Tag: james paxton

Costly errors come back to bite Red Sox in rain-soaked 4-3 loss to Rockies

The Red Sox opened a three-game series against the Rockies in disappointing fashion on Monday night. Boston fell to Colorado by a final score of 4-3 in a rain-filled 10 innings at Fenway Park to drop below .500 on the season at 33-34.

With old friend Connor Seabold starting for the Rockies, the Red Sox had a golden opportunity to strike first in the first inning. Jarren Duran, Alex Verdugo, and Justin Turner led off the bottom half of the frame with three consecutive singles to fill the bases with no outs.

Though it already appeared as if they had Seabold on the ropes, the Red Sox got nothing out of it. Rafael Devers grounded into a 1-2-3 double play chasing a first-pitch changeup and tapping a comebacker back to Seabold, who then fanned Adam Duvall on five pitches to escape the jam unscathed.

Seabold continued to put up zeroes from there, as did his counterpart in James Paxton. Making his sixth start of the season for the Sox, Paxton allowed just one unearned run on four hits and one walk to go along with eight strikeouts over six-plus strong innings of work.

After giving up a leadoff double to the very first batter he faced in Jurickson Profar, Paxton settled into a nice groove. The veteran left-hander stranded Profar at third base and then retired seven straight Rockies before yielding a one-out double to Ryan McMahon in the top of the fourth.

With two outs in the inning, it seemed like Paxton was going to strand another runner in scoring position when he got Randal Grichuk to hit a routine grounder to shortstop Enrique Hernandez. Hernandez, however, bounced his throw to first and the ball got past Triston Casas, which allowed McMahon to score all the way from second to put the Rockies up, 1-0.

For Hernandez, it was his major-league-leading 14th error of the season, with 12 of those coming on throws. Paxton proved to be unaffected by the sloppy play, however, as that was the only run he surrendered in yet another impressive performance.

Finishing with 98 pitches (70 strikes), Paxton induced 16 swings-and-misses while mixing in a 94-98 mph four-seam fastball as well as a curveball, cutter, and changeup. The 34-year-old southpaw did not factor into Monday’s decision, though he did lower his ERA on the season to 3.09.

With Paxton’s night done, the Boston bats finally got to Seabold in the latter half of the sixth. After drawing a one-out walk, Verdugo came in to score all the way from first on a hard-hit, RBI double off the bat of Turner to knot the score at 1-1. Despite having a runner in scoring position with only one out in the inning, both Devers (strikeout) and Duvall (groundout) were retired to extinguish the threat.

Following a scoreless top of the seventh from Josh Winckowski, Christian Arroyo quickly untied the contest by taking lefty reliever Brent Suter 376 feet over the Green Monster for his second home run of the season. The Red Sox took a 2-1 lead on Arroyo’s solo shot, but the Rockies responded in the eighth by tagging Winckowski for a crucial run when Profar ripped a one-out double and — after a two-out walk — scored from second on a game-tying single from Elias Diaz.

The two sides were deadlocked at 2-2 going into the bottom of the eighth. Turner drew a two-out walk off Pierce Johnson to put the go-ahead run on base for Devers, who promptly laced a 105.8 mph line drive that appeared to be headed towards the Red Sox bullpen. But Rockies right fielder Nolan Jones made a sensational leaping catch against the fence to rob Devers of a potential two-run homer.

According to Baseball Savant, Devers’ blast had an expected batting average of .870 and would have been a home run in seven of 30 MLB ballparks, including Fenway Park had Jones not robbed him. Alas, that is what happened and the score remained tied heading into the ninth. Kenley Jansen worked a scoreless top half, and Daniel Bard — making his first-ever appearance at Fenway as a visiting pitcher — followed suit in the bottom half to send this one into extras.

Nick Pivetta came on for the 10th and recorded two quick outs before intentionally walking McMahaon to put runners at first and second. He then unintentionally walked Diaz to fill the bases and issued a five-pitch free pass to Grichuk, allowing the automatic runner (Mike Moustakas) to score.

That sequence of events prompted Red Sox manager Alex Cora to pull Pivetta in favor of lefty Joe Jacques, who was making his big-league debut. Jacques, in turn, induced what had the makings to be an inning-ending groundout to Jones. But Casas could not field the ball cleanly and was late with his throw to first. As a result, Jones reached base safely while McMahon scored an important insurance run on Casas’ fielding error.

At that point, the skies above Fenway began to open and an 89-minute rain delay commenced. On the other side of the lengthy break, the Red Sox got one of those runs back when Connor Wong scored on a Rob Refsnyder groundout. That was as close as they would get, though, as Verdugo grounded into a game-ending, 5-6-3 double play.

Next up: Crawford vs. Anderson

The Red Sox will look to even the series against the Rockies on Tuesday night. Kutter Crawford is slated to get the start for Boston while Colorado will counter with fellow righty Chase Anderson.

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

(Picture of Triston Casas: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Strong start from James Paxton, late rally propels Red Sox to 5-4 win over Guardians

Coming off a rough homestand, the Red Sox kicked off a six-game road trip with a series-opening win over the Guardians on Tuesday night. Behind a strong start from James Paxton and a four-run eighth inning, Boston came back to defeat Cleveland by a final score of 5-4 at Progressive Field to improve to 31-30 on the season.

Paxton, making his fifth start of the year for the Sox, allowed two earned runs on six hits and two walks to go along with nine strikeouts over a season-high seven innings of work. Both of those runs came right away in the bottom of the first.

Following a leadoff single from Steven Kwan, Paxton retired the next two batters he faced in Gabriel Arias and Jose Ramirez. But Josh Naylor extended the inning and opened the scoring for Guardians by ripping an RBI double to right field. Josh Bell doubled his side’s lead with a run-scoring two-base hit of his own to plate Naylor.

At that point, it appeared as though Cleveland had Paxton on the ropes. Despite the early struggles, though, the veteran left-hander settled in nicely and was solid the rest of the way. From the middle of the second through the end of the fifth, for instance, he sat down 12 of 16 to keep the deficit at two.

Trailing 2-0 heading into the top of the sixth inning, the Red Sox finally broke through against Guardians starter Shane Bieber. After leaving a plethora of runners on base through the first five frames, Masataka Yoshida led off the sixth with a hard-hit double. Four batters later, Enrique Hernandez drove in Yoshida with an RBI single to get his side on the board and knock Bieber out of the contest.

Paxton, meanwhile, picked up where he left off in the latter half of the sixth and put up two more zeroes to end his evening on an impressive note. The 34-year-old lefty finished with 106 pitches (71 strikes) and induced 24 swings-and-misses while averaging 95.3 mph with his four-seam fastball. He also earned the winning decision and lowered his ERA on the season to 3.81.

With Paxton’s night done, the Red Sox rallied for four runs in the top of the eighth. Going up against Enyel De Los Santos, Justin Turner led off with a double and Rafael Devers followed by drawing a five-pitch walk. Turner was unable to score on a 399-foot single off the bat of Triston Casas, but it ended up not mattering.

That being the case because with the bases now full, Hernandez drew a bases-loaded walk to tie it up at two runs apiece and Rob Refsnyder kept the line moving with a go-ahead RBI single off new Guardians reliever Nick Sandlin. Pablo Reyes then came through with a run-scoring base hit of his own and Alex Verdugo put Boston up, 5-2, on a sacrifice fly off James Karinchak.

Verdugo’s sacrifice fly would prove to be important, as Chris Martin ran into some trouble after taking over for Paxton out of the Red Sox bullpen in the bottom of the eighth. Martin allowed two of the first four Guardians he faced to reach base before giving up back-to-back run-scoring hits to the pinch-hitting Amed Rosario and Will Brennan.

That sequence trimmed the Sox’ lead down to one run at 5-4, but Martin was able to keep it that way and cleared a path for closer Kenley Jansen by doing so. Jansen, in turn, needed just 13 pitches (9 strikes) to slam the door on the Guardians in the ninth and notch his 13th save of the year.

With the win, Boston improves to 8-2 against American League Central opponents so far this season. On Tuesday, Yoshida led the way offensively by going 3-for-5 with a double and one run scored. Casas (2-for-4), Turner (1-for-5), and Jarren Duran (1-for-2) also doubled.

Next up: Crawford vs. Bibee

The Red Sox will go for a series win over the Guardians on Wednesday night. Kutter Crawford will get the start for Boston opposite fellow right-hander Tanner Bibee, who has posted a 3.23 ERA in seven starts (39 1/3 innings) since making his big-league debut for Cleveland on April 26.

(Picture of James Paxton: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

James Paxton’s 8 strikeouts not enough as Red Sox blow late lead in 5-4 loss to Reds; Masataka Yoshida, Enmanuel Valdez homer

For the second night in a row, the Red Sox fell short of a comeback win over the Reds in the process of suffering their second straight one-run loss and their third straight loss overall.

Despite receiving a strong performance from James Paxton and leading after six innings, Boston fell to Cincinnati by a final score of 5-4 at Fenway Park on Wednesday to drop back to one game of .500 at 28-27 on the season.

With right-hander Luke Weaver starting for the Reds, the Red Sox opened the scoring when Masataka Yoshida belted a 359-foot solo shot down the right field line to lead off the bottom half of the second inning. Yoshida’s seventh home run of the year, and first since May 4, left his bat at 97.8 mph.

An inning later, Connor Wong extended his hitting streak to seven by reaching base on a one-out single. He then moved up to second on an Alex Verdugo groundout before coming into score on an opposite-field RBI double from Rafael Devers. The run-scoring knock was the 200th two-base hit of Devers’ career, but he was left at second as Justin Turner grounded out to end the third.

Boston would maintain a two-run lead through four innings. Paxton, who to that point had experienced very little turbulence in his fourth start of the season for the Sox, then ran into some trouble in the fifth. After recording the first two outs of the frame via strikeout, the veteran left-hander issued a four-pitch walk to Jose Barrero.

Luke Maile, Cincinnati’s No. 9 hitter, wasted no time in making Paxton pay for the free pass by driving in Barrero all the way from first on a towering RBI double off the Green Monster. Maile then advanced to third on a Kevin Newman single, but Paxton stranded the runners on the corners by fanning the final batter he faced in Matt McLain.

All told, Paxton allowed just the one earned run on four hits and one walk to go along with eight strikeouts over five solid innings of work. The 34-year-old finished with exactly 100 pitches (68 strikes) and induced 22 swings-and-misses, the most of any big-league pitcher on Wednesday. He also lowered his ERA on the season to 4.26.

With Paxton’s night done, the Red Sox got that run right back in the bottom of the fifth when rookie Enmanuel Valdez took Weaver 356 feet over the Green Monster for his fourth homer of the year. The 99.1 mph blast put Boston back up, 3-1, going into the sixth.

Kutter Crawford received the first call out of the Red Sox bullpen from manager Alex Cora. Making his first appearance since tweaking his right ankle in Arizona this past Saturday, Crawford immediately issued back-to-back walks out of the gate. The righty then retired Tyler Stephenson and the pinch-hitting Jake Fraley on a pair of flyouts, but he could not escape the jam entirely.

Instead, Crawford extended the inning by giving up an RBI single to Nick Senzel that cut Boston’s lead down to one at 3-2. Josh Winckowski came on to record the final out of the sixth but he, too, was not his usual self in the top of the seventh.

After Maile reached on a Devers throwing error to lead off the inning, Newman and McClain delivered back-to-back singles to fill the bases with no outs. Winckowski then got Jonathan India to ground into a a 6-4-3 double play, but it was enough to allow the pinch-running Will Benson to score from third to knot things up at three runs apiece.

Just moments after they tied the game, Spencer Steer gave the Reds their first lead of the night by crushing a go-ahead, two-run home run into the Monster seats off Winckowski, who was ultimately charged with a blown save as well as the losing decision.

Trailing 5-3 now, the Red Sox had a golden opportunity to respond in the latter half of the inning. Valdez, Verdugo, and Devers all reached to fill the bases with two outs. But lefty reliever Alex Young got Turner to ground out to short to extinguish the threat.

Following a 1-2-3 top of the eighth from Chris Martin, Yoshida led off the bottom half with a hard-hit double off new Reds reliever Lucas Sims. Jarren Duran then drove in Yoshida from second with a two-base hit of his own. Alas, the potential tying run was left on base as the pinch-hitting Raimel Tapia (lineout) and Valdez were each retired by Sims.

Like Martin, Nick Pivetta put up a zero in the top of the ninth to give the Red Sox one more shot in the latter half. With two outs and the bases empty, Devers lifted a 104.6 mph line drive to center field off Buck Farmer, but it fell well short of the bleachers and was caught by Senzel on the warning track for the final out.

Next up: Sale gets ball in series finale

On the heels of a 13-13 May, the Red Sox will look to open the month of June by putting an end to this three-game losing streak and avoid a three-game sweep at the hands of the Reds in Thursday’s series finale. Left-hander Chris Sale will get the start for Boston while Cincinnati will counter with hard-throwing right-hander Hunter Greene.

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

(Picture of Josh Winckowski: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

James Paxton runs into early trouble as Red Sox get swept by Angels in 7-3 loss

The Red Sox were unable to avoid a three-game sweep at the hands of the Angels on Wednesday night. Boston dropped its third straight to Los Angeles and its fourth overall in a 7-3 loss at Angel Stadium to fall to 26-24 on the season.

With Tyler Anderson starting for the Halos, the Sox had a chance to strike early. After singling to lead off the top half of the second inning, Rafael Devers went from first to third base on a one-out single off the bat of Pablo Reyes. Connor Wong then came up to the plate and worked a 2-2 count before madness ensued.

Wong whiffed at an 88.4 mph fastball at the top of the zone. At the same time, Reyes took off for second base, prompting Angels catcher Chad Wallach to unleash a throw to Luis Rengifo, who was covering the bag. Rengifo, however, noticed that Devers had taken off for home in an attempt to score and wasted little time in gunning him down at the plate to complete the inning-ending strike ’em out, throw ’em out double play.

Perhaps that sequence of events gave the Angels some momentum, because they broke through against Red Sox starter James Paxton in the latter half of the second. Paxton, who had given up just three runs through his first two starts (11 innings) of the season, issued a leadoff walk to Hunter Renfroe. Brandon Drury followed by roping a double to right field to put runners at second and third for Gio Urshela, who opened the scoring by plating Renfroe with a 315-foot sacrifice fly.

Paxton fanned Rengifo for the second out, but he extended the inning by issuing a seven-pitch walk to Wallach. Rookie shortstop Zach Neto then broke it open by crushing a 392-foot three-run home run to right field to put the Angels up, 4-0. An inning later, Paxton was bitten by the long ball again, this time serving up a one-out solo shot to the vaunted Shohei Ohtani to increase the deficit to five runs.

Though Paxton got through the rest of the third unscathed, the damage had already been done. The veteran left-hander wound up allowing five earned runs on four hits and three walks to go along with five strikeouts over three innings of work. He finished with 59 pitches (35 strikes) and was charged with the losing decision as his ERA on the year rose to 5.14.

With Paxton done for the night, the Red Sox lineup finally got to Anderson in the fourth. Masataka Yoshida laced a one-out double to center field and Enrique Hernandez promptly drove him in with a two-base hit of his own to cut the Angels’ lead back down to four runs at 5-1.

Alas, Hernandez was left at second as Reyes grounded out to extinguish the threat. Nick Pivetta then came on for Paxton in the bottom of the fourth. After sandwiching a Neto single in between recording the first two outs of the inning, the righty served up a towering 396-foot two-run homer to Trout that put Boston in a 7-1 hole.

Despite the early indications that it might not have been his night, Pivetta rallied and put up zeroes in the fifth and sixth innings. The Red Sox then got one of those runs back in the seventh when Wong took Angels reliever Reyes Moronta 396 feet deep to left-center field for his fifth home run of the year.

Moments after Wong rounded the bases, Raimel Tapia ripped a one-out single and Rob Refsnyder and Justin Turner each drew two-out walks off Moronta to fill the bases for Yoshida. Angels manager Phil Nevin responded by giving Moronta the hook in favor of Chris Devenski, who got Yoshida to ground out to first.

Following two more scoreless frames from Justin Garza and Kenley Jansen, Wong came into score on an RBI single from Refsnyder with two outs in the top of the ninth. Turner then fittingly lined out to Trout to end it.

All told, the Red Sox went 2-for-8 with runners in scoring position and left eight runners on base as a team on Wednesday. They have scored just four runs in their last 41 innings dating back to the fourth inning of Saturday’s 4-2 win over the Padres in San Diego.

Next up: On to Arizona

The Red Sox will travel to Phoenix late Wednesday night and have Thursday off. They will then open a three-game weekend series against the Diamondbacks on Friday. Left-hander Chris Sale will get the start for Boston while Arizona has yet to name a starter.

First pitch from Chase Field is scheduled for 9:40 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of James Paxton: Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

Red Sox held to 2 hits in 4-0 loss to Angels; Brayan Bello impresses again

After being held to one run on Monday, the Red Sox were shut out in yet another loss to the Angels on Tuesday night. Boston fell to Los Angeles by a final score of 4-0 at Angel Stadium to extend its losing streak to three and drop to 26-23 on the season.

In similar fashion to Monday’s series-opening defeat, a young right-hander shined on the mound for the Sox. Brayan Bello, making his seventh start of the year, allowed just two earned runs on six hits and zero walks to go along with six strikeouts over a career-high seven innings of work.

Both runs Bello surrendered came by way of the long ball. To lead off the bottom of the first, a red-hot Mickey Moniak crushed a 418-foot solo shot to deep center field to open the scoring for the Angels.

Though Bello gave up two more hits in the inning, he was able to settle down by retiring nine straight batters from the middle of the second through the end of the fourth. Matt Thaiss then led off the bottom half of the fifth with a 409-foot solo homer of his own to double Los Angeles’ lead to 2-0.

Bello once again rebounded by keeping the Angels off the scoreboard over the next two innings. He retired the side in order in the sixth and then stranded Gio Urshela at second base after yielding a two-out double in an otherwise clean bottom of the seventh.

Finishing with 98 pitches (67 strikes), Bello induced 12 swings-and-misses while averaging 96.1 mph with his four-seam fastball. The 24-year-old hurler was ultimately charged with the tough-luck loss, but he did lower his ERA on the season down to 4.08. That includes a 2.57 ERA in five starts since being recalled from Triple-A Worcester on April 28.

In relief of Bello, Joely Rodriguez received the first call out of the Boston bullpen from manager Alex Cora in the eighth. The left-hander immediately gave up a leadoff double to the pinch-hitting Taylor Ward and then served up a 393-foot two-run home run to Mike Trout that effectively put this one out of reach.

Heading into the ninth inning trailing by four, the Red Sox had gotten very little from their lineup to that point in the contest. Angels starter Griffin Canning, who came into play Tuesday sporting a 6.14 ERA in six outings, outdueled Bello by putting up zeroes over seven effective frames.

Canning scattered two hits and three walks. He only allowed one runner to advance into scoring position. That happened in the top of the second, when Triston Casas drew a two-out walk and Enmanuel Valdez followed with a single. Reese McGuire then struck out on a foul tip to extinguish the threat.

After veteran lefty Matt Moore replaced Canning in the top of the eighth, the pinch-hitting Rob Refsnyder drew a leadoff walk to bring the tying run to the plate with no outs. Refsnyder essentially switched places with Alex Verdugo, who grounded into a force out, before Masataka Yoshida grounded into an inning-ending, 4-6-3 double play. Jacob Webb then made quick work of Justin Turner, Rafael Devers, and Valdez in the ninth to end it.

Tuesday marks the third shutout loss of the season for the Red Sox and the second in their last three games. They have scored just one run in their last 32 innings dating back to the fourth inning of Saturday’s 4-2 win over the Padres in San Diego.

Next up: Paxton looks to help Sox avoid sweep

The Red Sox will look to avoid a three-game sweep at the hands of the Angels in Wednesday night’s series finale. James Paxton is slated to make his third start of the season for Boston while Los Angeles will counter with fellow southpaw Tyler Anderson.

First pitch from Angel Stadium is scheduled for 9:38 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of Brayan Bello: Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

Red Sox to activate James Paxton from injured list in coming days

The Red Sox are planning on activating James Paxton from the 15-day injured list during next week’s two-game series against the Braves in Atlanta.

Though Paxton will not pitch in that series, there is a strong chance the veteran left-hander will make his season debut next weekend, when the Red Sox host the Cardinals in a three-game series at Fenway Park.

Paxton began the season on the injured list after straining his right hamstring in his first spring training start on March 3. The 34-year-old did not pitch again in camp and began a rehab assignment with Triple-A Worcester on April 9.

In six rehab outings (five starts) with the WooSox, Paxton posted a 6.23 ERA and 4.48 FIP with 26 strikeouts to 16 walks over 21 2/3 innings of work. He allowed two runs on two hits, five walks, and four strikeouts across five innings (96 pitches) in his final rehab start at Polar Park on Friday night. His 30-day rehab stint expires on Tuesday.

“He threw the ball well,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora told reporters (including MassLive.com’s Christoper Smith) at Citizens Bank Park on Saturday. “He threw 90-something pitches. Finished strong. Location (was off). He walked five. Long first inning but overall we’re very pleased with the way he threw the ball.”

With Chris Sale, Corey Kluber, and Tanner Houck starting in Philadelphia and Nick Pivetta and Brayan Bello scheduled to start in Atlanta, Boston already has a full five-man rotation. When asked about the possibility of bringing back a six-man rotation in order to accommodate Paxton, Cora did not rule that idea out.

“If we want to, yeah,” said Cora. “We’ll see.”

Paxton last started a game at the major-league level on April 6, 2021. He tore the ulnar collateral ligament in his left elbow in that outing for the Mariners and underwent season-ending Tommy John surgery shortly thereafter.

After signing a one-year deal with the Red Sox that December, Paxton experienced a series of setbacks that prevented him from returning to the big-league mound in 2022. He then exercised a $4 million player option last November that brought him back to Boston for the 2023 campaign.

While Paxton was unable to break camp with the club this spring due to that aforementioned hamstring injury, his first start in a Red Sox uniform is fast approaching. It’s been a long time coming.

(Picture of James Paxton: Erica Denhoff/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Red Sox outfield prospect Wilyer Abreu strains left hamstring

Red Sox outfielder Wilyer Abreu suffered a left hamstring strain in the seventh inning of Sunday’s 4-1 League win over the Marlins at JetBlue Park.

Abreu entered the game in the top of the seventh as a defensive replacement for starting right fielder Alex Verdugo. The left-handed hitter led off the bottom half of the frame with a line-drive single off Marlins reliever Devin Smeltzer, but he rounded the first base bag awkwardly and was in clear discomfort as a result.

After getting checked out by Red Sox manager Alex Cora and a member of the team’s training staff, Abreu was lifted for pinch-runner Stephen Scott. The 23-year-old finished his day going 1-for-1 with a base hit in his lone plate appearance.

“Right before he stepped on the bag, he felt it,” Cora told reporters (including MLB.com’s Ian Browne. “He felt it. He stopped right away, so that’s good. But he’ll be out for a while.”

Abreu becomes the third member of the Red Sox to sustain some sort of hamstring injury within the last week, joining catcher Connor Wong (Thursday) and left-hander James Paxton (Friday). Both Wong and Paxton have since been diagnosed with low-grade strains. It’s likely that more information regarding the severity of Abreu’s strain will become available on Monday.

The Red Sox originally acquired Abreu (and fellow prospect Enmanuel Valdez) from the Astros in the trade that sent catcher Christian Vazquez to Houston last August. Abreu closed out the 2022 season with Double-A Portland and batted .242/.399/.375 with five doubles, four home runs, 19 RBIs, 25 runs scored, eight stolen bases, 36 walks, and 45 strikeouts across 40 games (168 plate appearances) with the Sea Dogs while seeing playing time at all three outfield positions.

After playing in the Arizona Fall League, Abreu was added to the Red Sox’ 40-man roster in November in order to receive protection from the Rule 5 Draft. The native Venezuelan is currently regarded by Baseball America as the No. 22 prospect in Boston’s farm system.

Prior to getting injured on Sunday, Abreu had gotten his first spring with the Red Sox off to a solid start by going 4-for-12 (.333) with a triple, a home run, four runs driven in, five runs scored, two walks, and four strikeouts in seven Grapefruit League games. He crushed a grand slam in Thursday’s 15-3 rout of the Phillies.

As of now, it remains to be seen just how much time Abreu will miss because of this hamstring strain. Abreu, who turns 24 in June, only has 129 career games at the Double-A level under his belt and is expected to return to Portland for the start of the 2023 minor-league season. Because he is on the 40-man roster, though, any sort of absence could have an affect on Boston’s outfield depth in the upper-minors to begin the year.

(Picture of Wilyer Abreu: Doug Murray/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Red Sox’ James Paxton diagnosed with Grade 1 hamstring strain

Red Sox left-hander James Paxton has been diagnosed with a Grade 1 hamstring strain, manager Alex Cora told reporters (including MLB.com’s Ian Browne) on Saturday.

Paxton strained his right hamstring in the second inning of Friday’s 9-4 Grapefruit League win over the Twins in Fort Myers. The 34-year-old was scheduled to pitch two innings but had to come out of the game with a trainer after recording the first two outs of the second.

“It’s a strain. Not as bad, but probably similar to [Connor] Wong,” Cora said. “We’ll know how he’s reacting. If we need imaging, we’ll do it. But right now, we don’t feel that way.”

When speaking with reporters outside the Red Sox clubhouse on Friday, Paxton said he began feeling discomfort in his hamstring on his second-to-last pitch to Michael A. Taylor. He retired the outfielder with his next offering, but could be seen grabbing at and stretching out his right hamstring in an attempt to get loose.

At that point, Paxton received a visit on the mound from Cora and a member of the team’s training staff. The decision was then made that the lefty’s day would be over right then and there.

“My hamstring just grabbed on me a little bit just as I was kind of starting to find that firing pin to let the ball go a little bit harder,” said Paxton. “I wanted to step on it a little bit and the hamstring just grabbed.”

Before departing, Paxton proved to be effective against the Twins on Friday. He struck out Carlos Correa as part of a 1-2-3 first inning and then got the first two outs of the second. Twelve of the 19 pitches he threw went for strikes and he topped out at 94.7 mph with his four-seam fastball, per Baseball Savant.

As part of Saturday’s announcement, Cora revealed that Paxton will be shut down temporarily, which puts his status for Opening Day into question. If he falls behind in his progressions enough, Paxton could very well start the season on the injured list for the second year in a row.

“Obviously, he’s going to fall behind a little bit here,” Cora said. “It doesn’t look that bad. It sucks because he worked so hard to get to this point. We’ll be patient, just like he will be and he’ll be ready whenever he’s ready.”

Paxton originally signed a one-year, $6 million contract with Boston in December 2021 that came with a two-year club option and a one-year player option. At that time, the southpaw was about eight months removed from having undergone Tommy John surgery while still a member of the Mariners.

After his rehab from the procedure was initially delayed by posterior elbow soreness last May, Paxton was able to began a rehab assignment in the Florida Complex League in August. Just two batters into his start for the FCL Red Sox, though, Paxton suffered a Grade 2 lat tear, which ended his 2022 season before it really even started.

In November, the Red Sox declined Paxton’s two-year, $26 million club option that would have covered the 2023 and 2024 seasons. Paxton, in turn, elected to remain in Boston by exercising his $4 million player option for the 2023 campaign.

“I’m comfortable here,” Paxton told MassLive.com’s Christopher Smith last month. “They know me. I know them. And I’m trying to establish myself back in the big-leagues and I felt like this was the place for me to do it.”

Dating back to the start of the COVID-shortened 2020 season, Paxton has been limited to just six starts spanning 21 1/3 innings. For his major-league career, which spans nine seasons, he has only surpassed the 150-inning plateau twice (2018, 2019) due to different injuries, most of which have been arm-related.

The Red Sox came into camp with seven starters (Paxton, Chris Sale, Nick Pivetta, Corey Kluber, Brayan Bello, Garrett Whitlock, and Tanner Houck), competing for five rotation spots. Since workouts began though, Paxton has gone down with a hamstring injury, Bello was slowed by right forearm tightness, and Whitlock has yet to fully ramp up after undergoing hip surgery last September.

Since Boston is expected to exercise caution with all of its starters in camp, it’s certainly possible all three of Bello, Paxton, and Whitlock start the season on the 15-day injured list. If that is indeed the case, the Red Sox do have rotation depth to turn to in right-handers Kutter Crawford and Josh Winckowski. Beyond those two, prospects with starting experience in the minor-leagues — such as Bryan Mata, Chris Murphy, and Brandon Walter — are on the 40-man roster as well.

(Picture of James Paxton: Brace Hemmelgarn/Getty Images)

Red Sox’ James Paxton leaves first start of spring early with hamstring injury

James Paxton was scheduled to pitch two innings in his first start of the spring for the Red Sox against the Twins on Friday afternoon. The left-hander unfortunately fell short of that goal due to a right hamstring injury.

After recording the first two outs of the second inning at Hammond Stadium, Paxton could be seen grabbing at and stretching out his right hamstring in an attempt to loosen it up. That prompted a visit from Red Sox manager Alex Cora and a member of the team’s training staff.

Paxton, who to that point had retired all five batters he faced while recording one strikeout over 1 2/3 scoreless innings of work, then left the field with a trainer and was pulled from the game in favor of fellow lefty Rio Gomez.

“We’ll know tomorrow,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora told reporters (including MLB.com’s Ian Browne) following Boston’s 9-4 win over Minnesota. “Obviously, not perfect. Hopefully it was just a cramp. I think obviously with him, we’ve got to be very careful. It’s a shame because he was throwing the [heck] out of the ball today. His location was great, velo was up. … And that happened. Hopefully it’s nothing and we can just continue to move on.”

Paxton himself said he first felt discomfort on his second-to-last pitch to Michael A. Taylor with one out in the second. He got the center fielder to fly out to left with his next offering, but was unable to continue after that despite only needing to get one more out.

“My hamstring just grabbed on me a little bit just as I was kind of starting to find that firing pin to let the ball go a little bit harder,” Paxton said. “I wanted to step on it a little bit and the hamstring just grabbed. We’ll see what we got. We don’t really know yet. But we’ll see how I come in feeling tomorrow and go from there.”

Of the 19 pitches Paxton threw on Friday, 12 went for strikes. He punched out Twins shortstop Carlos Correa as part of a 1-2-3 first inning and needed nine pitches to get the first two outs of the second. According to Baseball Savant, the 34-year-old southpaw topped out at 94.7 mph with his four-seam fastball.

“I think there’s positives and negatives,” Paxton said of his shortened outing. “I think that going out there and filling up the zone like I did felt good. Some good breaking balls, fastball felt pretty good. I felt like it was coming out of the hand well. But then this happens and now we’re gonna have to deal with this so that I can continue moving forward. I’ll do whatever I have to do to get back out there.”

Paxton has been with the Red Sox since signing with the club as a free agent in December 2021. At that time, the veteran hurler was about eight months removed from undergoing Tommy John surgery after making one start for the Mariners that season. He spent most of the 2022 campaign rehabbing before suffering a Grade 2 left lat tear in his first rehab outing in late August.

Given his recent injury history, Paxton elected to exercise his $4 million player option for 2023 and return to the Red Sox without any sort of limitations this spring. Even if this latest setback proves to be minor, Boston will undoubtedly exercise caution when it comes to Paxton’s health moving forward.

Paxton is one of seven candidates vying for five spots in the Red Sox’ Opening Day starting rotation alongside the likes of Chris Sale, Nick Pivetta, Corey Kluber, Brayan Bello, Garrett Whitlock, and Tanner Houck. As noted by MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo, though, Bello, Whitlock, and now Paxton have all been slowed by different issues this spring, which could put someone like Kutter Crawford into the rotation mix early this season.

Paxton said that he is unsure if he strained his hamstring or simply experienced a cramp. Regardless, he is disappointed and frustrated by what transpired on Friday.

“This is not how I wanted this to go,” said Paxton. “I wanted to go through spring training clean. But I can’t control that. All I can control is going to work on this now and doing whatever I can to get back out there and pitch again.”

(Picture of James Paxton: Brace Hemmelgarn/Getty Images)

Reese McGuire and Triston Casas both homer, James Paxton leaves first start of spring early as Red Sox defeat Twins, 9-4

The Red Sox remained unbeaten this spring after taking Game 2 of the 2023 Chairman’s Cup from the Twins on Friday afternoon. Boston defeated Minnesota, 9-4, at Hammond Stadium to improve to 5-0-2 in Grapefruit League play.

Matched up against Sonny Gray to begin things on Friday, the Red Sox lineup got off to a quick start by putting up a three-spot in the top half of the first inning. After reaching base on a one-out single and advancing 90 feet on a pickoff error, Alex Verdugo scored his side’s first run on an RBI single off the bat of Justin Turner.

Turner himself moved up to second on a Minnesota fielding error that allowed Triston Casas to reach base before scoring on a two-out single from Bobby Dalbec. Casas, who advanced to third on that play, then came in to score when Reese McGuire reached on yet another fielding error committed by the Twins.

That sequence gave Boston an early 3-0 lead right out of the gate, but Minnesota was able to get two of those runs back an inning later. James Paxton, who retired the side in order in his first inning of work this spring, recorded the first two outs of the second before exiting the game with a right hamstring injury. He was replaced by fellow left-hander Rio Gomez, who issued a five-pitch walk to Joey Gallo before serving up a two-run home run to Kyle Farmer.

Despite seeing their three-run advantage shrink to one-run, the Red Sox continued to capitalize on Twins mistakes in their half of the third. After Turner and Casas each reached with no outs and Dalbec loaded the bases with a one-out single, McGuire came through by crushing a 395-foot grand slam off reliever Emilio Pagan to make it a 7-2 contest in favor of Boston.

Again, though, Minnesota retaliated. John Schreiber took over for Gomez in the bottom of the third and filled the bases with one out before spiking a wild pitch that allowed Eliot Soto to come in from third. Michael A. Taylor then grounded out to to Enmanuel Valdez at second base, which gave old friend Christian Vazquez more than enough time to score from third and trim the Twins’ deficit down to three runs at 7-4.

Following a scoreless fourth inning from Ryan Sherriff, Casas picked up where he left off by leading off the fifth with a 400-foot solo blast to deep right field for his second home run of the spring. Brandon Walter then came out of the bullpen for Boston and struck out three over two scoreless frames of relief. Fellow southpaw Chris Murphy followed that up by stranding two base runners and punching out the side in the seventh.

In the eighth, former Twins catcher Caleb Hamilton took Brock Stewart 438 feet deep over the berm in left field for his first big fly in a Red Sox uniform. Taking a 9-4 lead into the latter half of the frame, Murphy got the first two outs before loading the bases on a single and back-to-back walks. Norwith Gudino came in and promptly escaped the jam by fanning Soto on three consecutive sliders.

With three more outs to get in the ninth, Gudino picked up two more punchouts to slam the door on the Twins and record the save in doing so.

More on Paxton’s start:

Prior to leaving the game with a trainer, Paxton had already retired the first five batters he had faced on Friday. The 34-year-old southpaw struck out one over 1 2/3 innings of work while throwing 20 pitches (12 strikes). His fastball topped out at 94.7 mph, per Baseball Savant.

Next up: Pivetta makes spring debut

The Red Sox will return to JetBlue Park to host the Astros on Saturday afternoon. Nick Pivetta, who came into camp still on the mend following a recent bout with COVID-19, will make his first start of the year for Boston. Fellow right-hander Shawn Dubin is slated to start for Houston.

First pitch is scheduled for 1:05 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of Reese McGuire: Doug Murray/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)