MLB Hot Stove 12/13/2014: Red Sox Shuffle Up Starting Rotation

Red Sox Add Porcello, Miley and Masterson to Form a Rotation with Question Marks

Over the past few days of this year’s Major League Baseball Winter Meetings, the Boston Red Sox have made an array of moves to shore up their starting pitching rotation for the upcoming 2015 MLB season.

First, there was the somewhat controversial trade of sending slugging outfielder Yoenis Cespedes, along with minor league pitchers Alex Wilson and Gabe Speier, to the Detroit Tigers for right-hander Rick Porcello, who is coming off a year in which he registered career-best marks in wins (15), ERA (3.43), and WHIP (1.23), while surpassing 200 innings for the first time in his six years in the big leagues. The Red Sox hope he can provide that same workhorse presence and groundball profile in the middle of their brand new pitching rotation, after previously spending his entire Major League life in Detroit.

Boston didn’t stop there, as they then made a deal with the Diamondbacks, acquiring lefty starter Wade Miley for young right-handed pitchers Allen Webster and Rubby De La Rosa, and minor league infielder Raymel Flores. Miley just finished up his fourth year in the majors, and has now topped the 200-inning plateau in consecutive seasons. While he endured a down campaign overall, the southpaw has proven to be a reliable hand to lean on since debuting in ‘11, as evident in his respectable career 3.80 ERA and ability to eat up innings. If there’s one bright spot from his 2014 showing, it’s that he collected a career-high 183 strikeouts.

Lastly, the Red Sox added free agent Justin Masterson, whom they originally drafted in ’06, to the bottom of their pitching staff, in what figures to be a low-risk, high-reward maneuver. Masterson will certainly be motivated after enduring a truly horrific season in 2014 with the Indians and Cardinals, in which he finished 7-9 with a 5.88 ERA and 1.63 WHIP in 32 games (29 starts). It was so bad for the former Cleveland ace that soon after he was dealt to St. Louis, he was demoted to the bullpen and ultimately didn’t even crack the club’s postseason roster. Masterson will be seeking to recapture some of his 2013 luster, when he attained the most wins (14) and strikeouts (193) of his seven-year career.

Combined with ace-by-default Clay Buchholz and the intriguing Joe Kelly, it appears this will be Boston’s starting pitching staff come Opening Day. Additionally, the Red Sox also have promising youngsters Anthony Ranaudo and Brandon Workman waiting in the wings in case someone falters. Regardless, it appears the Red Sox starting pitching will certainly be a much talked-about topic as the season draws closer and closer.