I mean come on.
No one expected much out of Hunter Dobbins back when pitchers and catchers first reported in February. But his 59.1 perfectly cromulent innings this year have been huge for a Red Sox pitching staff that, outside of Garrett Crochet, really struggles to find consistency. So it hurts, then, to hear that Dobbins will be going the shelf with an elbow strain. As of now he’s only going on the 15-day IL and he doesn’t sound too concerned, but we’re talking about young pitchers and bad elbows, so we all know where this could be heading. Richard Fitts will take his place on the roster. (Tim Healey, Boston Globe)
The Red Sox, notably, did get two big league-ready pitchers back from the Giants in the Rafael Devers trade: Jordan Hicks and Kyle Harrison. But both are beginning their Red Sox tenures in Worcester, with Hicks rehabbing from a toe injury and Harrison trying to add to his arsenal. Hicks struggled in his recent rehab outing while Harrison will make his debut on Thrusday. (Chris Cotillo, MassLive)
Of course quality pitching can only carry you so far when the Red Sox defense continues to be so mistake-prone. (Peter Abraham, Boston Globe)
Can’t blame Kristian Campbell for the shoddy defense anymore. He’s down in Worcester, too. In fact, he’s going to be staying in Worcester while the team goes on the road this week, as the Sox coaching staff wants to give him some extra instruction outside of the game setting. (Sean McAdam, MassLive)
While he’s down there, Campbell also took some time to shoot down the rumors that Rafael Devers was upset with the former working out at first base, saying that Devers is “a very kind person and a good teammate.” (Andrew Gould, NESN)
With Devers off the books, the Red Sox theoretically have some money freed up for this offseason. Here’s an early look at some pending free agents who could be good fits. (Connor Ryan, Boston.com)