Projecting the Red Sox' Opening Day Roster

Pitchers

Starting rotation (3): Brayan Bello, Nick Pivetta, Kutter Crawford

With the announcement of Lucas Giolito suffering what will likely be a season-ending injury, a muddled starting rotation gets even more confusing. Bello, Pivetta, and Crawford are all guarantees to make the starting rotation; the trio are all experienced starters, and there's hope that new pitching coach Andrew Bailey can bring out the best in all three.

Starters, relievers, or something in between (4): Garrett Whitlock, Cooper Criswell, Josh Winckowski, Tanner Houck

Even before Giolito's injury, these four all had uncertain roles. Whitlock has been a good reliever, but has struggled mightily when starting; Criswell has started in two of his twelve career MLB appearances, Winckowski was something of a failed starter before rehabilitating his career as an elite setup man, and Houck is a starter-turned-closer-turned-starter again. Nobody seems to know what roles these guys might play - not even GM Craig Breslow seems to have the faintest idea - but all four should make the roster in some capacity, barring injury. If I had to guess, I'd say Houck and Criswell will round out the rotation while Whitlock and Winckowski stick in the bullpen, but it wouldn't come as a major surprise if it shook out differently.

Relievers (6): Kenley Jansen, Chris Martin, Joely Rodriguez, Justin Slaten, Brennan Bernardino, Isaiah Campbell

Jansen, Martin, and Bernardino are all successful veteran returners from 2023; their spots are all but locked up. Justin Slaten is an intriguing arm who pitched to 86 strikeouts in 53 innings over AA and AAA ball in 2023. Isaiah Campbell is a 26-year old with 28 innings of big-league experience, but pitched to a sparkling 2.83 ERA in those innings. Joely Rodriguez is easily the least likely to make the team - he struggled mightily to open the 2023 season before missing several months through injury, but he came on strong near the end and projects to be a valuable late-inning left-hander.

Chris Murphy, Zack Kelly, and Greg Weissert all have legitimate chances to make the roster in place of Slaten, Rodriguez, and Criswell. Murphy got some up-and-down run as a long reliever in 2023, Kelly started last season with the team before a season-ending injury, and Weissert's thrown 33 mediocre innings over two seasons with the Yankees. Any of these three would need a strong preseason, though. Murphy is the most likely to join the team should a pitcher go down.

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