Red Sox Reportedly Reuniting With Southpaw To Bolster Pitching Depth

Boston was in need of left-handed pitching

Scott Neville | Feb 22, 2024

Red Sox Reportedly Reuniting With Southpaw To Bolster Pitching Depth /

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Boston Red Sox

The Boston Red Sox added some familiar depth to the organization with spring training games starting Friday.

Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow has been tasked with finding starting pitching and a right-handed bat with positional versatility as potential impact additions ahead of Opening Day -- but one underrated weakness was identified and addressed on Thursday.

"Joely Rodríguez re-signs on a minor league deal, source confirms," MassLive's Chris Cotillo reported Thursday. "He’s in big league camp."

Rodríguez was limited to just 11 innings with the Red Sox due to three separate stints on the injured list. He allowed nine runs (eight earned) in the small sample size but had a respectable 4.47 ERA in 50 1/3 innings with the New York Mets in 2022.

The 32-year-old southpaw joins a very right-handed heavy pitching staff that will rely on breakout reliever Brennan Bernardino to sustain his impressive play last season.

After Bernardino -- who is the only left-hander that has a guaranteed spot on the roster, the depth options include Joe Jacques, Chris Murphy and Brandon Walter.

That group could use some veteran insurance, which is where Rodríguez steps in. It's notable that Breslow was able to convince Rodríguez to sign a minor-league deal, as that means he does not take up a 40-man roster spot.

Adding upside players for minor-league deals always is a good idea. If he stinks for Triple-A Worcester, he can be cut for next to nothing. If he lives up to the organization's expectations, he'll be an important addition to the roster down the line.

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Published Feb 22, 2024

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