Steven Wright continues to impress.
Wright was wild at times -- four walks Tuesday night -- and forced the bullpen to get to work in the sixth inning.
Still, in nine starts, Wright has given up more than three earned runs just once.
His 3.96 ERA as a starter this season is better than every other start on the roster except Clay Buchholz.
Argue, if you will, that knuckleballers are problematic because of the unpredictability of the pitch, or the risk of wild pitches/passed balls, and the difficulty of controlling the running game.
But if you view Wright as a No. 5 starter, he's pitched well enough to keep his team in every game but one. And that perfectly fits the profile of a back-end starter.
An additional selling point: cost control. Wright won't be eligible for salary arbitration this off-season, meaning the Red Sox can bring him back at a very modest salary - considerably less than $1 million.
Given the task at hand of bolstering the rotation, having Wright, Eduardo Rodriguez and perhaps Henry Owens as starters for 2016 allows the Red Sox plenty of financial flexibility.