Ex-Red Sox Flamethrower Joins American League East Foe

Boston will oppose a familiar face this season

Scott Neville | May 9, 2023

Ex-Red Sox Flamethrower Joins American League East Foe /

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The Boston Red Sox are expected to face a member of the 2022 roster multiple times this season.

The veteran hurler reportedly will be joining an American League East opponent and will likely seek revenge against the team who traded him last summer.

"Left-hander Jake Diekman and the Tampa Bay Rays are finalizing a major league deal, ESPN's Jeff Passan tweeted Tuesday. "Diekman, 36, was designated for assignment by the Chicago White Sox and would replace Garrett Cleavinger -- who hurt his right ACL on Sunday -- in the Rays’ bullpen. Should be done in (the) next 48 hours."

Diekman spent part of the 2022 season with Red Sox before being dealt to the White Sox in exchange for catcher Reese McGuire and right-handed reliever prospect Taylor Broadway. Given Diekman's recent release, that trade appears to be a massive win for Red Sox chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom.

Diekman has a 7.94 ERA with an 11-to-13 strikeout-to-walk ratio and .244 batting average against in 11 1/3 innings this season.

While those numbers are horrendous, the fear is that the Rays will use their advanced analytics (and possibly some form of magic) to make adjustments and turn him into a dangerous high-leverage reliever.

Until then, we can look forward to seeing those matchups between Diekman and the Red Sox lineup -- which admittedly, is missing almost all of his teammates last season.

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Published May 9, 2023

SCOTT NEVILLE

Scott Neville covers the Boston Red Sox for Sports Illustrated's new page "Inside The Red Sox." Before starting "Inside The Red Sox", Neville attended Merrimack College, where he earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Communication and Media with a minor in Marketing. Neville spent all four years with Merrimack's radio station WMCK, where he grew as a radio/podcast host and producer. His propensity for being in front of a microphone eventually expanded to film, where he produced multiple short films alongside his then-roommate and current co-worker Stephen Mottram. On a journey that began as a way to receive easy credits via film classes, he received a call from "It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia" star Charlie Day. Day advised him to make a feature-length film, which he completed his senior year. While writing the film, Neville completed an internship for United Way as part of their NFL Partnership Program. Neville ran the blog for a team of interns and hosted an internet show called "United Way's NFL Partnership Series" where he interviewed NFL alumni. After college Neville wrote for SB Nation's "Over The Monster," a Red Sox sister site of the flagship brand. His work would eventually lead him to a job as a content producer with NESN, where he would cover all sports. After developing as a writer with the top regional network in the world, he was given the opportunity to join the Sports Illustrated Media Group in his current endeavor as the publisher of "Inside The Red Sox." The successful launch and quick rise of "Inside The Red Sox" led to Neville joining the Baseball Essential ownership group, a national baseball site under SIMG. Follow him on Twitter: @ScottNeville46 Email: nevilles@merrimack.edu