Red Sox to lose rotation ace for season

(AP PHOTO)
Eric D. Schabell
Contributing Writer

The title of this article scare you?

It should.

As previously reported, the best starting pitcher on the Red Sox staff arguably has been  Steven Wright.  This was jeopardized by manager John Farrell in a National League game by pinch running him off the bench for David Ortiz after Big Papi hit a double.

Mayhem ensues.

Pick off attempt, dive back into second and Wright lands on the disabled list with a shoulder issue that has lingered since August 8.

We are now a month further and the recover has not gone as planned, with some shoulder bursitis making it impossible for Wright to throw his knuckleball, "...every time I threw a pitch with the same effort level and delivery that I had before, it hurt."

As reported by Sean McAdam, internal MRI can came back with no structural damage, but it remained more about pain management and the tolerance of the shoulder bursitis. I questioned this move and still would have rather seen Clay Buchholz as the pinch runner instead of risking your ace starters season.

Now it looks like we have have the worst case scenario.


With pain not subsiding, with Wright unable to pitch to full capacity on his last two starts, he is going to a specialist on the West Coast.

"It just got to the point going out there at 50 percent. The last two games I didn't have the same effectiveness with my knuckle ball," Wright stated. "I tried throwing through it and it's at the point now where we'll get another set of eyes on my shoulder."

Taking a look at the starting rotation, as of today, it does not stack up well with Wright out for the season and Buchholz in his spot.

That is a very serious downgrade, all in the name of pinch running a starter as Wright was expendable for Farrell.

It is now down to watching your news feeds and crossing your fingers in the hope that this doctor visit does not cause a shutdown for the remainder of the 2016 season. A season in which the Red Sox have a good shot at the postseason where premium starting pitching is a must, where starters need to go deep into ballgames to rest bullpens. 

Will the Red Sox lose an ace out of their starting rotation? 

We will soon find out.

Post a comment or via twitter @erics_redsox with your thoughts.

More by Eric D. Schabell