Alex Cora Noncommittal on Rotation Construction Going Forward

The Boston Red Sox were victims of unfortunate circumstances on Monday against the Minnesota Twins. A turbulent plane ride made Garrett Whitlock unavailable, while Aroldis Chapman was also out due to back tightness.

Jordan Hicks was forced to pitch the ninth inning for the second time in as many days, this time after a lengthy rain delay, before which he had already warmed up. Hicks couldn’t find the zone, and the Twins walked off the Red Sox with a two-run single to win, 4-3.

Of course, the situation could have been avoided with more length from starting pitcher Richard Fitts. Fitts went four innings and surrendered two runs on 58 pitches. While his pitch count was still low and he only allowed two runs, he was playing with fire throughout the outing.

Of the 17 batters Fitts faced, he walked three and struck out two. He allowed 12 balls in play, 11 of which were categorized as “hard hit” by Baseball Savant. While the Red Sox had a short bullpen, leaving Fitts out there was trending towards disaster.

The righty pitched well in his first three starts of the year before hitting the injured list. He’s had a tough time since returning, which could be in part due to rehabbing at the major league level due to other pitching injuries on the roster. He’s moved between Boston and Triple-A Worcester since returning from injury, and has a 6.00 ERA over seven games.

The Red Sox need arms due to the bullpen’s heavy usage on Monday. Alex Cora said Fitts would be optioned to Worcester for a relief arm and was noncommittal about his spot in the rotation for the future.

“We have to talk about [Fitts’s place in the rotation],” Cora said. “ We just gotta be better.”

With the trade deadline on Thursday, the Red Sox will look to add to the rotation.