Tag: starting rotation

Red Sox to promote Matt Dermody for Thursday start against Guardians

Left-hander Matt Dermody will get the start for the Red Sox in their series finale against the Guardians on Thursday night, according to MLB.com’s Ian Browne.

Dermody, who already has a locker in the visitors’ clubhouse at Progressive Field, originally signed a minor-league contract with the Red Sox back in January and — up until this point — has spent the entirety of the season at Triple-A Worcester.

In nine appearances (eight starts) for the WooSox, Dermody has posted a 4.50 ERA and 4.05 FIP with 47 strikeouts to nine walks over 44 innings of work. The 32-year-old last pitched on May 28, as he was scratched from his latest start and was in Boston this past weekend as an emergency option.

It remains to be seen if Dermody will only be making a spot start on Thursday or will be staying in the starting rotation moving forward. The Red Sox, of course, have been down a starter after losing fellow southpaw Chris Sale to left shoulder inflammation last week.

Regardless, Thursday’s outing will mark the first start of Dermody’s major-league career. The Iowa product first broke in with the Blue Jays in 2016 and spent two years with Toronto, compiling a 5.33 ERA in 28 total relief appearances (25 1/3 innings).

After being released by the Jays in 2019, Dermody latched on with the Cubs. He appeared in one game for Chicago during the COVID-shortened 2020 campaign and another last August. All told, he owns a lifetime 5.60 ERA with 22 strikeouts to seven walks across 27 1/3 innings of relief at the big-league level. Dermody has also pitched for the Saitama Seibu Lions of Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball and the NC Dinos of the Korea Baseball Organization.

Standing at 6-foot-5 and 211 pounds, Dermody operates with a five-pitch mix that consists of a mid-80s slider, a low-90s four-seam fastball, a low-80s changeup, a low-90s sinker, and a mid-70s curveball. He is in line to become the ninth different pitcher to start a game for the Red Sox this season.

Dermody will need to be added to the 40-man roster before officially being called up. To that end, Boston has a vacancy there after designating outfielder Raimel Tapia for assignment on Monday. In order to make room for Dermody on the 26-man roster, lefty Chris Murphy is expected to be optioned back to Worcester after impressing out of the bullpen while making his major-league debut on Wednesday.

(Picture of Matt Dermody: Erica Denhoff/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Red Sox to call up top pitching prospect Chris Murphy, per report

The Red Sox are calling up top pitching prospect Chris Murphy from Triple-A Worcester, according to MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo. To make room for Murphy on the active roster, right-handed reliever Kaleb Ort was optioned back to Worcester following Monday’s 4-1 loss to the Rays at Fenway Park.

Murphy, who is celebrating his 25th birthday on Monday, will be active and available out of the bullpen for Tuesday’s series opener against the Guardians in Cleveland. Depending on how things play out, the left-hander could get the start in Thursday’s series finale at Progressive Field since the Red Sox have not yet named a starter for that contest.

In 10 outings (9 starts) for the WooSox this season, Murphy has posted a 7.71 ERA and 5.56 FIP with 42 strikeouts to 25 walks in 39 2/3 innings of work. His last appearance came out of the bullpen, as he struck out three and did not issue a walk over three scoreless, one-hit frames in an 8-6 loss to the Louisville Bats on June 1.

Among 87 International League pitchers who have accrued at least 30 innings to this point in the year, Murphy ranks 21st in strikeouts per nine innings (9.53), 77th in walks per nine innings (5.67), 37th in strikeout rate (21.6 percent), 70th in walk rate (12.9 percent), 27th in swinging-strike rate (12.1 percent), 78th in batting average against (.309), 84th in WHIP (1.91), 82nd in ERA, 61st in FIP, and 52nd in xFIP (5.33), per FanGraphs.

A native of California, Murphy was originally selected by the Red Sox in the sixth round of the 2019 amateur draft out of San Diego. He signed with Boston for $200,000 and was added to the club’s 40-man roster last November in order to receive protection from the Rule 5 Draft.

Standing at 6-foot-1 and 175 pounds, Murphy throws from a three-quarters arm slot and operates with a four-pitch mix that consists of a 91-96 mph four-seam fastball, an 84-89 mph slider, an 83-85 mph changeup, and a 73-76 mph curveball.

Despite the struggles he has endured with Worcester this season, Murphy is still regarded by Baseball America as the No. 13 prospect in Boston’s farm system, which ranks fourth among pitchers in the organization. MLB Pipeline, on the other hand, places the southpaw 14th on its list.

Assuming he gets into a game this week, Murphy will become the third player to make their major-league debut with the Red Sox this season, joining second baseman Enmanuel Valdez and outfielder Masataka Yoshida. He is also in line to become the 22nd different non-position player pitcher to be used by the club so far this year.

Ort, meanwhile, was initially recalled from Worcester over the weekend and appeared in each of Boston’s last two games against Tampa Bay. The 31-year-old righty pitched well, striking out three in two perfect innings on Sunday and tossing a scoreless ninth inning on Monday.

On the 2023 campaign as a whole, Ort has forged a 5.87 ERA and 5.31 FIP with 16 strikeouts to seven walks over 14 appearances (15 1/3 innings) for the Red Sox. With the WooSox, he has put up a 2.45 ERA and 5.29 FIP with nine punchouts to six walks in eight outings spanning 7 1/3 innings of relief.

 (Picture of Chris Murphy: Cliff Welch/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Red Sox move Corey Kluber to bullpen

For the second time in as many weeks, the Red Sox have moved a member of their Opening Day starting rotation to the bullpen.

During his weekly appearance on WEEI’s Gresh and Fauria earlier Wednesday afternoon, Red Sox manager Alex Cora announced that Corey Kluber would be joining Boston’s relief corps ahead of Garrett Whitlock’s return from the injured list this Saturday.

The decision to move Kluber to the bullpen comes two days after Tanner Houck put together his best start of the season in Monday’s 2-1 loss to the Angels in Anaheim. The right-hander allowed just one earned run on three hits, two walks, and one hit batsman to go along with eight strikeouts over six strong innings.

Coming off that solid performance, Houck will now get the start in Sunday’s series finale against the Diamondbacks in Phoenix. That responsibility was initially going to fall to Kluber, who has suddenly become the odd man out in a crowded rotation mix.

“We were waiting for Tanner to see how he felt after his start,” Cora said. “We’re going to make a change. Actually, Tanner is going to start on Sunday and Corey is going to go to the bullpen, starting on Friday.”

Kluber, 37, signed a one-year, $10 million contract with the Red Sox back in December that came with an $11 million club option for 2024. The veteran righty impressed in spring training and was named Boston’s Opening Day starter as a result.

Since taking the mound against the Orioles at Fenway Park on March 30, though, Kluber has struggled mightily, posting a dismal 6.26 ERA and 6.59 FIP with 34 strikeouts to 18 walks in his first nine starts (41 2/3 innings) as a member of the Red Sox. He allowed five runs (one earned) over a season-low 2 1/3 innings in this past Sunday’s 7-0 loss to the Padres in San Diego.

A two-time Cy Young Award winner, Kluber has only come out of the bullpen five times over the course of his 13-year big-league career. He did, however, make one relief appearance for the Rays in Game 2 of last October’s American League Wild Card Series against the Guardians.

“Well, we’ve been doing it for the last two or three years  having starters in the bullpen, and some guys we use more aggressively,” said Cora. “Others we’ve got to be patient, and the case with Corey, I think he came out of the bullpen last year in the playoffs, but he hasn’t done it throughout his career. 

“We’ve just got to make sure we give him enough time to be ready and see when we are  going to use him,” Cora added. “Obviously, we want him to get back on track, and back on track is throwing strikes, and this is something that he’s done throughout his career. He hasn’t done it the first month and a half [this] season. The stuff is … very similar to last year, but obviously the control and the command wasn’t there and we just got to make sure we keep making adjustments.”

With Kluber out of the picture for the time being, the Red Sox will now move forward with a five-man starting rotation consisting of Chris Sale, James Paxton, Houck, Whitlock, and Brayan Bello.

“We had that conversation with Corey and [he’s] very professional. He understands,” Cora said. “He signed here to be a starter, but right now he’s struggling and, you know, obviously the kids are throwing the ball well. There’s a lot of off-days coming up. So we decided to make the change.”

Kluber joins Nick Pivetta, Kutter Crawford, and Josh Winckowski as multi-inning options with starting experience available to Cora out of the Boston bullpen. Pivetta, of course, was jettisoned from the rotation last week to accommodate the addition of Paxton.

(Picture of Corey Kluber: Sean M. Haffey/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 place Garrett Whitlock on 15-day injured list with right elbow ulnar neuritis, recall Brayan Bello from Triple-A Worcester

The Red Sox have placed right-hander Garrett Whitlock on the 15-day injured list due to right elbow neuritis, the club announced prior to Friday’s series opener against the Guardians at Fenway Park. In a corresponding move, fellow righty Brayan Bello was recalled from Triple-A Worcester.

Whitlock was originally scheduled to start opposite Zach Plesac on Saturday, but that responsibility will now fall to Bello. The 26-year-old began the season on the injured list after getting a late start in spring training as he continued to recover from a right hip arthroscopy last September.

After making two minor-league rehab starts, Whitlock made his season debut for Boston on April 11 in Tampa Bay. He has since pitched to a 6.19 ERA and 5.98 FIP with 11 strikeouts to three walks over three starts spanning 16 innings of work in which opponents are batting .312 against him.

Whitlock told reporters (including The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier) on Friday that he felt something “akin to a numbness or tingling two side sessions ago, and had felt it sporadically when throwing pitches since.” More specifically, he felt it “a couple of times” during his last start against the Brewers this past Saturday.

Though Whitlock — who has yet to have an MRI — was unable to provide any sort of recovery timetable, he did say there were no concerns pertaining to Tommy John surgery, which he first underwent in July 2019 after tearing his right UCL (ulnar collateral ligament) while still a member of the Yankees organization.

Red Sox manager Alex Cora added further details, indicating that there is not too much concern about Whitlock and that the team is hopeful he will only miss two starts before returning to action. Of course, that all depends on how he responds to treatment in the coming days. Cora also said the Red Sox still view Whitlock as a starter as opposed to a reliever moving forward.

Because his stint on the injured list was backdated to April 25, Whitlock will not be eligible to be activated until Wednesday, May 10 at the earliest. The Red Sox have two off days (one before and one after their two-game series against the Braves) that week, so they could look to take advantage of that schedule flexibility as it pertains to their rotation when the time comes.

In the meantime, Bello will fill in for Whitlock and make his third start of the season on Saturday. Like his counterpart, Bello also began the year on the injured list after being slowed by right forearm tightness during spring training. He made just one rehab start for Worcester and made his season debut on April 17.

Bello has since posted a 9.82 ERA and 6.35 FIP with eight strikeouts to three walks in two starts (7 1/3 innings) against the Angels at home and the Brewers on the road. Though he showed signs of improvement in Milwaukee over the weekend, the 23-year-old was optioned on Monday as the Red Sox went from a six-man to a five-man starting rotation and added another lefty to the bullpen mix by calling up Brennan Bernardino from the WooSox.

It turns out that Bello’s stay in Worcester was shorter than expected since he is replacing an injured player on the roster. Regardless, the Dominican-born hurler will now rejoin a Red Sox rotation that includes Corey Kluber, Chris Sale, Tanner Houck, and Nick Pivetta.

(Picture of Garrett Whitlock: John Fisher/Getty Images)

Red Sox option Brayan Bello to Triple-A Worcester, call up Brennan Bernardino

The Red Sox have optioned right-hander Brayan Bello to Triple-A Worcester, the club announced prior to Monday’s series opener against the Orioles in Baltimore.

To take Bello’s spot on the active roster, left-hander Brennan Bernardino was recalled from Worcester.

Despite being optioned, Bello is still with the Red Sox in Baltimore, according to MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo. The 23-year-old appears to be the odd man out for now as Boston makes the transition from a six-man to a five-man starting rotation moving forward.

Bello, who began the season on the injured list after being slowed by right forearm tightness in spring training, did not make his 2023 debut until last Monday. In his first two starts of the year for Boston, the Dominican-born hurler has posted a 9.82 ERA and 6.33 FIP with eight strikeouts to three walks in 7 1/3 innings of work. He allowed three runs on five hits, two walks, and three strikeouts over 4 2/3 innings against the Brewers on Sunday.

Because he has been sent down, Bello will need to spend the next 15 days in the minor-leagues unless he replaces an injured player or serves as the 27th man in a doubleheader. In the meantime, Chris Sale, Corey Kluber, Tanner Houck, Nick Pivetta, and Garrett Whitlock will remain in Boston’s rotation.

Bernardino, meanwhile, was claimed off waivers from the Mariners on April 16 after fellow reliever Zack Kelly (right elbow inflammation) was transferred to the 60-day injured list. The 31-year-old southpaw has just two games of prior major-league experience, both of which came with Seattle last summer.

In those two outings, Bernardino yielded three runs (one earned) on three hits, two walks, and no strikeouts across 2 1/3 innings in which he threw 26 sinkers and 15 curveballs. The 6-foot-4, 180-pounder made one appearance for the WooSox on Friday and struck out two over two scoreless frames of relief against the Lehigh Valley IronPigs.

While he is up, Bernardino should provide the Red Sox with some much needed left-handed bullpen depth. With Joely Rodriguez (right oblique strain) still on the 15-day injured list, Richard Bleier had been the lone lefty reliever available to manager Alex Cora going back to Opening Day.

Bernardino will wear the No. 83 for the Red Sox, becoming just the third player in franchise history to do so and the first since Eduard Bazardo wore it in parts of two seasons (2021-2022) with the club.

(Picture of Brayan Bello: Patrick McDermott/Getty Images)

Red Sox’ Brayan Bello impresses in rehab start with Triple-A Worcester, could be activated from injured list this weekend

Red Sox starter Brayan Bello pitched well in his rehab outing for Triple-A Worcester on Tuesday night.

After tossing five innings in an extended spring training game down in Fort Myers last Wednesday, Bello faced more advanced competition in the Columbus Clippers on a warm evening at Polar Park.

Going six innings this time around, Bello allowed just one earned run on four hits, zero walks, and one hit batsman to go along with four strikeouts. That lone blemish came in the top of the fourth, when the right-hander served up a one-out solo shot to Clippers cleanup hitter Zack Collins.

Bello did not falter after giving up the home run, though. The 23-year-old instead retired seven of the last nine batters he faced and wrapped up his night by getting Collins to ground into an inning-ending, 4-6-3 double play in the sixth.

“I felt good,” Bello told reporters (including MassLive.com’s Katie Morrison-O’Day) through translator Jesus Quinonez of Telemundo. ““I was just trying to throw all the pitches in the strike zone, trying to throw quality pitches and everything went well.”

Finishing with a final pitch count of 81 (50 strikes), Bello induced nine swing-and-misses while mixing in a 94-97 mph sinker, an 86-89 mph changeup, an 82-86 mph slider, and an 81-83 mph curveball, per Baseball Savant. That curveball is a new pitch the righty has recently implemented into his arsenal.

“I felt my velo was good and I was also throwing a pitch that I’ve been practicing in the last couple days, a curve,” said Bello. “I feel good. My body feels good. I’m just trying to do the same work and try to rehabilitate well and try to put in the work so this doesn’t happen again.”

When mentioning “this,” Bello is presumably referring to the right forearm tightness that shut him down during the early stages of spring training and resulted in him starting the season on the 15-day injured list. Now that he is healthy, the Dominican-born hurler appears ready to make his return to the Red Sox’ rotation.

On that front, Bello said that while the decision will ultimately be made by the Sox, he believes he has made his last rehab start. As such, he will likely make his 2023 debut in this weekend’s series against the Angels at Fenway Park. If Boston were to give Bello an additional day of rest, he would be lined up to start opposite Shohei Ohtani for the first time on Marathon Monday.

Bello is not the only injured Red Sox starter who will be rehabbing with the WooSox this week. Left-hander James Paxton, who is working his way back from a right hamstring strain, will get the ball for Worcester on Friday.

(Picture of Brayan Bello: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox option Kutter Crawford to Triple-A Worcester to make room on roster for Garrett Whitlock

The Red Sox optioned right-hander Kutter Crawford to Triple-A Worcester following Monday night’s 1-0 loss to the Rays, according to MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo.

By optioning Crawford, the Red Sox have created an open roster spot for fellow righty Garrett Whitlock, who will come off the injured list and make his season debut against the undefeated Rays at Tropicana Field on Tuesday night.

Whitlock will start opposite All-Star lefty Shane McClanahan in the second game of this four-game series (first pitch is scheduled for 6:40 p.m. ET). The 26-year-old began the season on the injured list after getting a late start in spring training as a result of undergoing arthroscopic surgery on his right hip last September.

In two rehab starts with Worcester (on March 31) and Double-A Portland (on April 6), Whitlock allowed two earned runs on seven hits, two walks, and 14 strikeouts over 10 innings of work. He threw 75 pitches (50 strikes) in his first outing and 81 pitches (56 strikes) in his last time out.

Crawford, meanwhile, made Boston’s Opening Day rotation out of spring training to help fill the gaps left behind by Whitlock and Brayan Bello. In two starts already, the 27-year-old has posted an ERA of 8.00 (eight earned runs in nine innings) to go along with 12 strikeouts to just two walks.

Though he got roughed up by the Pirates in his 2023 debut last Monday, Crawford bounced back against the Tigers this past Sunday by scattering five hits and recording six strikeouts across five one-run innings to lead Boston to a 4-1 win over Detroit.

As noted by Cotillo, the Red Sox could have optioned or designated a reliever in order to keep Crawford up with the big-league club by moving him to the bullpen. It instead appears as though Boston would prefer that Crawford continues to work as a starter in Worcester so that he remains stretched out in the event that he is needed at some point down the line.

With Whitlock’s activation, the Red Sox have just two starters remaining on the 15-day injured list in righty Brayan Bello (right elbow inflammation) and lefty James Paxton (right hamstring strain). Bello is slated to begin a rehab assignment and start for the WooSox in their series opener against the Columbus Clippers at Polar Park on Monday night. Paxton, who started for the WooSox in Buffalo over the weekend, is not far behind, either.

(Picture of Kutter Crawford: Paul Rutherford/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)