Tag: Baseball

Trevor Story booed by Red Sox fans after striking out four times against Shohei Ohtani

Baseball can be a humbling sport. One night, you can drive in three runs on two doubles to make it feel as though you are about to come out of a slump. And then, less than 24 hours later, you can strike out four times in the same game and get booed by your home fans.

That is what Red Sox second baseman Trevor Story experienced in Thursday’s 8-0 loss to the Angels at Fenway Park. After going 2-for-4 with a pair of doubles and three RBIs on Wednesday night, Story told reporters (including MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo) that he thought he was getting his timing back.

“I think it’s very close,” said Story. “It’s hard to say 100% because if it feels 100% for everyone, you’d never get out. But I’m feeling good about myself in the box.”

To follow up one of his best offensive performances of the season to date, Story went 0-for-4 with four strikeouts and two runners left on base against Shohei Ohtani and the Angels on Thursday afternoon. His third punchout, which came on an 88 mph slider in the fifth inning, produced some light boos from the Fenway faithful. The fourth one, which came on a 98 mph four-seamer in the seventh, prompted more pronounced jeers from the 29,476 or so spectators on hand.

All told, Story swung-and-missed nine times en route to picking up his first Golden Sombrero as a member of the Red Sox. Following Thursday’s outing, the 29-year-old now finds himself batting a modest .210/.293/.296 with no home runs and nine RBIs through his first 21 games (92 plate appearances) of the 2022 season.

Given the expectations that come with signing a six-year, $140 million contract in free agency, Story has clearly fallen short of them to this point. That the right-handed hitter has yet to hit a home run after establishing himself as one of the top power-hitting infielders in his time with the Rockies is quite indicative of his current struggles.

Of course, Story’s free agency was rather unique due to the nature of the MLB lockout and the shortened spring training that followed. Shortly after signing his deal with the Sox in late March, Story left the team for a few days to be with his wife for the birth of their first child. He only got into five Grapefruit League games before the start of the regular season, then missed three straight games in April due to food poisoning. On top of that, he switched agencies after signing with Boston and has been adjusting to his new role as both a second baseman and leadoff hitter.

Taking all that into consideration, there is valid reasoning behind Story’s early-season difficulties. But, as he told Cotillo himself, the two-time All-Star is not one to make excuses.

“It was kind of a hectic situation that we were going through but that’s life,” Story said. “No one’s going to feel sorry for you or feel bad for you. We’re here playing ball and we’re here to win games.”

As he learned on Thursday, Red Sox fans are not feeling sorry for Story and are instead growing impatient with him as well as the lack of production from the lineup as a whole. It also does not help that the team they are supporting has lost seven of its last 10 games to drop to 10-16 on the season.

Still, given his track record, it would be unwise to judge Story’s six-year deal based on the first month of it alone. On Thursday, Sox manager Alex Cora said that Story’s work ethic “has not changed. J.D. Martinez added that he likes to “measure guys at the end of the year, not after a month” while Rich Hill described Story as “a great teammate” who is “putting in the work and the time.”

In the wake of Thursday’s defeat to the Angels, which marked the Sox’ fifth consecutive series loss, Story, Martinez, Alex Verdugo, and hitting coach Pete Fatse headed straight for the batting cage. According to The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier, Story remained there, honing his craft, well after the clubhouse closed to the media.

It remains to be seen if the extra work Story is putting in will pay dividends for he or the Red Sox. One thing is for certain, though: Story needs to perform at a high — or atleast near-to-high — level and he needs to start doing so soon.

(Picture of Trevor Story: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox held in check by Shohei Ohtani in 8-0 shutout loss to Angels

The Red Sox lost their series against the Angels at Fenway Park on Thursday afternoon. Boston fell to Los Angeles by a final score of 8-0 in Thursday’s series finale, thus dropping to 10-16 on the season.

Rich Hill, making his fifth start of the year for the Sox, allowed just one hit and one walk to go along with six strikeouts over a season-high five scoreless innings of work. The veteran left-hander took a perfect game into the fourth before issuing a leadoff walk to Taylor Ward. He then lost his bid for a no-hitter when Shohei Ohtani lifted a one-out single 389 feet single to deep center field that Jackie Bradley Jr. lost in the sun.

With runners on the corners, Hill did not falter and instead fanned Anthony Rendon on five pitches before getting Jared Walsh to pop out to Kevin Plawecki behind home plate. He ended his day by retiring the final three batters he faced in the fifth.

Finishing with a final pitch count of 68 (40 strikes) Hill induced three swings-and-misses each with his four-seam fastball, curveball, and slider while the velocity of his pitches ranged from 66.9 to 89.8 mph. The 42-year-old did not factor into Thursday’s decision, though he did lower his ERA on the season to 2.86.

In relief of Hill, Red Sox manager Alex Cora first used Tanner Houck to piggyback off the starter. Houck, in turn, struck out the side in the sixth before running into some trouble in the seventh. After walking Rendon with one out, the right-hander served up a go-ahead two-run home run to Walsh that traveled 344 feet down the right field line and hooked inside the Pesky Pole. It also put Boston in a 2-0 hole going into the seventh-inning stretch.

To that point in the contest, an Enrique Hernandez-less Boston lineup had been held in check by Ohtani, who was making his first career start as a pitcher at Fenway Park on Thursday. The Sox certainly had their chances, though. In the bottom of the third, Rafael Devers and Xander Bogaerts hit back-to-back two-out singles but were stranded there by J.D. Martinez, who struck out swinging.

Two innings later, Jackie Bradley Jr. led off with a hard-hit double off Ohtani to put a runner in scoring position with no outs. He, too, was left stranded there, as was Martinez in the sixth after he reached base via a one-out double and advanced to third base on an Alex Verdugo groundout.

Ohtani capped off his strong outing by giving up another hit to Bradley Jr. with one out in the seventh, but once again left him on base by getting Plawecki to fly out before punching out Trevor Story for a fourth time.

Houck, meanwhile, came back out for the eighth and allowed the first three Angels he faced to reach on a single, hit by pitch, and single off the Green Monster. With the bases loaded and the infield in, David Fletcher ripped an RBI single to left field to plate a run and keep the line moving. Ohtani did the very same by smoking a 103.7 mph run-scoring single off the left field wall himself. Rendon knocked Houck out of the game with an RBI groundout that gave the Angels a commanding 5-0 lead.

Kutter Crawford, making his first appearance since Sunday, took over for Houck and allowed both of the runners he inherited to score on a two-run single from Walsh before getting out of the inning. The Red Sox went down in order in their half of the eighth before Crawford gave up a solo homer to Brandon Marsh in the ninth.

Down to their final three outs and trailing by a whopping eight runs, Verdugo, Franchy Cordero, and Bobby Dalbec were all retired by Max Meyers to put the finishing touches on an 8-0 shutout loss for Boston. Sox hitters went 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position and left seven runners on base as a team.

Next up: Welcoming in the White Sox

The Red Sox will kick off the final leg of this six-game homestand by welcoming in the White Sox for a three-game series that begins on Friday night. Boston will roll with right-hander Nathan Eovaldi in the opener while Chicago will turn to fellow righty Vince Velasquez.

First pitch from Fenway Park is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. eastern time on Apple TV+.

(Picture of Shohei Ohtani: Winslow Townson/Getty Images)

Red Sox blow late lead, fall to Angels, 10-5, in 10 innings as bullpen melts down

The Red Sox were one out away from securing a series win over the Angels at Fenway Park on Wednesday night. They instead suffered one of their worst losses of the season to date. Boston fell to Los Angeles by a final score of 10-5 in 10 innings to drop to 10-15 on the year.

Matched up against Angels rookie starter Reid Detmers to begin things on Wednesday, the Sox got on the board first in their half of the third inning. Bobby Dalbec and Christian Arroyo led off by drawing back-to-back walks and, as the lineup turned over, Trevor Story drove both of them in on a two-run double down the left field line.

On the other side of things, Garrett Whitlock was once again impressive in his third start and sixth overall appearance of the season for the Sox. The right-hander allowed just two earned runs on two hits and no walks to go along with nine strikeouts over five solid innings of work.

Both runs Whitlock surrendered came in the top half of the fifth. After giving up a one-out double to Jared Walsh, which broke up the bid for a perfect game, and fanning the next batter he faced, the righty served up a game-tying, two-run home run to Max Stassi before recording the final out of the inning.

Finishing with a final pitch count of 78 (50 strikes), Whitlock turned to his sinker 50% of the time he was on the mound Wednesday and induced 11 swings-and-misses with the pitch. The 25-year-old hurler also saw his ERA on the season rise to 1.25.

Shortly after Whitlock’s night came to a close, the Red Sox quickly responded in their half of the fifth. Arroyo took first base after getting plunked by a Detmers curveball and scored all the way from first when Story lifted another RBI double off the Green Monster to put his side up by a run at 3-2.

In relief of Whitlock, Austin Davis got the first call out of the Boston bullpen from manager Alex Cora beginning in the top of the sixth. The left-hander punched out each of the first three batters he faced in relatively easy fashion, but surrendered a booming solo shot to Anthony Rendon in the seventh that knotted things back up at three runs apiece.

After Matt Strahm retired the side in order on three groundouts in the eighth, Xander Bogaerts came through with what appeared to be the hit of the night a half-inning later. With veteran reliever Aaron Loup pitching for Los Angeles, Bogaerts crushed a 397-foot home run of his own that cleared the Green Monster. Bogaerts’ second big fly of 2022 left the shortstop’s bat at a scalding 109.3 mph and put the Red Sox ahead 4-3 heading into the ninth.

Needing just three more outs, Hansel Robles was sent in to go for the save. Robles got the first two outs of the inning, but did so while walking the Halos’ boppers in Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani. Cora then went to Jake Diekman to face the left-handed hitting Walsh.

Walsh, in turn, delivered in the clutch for his side by scoring Trout on an RBI single past a diving Story into right field. Diekman proceeded to walk Kurt Suzuki, which put the potential go-ahead run (Ohtani) just 90 feet away from scoring. He escaped any further damage by getting Stassi to fly out to deep center field.

With the chance to walk if off against Angels reliever Ryan Tepera, Christian Vazquez reached base by drawing a one-out walk but was then thrown out at second as part of an inning-ending strike ’em out, throw ’em out double play that occured on a questionable strike three call with Dalbec at the plate.

Regardless, with this contest now headed into extra innings, it was Matt Barnes who was dispatched for the top of the 10th. Barnes, making his first appearance since Saturday, got the first two outs on eight pitches, but — with the automatic runner already at second — then yielded a back-breaking, two-run home run to Walsh that gave the Angels a 6-4 lead.

The Angels only added on from there, as Barnes allowed two more runners to reach base before getting the hook in favor of Hirokazu Sawamura, who gave up a run-scoring single to Rendon as well as three-run homer to Taylor Ward.

That sequence gave Los Angeles a commanding 10-4 advantage. Boston countered with one run of their own on a Jackie Bradley Jr. single in the bottom of the inning, but it was too little, too late as 10-5 would go on to be Wednesday’s final score.

Some notes from this loss:

The Red Sox went 2-for-10 with runners in scoring position and left six runners on base as a team on Wednesday. They are now 0-3 in games started by Garrett Whitlock and 0-5 in extra-inning games this season. They have also blown a league-leading four saves in the ninth inning of games or later.

Six Red Sox relievers (Davis, Strahm, Robles, Diekman, Barnes, and Sawamura) combined to allow eight runs (seven earned) on six hits (three home runs), four walks, and four strikeouts over five innings pitched.

Next up: Ohtani vs. Hill in finale

The Red Sox will send veteran left-hander Rich Hill to the mound as they still have a chance to salvage a series victory on Thursday afternoon. The Angels will counter with right-hander Shohei Ohtani, who will be making his first-ever start as a pitcher at Fenway Park. First pitch is scheduled for 1:35 p.m. eastern time on NESN and MLB Network.

(Picture of Taylor Ward: Adam Glanzman/Getty Images)

Red Sox’ Brandon Walter takes home Eastern League Pitcher of the Month honors after stellar April

Red Sox pitching prospect Brandon Walter has unsurprisingly been named the Eastern League’s Pitcher of the Month for the month of April.

In four starts for Double-A Portland, Walter posted a miniscule 1.17 ERA and 1.20 FIP to go along with 29 strikeouts to zero walks over 23 innings of work. The left-hander did not walk any of the 85 batters he faced last month, though he did plunk two of them.

Among qualified Eastern League pitchers, Walter ranks second in ERA, ninth in strikeouts, 11th in strikeouts per nine innings (11.35), first in walks per nine innings and walk rate, seventh in strikeout rate (34.1%), sixth in batting average against (.169), first in WHIP (0.61), first in FIP, third in xFIP (2.45), and eighth in swinging strike rate (16.6%), per FanGraphs.

Walter, 25, was originally selected by the Red Sox in the 26th round of the 2019 amateur draft out of the University of Delaware. The New Castle native burst onto the scene in 2021 after producing a 2.92 ERA in 25 appearances (14 starts) and 89 1/3 innings between Low-A Salem and High-A Greenville.

Coming into the 2022 campaign ranked by Baseball America as the No. 11 prospect in Boston’s farm system, Walter was looking forward to the challenges that the jump from High-A to Double-A Portland would present.

“Obviously, Double-A is a big jump up from High-A. It’s one of the biggest jumps you’re going to make in professional baseball,” he told The Portland Press Herald’s Travis Lazarczyk last month. “The hitters are just smarter. They’re older. They’re not going to chase as much stuff outside the zone as younger guys in the lower levels. They’ll do more damage when you make mistakes in the middle. Everybody says Double-A is the separator. I’m kind of excited to see how I match up, how I’m going to attack these hitters.”

Given the results thus far, Walter has clearly held his own and then some with the Sea Dogs to this point in the year. The 6-foot-2, 200 pound southpaw has been able to dominate opposing hitters thanks in part to his three-quarter delivery and three-pitch arsenal that is made up of a 92-94 mph sinking fastball that reaches 95 mph, an 82-85 mph changeup, and an 80-83 mph slider.

Walter, who turns 26 in September, was in line to make his fifth start of the season and first start of May for the Sea Dogs against the Reading Fightin Phils at Hadlock Field on Wednesday night. That game his since been postponed due to inclement weather, however, and will be made up as part of a single-admission, seven-inning doubleheader on Thursday.

For what it is worth, Walter can become eligible for the Rule 5 Draft for the first time in his career this winter. With that, it certainly seems as though the lefty is pitching his way onto the Red Sox’ 40-man roster.

(Picture of Brandon Walter: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Red Sox first base prospect Niko Kavadas boasting top walk rate (27.5%) and fourth-best on-base percentage (.475) in Carolina League

You could say that Red Sox first base prospect Niko Kavadas is in the midst of a slump. Over his last six games with Low-A Salem dating back to April 27, Kavadas is batting just .133 (2-for-15) with one extra-base hit.

While a .133 batting average is certainly not an eye-opener, Kavadas has still managed to get on base as of late despite the lack of hits. In his last 24 trips to the plate, the left-handed hitter has drawn nine walks, which translates to a 37.5% walk rate as well as a .458 on-base percentage.

Through the first month of the 2022 minor-league season, which is also his first full professional season, Kavadas is slashing .263/.475/.474 with six doubles, two home runs, six RBIs, 10 runs scored, one stolen base, 22 walks, and 25 strikeouts over 18 games spanning 80 plate appearances with Salem.

Among qualified Carolina League hitters, the 23-year-old currently ranks second in walks, first in walk rate (27.5%), 29th in batting average, fourth in on-base percentage, 17th in slugging percentage, ninth in OPS (.949), 10th in isolated power (.211), and seventh in wRC+ (174), per FanGraphs.

Defensively, Kavadas has unsurprisingly seen all of his playing time on the field this year come at first base. The 6-foot-1, 235 pounder has logged 111 innings at the position thus far and has registered four assists while turning seven double plays.

The Red Sox originally selected Kavadas in the 11th round of last summer’s amateur draft out of the University of Notre Dame. The Indiana native officially signed with the club for $250,000 on the first day of August. Around that same time, Kavadas was identified by Baseball America as an underrated draft selection on account of his power and ability to draw walks.

While he has only hit four home runs in 33 professional games, Kavadas has already shown that he can be productive in other ways via ball four. Since being promoted from the Florida Complex League to Salem on August 25 of last year, Kavadas has drawn 30 walks while only striking out 32 times.

Kavadas, who does not turn 24 until late October, is currently regarded by FanGraphs as the No. 28 prospect and by SoxProspects.com as the No. 48 prospect in Boston’s farm system.

Under the assumption that he can break out of his quote-unquote slump and continue to get on base at a high rate, it seems likely that Kavadas could make his way to High-A Greenville before season’s end.

(Picture of Niko Kavadas: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Former Red Sox left-hander Derek Holland signs minor-league deal with Blue Jays

Former Red Sox left-hander Derek Holland has signed a minor-league deal with the Blue Jays, per Holland himself on Twitter.

Holland, 35, originally signed a minors pact with the Sox back in March with the hopes of earning a spot in the bullpen out of spring training. After being informed he would not make Boston’s Opening Day roster, the southpaw elected to accept his assignment to Triple-A Worcester to begin the 2022 season.

In 10 appearances with the WooSox, Holland posted a 6.35 ERA and 4.22 FIP with 13 strikeouts to seven walks over 11 1/3 innings of work. Interestingly enough, his last two outings came against the Buffalo Bisons (the Triple-A affiliate of the Blue Jays) at Polar Park.

At present, the Red Sox already have three lefties in Austin Davis, Jake Diekman, and Matt Strahm in their major-league bullpen and have one more rehabbing from injury in Josh Taylor. With that, the club must not have felt a pressing need to call up Holland.

As an article XX(B) free agent, Holland had multiple opt-outs in his contract with the Red Sox and exercised one of them this past Sunday, thus allowing him to hit the open market once more.

A veteran of 13 big-league seasons between the Rangers (2009-2016), White Sox (2017), Giants (2018-2019), Cubs (2019), Pirates (2020), and Tigers (2021), Holland will now look to latch on with the Blue Jays in 2022. With Detroit last year,  he pitched to the tune of a 5.07 ERA and 3.96 FIP over 39 appearances (one start) spanning 49 2/3 innings.

(Picture of Derek Holland: Duane Burleson/Getty Images)

Red Sox’ Brayan Bello enters Baseball America’s top 100 prospects rankings

Red Sox pitching prospect Brayan Bello has entered Baseball America’s latest top 100 prospect rankings. The right-hander now comes in as the 97th-ranked prospect in all of baseball, joining the likes of fellow Red Sox minor-leaguers Marcelo Mayer (No. 14), Triston Casas (No. 18), Nick Yorke (No. 33), and Jarren Duran (No. 84).

Previously, Bello was identified by Baseball America as a prospect who fell just outside the publication’s top 100 list. That came back in January, when Bello was a few months removed from a 2021 season in which he was named the Sox’ Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Year and was subsequently added to Boston’s 40-man roster in November.

Bello, who turns 23 later this month, returned to Double-A Portland for the start of the 2022 campaign and has thus far posted a 2.61 ERA and 2.34 xFIP with 32 strikeouts to eight walks over four starts spanning 20 2/3 innings of work.

Among qualified Eastern League pitchers this season, the 22-year-old ranks third in strikeouts per nine innings (13.94), fourth in strikeout rate (38.6%), ninth in batting average against (.173), 11th in WHIP (1.02), 12th in ERA, second in xFIP, and first in swinging strike rate (23.6%), per FanGraphs.

Since earning a promotion from High-A Greenville to Portland last June, Bello has pitched to the tune of a 4.16 ERA and 3.19 FIP to go along with 119 strikeouts and 32 walks across 19 starts (84 1/3 innings pitched) with the Sea Dogs.

Originally signed by the Red Sox for just $28,000 as an international free agent coming out of the Dominican Republic in July 2017, Bello is currently regarded by Baseball America as the No. 5 prospect in Boston’s farm system, which ranks first among pitchers in the organization.

Listed at 6-foot-1 and 185 pounds, Bello operates with a three-pitch mix that consists of a high-90s fastball that tops out at 99-100 mph, an 85-89 mph changeup, and an 84-88 mph slider.

Considering the amount of success he is enjoying and the amount of attention he is receiving while pitching at the Double-A level, it seems likely that Bello could be on his way to Triple-A Worcester at some point before the 2022 season ends.

(Picture of Brayan Bello: Matthew Stockman/Getty Images)

Rafael Devers and J.D. Martinez both homer, Michael Wacha tosses 5 2/3 scoreless innings as Red Sox open homestand with 4-0 victory over Angels

Coming off a brutal 3-7 road trip and an off day on Monday, the Red Sox opened their first homestand of May with a much-needed win over the Angels at Fenway Park. Boston defeated Los Angeles by a final score of 2-0 on Tuesday to improve to 10-14 on the season.

Michael Wacha, making his fifth start of the year for the Sox, impressed by scattering just three hits and two walks to go along with two strikeouts over 5 2/3 innings of work. The veteran right-hander took a perfect game into the third before issuing a pair of two-out walks to Andrew Velazquez and Taylor Ward. He got out of that jam by fanning the dangerous Mike Trout on six pitches.

In the fourth, a leadoff single off the bat of Shohei Ohtani broke up Wacha’s no-hit bid, but the righty did not falter as he got Anthony Rendon to ground into a 5-4-3 double play and Jared Walsh to pop out to Rafael Devers in foul territory.

Moments after making the inning-ending catch, Devers led off the bottom of the fourth by taking Angels starter Noah Syndergaard 437 feet deep to dead center field for his fourth home run of the season. The solo blast left Devers’ bat at a blistering 110.7 mph and gave the Red Sox their first lead of the night at 1-0.

Xander Bogaerts followed by drawing a seven-pitch walk off Syndergaard, advancing to second base on a J.D. Martinez single, and to third on an Alex Verdugo groundout. He then scored on another groundout from Enrique Hernandez that doubled Boston’s advantage.

Given a two-run lead to work with now, Wacha picked up where he left off by inducing another double play in the fifth and recording the first two outs of the sixth. He gave up a two-out single to Trout, who advanced to second on a Devers throwing error and proved to be the last batter Wacha would face.

Finishing with a final pitch count of 60 (42 strikes), the 30-year-old hurler threw 21 four-seam fastballs, 15 changeups, nine cutters, eight sinkers, and seven curveballs. He also lowered his ERA on the season down to 1.38 while improving to 3-0 on the year.

In relief of Wacha, Jake Diekman got the first call out of the Boston bullpen from manager Alex Cora to face Ohtani, who he got to line out to Verdugo in left to retire the side. The lefty came back out for the seventh and maneuvered his way around a leadoff walk in an otherwise clean frame.

A half-inning later, Story nearly hit his first home run as a member of the Red Sox, but instead settled for a sacrifice fly off Syndergaard that brought in Franchy Cordero to make it a 3-0 game in favor of the Sox.

After Ryan Brasier struck out two of the three batters he faced in a perfect top of the eighth, Martinez mashed his second home run in as many games as he took Halos reliever Elvis Peguro 402 feet over the Green Monster for his third big fly of the season.

Martinez’s 107 mph laser put Boston up 4-0 heading into the ninth. There, Hirokazu Sawamura — with some defensive help from Bogaerts and Bobby Dalbec — slammed the door on Los Angeles to secure the shutout victory.

Next up: Detmers vs. Whitlock

As planned, right-hander Garrett Whitlock will make his third start of the year for the Red Sox as they go for a series win over the Angels on Wednesday night. The Angels will counter with rookie left-hander Reid Detmers.

First pitch from Fenway Park — weather permitting — is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. eastern time on NESN and MLB Network.

(Picture of J.D. Martinez and Rafael Devers: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Dominic LoBrutto becomes latest Red Sox pitching prospect to undergo Tommy John surgery

Dominic LoBrutto has become the latest Red Sox pitching prospect to undergo Tommy John surgery. Per his Twitter account, the procedure was recently performed by Dr. James Andrews at the Andrews Institute in Pensacola, Fla.

A native of Florida himself, LoBrutto was originally selected by the Red Sox in the 18th round of the 2017 amateur draft out of Florida International University. The left-hander signed with Boston for $100,000 and made his professional debut for the Lowell Spinners that summer.

Fast forward to the 2021 season, and LoBrutto spent the entirety of the year with Double-A Portland. In 33 relief appearances for the Sea Dogs, the 25-year-old posted a 5.35 ERA — but much more respectable 3.88 FIP — with 38 strikeouts to 14 walks over 38 2/3 innings of work.

Listed at 6-foot-1 and 185 pounds, LoBrutto operates with a three-pitch mix that consists of an 88-90 mph fastball that tops out at 91 mph, an 86-88 mph cutter, and a 79-82 mph slider, per his SoxProspects.com scouting report. He was slated to return to Portland for the start of the 2022 campaign, but was instead placed on the 7-day injured list on April 8 and transferred to the 60-day injured list on April 26.

LoBrutto, who turns 26 later this month, will now be sidelined for the next 12-15 months before returning to the mound at some point in 2023. He becomes the latest Red Sox pitching prospect to undergo Tommy John this year, joining the likes of Bradley Blalock and fellow lefty Jeremy Wu-Yelland.

(Picture of Dominic LoBrutto: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Red Sox’ Josh Taylor suffers setback while rehabbing from back strain

Red Sox reliever Josh Taylor suffered a setback while rehabbing his back injury and has been temporarily shut down from throwing, manager Alex Cora announced before Tuesday’s game against the Angels at Fenway Park.

Taylor, who had been out on a rehab assignment with Triple-A Worcester, is back with the Red Sox to receive treatment and undergo tests in Boston.

When speaking with reporters (including MassLive.com’s Cotillo) on Tuesday, Cora revealed that Taylor’s back locked up on him recently, leaving the team with no choice but to return him from his rehab assignment.

“He had a setback a few days ago,” Cora said. “Feels better today, but of course, we had to take him off his rehab assignment. We’re going through testing and all that stuff. We’ll know more during the week.”

Taylor began the season on the 10-day injured list due to a low back strain that first began bothering him last September and was first sent out on a rehab assignment with Worcester on April 17. The left-hander got the start for the WooSox against the Lehigh Valley IronPigs at Polar Park that afternoon and allowed one run (on a solo home run) in his lone inning of work. He was then shut down for the next six days after being identified as a close contact to someone who had tested positive for COVID-19.

On April 24, Taylor returned to the mound — this time for Double-A Portland — and once again served as an opener. The 29-year-old surrendered two runs on three hits and one strikeout while recording the first two outs of the Sea Dogs’ 13-5 win over the Binghamton Rumble Ponies at Hadlock Field. Three days later, he was back in action for the WooSox and tossed a scoreless fifth inning in the second game of a doubleheader against the Buffalo Bisons.

Since then, Taylor has not appeared in a game and is not close to doing so anytime soon. As noted by Cotillo, Cora previously said the hope was for Taylor to make five or six rehab outings before being activated, so the southpaw will presumably need to start from scratch once he is cleared to resume throwing.

“Let’s see how it goes in the upcoming days and how it goes with testing and all that stuff,” said Cora. “Then we’ll decide what we do with him.”

(Picture of Josh Taylor: Winslow Townson/Getty Images)