Red Sox Nearing Return of 12-Year Veteran for Twins Series

The Boston Red Sox should have a reinforcement back in the mix for the Minnesota Twins series.

Apr 29, 2021; Arlington, Texas, USA; A view of the Boston Red Sox logo and a field bag during batting practice before the game between the Texas Rangers and the Boston Red Sox at Globe Life Field. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

The Boston Red Sox should have a veteran arm back in the mix over the course of the weekend.

Boston has been waiting to get veteran lefty Danny Coulombe back into the mix. He hasn't pitched in a big league game since May 1 and has been dealing with cervical spasms in his neck. Coulombe made two minor league rehab appearances and allowed one run in 1 2/3 total innings.

Now, he's working his way back to the majors and that should come this weekend against the Minnesota Twins. Alex Speier of The Boston Globe shared that the club expects to activate the veteran this weekend.

"The Sox expect Coulombe to be activated this weekend. He threw a side today," Speier wrote on Friday.

That's not all. Tommy Cassell of the Worcester T&G Sports reported on Friday that Coulombe was not with the Triple-A Worcester Red Sox.

The Red Sox Should Get A Piece Back This Weekend

Apr 11, 2026; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; Boston Red Sox pitcher Danny Coulombe (67) pitches against the St. Louis Cardinals during the seventh inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images | Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

"Danny Coulombe is currently not with the Worcester Red Sox — and I believe [Nat Gordon] had earlier that the rehabbing lefty threw a side session earlier today and is expected to be activated at some point this weekend with the Boston Red Sox," Cassell wrote.

The Red Sox had an uncharacteristically tough night for the bullpen on Friday. Payton Tolle allowed three runs in six innings of work and then the bullpen followed up and allowed five runs in three innings. Justin Slaten blew up and allowed four earned runs and then Tyler Samaniego allowed an unearned run.

That's certainly not the expectation with this Red Sox bullpen. Right now, Boston has the fourth-best bullpen ERA in the game at 3.13.

Getting Coulombe back will give the club another veteran lefty who can play a big role. He had a 5.63 ERA in 12 outings before going on the Injured List. Clearly, something was up because this is the same guy who had a 2.30 ERA in 55 outings last year. He actually hasn't finished a season with an ERA above 2.81 since he had a 3.67 ERA back in 2021.

If he's healthy now, that should give Boston a significant lift in what has already been a very good bullpen. It will be a tough decision to see who comes out of the bullpen for Boston. Arguably, the answer should be Ryan Watson, despite the Rule 5 Draft rules. At this point, Watson arguably hasn't done enough to stay on the big league roster.