Red Sox Lose Top Relief Pitcher to IL

If things couldn’t be more dower for the Boston Red Sox, it will now be without its top relief pitcher Garrett Whitlock for the next couple weeks.

The Red Sox placed Whitlock on the 15-day injured list on Thursday with left knee inflammation. This comes after his previous outing on Sunday against the Minnesota Twins.

Whitlock had shared with members of the media that the cause of the inflammation stemmed from slipping on the mound during his warm up pitches where he hyperextended his knee.

“First warmup pitch on Sunday, obviously, the conditions were super wet, I kind of slipped and hyperextended my knee and everything,” Whitlock said according to MLB.com.

The right-hander has been a bright spot on the Red Sox pitching staff this season posting a 3.20 ERA in 20 relief appearances throughout the season.

Interim manager Chad Tracy shared that Whitlock received an injection prior to the team’s 8-0 win over the Atlanta Braves on Wednesday.

Boston will now prepare to welcome the Baltimore Orioles to town beginning a three game series on June 2.

Patrick Dowd is a contributor for Ball Exclusives. You can follow him on Twitter, via Pat_Dowd77