Tanner Houck is frustrating the Boston Red Sox and their fans. He's been trying to recapture last year's magic, when it's clearly what it is: magic. Houck wants to keep the fluke that was 2024 going, but there has been nothing out of that this year at all.
Last year, he was amazing. He had a 3.12 ERA with 154 strikeouts and an AL-leading 0.6 HR/9. In 2025, he has an 8.04 ERA, a 6.6 K/9 (the lowest in his career), and a career-high 11.7 HR/9. He was put on the IL after dealing with a right elbow flexor strain. He's been rehabbing in AAA, but is struggling there as well.
Now, the question is how the Red Sox and Houck will fix this dilemma. They've already decided to move him to the bullpen, and that's the most ideal solution for them. Houck was projected by most scouts by the time he was drafted that he would be most sustainable as a reliever.
In 2022, Alex Cora gave in to such predictions. After a terrible start to his season with a 5.70 ERA in just 5 appearances, he became a full-time reliever for their late innings. During the rest of the season, he had a 1.49 ERA, 33 strikeouts, and 18 wins on the season. He was excellent and was one of the more potent arms in that bullpen besides John Schreiber. If he is able to tap into that bullpen mindset like he did in 2022, he'd be an amazing relief arm out of an already potent bullpen.
Tanner Houck's journey is very complicated. He was amazing in 2020, with a 0.53 ERA in 3 starts. 2021 was great as well, albeit with some relief appearances in there as well, but not with much emphasis as 2022. Both of those seasons had his highest strikeout rates (which were both over 11). 2022 was his bullpen breakout, and then 2023 was a setback for him. 2024 was his peak year as a starter, but now in 2025, he's a shell of himself. If he's able to transition into a bullpen arm once again like he did in 2022, he'll be just fine.