Even before the regular season gets underway, the Red Sox are dealing with an injury to one of their bullpen parts.
Righthander Ryan Brasier, expected to one of the team's high-leverage options, is still recovering from a small fracture below his right pinkie finger and is almost certain not to be ready for Opening Day.
The injury, previously undisclosed by the club, took place during an offseason workout, manager Alex Cora revealed Sunday.
Brasier also lost some recovery time last month when he returned to Texas for a personal matter.
With Opening Day less than three weeks away, Brasier has yet to pitch in a game and there is currently no timetable for when that will take place.
"He's progressing, actually,'' said Cora. "He feels good about it. But I think the time he missed early in camp, it put him behind his schedule. We have to be smart about it. He's very important for us. We don't want to push him. I know he wants to do it and we appreciate that, but at the same time, we have to be very smart with him because he's a very important part of our bullpen.''
Brasier was projected to be a late-inning option, grouped with newcomers Adam Ottavino and Hirokazu Sawamura, lefties Josh Taylor and Darwinzon Hernandez and holdover Matt Barnes as the team's chief weapons in the late innings. Either Barnes or Ottavino will likely be chosen as the team's closer.
Brasier had a brilliant rookie season with the Sox in 2018, appearing in 34 games and posting a 1.60 ERA and a microscopic .772 WHIP. He then regressed in 2019 (4.85 ERA) and found himself optioned back to Triple-A. In 2020, he began slowly before regaining his form in September with a 3.18 ERA.
His projected unavailability means one more bullpen spot has become available for job competition. In addition to Barnes, Ottavino, Sawamura, Taylor and Hernandez, Matt Andriese is a lock as a long man/spot starter and Rule 5 selection Garrett Whitlock should make the team as another.
With the Sox expected to go with a nine-man bullpen to start the year, that leaves two spots up for grabs, with Colten Brewer, Austin Brice and Phillips Valdez among those in the running.
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