The Red Sox bullpen was dealt another blow today with the news that Joel Hanrahan will undergo flexor tendon surgery and miss the rest of the season. Most pundits were in agreement that the Phillies overpaid when they signed Jonathan Papelbon to a four-year, $50MM contract following the 2011 season, but Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe writes that the Red Sox might end up being the ones paying the biggest price for Papelbon's departure given how the Sox have struggled to fill the void at closer over the last two years.
Here's a look at the latest out of the American League East..
- Right-hander Steve Delabar has become a key contributor out of the Blue Jays' bullpen since joining the team last July, MLB.com's Gregor Chisholm writes. Delabar has a 2.86 ERA and a 12.7 K/9 in 44 games as a Blue Jay.
- As he approaches a $13MM club option year, Red Sox southpaw Jon Lester is looking strong through one month and change, writes Scott Lauber of the Boston Herald. First-year pitching coach Juan Nieves helped make some adjustments to Lester's mechanics and the 29-year-old has a 2.73 ERA with 7.7 K/9 and 2.6 BB/9 through eight starts this sesaon.
- Recent acquisition Alberto Gonzalez is nothing special, but the Yankees had to fortify their Triple-A affiliate's middle infield, writes Mike Axisa of River Ave. Blues. The Bombers acquired Gonzalez from the Cubs earlier this week in exchange for a player to be named later or cash.
- Steve Melewski of MASNsports.com makes the case that the Orioles' Manny Machado belongs in the conversation alongside Mike Trout and Bryce Harper as the best young player in baseball.
MLBTR's Mark Polishuk also contributed to this post
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