It didn’t go unnoticed that Justin Slaten spent three days in a row without pitching for the Boston Red Sox, especially on Tuesday when his team had the lead in the seventh inning by only one run.
Alex Cora decided to use Zack Kelly to replace Garrett Crochet after the lefty pitched 6.1 innings, allowing two runs and striking out seven.
“He got worse yesterday,” Cora said before Wednesday’s game after placing Justin Slaten on the 15-day IL. “This morning we were waiting to see if he was feeling better, but he didn’t. I feel the smart move here is, with the past injury, is shut him down instead of pushing. Hopefully, he is back in 15 days.”
The Red Sox recalled Tyler Samaniego, who made his MLB debut against the Milwaukee Brewers in the series finale, and he struck out the side to start his major league career.
“Good stuff,” Cora said about the rookie. “When we pull the trade, he was a guy that we really wanted. He pan the strike zone, uncomfortable for lefties. We got a bunch of them. Now the mix and matching is different that it was two days ago.”
Cora now has four lefties in his bullpen, including Aroldis Chapman, Danny Coulombe, and Jovani Morán.
“Moran has done a good job and Danny too,” the manager told the media. “I am comfortable. We did last year. The way the rotation looks, obviously, three lefties. We got St. Louis, then Minnesota, Detroit and New York. A bunch of lefties (are) coming up. Having all of them here makes a lot of sense”.
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«It seems that Zack Kelly is the favorite to take Slaten’s role while he is on the injured list. “Weissert is a guy we can also rely on,” Cora added. “I know he gave up three homers, but he is a guy we trust. He is a big part and we need him. We are going to mix and match.” Cora didn’t hesitate to say that if he even needs Garrett Whitlock in the seventh inning, he will use him.
Photo: MLB.com
