Red Sox's Alex Cora Names Two Surprise Candidates To Make Opening Day Roster
The Boston Red Sox's bullpen depth will be challenged immediately due to the team's latest injury.
Newly acquired Red Sox reliever Joely Rodríguez injured the right side of his torso Saturday. While the exact injury is unknown, manager Alex Cora expects him to open the season on the injured list.
Cora then named southpaws Ryan Sheriff and Oddanier Mosqueda as potential replacements according to The Boston Globe's Alex Speier on Sunday.
Sheriff, 32, only has 44 games of big league work but has been quite effective in the minors.
The southpaw spent most of last season on the injured list with a left shoulder strain but posted a 2.51 ERA with an 18-7 strikeout-to-walk ratio and .255 batting average against in 14 1/3 innings between three levels in the Philadelphia Phillies minor-league system.
Sheriff has a career 3.65 ERA with a 36-to-17 strikeout-to-walk ratio and .243 batting average against in 44 1/3 innings in the majors, spanning from 2017-to-2021.
To call Mosqueda an underdog to make Boston's roster heading into spring training would have been an understatement but Cora's vote of confidence makes things interesting.
The 23-year-old has been with the organization since 2015 but has not pitched above Double-A in his career.
The Venezuelan hurler posted a 4.30 ERA with a strong 76-to-20 strikeout-to-walk ratio and .212 batting average against 58 2/3 innings with the Portland Sea Dogs last season.
Mosqueda has really popped in spring training, looking comfortable against the higher level of play and only allowing one run through 5 1/3 innings of work.
Despite being registered at just 5-foot-10, 155-pounds, Mosqueda can reach 94 mph with a unique curveball due to his three-quarter arm slot and solid changeup.
While Sheriff and Mosqueda battle it out in the Grapefruit League, Cora also told Speier another option is in play. The team could elect to add a long reliever to the Opening Day roster instead. That would put Josh Winckowski, Chris Murphy, Brandon Walter and possibly even Bryan Mata in the mix for the final spot.
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