Tag: rehab assignment

Red Sox ace Chris Sale strikes out Wander Franco in first start of rehab assignment

Red Sox ace left-hander Chris Sale officially began his rehab assignment in the Florida Complex League on Monday night.

Getting the start against the Rays’ FCL affiliate in Port Charlotte, Fla., Sale allowed one earned run on one hit, one walk, and one strikeout over just one inning of work.

After issuing a leadoff walk to Odalys Peguero, Sale rebounded by striking out fellow major-leaguer Wander Franco — who is also on a rehab assignment — with a slider (and wild pitch) that allowed Peguero to advance to second base.

With one out and a runner in scoring position, Sale got Carlos Colmenarez to pop out to short. Peguero then proceeded to steal third and score from there on an RBI single off the bat of Junior Caminero.

Sale ended his outing by getting Jhon Diaz to ground out to second, so he wound up retiring three of the five batters he faced. Rather than come back out for a second inning, the 33-year-old was relieved by right-hander Elmer Rodriguez-Cruz. He threw 22 pitches and topped out at 96 mph with his fastball, per The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier.

This was the first time Sale pitched in a competitive environment since Game 5 of last October’s American League Championship Series. The veteran southpaw began the season on the 60-day injured list because of a right rib stress fracture he sustained during a bullpen session in late February. His recovery was then slowed due to what he described as a non-baseball health concern related to his family’s medical history.

Now that he has one rehab outing under his belt, Sale will likely need to make three or four more while working on a starter’s schedule in order to get stretched out to five innings. When that milestone is reached (presumably sometime next month), he will be ready to return to Boston’s starting rotation.

“He’ll be here at one point, and he’s going to contribute,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said of Sale, via MLB.com’s Ian Browne. “Like I said before, this is a lot different than last year as far as his arm [goes]. He’s in a much better spot. He’s moving a lot better, so we expect him to use all his pitches, which is important compared to last year. Just be him. It’s a trade that not everybody can do.”

(Picture of Chris Sale: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox’ Chris Sale to begin rehab assignment in Florida Complex League on Monday

Red Sox left-hander Chris Sale will begin a rehab assignment in the Florida Complex League on Monday, the team announced on Friday. It will mark Sale’s first in-game action since Game 5 of last October’s American League Championship Series.

Sale, who faced live hitters at Fenway Park on Thursday, has returned to Fort Myers and will throw two innings against the Florida Complex League Rays in Port Charlotte on Monday night.

In a conversation with NESN’s Tom Caron prior to Friday’s contest against the Cardinals, Red Sox manager Alex Cora relayed that Sale will return as a starter and will be built up to five innings before he makes his 2022 debut.

“Hopefully that’s the beginning of his rehab, and from there, it’s just a countdown,” said Cora. “We’re going to build him up as a starter. That’s loud and clear. We just got to be patient and whenever he comes back, we know he’s going to contribute.

As noted by MassLive.com’s Christopher Smith, Sale will likely need to make four or five rehab starts in the minors before being activated from the 60-day injured list. That would put him on a schedule to return to the Sox at some point around the All-Star break in July.

The 33-year-old southpaw began the season on the 60-day injured list after suffering a stress fracture in his right rib age back in February. His throwing program was then paused last month due to a “non-medical baseball situation.”

In his live batting practice session on Thursday, Sale threw 32 pitches over two simulated innings. He sat between 94-95 mph with his fastball and the Red Sox were impressed with what they saw from his changeup.

Upon returning from Tommy John surgery last season, opponents were 16-for-36 (.444) against Sale’s changeup, per Smith. That will need to change if Sale intends to be more effective in 2022.

“I think that’s the difference between last year and this year,” Cora said. “He was a two-pitch pitcher for a month and a half. This year, obviously being that far away from the surgery now, this will play.”

(Picture of Chris Sale: Elsa/Getty Images)

Red Sox send Hansel Robles out on rehab assignment with Triple-A Worcester

The Red Sox have sent veteran reliever Hansel Robles out on a rehab assignment with Triple-A Worcester, per his transactions log on MLB.com.

Robles was initially placed on the 15-day injured list because of back spasms on May 28. Since his stint on the IL was backdated to May 25, though, the right-hander is eligible to be activated as soon as this Thursday.

The plan was to have Robles make an appearance for the WooSox in their game against the Buffalo Bisons at Sahlen Field on Tuesday, but that contest has since been postponed due to rain and will be made up as part of a single-admission doubleheader on Wednesday.

Robles is now expected to pitch for Worcester at some point during Wednesday’s twin bill. He would then travel to Anaheim with the hopes of being activated in time for Thursday’s series finale against the Angels.

Prior to being placed on the injured list, the 31-year-old had made 16 relief outings for Boston this season, posting a 2.65 ERA and 5.20 FIP with 11 strikeouts to six walks over 17 innings of work.

(Picture of Hansel Robles: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox pitching prospect Bryan Mata strikes out 2 in first start of rehab assignment

Red Sox pitching prospect Bryan Mata officially began his rehab assignment with Low-A Salem on Saturday night.

Pitching in front of 3,971 spectators at Carillion Clinic Field, the right-hander allowed one unearned run on no hits, two walks, and two strikeouts over two innings of work in Salem’s 6-2 win over the Columbia Fireflies.

Of the 45 pitches Mata threw on Saturday, 27 went for strikes and nine were of the swing-and-miss variety. The 23-year-old reportedly topped out at 98 mph with his fastball.

Not including extended spring training, this marked Mata’s first in-game action since August 2019 and, more significantly, his first official minor-league appearance since undergoing Tommy John surgery last April.

Originally signed by the Red Sox for just $25,000 as an international free agent coming out of Venezuela in January 2016, Mata is currently regarded by Baseball America as the No. 11 prospect in Boston’s farm system, which ranks fifth among pitchers in the organization.

When healthy, many believed Mata had some of the best pure stuff in the system as he complemented his high-octane fastball with a changeup, a curveball, and a slider, among other offerings.

After tearing his ulnar collateral ligament and having his elbow reconstructed last spring, it remains to be seen if Mata will remain effective as a starter or will instead transition to a relief role at the next level. Either way, he still has a high ceiling.

Already a member of Boston’s 40-man roster, Mata will make his next start for High-A Greenville, per The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier. He is expected to reach Triple-A Worcester by the time his rehab assignment comes to an end. At that point, the 6-foot-3, 229 pound hurler could be paired up with fellow righty Brayan Bello in the WooSox’ starting rotation.

Bello, the top pitching prospect in the Sox’ farm system, made his fourth start for Worcester since being promoted from Double-A Portland on May 17. The 23-year-old yielded three runs on five hits while walking one and striking out eight over five innings on Friday. His ERA with the WooSox now sits at 3.63.

Between Bello and Mata, the Red Sox have two extremely exciting young pitchers who have the chance to make their big-league debuts at some point this season. At the same time, Chaim Bloom and Co. will surely exhibit patience when it comes to the development of these two prospects as well those who fall behind them in the pipeline.

(Picture of Bryan Mata courtesy of the Salem Red Sox)

Red Sox reliever Josh Taylor set to begin rehab assignment with Triple-A Worcester on Sunday

The Red Sox bullpen could soon be receiving a boost. Josh Taylor is expected to begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Worcester on Sunday, manager Alex Cora said ahead of Saturday’s game against the Twins at Fenway Park. The left-hander began the season on the 10-day injured list due to a low back strain.

“He threw a live BP yesterday and obviously we have to wait for today to see how he feels,” Cora said of Taylor. “But there’s a good chance his rehab assignment starts tomorrow.”

Cora added that Taylor will likely need five or six outings with the WooSox before being activated from the injured list. He is in line to make his 2022 debut in Worcester’s series finale against the Lehigh Valley IronPigs at Polar Park on Sunday afternoon.

Taylor, 29, is coming off a strong 2021 season in which he posted a 3.40 ERA and 2.83 FIP to go along with 60 strikeouts to 23 walks over 61 relief appearances spanning 47 2/3 innings of work.

The Arizona-born southpaw first experienced back discomfort last September and spent time on the injured list because of it. He returned in time for the postseason, but wound up receiving an epidural injection during the off-season.

Those back issues lingered into spring training, but Taylor is now at a point where he is ready to pitch in a game, as he explained to MLB.com’s Ian Browne on Saturday.

“I’m good. The body feels great,” Taylor said. “I had another live [batting practice] yesterday and bounced back well today. I don’t think I’ve had any setbacks. The body feels good. I have a rehab outing tomorrow in Worcester so that will be my first one and I’m looking forward to that. I definitely think I’m ready for that right now.”

(Picture of Josh Taylor: Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

Red Sox’ Darwinzon Hernandez set to begin rehab assignment with Triple-A Worcester

Red Sox reliever Darwinzon Hernandez has been sent out on a rehab assignment with Triple-A Worcester, per The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier.

Hernandez, 24, has not appeared in a game for the Sox since July 29 after being placed on the 10-day injured list on account of a right oblique strain two days later.

At the time Hernandez initially hit the IL, it did not appear as though the left-hander would be out for long, but he wound up undergoing an MRI — which came back clean — in early August.

On August 15, Hernandez resumed playing catch and threw a bullpen session at Fenway Park the following weekend. He completed his second live bullpen session on Sunday, which seemed to be one of the final hurdles he needed to clear.

That being the case because Red Sox manager Alex Cora told reporters (including The Athletic’s Jen McCaffrey) on Sunday that the team was trying to determine if Hernandez would need to go on a rehab assignment or if he would just be immediately activated from the injured list.

As it turns out, Hernandez will indeed head out to Worcester to join the WooSox ahead of their six-game series against the Lehigh Valley IronPigs that begins Tuesday night at Polar Park.

Before straining his right oblique in late July, the Venezuelan southpaw had posted a 3.44 ERA and .697 OPS against to go along with 46 strikeouts and 26 walks over 41 relief appearances spanning 34 innings of work out of the bullpen.

In the time that Hernandez has been sidelined, the Red Sox have used four additional left-handed relievers in Josh Taylor, Austin Davis, Martin Perez, and Stephen Gonsalves.

Those four lefties have combined to put up a 4.98 ERA, a 3.72 FIP, a 4.08 xFIP, and strikeout-to-walk ratio of 37:16 over 34 1/3 total innings pitched in Hernandez’s absence dating back to July 30.

As noted by Speier, Hernandez’s time away from the team has been ‘significant’ given his ability to induce punchouts at a relatively high rate (29.9% this season).

(Picture of Darwinzon Hernandez: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox’ Christian Arroyo ‘in a good spot’ amid rehab assignment with Triple-A Worcester, Alex Cora says

Red Sox infielder Christian Arroyo continues to make progress during his rehab assignment with Triple-A Worcester, so much so that he has caught the attention of his manager, Alex Cora.

In his second game with the WooSox at Polar Park on Thursday evening, Arroyo went 0-for-2 with two strikeouts, but also drew a leadoff walk in the fifth inning and promptly stole second base before coming around to score on an RBI double off the bat of Joey Meneses.

“He must be feeling really good,” Cora said of Arroyo ahead of Friday night’s game against the Rangers at Fenway Park. “I mean, he took off yesterday and stole a base, so that was good to see. I was watching on TV. He got a few at-bats.”

Arroyo, who has been on the 10-day injured list due to a left hamstring strain since July 19, played five innings of second base for Worcester in Game 1 of their doubleheader against Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (a 5-3 win) on Thursday before making way for Chad De La Guerra in the top half of the sixth.

Two nights before, Arroyo went 0-for-2 with a flyout and groundout while also getting plunked by a pitch while serving as the WooSox’ designated hitter for six innings before getting pinch-hit for by Johan Mieses in the bottom half of the seventh of a 2-0 victory.

The 26-year-old originally strained his left hamstring in his professional debut at first base against the Yankees back on July 18.

In the third inning of that Sunday night contest in the Bronx, Arroyo attempted to stretch out while receiving a throw from second baseman Enrique Hernandez in order to complete a potential double play, but wound up doing a split that resulted in his immediate removal from the game.

Since that time, Arroyo has gotten back to the point where he was able to begin a rehab assignment earlier this week and will once again be starting at second base and batting second for the WooSox on Friday night.

“He’s going to play today again,” said Cora. “I don’t think he’s that far off. Obviously he hasn’t played in a while. It’s been a month. So as far as the timing and all that, we’ll talk to him. We’ll see how he feels. But I do believe body-wise, the way he’s moving, he’s in a good spot. The fact that he stole a base yesterday, it was a good sign.”

As previously mentioned, Arroyo did injure himself in his first career start at first base at any level back on July 18, but that does not mean the Red Sox will keep the 6-foot-1, 210 pounder away from that position in the future.

“As long as he doesn’t stretch or slip, whatever you want to call it,” Cora said on Wednesday. “He’s going to work at first. I don’t think he’s going to start at first base but I think he’s going to get some work in at first base.”

Taking that point into consideration, the Worcester Telegram & Gazette’s Joe McDonald tweeted earlier Friday afternoon that Arroyo was spotted working out at first base at Polar Park.

Also, this:

Arroyo, who has missed time on the injured list on three separate occasions this season, has primarily served as Boston’s everyday second baseman when healthy.

In what is his first full season with the Red Sox, Arroyo is hitting .271/.327/.465 with 12 doubles, six home runs, 25 RBI, 21 runs scored, one stolen base, seven walks, and 41 strikeouts over 50 games (170 plate appearances).

(Picture of Christian Arroyo: Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

Red Sox’ Christian Arroyo to begin rehab assignment with Triple-A Worcester on Tuesday

Red Sox infielder Christian Arroyo will begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Worcester on Tuesday night, manager Alex Cora announced.

Arroyo has been held out of action since July 18, one day before he was placed on the 10-day injured list on account of a left hamstring strain.

The 26-year-old sustained the injury while making his professional debut at first base in the third inning of that Sunday’s game against the Yankees at Yankee Stadium.

On a ground ball off the bat of Giancarlo Stanton that was hit to second baseman Enrique Hernandez, Arroyo attempted to stretch out while receiving Hernandez’s throw in order to complete a double play, but wound up doing a split that resulted in him coming out of the game.

Later diagnosed with a left hamstring strain and promptly placed on the injured list for a third time this season, Arroyo was able to start running the bases and working out at Fenway Park over the weekend. He is now at a point where he can go out on a rehab assignment as planned.

With the WooSox opening up a lengthy series against the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders at Polar Park this week, Arroyo will serve as designated hitter for Worcester in the first game of his rehab assignment on Monday night.

Though not official, the hope seems to be that if all goes well with Arroyo’s rehab this week, he could potentially re-join the Sox ahead of their weekend series against the Rangers back at Fenway.

Prior to going down with that left hamstring strain, Arroyo had been catching fire at the plate, as he was hitting .310/.355/.621 with two home runs, six RBI, and four runs scored across eight July games (31 plate appearances) before that Sunday night contest in the Bronx.

As previously mentioned, Arroyo had never played first base professionally before July 18, but was thrust into the position as a result of the Red Sox promoting outfielder Jarren Duran from Worcester, which in turn required Hernandez to move to second base on days Duran would be playing.

That being said, it should be interesting to see how the Sox manage Arroyo’s playing time once he does return seeing how their infield mix has only gotten more crowded following the additions of Kyle Schwarber and Travis Shaw.

Of course, major-league rosters will expand from 26 to 28 players beginning in September, so there is that to look ahead to as well.

(Picture of Christian Arroyo: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

WooSox Notes: Hirokazu Sawamura perfect in rehab outing; Kutter Crawford and Durbin Feltman solid in Polar Park debuts

The Worcester Red Sox fell to the Buffalo Bisons by a final score of 5-1 at Polar Park on Wednesday, marking their fifth consecutive loss.

While the WooSox did drop to 37-34 in their second of six against the Bisons, there were some positive developments — some of which will definitely pique the Red Sox’ interest.

Sawamura perfect in rehab appearance

Rehabbing reliever Hirokazu Sawamura opened the game for Worcester and needed all of 13 pitches — nine of which were strikes — to toss a perfect first inning in which he struck out one and got two to softly ground out.

Sawamura, who has been on the injured list since July 23 due to right triceps inflammation, had his stint on the IL backdated to July 20, meaning he could be activated as soon as Friday.

Barring any setbacks it seems likely that the 33-year-old righty will come off the injured list ahead of this weekend’s series against the Rays in Tampa Bay.

Crawford solid in Triple-A debut

Red Sox pitching prospect Kutter Crawford made his Triple-A debut on Wednesday and was quite impressive in his first action in a WooSox uniform.

Taking over for Sawamura, Crawford yielded three runs — all of which were earned — on nine hits and just one walk to go along with five strikeouts on the afternoon.

Of those nine hits the right-hander allowed, three were infield singles and seven were on soft contact, according to WooSox broadcaster Mike Antonellis.

Finishing with a final pitch count of 85 (59 strikes), Crawford ended his day by retiring six of the final seven hitters he faced.

Crawford, 25, was promoted from Double-A Portland to Triple-A Worcester last week after posting a 3.30 ERA and 2.85 xFIP to go along with 64 strikeouts to just five walks over 10 starts (46 1/3 innings pitched) with the Sea Dogs to begin the season.

The Red Sox originally selected the 6-foot-1, 192 pound hurler in the 16th round of the 2017 amateur draft out of Florida Gulf Coast University.

Crawford entered the 2019 campaign as the No. 22 prospect in Boston’s farm system according to Baseball America and ultimately underwent Tommy John surgery that fall before having bone spurs removed from his throwing elbow the following summer.

His next start for the WooSox will likely come on the road against the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders next Tuesday.

Feltman works his way around trouble in Polar Park debut

Like Crawford, fellow Red Sox pitching prospect Durbin Feltman made his first-ever appearance at Polar Park on Wednesday.

Working directly in relief of Crawford, Feltman issued a leadoff double to Bisons shortstop Kevin Smith to begin things in the eighth, but maneuvered his way around that by sitting down the next three batters he faced on a pair of fly outs and a lineout.

Of the 11 pitches Feltman needed to get through the eighth inning of Wednesday’s contest, seven went for strikes.

The 24-year-old right-handed reliever was promoted to Triple-A on July 23 and got rocked for three runs on four hits over two innings against the Lehigh Valley IronPigs that very same day.

Originally selected by Boston in the third round of the 2018 amateur draft out of Texas Christian University, Feltman — listed at 6-foot-2 and 207 pounds — opened the 2021 campaign with Double-A Portland and put up a 3.29 ERA and 3.62 xFIP in addition to 37 strikeouts and 10 walks over 22 relief appearances spanning 27 1/3 innings pitched.

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Both Crawford and Feltman can become eligible for the Rule 5 Draft for the first time in their respective careers this winter, so there is a possibility that either one of the two righties could be dealt ahead of Friday’s trade deadline.

If not, they would need to be added to Boston’s 40-man roster before November 20 in order to be protected from this winter’s Rule 5 Draft.

(Picture of Hirokazu Sawamura: Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

Red Sox’ Chris Sale punches out 9 over 3 2/3 innings in second rehab start for Double-A Portland; left-hander in line to start for Triple-A Worcester on July 31

Red Sox ace Chris Sale completed his third rehab start and his second for Double-A Portland at a sold-out Hadlock Field on Sunday afternoon.

Matched up against the Harrisburg Senators — the same team he faced on Tuesday — Sale yielded two earned runs on six hits, no walks, and one hit batsman to go along with nine strikeouts over 3 2/3 innings of work for the Sea Dogs.

The veteran left-hander was slated to pitch four or five frames depending on his pitch count, but a laborious third inning that required 28 pitches ultimately cut his day short.

After maneuvering his way around a two-out double in an otherwise clean first inning and striking out the side while stranding a runner in the second, Sale ran into a bit of trouble in the top half of the third.

There, he served up a leadoff home run to the Senators’ No. 9 hitter in Osvaldo Duarte before giving up a double and bunt single. Two straight punchouts brought the lefty to within one out of escaping the jam, but he plunked a batter to load the bases.

With two outs and the bases full in the third, Sale fanned Jackson Cluff on a swing-inducing slider to get out of the inning and then recorded the first two outs of the fourth before a two-out double marked the unofficial end of his outing.

In relief of Sale, Sea Dogs reliever Dominic LaBrutto allowed the lone runner he inherited to score on an RBI single, thus officially closing the book on Sale’s afternoon.

Finishing with a final pitch count of 64 (46 strikes), the 32-year-old hurler wound up retiring 11 of the 18 hitters he faced, as he hovered around 94-95 mph with his four-seam fastball and topped out at 96 mph with it while mixing in his slider and changeup as well.

For Sale, Sunday’s performance marked yet another milestone on his road back from Tommy John surgery, which he underwent nearly 16 months ago on March 30, 2020 — his 31st birthday.

In the time since undergoing that procedure to repair his UCL last spring, the 6-foot-6 southpaw has now made three rehab starts between the Florida Complex League Red Sox and Sea Dogs dating back to July 15. He has seen his pitch count rise from 39 to 49 to 64 in each of those outings.

Assuming he wakes up without issue Monday morning, Sale will be in line to make his next rehab start for Triple-A Worcester next Saturday, July 31, as the WooSox will be taking on the Buffalo Bisons at Polar Park.

There is a slight chance that could be Sale’s last minor-league start before he re-joins Boston’s major-league rotation, though Red Sox pitching coach Dave Bush recently told The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier that the club wants the seven-time All-Star to be at a point where he contribute five to six innings on 80 or so pitches every five days prior to him being activated off the injured list.

(Picture of Chris Sale: Matt Stone/MediaNews Group/Boston Herald via Getty Images)