It didn't take long to pour hot water on the notion on the Nathan Eovaldi-as-closer idea.
Since returning from the injured list, Eovaldi has pitched in zero (0) save situations. On Tuesday, manager Alex Cora announced that the Red Sox may use Eovaldi as the "opener" on Wednesday against the Indians.
"Tomorrow, we might go with Nate as an opener. We'll see how it goes," Cora said. "Obviously on Thursday, there's an off-day. We're going with Rick on Friday, Eduardo on Saturday, and then we'll decide what we're going to do on Sunday. But I do feel that the schedule, finally this season, is our friend (to be creative)."
With David Price on the IL and Andrew Cashner moved to the bullpen after another lackluster performance, the Red Sox have a scarcity of starters. Getting three or even four innings out of Eovaldi on Wednesday would be an upgrade over fifth starters Hector Velazquez and Brian Johnson, who have struggled all season.
Eovaldi is coming off a scoreless inning on Aug. 11, but has allowed three earned runs in seven innings this month — and opponents are hitting .340 off him since he moved to the bullpen. His 6.25 ERA this season is a career-high by a significant margin.
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