The Boston Red Sox have a slew of players making strides in their rehab processes, which should lead to the weakest link on the team finally departing.
Garrett Whitlock is one of the more recent pitchers to be placed on the 15-day injured list, as he is dealing with an injury to his right elbow. Fortunately, he could be part of a cavalry set to make his way back to the ball club to help bolster the bullpen.
"Whitlock had a follow-up appointment (Tuesday) with a doctor and there were no ulnar nerve symptoms on the exam," The Athletic's Jen McCaffrey wrote. "He subsequently threw 20 pitches at 45 feet and plans to throw again on Wednesday."
James Paxton is another arm who we can expect to see take the mound for Boston in the near future as he’s making some great strides on his path back to Major League Baseball after sustaining a right hamstring strain in spring training. He’ll start again on Friday for Triple-A Worcester and is expected to make his way to Boston shortly thereafter.
Lastly from the pitching staff, Joely Rodríguez’s right oblique strain, which has sidelined him since March, appears to be a thing of the past.
“Joely Rodríguez begins a rehab assignment with the WooSox today,” MassLive’s Chris Cotillo tweeted Thursday afternoon.
With Whitlock and Paxton closing in on their respective returns to the big league, struggling right-hander Ryan Brasier likely will be pushed off the roster. If the staff were to remain healthy, Kaleb Ort would have no reason to be recalled either. Both hurlers have been a crutch on the team.
Brasier has a 7.98 ERA with a 12-to-8 strikeout-to-walk ratio and .259 batting average against in 14 2/3 innings this season.
While the pitching staff has the bulk of the injuries, the lineup is also set to see some notable improvements as a highly productive slugger may return as soon as next month.
“(Duvall's) out of the cast and wearing a brace,” The Boston Globe’s Pete Abraham tweeted Thursday. “He's been running (on the field in cleats today) and doing other conditioning work. No swings yet. Getting weekly X-Rays to determine when that will be. But generally feeling good.”
The Red Sox have a surprisingly productive offense so far but would still welcome Duvall back with open arms. As for the pitching staff, the bullpen has been strong -- outside of the aforementioned duo of Brasier and Ort -- but the rotation desperately could use a boost. Whitlock and Paxton could provide that.
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