Boston Red Sox: A bright spot in pitcher Marcus Walden

World Series hangover or not, very little has gone right for the Boston Red Sox so far in 2019. At least there is a bright spot or two.

Sifting through the junk that has been the start to the 2019 season for the Boston Red Sox, it’s hard to find anything worth value. There is, however, one gem in pitcher Marcus Walden.

Sure, the season is only 12 games young. Walden has only appeared in two games, but his strong outings have been part of a (mostly) consistent performance from the bullpen.

Consider Walden a silver lining that should be on the roster to stay.

The righthander started the 2019 season in Pawtucket, where he also spent most of last season. He went 0-4 with a 4.96 ERA after starting 2018 on the major league roster. Walden posted a 3.68 ERA in eight appearances with the Red Sox, pitching 14.2 innings.

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He had one appearance with Pawtucket in 2019, pitching 1.2 innings, before being called up to the main roster when Brian Johnson was placed on the injured list.

Walden picked up the victory in last Sunday’s 1-0 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks. He pitched two innings and allowed only one hit. His second appearance was in the home-opening loss to the Toronto Blue Jays. Walden pitched one inning, needing only 10 pitches to complete the frame, nine of which were thrown for strikes.

Walden throws a fastball, cutter, and a slider, and might very well be the long-reliever the Red Sox need. So far there has been plenty of opportunities for the bullpen. At 30-years old, Walden only made his MLB debut last season. Much like Ryan Brasier did in 2018, Walden has a chance to be a constant force out of the ‘pen.

And who knows, maybe some what he’s dealing will rub off on the starters.

No bullpen hangover

In the spirit of finding something positive when the season’s first couple of weeks, one has to look no further than other members of the bullpen. In what many ventured to guess was going to be a weak spot — and there’s still plenty of time for that to happen — certain members have been locked in through 12 games.

Joining Walden in not allowing an earned run in 2019 are Brandon Workman and Brasier. Workman has appeared in six games, tossing 5.1 innings of 1-hit ball. He’s also struck out seven.

Brasier, meanwhile, has appeared in five games, collecting two saves.

Matt Barnes was perfect in his first three appearances before stumbling in his fourth and giving up a run against the Blue Jays.

All told, Walden and these three other pitchers have combined to allow only seven hits as opposing batters are hitting only .114 against them.

This is certainly an aspect of the game to revisit down the line as is the horrid start of the Red Sox. For now, though, a silver lining is nice to find and on this day, that belongs to Walden.