Red Sox Taking Chance On Flamethrower In Place Of 26-Year-Old

The Red Sox made a decision on Thursday...

Mar 15, 2019; Tampa, FL, USA; Boston Red Sox hat and glove lay in the dugout at George M. Steinbrenner Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-Imagn Images | Kim Klement-Imagn Images

The Boston Red Sox made a move on Thursday to try to help the bullpen out.

Boston suffered its 12th loss of the season on Wednesday night as it faced off against the Seattle Mariners. The Red Sox needed some length out of the bullpen and Josh Winckowski delivered when the team needed him. He allowed two earned runs over three innings of work -- which isn't what you necessarily want -- but he threw 80 pitches for Boston and helped it save some of the rest of the bullpen.

He's made six appearances so far this season for Boston and has a 3.86 ERA over that span. He's going down to the minors at least in the short term, though. WEEI's Rob Bradford shared on Thursday that Boston is optioning Winckowski and bringing up flamethrower Luis Guerrero in his place.

"The Red Sox today recalled RHP Luis Guerrero from Triple-A Worcester," Bradford said. "To make room on the active roster, Boston optioned RHP Josh Winckowski to Worcester following last night’s game against the Seattle Mariners."

When Spring Training opened, Guerrero's name was one that was mentioned in the closer competition, although much less than some of the other guys'. He made his big league debut in 2024 and didn;'t allow a run across nine outings. He struck out nine batters while walking just two. He also was in the 94th percentile in fastball velocity.

Guerrero started the season in the minors and had a 5.23 ERA across eight appearances before Thursday's promotion. His stuff is pretty crazy and now will give Boston another flamethrower in its arsenal.

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