He arrived in Boston after being ruled out by his staunch rival, the Yankees. Today, the grapefruit league is burning down in Florida …
Right-hander Garrett Whitlock is one of the most dazzling pitchers in Boston Red Sox Spring Training. Where did he come from, how did he get to the Red Sox spring roster?
Last December New York decided not to protect him on its roster of 40 and preferred to expose him in the Rule 5 draft. Right away, Boston opted to sign him. Thus, without much expectation, he arrived in Fort Myers in February to try to earn a place in the 26-player squad that will open the season in April.
Whitlock, mostly a starter in the minors, has been used as a reliever by Alex Cora, and he’s done it exceptionally.
Yesterday, Whitlock had his 4th spring appearance, striking out 5 of the first 6 Rays batters he faced. He closed with masterful work of 3 innings without liberties, retiring 9 of the 10 opponents to whom he pitched.
At the moment he has 9 innings, 1 run, 0 walks and 12 strikeouts.
Perhaps in the Bronx they lost faith in him after undergoing Tommy John surgery on his pitching elbow in 2019.
Whitlock, 6’5, is 24 years old and was selected by the Yankees in the 18th round of the 2017 drawing for the University of Alabama at Birmingham collegiate program.
“What Garrett did today (yesterday) was impressive, but the best part is that he’s been doing it all spring,” Cora told the media in Fort Myers. “He’s got a tremendous fastball. He’s consistent with her still down on the count. It was a great day for him. ‘”
Cora has already confirmed that he will include 9 pitchers for his bullpen, along with his 5-starter rotation, for a total of 14 pitchers by opening day, April 1.
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