as an elite bullpen arm, recording a 1.96 ERA and earning a four-year contract extension. But with the rotation having moved forward from several arms during the offseason, Whitlock inherited a greater level of responsibility. The 27-year-old has made 10 starts in a rocky 2023 campaign, notching a career-worst 5.23 ERA while allowing 30 earned runs — last season’s total — in 51 2/3 innings pitched as a starter.

An official return date hasn’t been established yet, but Whitlock is ready for when the time does come.

“When they tell me,” Whitlock said. “I’m always going to want to go out there and pitch. So I’m going to let them tell me when I should and when I shouldn’t. In my head, I’ll be ready tomorrow. But I’m going to let the decision-makers who make those decisions do exactly that.”