Tag: 2021 season

Eduardo Rodriguez twirls 6 scoreless frames, Bobby Dalbec stays hot with 2-RBI night as Red Sox earn series split by blanking Rays, 4-0

For everything they went through over the last week in regards to placing eight players on the COVID-19 related injured list, the Red Sox were able to cap off a hellish seven game-road trip with a 4-0 shutout victory over the Rays at Tropicana Field on Thursday.

Matched up against a tough opponent in Rays starter Shane McClanahan, the shorthanded Sox jumped out to an early 2-0 lead on Tuesday right out of the gate.

Bobby Dalbec, having just earned American League Rookie of the Month honors for what he did in August, got his month of September off to a solid start by driving in Hunter Renfroe on a two-out, sharply-hit RBI single in the top half of the first inning.

Renfroe, on the other hand, delivered with a two-out RBI base hit of his own an inning later, as he plated Danny Santana from second base on a line-drive single to left field, thus giving his side an early two-run advantage.

Eduardo Rodriguez, making his 26th start of the season for Boston, took that two-run lead and essentially ran away with it in yet another strong outing.

Over six-plus scoreless innings of work, Rodriguez kept Tampa Bay off the scoreboard while scattering just four hits and one walk to go along with six strikeouts on the night.

After taking a perfect game into the third inning, the left-hander managed to face the minimum of 12 batters through his first four frames.

In the fifth, the Red Sox lineup tacked on two more runs of McClanahan, and No. 9 hitter Jonathan Arauz got the mini-rally started by drawing an 11-pitch leadoff walk.

That impressive display of patience and plate discipline flipped the lineup back over, as Kyle Schwarber moved Arauz up to second on another hard-hit single. J.D. Martinez drove Arauz in on a sharply-hit RBI single of his own, while a red-hot Dalbec made it a 4-0 contest by pushing across Schwarber on a run-scoring base knock to center field.

With that brand-new four-run cushion to work with, Rodriguez continued to dominate, stranding a pair of base runners in the fifth and sixth innings, though he did run into some trouble in the seventh.

There, after issuing a leadoff walk to rookie sensation Wander Franco that was followed by a Yandy Diaz single, Rodriguez was put in his first true jam of the night, and he got the hook from Red Sox manager Alex Cora as a result.

Finishing with a final pitch count of 94 (56 strikes), the 28-year-old southpaw turned to his four-seam fastball 46% of the time he was on the mound Thursday, inducing nine swings-and-misses while topping out at 95.6 mph with the pitch. He also later improved to 11-7 on the season and lowered his ERA to 4.88 in the process of doing so.

In relief of Rodriguez, Garrett Richards got the first — and only — call out of the Boston bullpen, and he continued to show how effective he can be as a reliever.

Inheriting a bit of a mess with three outs still to get in the seventh, Richards proceeded to retire the first three Rays he faced (two by way of the strikeout) to officially close the book on Rodriguez’s night before tossing two more shutout innings to pick up his second save of the season and secure a 4-0 victory for the Red Sox.

Since moving to the bullpen on August 13, Richards has allowed a total of one earned run over 13 1/3 innings of relief. That’s good for an ERA of 0.68.

With the win, the Sox were able to salvage a split in their four-game series with the Rays while also improving to 77-59 on the season. They picked up 1/2 a game on an idle Yankees team for the first American League Wild Card spot in addition to maintaining a two-game lead over the Athletics for the second Wild Card spot.

Next up: Welcoming in the Indians

The Red Sox will happily board a flight to Boston and open up a three-game weekend series against the Indians that begins at Fenway Park on Friday night.

Right-hander Nathan Eovaldi is slated to get the ball for Boston in the series opener, while fellow righty Cal Quantrill is expected to do the same for Cleveland.

First pitch Friday is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of Eduardo Rodriguez: Douglas P. DeFelice/Getty Images)

Red Sox’ Bobby Dalbec named American League Rookie of the Month after posting 1.205 OPS in August

The month of August continues to treat Red Sox first baseman extremely well.

After making his major-league debut last August, Dalbec was named the American League Rookie of the Month for what he did this August earlier Thursday evening.

In 24 games this month, the 26-year-old slugger slashed an impressive .339/.431/.774 to go along with four doubles, one triple, seven home runs, 21 RBI, and 12 runs scored across 72 trips to the plate.

Two of his seven homers and seven of his 21 RBI came in one game against the Twins on August 26 — a Thursday night at Fenway Park in which he racked up three hits to tie a season-high.

Among all American League position players who accrued at least 70 plate appearances in the month of August, Dalbec ranked ninth in batting average, second in on-base percentage, second in slugging percentage, first in OPS (1.205), first in isolated power (.435), first in weighted on-base average (.491), and first in wRC+ (214), per FanGraphs.

One thing that has aided the right-handed hitter as of late has been an increase in awareness at the plate, or — to put it simply — plate discipline.

As of July 31, Dalbec carried with him a strikeout rate of 37.5% and walk rate of just 4.4%, both of which were among the worst marks in all of baseball at that point in the season.

Once the calendar flipped to August, however, the former top prospect demonstrated a much more patient approach at the plate, as he cut his punchout rate down to 25% while bumping up his walk rate to 11.1%.

Dalbec’s improved performance at the plate over the last four weeks or so certainly comes at interesting time, as the Red Sox activated trade deadline acquisition Kyle Schwarber from the injured list with the intention of having him play some first base on August 13 and subsequently claimed corner infielder Travis Shaw off waivers on August 15.

In being named American League Rookie of the Month, Dalbec becomes the first Red Sox rookie to receive the honor since former teammate Michael Chavis did so in May 2019.

As he looks to build off a successful month of August in his first appearance of September, Dalbec will be batting fifth and getting the start at first base for the Red Sox in Thursday’s series finale against the Rays at Tropicana Field.

(Picture of Bobby Dalbec: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox claim infielder Taylor Motter off waivers from Rockies

The Red Sox have claimed infielder Taylor Motter off waivers from the Rockies, the team announced earlier Thursday afternoon.

Motter, who turns 32 later this month, had been designated for assignment by Colorado on Monday after appearing in just 13 games for the team since having his contract selected on August 10.

In those 13 games, the right-handed hitter went just 3-for-20 (.150) at the plate with two runs scored, two walks, and six strikeouts over 22 plate appearances while primarily being used off the bench as a pinch-hitter.

The 31-year-old initially inked a minor-league deal with the Rockies back in March and had posted a .335/.460/.759 slash line with 16 doubles, one triple, 24 home runs, 57 RBI, 54 runs scored, 49 walks, and 49 strikeouts over 67 games (265 plate appearances) for Triple-A Albuquerque before getting called up.

Originally selected by the Rays in the 17th round of the 2011 amateur draft out of Coastal Carolina University, Motter has played in a total of 154 major-league games with Tampa Bay, the Mariners, the Twins, and the Rockies dating back to 2016.

Since debuting with the Rays in 2016, Motter owns a lifetime slash line of .189/.261/.304 to go along with 15 doubles, 10 home runs, 37 RBI, 44 runs scored, 13 stolen bases, 38 walks, and 95 strikeouts in the majors.

He has also played for the New Britain Bees of the independent Atlantic League and the Kiwoom Heroes of the Korean Baseball Organization.

While drafted as a shortstop and seeing the majority of his big-league playing time come at that position, the Florida native does also have experience at first base, second base, third base, left field, and right field.

Given the defensive versatility that Motter can provide, the Red Sox must have felt as though the 6-foot-1, 195 pounder would be an apt fit on account of the COVID-19 difficulties the club is currently going through.

Put another way, with the likes of Christian Arroyo, Xander Bogaerts, Yairo Munoz, and Enrique Hernandez all on the COVID-19 related injured list at the moment, Motter gives Boston some experienced depth in both the infield and outfield.

The Red Sox did not have to make a corresponding move when adding Motter to their 40-man roster on account of the eight players currently on the COVID-related IL.

Additionally, Motter does have one minor-league option remaining and is under club control through 2025, so there is that to consider as well.

(Picture of Taylor Motter: Dustin Bradford/Getty Images)

Jarren Duran comes through with game-winning RBI single as Red Sox halt skid with 3-2 victory over Rays

After wrapping up their first losing month of the season on Tuesday, the Red Sox were able to open the month of September with a hard-fought 3-2 victory over the Rays at Tropicana Field on Wednesday night.

Chris Sale, making his fourth start of the season and fourth since returning from Tommy John surgery, was not at his sharpest while going up against his toughest opponent to date, but was still effective nonetheless.

Over six solid innings of work to set a new season-high in that category, Sale surrendered just two runs — both of which were earned on six hits, two walks, and two hit batsman to go along with three strikeouts on the evening.

In addition to that, the Sox gave Sale an early lead to work with in the top half of the second.

Matched up against Rays starter Drew Rasmussen, Alex Verdugo ripped a one-out triple to center field and was promptly driven in on an RBI single off the bat of Christian Vazquez.

Both runs Sale gave up, meanwhile, came on one swing of the bat an inning later, as the veteran left-hander served up a two-run home run to Wander Franco with two outs in the inning.

Besides that one blunder that put Boston in a 2-1 hole, Sale managed to maneuver his way around some traffic on the base paths to the point where he kept the Tampa Bay offense off the board over his final three innings pitched.

Finishing with a final pitch count of 95 (57 strikes) to set another season-high, the 32-year-old hurler did not factor into Wednesday’s decision, though this particular outing may be his most encouraging of the season thus far.

Moments after Sale’s outing came to an end, Vazquez continued to build on his productive night at the plate by demolishing a one-out, 389-foot solo shot off Rays reliever and former teammate Collin McHugh on the very first pitch he saw in the top of the seventh.

Vazquez’s sixth big fly of the season pulled the Red Sox even with the Rays at two runs apiece, and the score would remain that way for quite some time.

In relief of Sale, Garrett Whitlock got the first call out of the Red Sox bullpen to begin things in the seventh and immediately gave up a leadoff double to Joey Wendle.

Wendle proceeded to advance to third on a fly out to center field, but also attempted to score from third on a sharply-hit ground ball to the left side of the infield off the bat of Randy Arozarena.

Rafael Devers, however, had different plans, as he — with the help from Vazquez behind the plate — gunned down Wendle at home to preserve the stalemate.

In the eighth, Whitlock was put into just about the exact same situation when he yielded another leadoff double to Franco, who moved up to third on a groundout.

Once more, though, the Rays’ base running bailed out the Red Sox, as Franco attempted to score on a grounder from Manuel Margot, but was instead thrown out at home by shortstop Jonathan Arauz.

Having halted Tampa Bay’s momentum in two consecutive innings, the Boston bats broke out in their half of the ninth, where Devers proved to be the catalyst by lacing a leadoff single off Pete Fairbanks.

Devers was able to move up into scoring position on an infield single from a hustling Verdugo, ultimately putting the potential go-ahead run at second base with two outs for Jarren Duran.

Duran, at that point, was 0-for-3 with a pair of strikeouts, but came through when it mattered most by sneaking an RBI single through the right side of the infield to bring in Devers from second to make it a 3-2 game.

Given a brand-new one-run lead to protect, Adam Ottavino got the call for the ninth, and he shut the door on the Rays by retiring the side in order to notch his 11th save of the season and secure the 3-2 victory for the Sox.

With the win, the Red Sox snap their three-game losing streak to improve to 76-59 on the season as well as 4-0 in games started by Sale. Their lead over the Athletics for the second American League Wild Card spot also increased to two full games.

Next up: Rodriguez vs. McClanahan

The Red Sox will send left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez to the mound on Thursday as they look to head back to Boston having secured a four-game series split with their division rivals.

The Rays, meanwhile, will turn to fellow southpaw Shane McClanahan, who will be making his 21st start of the season for Tampa Bay.

First pitch Thursday is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. eastern time on NESN and MLB Network.

(Picture of Jarren Duran: Douglas P. DeFelice/Getty Images)

Red Sox roster moves: Xander Bogaerts, Yairo Muñoz placed on COVID-19 related injured list; Jack López, John Schreiber selected from Triple-A Worcester; Ryan Brasier, Danny Santana activated from injured list

In the midst of navigating through a COVID-19 outbreak that has affected at least 11 members of the organization this past week, the Red Sox made yet another flurry of roster moves before they take on the Rays at Tropicana Field on Wednesday night.

First off, shortstop Xander Bogaerts and infielder/outfielder Yairo Munoz were placed on the COVID-19 related injured lists after both recently tested positive for the virus.

Secondly, infielder Jack Lopez and right-hander John Schreiber were both selected from Triple-A Worcester to take Bogaerts and Munoz’s spots on the major-league roster.

Finally, with rosters expanding from 26 to 28 players on Wednesday, right-handed reliever Ryan Brasier was reinstated from the 60-day injured list, while infielder/outfielder Danny Santana was activated from the 10-day injured list.

The Red Sox made all of these transactions official earlier Wednesday evening.

There is plenty to digest here, so let’s start with the two players who are headed to the COVID-19 related injured list.

Bogaerts had tested positive for the virus on Tuesday and was pulled in the second inning of the Red Sox’ game against the Rays as a result. Munoz, meanwhile, tested positive on Wednesday morning.

The pair of infielders become the seventh and eighth Sox players to be placed on the COVID IL since Friday, as they join the likes of Enrique Hernandez, Christian Arroyo, Martin Perez, Matt Barnes, Josh Taylor, and Hirokazu Sawamura.

Of those eight, Hernandez, Arroyo, Perez, Barnes, Sawamura, Bogaerts, and Munoz — as well as quality control coach Ramon Vazquez and strength and conditioning coach Kiyoshi Momose — have all tested positive.

Taylor and first base coach Tom Goodwin, on the other hand, are away from the team and in quarantine since they were identified as close contacts.

With Bogaerts and Munoz both forced out of action for the foreseeable future on account of their positive tests, the Red Sox were able to add two players to their major-league roster without making any sort of corresponding moves . Those two players, of course, are Lopez and Schreiber.

Lopez, 28, originally inked a minor-league deal with Boston back in January. He began the 2021 season at Double-A Portland but later earned a promotion to Worcester on May 11.

In 58 games (219 plate appearances) with the WooSox, the Puerto Rican-born right-handed hitter has slashed .260/.321/.378 (87 wRC+) with 12 doubles, one triple, three home runs, 30 RBI, 24 runs scored, 11 stolen bases, 15 walks, and 50 strikeouts while seeing time at second base, third base, shortstop, and center field.

On top of that, Lopez earned himself a silver medal while playing for Team USA in this summer’s Olympic Games in Tokyo. The 5-foot-10, 160 pounder will start at second base and bat eighth in his major-league debut on Wednesday.

Schreiber, meanwhile, was claimed off waivers from the Tigers back in February, but last his spot on the Sox’ 40-man roster when he was designated for assignment shortly before Opening Day.

The 27-year-old righty did clear waivers, however, and was subsequently outrighted to Worcester in early April before opening the 2021 campaign in the affiliate’s bullpen.

Across 28 appearances (eight starts) with the WooSox, Schreiber has pitched well, putting up a 3.10 ERA and 3.73 xFIP to go along with 57 strikeouts to 21 walks in 58 innings of work this year.

While Lopez and Schreiber will take the place of Bogaerts and Munoz on Boston’s major-league roster, the club was also able to add two more players with rosters expanding to 28 players on Wednesday.

With that, Brasier was activated from the 60-day injured list while Santana was activated from the 10-day injured list.

Brasier, who recently turned 34, had missed the entirety of the 2021 season up to this point due to a multitude of injuries, including a left calf strain and concussion.

Santana, on the other hand, has dealt with his fair share of injuries this year, as he has missed extended periods of time on two separate occasions due to a left groin and left quad strain.

Following Wednesday’s series of moves, the Red Sox now have a full 28 players (15 pitchers, 13 position players) on their major-league roster and 38 active players on their 40-man roster.

(Picture of Jack Lopez: Yuichi Masuda/Getty Images)

Yairo Muñoz becomes latest Red Sox player to test positive for COVID-19

Red Sox infielder Yairo Munoz has tested positive for COVID-19, manager Alex Cora said during his weekly appearance on WEEI’s Merloni and Fauria program earlier Wednesday afternoon.

Munoz, who was selected from Triple-A Worcester on Friday, tested positive for the virus on Wednesday morning, per Cora.

The versatile 26-year-old has appeared in five games for the Red Sox since being called up from Worcester, most recently being used as a defensive replacement at second base in Tuesday night’s 8-5 loss to the Rays at Tropicana Field.

After starting that game on the bench, Munoz was dispatched in the middle of the second inning when — after getting test results back — Cora was forced to pull Xander Bogaerts, as it was later revealed that the star shortstop tested positive for COVID-19.

Because of that, Jonathan Arauz, Tuesday’s starting second baseman for Boston, shifted over to shortstop while Munoz took over at second base for the remainder of the contest.

Within the next few hours, both Bogaerts and Munoz will become the seventh and eighth players the Red Sox have had to place on the COVID-19 related injured list since Friday. They will join the likes of Enrique Hernandez, Christian Arroyo, Martin Perez, Matt Barnes, Hirokazu Sawamura, and Josh Taylor.

Hernandez and Arroyo both tested positive for the virus in Cleveland and remain in quarantine there, while Perez, Barnes, and Sawamura all tested positive for the virus in St. Petersburg and are quarantining at the team hotel.

On top of that, quality control coach Ramon Vazquez and strength and conditioning coach Kiyoshi Momose have tested positive as well, while Taylor and first base coach Tom Goodwin have been identified as close contacts and are also in quarantine.

As is the case for all players who test positive for COVID-19, Munoz will have to remain away from the Red Sox for the next 10 days at the very least.

(Picture of Yairo Munoz: Cliff Welch/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Red Sox rally comes up short in 8-5 loss to Rays as team’s COVID-19 outbreak continues to grow

The road trip from hell rolled on for the Red Sox at Tropicana Field on Tuesday night.

In addition to having two more players — Hirokazu Sawamura and Xander Bogaerts — testing positive for COVID-19, the Sox committed two errors and fell to the Rays by a final score of 8-5, marking their third consecutive loss.

Matched up against Rays starter Ryan Yarbrough to begin things on Tuesday, Bogaerts actually got the Red Sox on the board first, as he followed up a two-out double from J.D. Martinez by ripping an RBI single to right field to give his side an early 1-0 lead.

Bogaerts was, however, removed from this contest in the middle of the second inning after his latest test came back positive, and it all started to go downhill for Boston from there.

That being the case because Brad Peacock, who was just acquired from the Indians on Mondy, got somewhat roughed up for five runs — all of which were earned — on two hits, two walks, one hit batsman, and zero strikeouts over 2 1/3 innings of work in his first start with the Red Sox.

After needing just seven pitches to get through a scoreless bottom of the first, Peacock served up a solo home run to Randy Arozarena with one out in the second inning, thus allowing the Rays to even things up at one run apiece.

The veteran right-hander did manage to get out of the second, but ran into some more trouble in the bottom half of the third when he issued a leadoff walk to Kevin Kiermaier and plunked Francisco Mejia.

A mental mistake and poor throw from Alex Verdugo on a fly ball to center field off the bat of Brandon Lowe allowed both of those runners to advance an additional 90 feet, and Peacock promptly loaded the bases with one out by walking Nelson Cruz.

Rookie sensation Wander Franco broke the 1-1 stalemate and brought in two of those runners on a hard-hit single to right field that was corralled by Hunter Renfroe, but Renfroe’s throw back to the infield got past Bobby Dalbec, which subsequently allowed both Kiermaier and Mejia to score as opposed to just Kiermaier. Dalbec was charged with a fielding error as the Rays went up on the Sox, 3-1.

Franco’s go-ahead hit also marked the end of the line for Peacock, who got the hook from Red Sox manager Alex Cora while leaving runners at second and third base with one out in the third. The 33-year-old hurler finished with a final pitch count of 48 — 25 of which were strikes.

In relief of Peacock, left-hander Stephen Gonsalves, just selected from Triple-A Worcester, officially closed the book on Peackock’s night by allowing both runners he inherited to score on a wild pitch and Austin Meadows RBI single.

Gonsalves then plunked Arozarena to put runners at first and second, and Yandy Diaz took full advantage of that by blooping a softly-hit, 73.7 mph two-run double in between Yairo Munoz and Renfroe in right field.

Kiermaier proceeded to strike out on a foul tip to end the inning, but the damage had already been down since the Red Sox suddenly found themselves in a 7-1 hole.

To his credit, Gonsalves — in what was his first major-league outing in nearly three years — tossed two additional scoreless frames to keep the deficit at six runs through the end of the fifth.

Kyle Schwarber trimmed that deficit to five runs at 7-2 by crushing his 28th homer of the season off Yarbrough to lead off the top of the sixth, but Tampa Bay responded by getting that (unearned) run back off Phillips Valdez on an HBP, Dalbec fielding error, and sacrifice fly in the bottom half of the frame.

Valdez managed to keep the Rays off the scoreboard in the seventh and eighth innings, while Rafael Devers pushed across another run as he collected his 97th RBI of the year in the top half of the eighth.

Devers’ run-scoring single made it an 8-3 game in the eighth. In the ninth, after Schwarber and Martinez made things interesting with a pair of run-scoring singles, it came down to Devers.

Matched up against Rays closer Andrew Kittredge, Devers came up to the plate representing the tying run with two outs and runners at first and second. He fanned on four pitches to cut the rally short as 8-5 would go on to be Tuesday’s final score.

With the loss, the Red Sox fall to 75-59 on the season while dropping 10 full games back of the Rays for first place in the American League East. Boston began the month of August trailing Tampa Bay by just 1/2 a game for the top spot in the division.

Tuesday’s defeat also wraps up a disappointing August in which the Sox went 12-16, marking the first time this season they finished a month with a losing record.

Next up: Sale vs. Rasmussen to begin September

The Red Sox will turn to ace left-hander Chris Sale on Wednesday night as they look to put an end to this three-game skid and start the month of September on a positive note. Rosters on Wednesday will expand from 26 players to 28 players for the remainder of the season.

Wednesday will mark Sale’s fourth start of the season since returning from Tommy John surgery on August 14. It also represents his toughest test thus far considering the opponent he will be going up against.

The Rays, meanwhile, will send right-hander Drew Rasmussen to the hill as they go for yet another series victory over their division rivals.

First pitch Wednesday is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of Alex Cora: Julio Aguilar/Getty Images)

Red Sox star Xander Bogaerts tests positive for COVID-19

Red Sox shortstop Xander Bogaerts has tested positive for COVID-19, the club announced during Tuesday night’s game against the Rays at Tropicana Field.

Bogaerts, who started Tuesday’s contest at shortstop while batting cleanup, was initially removed in the middle of the second inning after ripping an RBI single that gave the Sox an early 1-0 lead in the top half of the first.

As he went out to go to his defensive position for the bottom half of the second, however, Bogaerts was pulled, as he was waved back into the Red Sox dugout by manager Alex Cora.

The 28-year-old All-Star was replaced at shortstop by starting second baseman Jonathan Arauz, while Yairo Munoz — who was on the bench to start things out on Tuesday — took over for Arauz at second base.

By testing positive for COVID-19, Bogaerts joins the likes of Enrique Hernandez, Christian Arroyo, Matt Barnes, Martin Perez and Hirokazu Sawamura as Red Sox players who have come down with the virus since Friday.

In addition to those six testing positive, quality control coach Ramon Vazquez and strength and conditioning coach have also tested positive for COVID-19, while left-hander Josh Taylor and first base coach Tom Goodwin have been identified as close contacts and are also in a mandatory quarantine.

Because Bogaerts most recently tested positive for COVID-19, he will have to stay away from the Red Sox for a minimum of 10 days.

(Picture of Xander Bogaerts: Justin K. Aller/Getty Images)

Red Sox activate Hunter Renfroe, select Brad Peacock and Stephen Gonsalves; Josh Taylor and Hirokazu Sawamura placed on COVID-19 related injured list

Before taking on the Rays at Tropicana Field on Tuesday night, the Red Sox made yet another flurry of roster moves as they continue to battle against a COVID-19 outbreak.

First off, relievers Josh Taylor and Hirokazu Sawamura were placed on the COVID-19 related injured lists, while right-hander Raynel Espinal was returned to Triple-A Worcester.

Secondly, right-hander Brad Peacock and left-hander Stephen Gonsalves were both selected to the major-league roster, while outfielder Hunter Renfroe was activated from the bereavement/family medical emergency list.

The Red Sox announced all of these moves earlier Tuesday evening.

Taylor and Sawamura become the fifth and sixth Sox players to be placed on the COVID-19 related injured list since last Friday, as they join the likes of Enrique Hernandez, Christian Arroyo, Matt Barnes, and Martin Perez.

Hernandez tested positive for the virus on Friday, while Arroyo — who was initially identified as a close contact of Hernandez’s — tested positive for the virus on Sunday. Both Hernandez and Arroyo, as well as strength and conditioning coach Kiyoshi Momose, who tested positive on Sunday, remain quarantined in Cleveland.

Barnes and Perez, meanwhile, both tested positive for COVID-19 in St. Petersburg on Monday, as did quality control coach Ramon Vazquez.

Because of those two being placed on the COVID-related IL, Taylor — as well as first base coach Tom Goodwin — was identified as a close contact and has been placed into a mandatory quarantine at the team hotel. Sawamura, on the other hand, tested positive for the virus on Tuesday.

Per MassLive.com’s Christopher Smith, “Sawamura, Barnes, Pérez, Vázquez, Goodwin and Taylor will be forced to stay in St. Petersburg until they are cleared.”

Espinal, who was selected to Boston’s 40-man roster in the wake of Barnes and Perez going on the COVID IL, was returned to Worcester after making his major-league debut in Monday’s 6-1 loss to Tampa Bay.

The 29-year-old right-hander allowed two earned runs on two hits and a walk over two innings of relief on Monday night. He will remain with the Red Sox as part of their taxi squad.

Turning to the additions the Sox made to their big-league roster now, Renfroe was activated from the bereavement list after leaving the team on Thursday following the death of his father.

Renfroe, also 29, was able to clear the necessary COVID-19 protocols and is starting in right field and batting leadoff in Tuesday’s contest against the Rays.

Peacock, just acquired from the Indians for cash considerations on Monday, will make his first career start for the Red Sox on Tuesday. The 33-year-old righty had posted a 7.68 ERA across 11 appearances (10 starts) and 34 innings pitched at Triple-A Columbus this season, but had been pitching better in the month of August.

Finally, we arrive at Gonsalves, who — like Espinal on Monday — was added to the Sox’ 40-man roster for the first time this year on Tuesday.

Originally claimed off waivers from the Mets last July, Gonsalves was once regarded as one of the top pitching prospects in baseball during his time with the Twins organization.

Through 17 appearances (10 starts) with the WooSox this season, the 27-year-old left-hander has put up a 4.97 ERA and 4.96 xFIP to go along with 92 strikeouts to 50 walks over 67 total innings of work.

Gonsalves will wear the No. 78 with Boston, while Peacock will wear the No. 44.

Following Tuesday’s series of transactions, the Red Sox’ 40-man roster now sits at 37 players.

(Picture of Hunter Renfroe: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Brad Peacock to make first start for Red Sox against Rays Tuesday night

Just one day after being acquired from the Indians in exchange for cash considerations, Brad Peacock will make his first career start for the Red Sox on Tuesday night.

Peacock, who Boston acquired from Cleveland on Monday afternoon, made the trek to St. Petersburg and presumably cleared the necessary COVID-19 protocols in order to start Tuesday’s contest against the Rays at Tropicana Field.

Prior to being traded on Monday, the veteran right-hander originally signed a minor-league contract with the Indians in late June and was subsequently assigned to the club’s Triple-A affiliate in Columbus.

In 11 appearances (10 starts) for the Clippers, Peacock posted a 7.68 ERA and 5.16 xFIP to go along with 38 strikeouts to 14 walks over 34 total innings of work dating back to June 30.

August has, however, proven to be a better month for Peacock as a whole, as the 33-year-old hurler put up a much more respectable 4.22 ERA and 4.27 FIP in five starts this month. That includes an outing this past Friday in which he allowed three runs on five hits, two walks, and seven strikeouts over 5 1/3 innings of work against Triple-A Memphis.

Given the fact that he will be working on just three days rest, it’s likely Peacock will not have the longest of leashes in what will be his first major-league appearance since last September on Tuesday night.

Originally selected by the Nationals in the 41st round of the 2006 amateur draft, the Florida native has spent the bulk of his big-league career with the Astros, where he played a key role as a member of their World Series-winning team in 2017 as both a starter and reliever.

After primarily serving as a reliever in 2018 and again as a hybrid-type in 2019, Peacock was limited to just three appearances in 2020 on account of right shoulder soreness that ultimately required arthroscopic surgery last October.

That soreness kept Peacock sidelined through April, but the righty now appears ready to contribute at the big-league level once more. Per Baseball Savant, the -foot-1 and 207 pounder operates with a five-pitch mix that consists of a sinker, slider, changeup, curveball, and four-seam fastball.

In 83 career major-league starts, Peacock owns a lifetime 4.04 ERA and .727 OPS against over 432 total innings pitched. Tuesday will mark his first-ever start at Tropicana Field.

The Red Sox should be able to add Peacock to their 40-man roster without clearing a space for him given all the COVID-19 difficulties the club is currently going through.

(Picture of Brad Peacock: Tim Warner/Getty Images)