The Boston Red Sox have had their pitching depth tested in 2026. Garrett Crochet, the ace of the starting rotation, has suffered numerous setbacks in his recovery from shoulder inflammation and has not appeared in a game since April 25. Johan Oviedo and Kutter Crawford, who were once viewed as options in the back end of the rotation, have all but been shut down for the remainder of the season.
Connelly Early was traded to the Washington Nationals. Garrett Whitlock and Justin Slaten, the two most reliable set-up men in the bullpen, both hit the injured list last week. If you haven't been paying attention, you would probably assume that those injuries have killed the organization's chances of making the postseason.
Boston has been just fine -- the starting rotation has a 3.94 ERA (10th in MLB) and the bullpen has a 2.95 ERA (1st in MLB) -- despite those losses and actually might be getting better here soon. Whitlock and Slaten got good news this week and could soon start their throwing programs. Crochet believes he could build back up to join the bullpen for the stretch run.
Tanner Houck, another injured starting pitcher who hasn't thrown to live batters in more than a year, could join them. I think he was averaging about 93 mph, which was encouraging in a live BP setting. So we got the ball rolling there.
If you're on a mound throwing to hitters and you're throwing 25 pitches, that's a good thing. So, obviously, he still has boxes to check being that that's the first time he's thrown to hitters, and it's been a while. But checking that box is a big one.
Being out on the mound and doing that, and actually, velocity being where it was and everything, it’s a good step, a really good step.” Houck, 30, is recovering from surgery on the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow, with the injury having quite the impact on his production as he followed up an All-Star campaign where he had a 3.12 ERA in 2024 with an atrocious nine starts that saw him finish with a 8.04 ERA before hitting the shelf in 2025. If he can get back to being the guy who spent the early portion of his career as a weapon out of the bullpen, the club will take it. It's almost time for the postseason, where there is no such thing as too much pitching.
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