Waving flag with Boston Red Sox professional team logo. Editorial 3D
With Lucas Giolito facing the possibility of undergoing season-ending elbow surgery, the Red Sox’ starting rotation has taken a massive hit in the weeks leading up to Opening Day.
One of the main storylines at spring training camp in Fort Myers so far has been the composition of Boston’s rotation. Giolito was expected to provide that group with a durable workhorse after signing a two-year, $38.5 million contract in January, but those plans now appear to be in serious jeopardy.
Instead, the Red Sox will now need other pitchers to step up in the wake of Giolito’s potential lengthy absence. Of the internal options who could help fill in, Cooper Criswell is among those who were singled out by both manager Alex Cora and chief baseball officer Craig Breslow on Tuesday.
Criswell was, of course, the first major-league free agent to sign with the Red Sox after Breslow replaced Chaim Bloom this past fall. The 27-year-old right-hander inked a one-year, $1 million contract with Boston on December 13 and was instructed by both Breslow and pitching coach Andrew Bailey to prepare as a starter heading into camp.
“They want me to come to spring training prepared to be a starter,” Criswell told MassLive.com’s Christopher Smith at Red Sox Winter Weekend back in January. “Just because it’s easier if they want to move me into a bulk role out of the bullpen or even a reliever. Obviously it’s easier to transition from a starter to a reliever rather than a reliever to a starter. So I’m going to be geared up, ready for spring training to go as a starter.”
A former 13th-round draft selection of the Angels coming out of North Carolina in 2018, Criswell originally broke in with Los Angeles in 2021. The Georgia native started just one game for the Halos in his big-league debut that August and was then claimed off waivers by the Rays the following July.
Criswell again started just one game for Tampa Bay down the stretch in 2022 before seeing his usage surge last year. In a career-high 10 appearances out of the Rays bullpen, the righty posted a 5.73 ERA and 5.35 FIP with 27 strikeouts to 11 walks over 33 innings of relief.
Criswell was called up by the Rays on eight separate occasions last season and was then non-tendered in November. Despite being cut loose by Tampa Bay, Criswell — as noted by ESPN’s Jeff Passan at the time — found a solid market and leveraged it into a fully-guaranteed major-league deal with Boston.
Going into his first camp with the Red Sox, Criswell was on the outside looking in when it came to competing for a spot in the season-opening rotation and was viewed as more of a swingman type who could provide length out of the bullpen. He also has a minor-league option remaining, so him starting the season and remaining stretched out at Triple-A Worcester to begin the season wasn’t out of the equation, either.
In light of Giolito’s elbow woes, though, Criswell has now joined the likes of Garrett Whitlock, Tanner Houck, and Josh Winckowski as the leading internal candidates to make up the back end of Boston’s starting rotation out of the gate later this month. His case is also aided by the fact that the Red Sox may consider utilizing a six-man rotation to combat against a season-opening west coast road trip as well as a stretch that has them playing 13 days in a row from April 9-21.
“It would be unfair to say we overlooked him, but we just weren’t as familiar with him given that he wasn’t with us,” Breslow said of Criswell when speaking with reporters (including The Athletic’s Jen McCaffrey) at JetBlue Park on Tuesday. “I think what has been impressive and what we knew we were getting is an elite strike-thrower. I think there were some questions as to whether or not we can help boost the stuff and I think in pretty short order, it’s ticked up a little bit while maintaining the ability to shape pitches very, very well and pounding the strike zone. So I think he’s definitely put himself in the conversation.”
