Red Sox Make Belated Bullpen Move After Embarrassing Loss

After watching their overextended relief corps get pounded by the Dodgers and Astros over the last two days, the Red Sox made a belated roster move on Tuesday to bolster their bullpen depth.

According to WooSox reporter Andrew Parker, Boston is recalling left-handed pitcher Joe Jacques from Triple-A Worcester ahead of Tuesday’s game against Houston.

Red Sox Roster Move

Jacques is a familiar face for the Red Sox, as he was up with the team earlier this year. The 28-year-old lefty has spent much of the summer with the big club, making 17 appearances from June 12 to Aug. 5 before being sent down to Worcester.

He was a mixed bag with Boston, pitching to a 5.85 ERA, a 1.60 WHIP and a 2.8 K/BB ratio over 20 innings. His 4.22 FIP indicates he was victimized by some bad luck, however, especially on balls in play (.385 BABIP).

Any live arm is appreciated at this point in the season, but Jacques is unlikely to be a savior. While his numbers in Worcester were good (2.83 ERA and 1.23 WHIP in 35 innings), his low strikeout rate (7.7 K/9) makes him susceptible to hard contact.

The hope is that Jacques can be more consistent this time around, as he’s often been boom-or-bust in the majors. Eleven of his 17 outings were scoreless, for instance, but he surrendered 3 runs four times, which is simply too often for a reliever. Consider this move too little, too late.

We’ll see if Cora uses him in the coming days as the Red Sox fight to keep their playoff hopes alive. After losing three of their last four games, they’re now 5.5 games out of a Wild Card Spot and have only a 4.3% chance to make the postseason, according to Baseball-Reference.

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