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Red Sox Seeking Back-End Starter, Right-Handed Middle Relief

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The Red Sox blanked the A’s last night, pushing them to 51-44 and tying their season high at seven games over .500. Paired with a Yankees’ loss, Boston pulled out of the basement in the AL East and sits just a game and a half back of Houston for the American League’s final Wild Card spot.

Chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom has said a couple times recently the team’s play leading up to the August 1 deadline will impact how aggressively they pursue outside help versus entertaining offers on their veteran players. The team seems to be finding its stride with two weeks to go, putting the front office in a good position to add for a playoff push.

Rob Bradford of WEEI reported yesterday the Sox are seeking to add pitching depth. He suggests a back-of-the-rotation starter and a right-handed middle relief option are on the target list.

Each of those player types should be attainable. Veteran back-end starters change hands every deadline season. Michael Lorenzen, Carlos Carrasco, Lance Lynn and recurring Sox’s target Rich Hill are among the impending free agents who are unlikely to require a hefty acquisition cost. Oakland’s Paul Blackburn and Cleveland’s Aaron Civale are middle to back end starters with multiple seasons of remaining affordable control. They’d be costlier from a prospect perspective than the aforementioned rentals as a result.

Various injuries have left Boston with a top-heavy rotation. James Paxton has been stellar since returning from two and a half injury-wrecked seasons, working to a 3.51 ERA while striking out over 28% of opposing hitters. Brayan Bello has improved his control in his second MLB season, resulting in a 3.14 ERA over 15 starts. Kutter Crawford, a midseason entrant to the rotation who has a 4.73 ERA over 10 starts, is the only other consistent member of the current starting staff.

The Sox are without each of Chris Sale, Tanner Houck and Garrett Whitlock. Sale recently began throwing again but is shelved into August by a shoulder blade injury. Houck suffered a facial fracture when he was hit by a comebacker in late June. He’s expected back this season but isn’t an imminent returnee. Whitlock hit the injured list two weeks ago with elbow inflammation.

With only a three-man rotation, the Sox used a bullpen game last night against Oakland. Nick Pivetta was brilliant in a bulk capacity, tossing six scoreless innings with 13 strikeouts. The 30-year-old righty is up to 35 innings of 2.31 ERA ball with an elite 38.2% strikeout rate since moving to relief in mid-May. Boston has been reluctant to move him out of a role in which he has been so exceptional. Cora said last night they’re planning to use Pivetta in a similar bulk capacity on Sunday evening against the Mets (relayed by Chris Cotillo of MassLive).

Adding a stable veteran arm to the back of the rotation would safeguard against any injury setbacks for Sale, Houck or Whitlock (or a potential issue for Paxton, whose own health history is obviously alarming). It’d reduce the chance of Boston needing to push Pivetta back into the starting staff at any point.

Boston’s bullpen, meanwhile, skews very left-handed in the middle innings. Kenley Jansen, Pivetta, Chris Martin and Josh Winckowski are the only righties in the current 10-man mix. Pivetta’s bulk role means he’s not going to be available for shorter matchup work on most nights. Jansen is locked into his customary closing role. That leaves Martin and Winckowski — both of whom have pitched well — as the only righty setup options available.

The Sox are soon to welcome back one key reinforcement. John Schreiber had a 2.12 ERA with a 30% strikeout rate in 18 outings before a lat strain sent him to the IL in mid-May. He’s made four appearances since beginning a rehab stint two weeks ago and should soon be back in the MLB mix. Schreiber would be a high-leverage arm if he quickly recaptures his pre-injury form, although there’d still be room for additional middle relief depth.

There are various righty bullpen arms who stand out as possible trade candidates. Michael Fulmer, Keynan Middleton, Reynaldo López, old friends Joe Kelly (who’s expected back from an IL stint shortly) and Adam Ottavino, José Cisnero, Chris Stratton and Shintaro Fujinami could all be on the move.

Red Sox Likely To Discuss Extension With Brayan Bello

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Brayan Bello is performing well enough in his first full season that the Red Sox seem to have interest in signing him to a long-term deal, with the club’s assistant general manager Eddie Romero saying as much to Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic.

“It’s all case-by-case, there’s no guidebook for it, but I think Brayan is a special case and we’ll make efforts to talk to him and his group,” Romero said. “He’s basically done what he needs to do and what we would want of a young starting pitcher in this organization and he’s gone about it the right way, he’s a great teammate and he’s improved the quality of his repertoire, he’s a very hard worker, and he’s earned the respect of everybody here so he’s the kind we want to stick around obviously.”

Those talks are unlikely to ramp up at the moment, since Bello’s preference is to focus on his performance while the season is still in progress. “If (the Red Sox) did speak to my representatives I don’t know,” he says, “because I told them if there are any extension talks I don’t want to hear about it in-season, because I want to focus on finishing my season good so that good things can happen for me.” But once the offseason rolls around, it appears he is indeed open to an extension. “I do want to stay here long-term,” he said. “This is the organization that gave me a chance to be somebody so I’d love to stay here.” Bello also expressed his openness to an extension with Rob Bradford of WEEI a couple of weeks ago.

It’s hardly a surprise that the Sox are interested in getting Bello to put pen to paper, given his strong results and the club’s need for long-term pitching solutions. He debuted in July of last year and make 13 appearances in the second half of the season, including 11 starts, posting a 4.71 earned run average in 57 1/3 innings. His 20.5% strikeout rate and 10.1% walk rate were both a bit below average but he kept the ball on the ground at an excellent 55.7% clip.

Here in 2023, he’s made 15 more starts with his strikeout and ground ball rates essentially holding steady but his walk rate dropping to 6.1%. That’s helped him drop his ERA by more than a full run to 3.14 for the season. He’s now been in the majors for just over a year and has a combined 3.77 ERA in 143 1/3 innings in that time and only celebrated his 24th birthday in May.

The rotation in Boston has many question marks at the moment. James Paxton is pitching well but is an impending free agent. Chris Sale still has one more guaranteed season on his contract and an option for 2025 but has been hurt quite often in recent years. The last time he reached 60 innings pitched in an individual campaign was 2019. Corey Kluber and Nick Pivetta have been moved to the bullpen, with Pivetta likely to stay there since he’s thriving and Kluber likely to have his option declined this fall. Tanner Houck and Garrett Whitlock each have plenty of club control remaining but both have struggled to stay healthy to the point that neither has hit 80 innings in a major league season yet. Kutter Crawford has a 3.74 ERA this year overall but a 4.73 mark as a starter.

Looking even further ahead, there doesn’t seem to be much immediate help coming from the farm. Bryan Mata is on the 40-man roster but has a 5.61 ERA in Triple-A this year. Brandon Walter is working out of the major league bullpen right now but has a 6.08 ERA in Triple-A this year. Some other non-roster depth pieces have also struggled, leading the club to sign journeymen like Dinelson Lamet and Kyle Barraclough to minor league deals.

Taking all those factors into consideration, it’s understandable why the club would want to keep Bello around. There shouldn’t be any terrible urgency, as he will finish this season with one year and 82 days of service time. That means he won’t be slated for arbitration until after 2025 or free agency until after 2028. But like all players, he will only increase his earning power as he moves closer to those dates, as long as he stays healthy and effective. Hunter Greene and the Reds recently agreed to a six-year, $53MM extension when he had five years of club control remaining, where Bello will be this winter. But players in their arb years can generally go beyond that, such as the $90MM guarantee secured by Logan Webb when he was between three and four years of service time or the $108MM that Luis Castillo got when he was beyond four years. That’s not to say that Bello is the same caliber of pitcher as those guys or that the Sox would have to pay that kind of money, but it does highlight the way that prices will escalate as potential free agency gets closer.

The Sox already have some significant long-term contracts on the books, with Trevor Story, Masataka Yoshida and Rafael Devers each making $18MM or more for each future season through 2027. But extensions for pre-arb players generally have the salaries ramping up gradually, roughly mirroring the scaling up process of the arbitration system. A theoretical Bello extension would likely see him earn modest pay bumps over the first few seasons and the most significant salaries would be after Story and Yoshida are off the books. Devers’ contract goes through 2033 but is the only Boston player guaranteed a contract in 2028 and beyond.

Given the aforementioned rotation uncertainty, the Sox seem like a candidate to look for starting pitching in free agency this winter, but they may also look to use a few dollars to lock up their best internal candidate as well.

Red Sox Designate Jake Faria For Assignment

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The Red Sox have announced they have reinstated left-hander Richard Bleier from the injured list with Jake Faria designated for assignment in a corresponding move. Chris Cotillo of MassLive reported the moves prior to the official announcement.

Faria, 29, signed a minor league deal with the Red Sox this offseason and has twice now been added to the club’s roster, getting designated for assignment the very next day in both instances. The first time was back in April, with Faria getting the DFA treatment without making an appearance. He cleared waivers and accepted an outright assignment before eventually returning to the big league club yesterday.

The Sox were trouncing the Cubs in yesterday’s contest, holding an 11-0 lead in the middle of the eighth when they put Faria into the game for mop-up duty. He did eventually record the final six outs, though he allowed five earned runs on four hits and four walks, throwing 65 pitches in the process. Since he’s out of options, the Sox have designated him for assignment again in order to get a fresh arm into their bullpen.

The Sox will now have a week to trade Faria or pass him through waivers. He’s been previously outrighted in his career and thus has the right to reject another such assignment in favor of electing free agency. The last time this scenario played out in April, he cleared waivers and decided to stick with the Sox. It’s possible the same sequence of events plays out in the coming days, though that remains to be seen.

Bleier, 36, came over to the Sox in the offseason trade that sent Matt Barnes to the Marlins. He tossed 20 innings with a 5.85 ERA before landing on the injured list in May due to shoulder inflammation. The Sox have a $3.75MM club option for Bleier’s services in 2024 with a $250K buyout. He’ll have to finish strong for the club to consider triggering that option.

Red Sox Designate Tayler Scott For Assignment

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The Red Sox announced this morning that they had designated left-hander Tayler Scott for assignment. Taking Scott’s place on both the 40-man and active rosters is right-hander Jake Faria, who had his contract selected from the minors in a corresponding move.

A fifth round pick by the Cubs in the 2011 draft, Scott is journeyman who played for five organizations in the minor leagues before making his big league debut with the Mariners in 2019 at the age of 27. In 13 appearances with Seattle and Baltimore that season, Scott posted a 14.33 ERA in 16 1/3 innings of work. He’d spend the next two seasons overseas, playing for the Hiroshima Carp in the NPB before returning to the majors in 2022 with the Padres. In San Diego, Scott struggled once again to a 7.45 ERA in 9 2/3 innings of work.

In 2023, Scott signed on with the Dodgers on a minor league deal before impressing at the Triple-A level with a 1.37 ERA in 19 2/3 innings of work. The lefty was unable to replicate that success at the big league level, however, as Scott posted an ERA of 9.00 in six innings of work with the big league Dodgers before being traded to the Red Sox last month. Scott’s run prevention numbers improved slightly in Boston, though he still yielded a 4.91 ERA in his 3 2/3 innings of work with the club.

Overall, the 31-year-old Scott sports a career 10.18 ERA in 38 innings of work at the big league level, though he’s had more success overseas and in Triple-A with career marks of 4.02 and 4.01 respectively. The Red Sox will now have a week to trade, release, or waive Scott. Should they successfully pass Scott through waivers, the Red Sox will have the opportunity to outright Scott to the minors, though Scott could reject that assignment as a player who has previously been outrighted in his career.

Replacing Scott on the roster is Faria, a 29-year-old right-hander who last pitched in the big leagues with the Diamondbacks back in 2021. In 203 innings of major league work with the Rays, Brewers, and Dbacks, Faria has posted a 4.70 ERA (90 ERA+) with a matching 4.74 FIP. Faria is capable of pitching both out of the bullpen and as a member of the rotation, with 29 of his 72 career appearances in the majors having come as a starter. He’s struggled in 55 2/3 innings of work with the club’s Triple-A affiliate in Worcester, with a 6.47 ERA and 13.3% walk rate, though given his decent big league track record it’s nonetheless possible he could offer a useful multi-inning relief option to the Red Sox going forward.

Red Sox Notes: Bloom, Deadline Plans, First Base, Sale

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A little under three weeks ago, chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom wasn’t yet sure how the Red Sox might approach the trade deadline, or whether not the team might lean more towards buying or selling.  Since then, the Sox have been doing their best to force the front office’s hand, winning nine of their last 10 games and moving to a 49-43 record.  The Red Sox are two games out of a wild card berth and, despite a competitive AL East and AL playoff picture in general, it looks like Boston will be some kind of factor in the coming weeks and months leading up to October.

That said, Bloom’s overall perspective about the deadline hasn’t entirely changed, though naturally he is happy with how the Sox have been playing.

“I think the this bigger picture of how we’ve gotten here and how it’s come through a lot of progress from a lot of good performances from our long-term core — whether that’s young players or veteran players — is really encouraging in terms of where the arrow is pointing,” Bloom told Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com.  “We’re gonna keep that in mind, too.  We feel like we’re making a lot of progress and we just want keep layering on more and more positive things toward that ultimate goal of a championship club.”

Bloom was clear that long-term competitiveness is still the front office’s overarching goal, yet competing this season certainly seems possible.  The CBO noted that the core’s development “has not only given us a chance to stay in this race in 2023, but I think has made us — and hopefully a lot of people who care about this team — really optimistic about where this is headed longer-term….Obviously what happens in the short-term, on some level we’re gonna need to factor that in and be responsive to it.  As long as we keep seeing the things we wanna see from our core guys, that’s obviously something that we’re gonna keep front and center.”

Trade talks have already been ongoing in advance of the August 1 deadline, and Bloom again implied that the Red Sox (like many teams) won’t be clear buyers or sellers.  The Sox could try to make deals that fall into either category, or they “might just be baseball trades that help everybody accomplish what they’re trying to accomplish.”  While the standings could certainly provide more clarity over the next two weeks, there are enough teams at least on the fringes of contention that Bloom feels “the [trade] conversations are just gonna require more creativity.”

While Bloom didn’t cite any areas of need heading into the deadline apart, Bloom did make a point of saying that the Red Sox weren’t looking for first base help, since the team is happy with its tandem of Triston Casas and (when he isn’t at DH or third base) Justin Turner.  It amounts to a vote of confidence in Casas, who has finally started hitting after a lengthy cold streak to begin the season.  Casas hit .184/.300/.342 over his first 180 plate appearances, but has since delivered a much improved .297/.383/.515 slash line in his last 115 PA.

Obviously the Red Sox weren’t going to just give up on a former top prospect who is only in his second MLB season, yet Casas’ recent results have helped solidify his place in Boston’s core, and as a contributor to their 2023 plans.  “Triston is learning and growing.  He’s clearly not a finished product yet, but when you look at the trajectory, he is moving in the right direction here offensively,” Bloom said.

Pitching would also seem to be a target need at the deadline, as while the Red Sox have a lot of injured arms projected to return relatively soon, there isn’t any guarantee that those hurlers will return on schedule, or be effective when they do return.  “Just because you have some of those guys that you expect to be back in action in August doesn’t mean you’re not looking to find other ways to help yourself,” Bloom said.

Chris Sale is one of those injured pitchers on the road to recovery, and manager Alex Cora told reporters (including MLB.com’s Ian Browne) that Sale is slated for a bullpen session on Tuesday.  Sale suffered a stress reaction in his shoulder blade and will be out until at least the start of August, as per the minimum absence time required by his 60-day IL placement.  Since Sale is only starting to throw off a mound now, it seems likely that his ramp-up and rehab work will keep him out for longer than the first week of August.  Sale also noted two weeks ago that his injury “isn’t a very common issue” for a pitcher, so it may be a while before a solid rehab plan is finalized.

Niko Goodrum Signs With KBO’s Lotte Giants

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Veteran infielder/outfielder Niko Goodrum, who opted out of a deal with the Red Sox last week, has signed with the Lotte Giants of the Korea Baseball Organization, the team announced (link via Jee-ho Yoo of South Korea’s Yonhap News Agency). He’ll be paid $400K for the remainder of the season. Goodrum, a client of Roc Nation Sports, will take the roster spot of former Dodgers and Rangers outfielder Zach Reks, who was cut loose after a knee injury tanked his 2023 season.

The 31-year-old Goodrum is a veteran of six Major League seasons who debuted with the Twins back in 2017. The switch-hitter has since spent time in Detroit and Houston, logging a combined .226/.299/.389 batting line in 1531 plate appearances between the three teams. The versatile Goodrum was particularly productive in 2018-19, when he played all four infield positions and all three outfield positions for the Tigers while posting a combined .247/.318/.427 slash with 28 homers and 24 steals in 964 plate appearances.

Goodrum’s 2023 season with the Red Sox’ Triple-A affiliate in Worcester was excellent. In 286 trips to the plate, he batted .280/.448/.440 with eight home runs, seven steals and a staggering 23.1% walk rate. Statcast credits Goodrum as a plus defender at both middle infield positions and a passable option in the outfield as well.

With a strong showing in the KBO, it’s possible Goodrum could sign on for another season in South Korea or perhaps head to Japan’s NPB. He’d have seven-figure earning power in either league, though it’s also possible he’ll look to parlay this year’s strong Triple-A showing and a (hopefully) similar level of production in the KBO into a guaranteed big league deal as a free agent next winter.

As for the 29-year-old Reks, he joined the Giants last year as a midseason replacement much as Goodrum is doing now. The 2017 tenth-rounder (Dodgers) hit .330/.410/.495 in 56 games and 251 plate appearances down the stretch, earning himself a $1.2MM guarantee to return ($1MM salary plus $200K signing bonus), but this year’s knee injury left him with a tepid .246/.338/.345 output in a similar sample size to his 2022 showing. Reks is a career .290/.388/.537 hitter in parts of three Triple-A seasons but has only received 44 plate appearances at the MLB level.

Big Hype Prospects: Salas, Merrill, Yorke, Hence, Mayo

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We missed a week while I was on the injured list (back spasms sustained while diving back to first base). There’s much for us to cover. Let’s start with some high-profile Padres. While the draft is tempting, let’s look in on those guys as they sign.

Five Big Hype Prospects

Ethan Salas, 17, C, SDP (A)
139 PA, 6 HR, 5 SB, .259/.381/.500

When we adjourned two weeks ago, Salas was batting .208/.340/.286 in 94 plate appearances. An 82 wRC+ isn’t anything to sniff at when we’re talking about a guy who’s 17-and-one-month old playing in full-season ball. Over the last two weeks, Salas hit .371/.467/.971. Including a HBP, he has as many free passes as strikeouts during the span. Of his 13 hits, he bopped five homers, four doubles, and a triple. That adds up to a 240 wRC+ for the hot streak and a 133 wRC+ on the season. If he keeps this up for long, he’ll find himself playing against High-A competition before the season ends. He’s “on pace” to debut as a teenager – a feat he can accomplish as long as he reaches the Majors before June 1, 2026.

Jackson Merrill, 20, SS, SDP (A+)
300 PA, 10 HR, 10 SB, .280/.318/.444

Salas’ future teammate had to grind through a rough April before turning a corner. The Midwest League is a difficult hitting environment. His first month of play consisted of a .188/.247/.338 performance. In the three months since then, he’s hit .317/.348/.487 while making steady improvements. Lately, he’s found a power stroke. Since June 14, he’s hit six of his 10 home runs. Merrill isn’t expected to be much of a power hitter. His carrying trait is an advanced feel for contact. He rarely meets a pitch with which he can’t connect. His discipline lags a bit, though it’s not as if he’s Javy Baez. An unsubstantiated theory of mine is that his early-season slump was the result of contacting too many pitches outside of the zone. The theory fits what data I have available, though I haven’t discussed it with anybody who would actually know.

Nick Yorke, 2B, 21, BOS (AA)
316 PA, 9 HR, 6 SB, .275/.361/.453

Folks weren’t sure what to make of Yorke’s forgettable 2022 campaign. The industry had a little chuckle when the Red Sox “reached” for Yorke in the first round of the 2020 draft. After a superb 2021 season, everyone adjusted expectations. Then 2022 happened. Some evaluators stuck with their updated outlook and blamed injuries. Others pointed to his subpar defense and wrote him off.

Yorke has rebounded this season – perhaps not enough to make up for his defensive shortcomings. His current 122 wRC+ depends upon a .353 BABIP. He also has 13.0 percent swinging strike and 25.0 percent strikeout rates. Historically, prospects with similar statistical performances have been prone to stalling out in the Quad-A bucket. For now, we should view Yorke’s rebound as a positive development. Perhaps more distance from his injury-riddled 2022 will lead to improvements in his quality or rate of contact.

Tink Hence, 20, SP, STL (AA)
(A+) 41.2 IP, 9.94 K/9, 2.59 BB/9, 2.81 ERA

Hence received a promotion to Double-A at the beginning of July. He also picked up a hold in the Futures Game. The pitching-needy Cardinals surely hope Hence can remain in the rotation. Alas, though he doesn’t walk many hitters, he’s not known for sharp command. His breaking ball is a weapon. It’s expected he should join the many pitchers who have mastered manipulating breaking ball spin for different effects. He doesn’t have a consistent changeup. Taken with the errant fastball command and history of brief outings, the relief risk is palpable. That said, Hence has yet to meet a challenge he hasn’t mastered. His Double-A debut was the first appearance of his career in which he faced more than 20 batters (22).

Coby Mayo, 21, 3B, BAL (AA)
347 PA, 17 HR, 4 SB, .307/.424/.603

With a 176 wRC+ on the season, Mayo is one of the top qualified hitters in the minors. He’ll play his next game in Triple-A, ending a nearly 500-plate appearance stint in Double-A. Mayo has traits grounded in the 2019 juiced ball era. He’s a pull-oriented slugger who generates plenty of loft. As a right-handed hitter, he’s not an ideal fit for Camden Yards. However, his power is such that he could overcome the home field limitations. It will be interesting to see if Mayo can continue to run elevated BABIPs into the Majors as this is a hitting profile typically associated with low BABIPs. Hypothetically, if a franchise-altering talent is made available at the trade deadline, Mayo would go a long way toward securing a deal. They’ll eventually have to trade somebody they like.

Three More

Johan Rojas, PHI (22): The Phillies are angling to get Kyle Schwarber into the DH slot. The plan would involve Cristian Pache in center and Brandon Marsh in left. If Pache doesn’t work out, Rojas has a similar reputation as a superlative defender who might hit enough to create a lot of value. In 354 Double-A plate appearances, Rojas is batting .306/.361/.484 with nine homers and 30 steals. He’s on the 40-man roster.

River Ryan, LAD (24): The latest pitcher to pop in the Dodgers system, Ryan features a promising four-pitch repertoire. In the month of June, he tossed two five-inning no-hitters. His command hasn’t been particularly sharp. Even across those two no-nos, Ryan issued four walks and hit three batters. It’s thought he’ll eventually develop better command. If not, he has a relief floor.

Ignacio Alvarez, ATL (20): A ripped shortstop who recently turned 20, Alvarez evokes Yandy Diaz right down to the comical biceps, low-angle contact, discipline, and rare whiffs. The comparison is hard to avoid. He might just be the next Brave to skip the line to the Majors. He generally keeps the ball on the ground with an all-fields approach. He’s expected to eventually move to third base, though he remains passable at shortstop for now.

Did I miss a detail or nuance? DM me on Twitter @BaseballATeam to suggest corrections.

Ryan Sherriff Elects Free Agency

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Left-hander Ryan Sherriff went unclaimed on outright waivers following his DFA by the Red Sox and has elected free agency rather than accept an assignment to the minors, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports (Twitter link).

Sherriff, 33, held opponents to two runs on six hits and a pair of walks with five strikeouts in 6 2/3 innings earlier this season. He’d since been optioned to Triple-A and, after pitching well in 22 1/3 innings, diagnosed with a flexor strain that sent him to the injured list. The Sox reinstated him last week but immediately designated the southpaw for assignment, needing a 40-man roster spot to reinstate infielder Yu Chang from the 60-day injured list.

While Sherriff has seen action in parts of five big league seasons, injuries have frequently limited his ability to take the field. In addition to this year’s flexor strain, Sherriff has also dealt with a broken toe, a shoulder strain and undergone Tommy John surgery over the past five years. In 51 major league innings, Sherriff has a 3.53 ERA, an 18.5% strikeout rate, an 8.6% walk rate and a hefty 52.6% ground-ball rate. He’s also turned in a 3.08 ERA in 193 innings at the Triple-A level.

If Sherriff is healthy enough to get back on the mound, he ought to draw interest from clubs in need of some left-handed depth in the bullpen. That could include a return to the Red Sox, as it’s not uncommon for veterans of this nature to reject an outright assignment and quickly return on a new minor league contract.

Red Sox Outright Caleb Hamilton

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The Red Sox passed catcher Caleb Hamilton through outright waivers unclaimed and assigned him back to Triple-A Worcester, per the team’s transaction log at MLB.com. Hamilton has been outrighted in the past, giving him the right to reject the assignment if he chooses, but he’s listed as active on the WooSox’ roster for now.

The 28-year-old Hamilton appeared in only four games with Boston prior to being designated for assignment last week. He went hitless in six trips to the plate during that limited time and is now just 1-for-23 in his big league career, although that lone hit was a big fly during last year’s MLB debut with the Twins. Hamilton was batting .180/.285/.310 through 116 plate appearances with Triple-A Worcester prior to being selected to the MLB roster in June. In parts of four Triple-A seasons, Hamilton is a .206/.316/.377 hitter.

Boston is currently utilizing Connor Wong and recently re-signed Jorge Alfaro — whose contract with the Sox prompted Hamilton’s DFA in the first place — as the primary catching tandem on the big league roster. That’ll likely be the arrangement for the near future, at least until Reese McGuire is able to return from an oblique strain suffered on June 21. The Sox also have former top prospect Ronaldo Hernandez and 2019 tenth-rounder Stephen Scott on the roster in Triple-A Worcester.

Red Sox Notes: Pivetta, Houck, Bello

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The Red Sox rotation is facing a great deal of uncertainty headed into the All Star break. Right-hander Garrett Whitlock was placed on the injured list earlier this week with elbow inflammation, joining Tanner Houck, Chris Sale, and Corey Kluber on the shelf among the club’s starting options.

It seems their lack of rotation options won’t be cleared up anytime soon, as Alex Cora told reporters, including The Boston Globe’s Julian McWilliams, that the club has no intention of moving right-hander Nick Pivetta out of his current bulk role out of the bullpen. What’s more, Alex Speier of The Boston Globe relays that Cora indicated to reporters that Houck, who is expected to begin throwing again next week, could be ramped up for “a role other than starter” as he looks to return from the injured list. With Pivetta sticking to relief work and Houck seemingly poised to join him upon his return, it seems that Boston will be relying on bullpen games and spot starters to cover innings alongside James Paxton, Brayan Bello, and Kutter Crawford for the time being.

It’s easy to see why the club would prefer both Pivetta and Houck out of the bullpen. Pivetta posted a 6.30 ERA in eight starts this season prior to his mid-May move to the bullpen, but has become one of the most reliable relievers in the club’s bullpen since then. In 29 innings of relief across 14 appearances, Pivetta has dominated hitters to the tune of a 2.79 ERA and 3.29 FIP, with a strikeout rate of 33.7%. Houck, meanwhile, scuffled to a 5.05 ERA across 13 starts this season prior to his placement on the IL. While advanced metrics generally agree he’s pitched a bit better than the results would otherwise indicate, with a FIP of 4.24 and an xERA of 3.85, it’s easy to see why Boston would be enticed by Houck’s career 2.68 ERA in 53 2/3 innings out of the bullpen.

One pitcher who seems clearly ticketed for a long-term role in the rotation is Bello, who’s impressed with a 3.04 ERA and 3.78 FIP across 14 starts this season. According to WEEI’s Rob Bradford, the young right-hander was asked by reporters if the Red Sox had approached him regarding extension conversations, which Bello indicated they had not done. That being said, the 24 year old went on to express openness to the idea.

“I would love it. I love this organization.” Bello said. “I would love to stay here, but I haven’t really given it much thought.”

Of course, there’s no rush on any such discussions. Bello entered the 2023 campaign with just 82 days of service time, and as such is under team control through the end of the 2028 campaign. Still, early-career extensions have become more prevalent in recent years. Spencer Strider, a fellow young pitcher who inked a six-year $75MM extension with the Braves following his rookie season last year, is among the many recent examples of youngsters signing long term deals with their clubs at the beginning of their careers.

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