Throughout the spring, Alex Cora teased reporters who asked the identity of his closer, saying all would be revealed in the season opener.
Now, however, Cora is willing to wait a little longer to make that determination.
Meeting with reporters the day before Opening Day at Yankee Stadium, Cora said he would not designate someone for that role right away and would instead rely on matchups for the ninth inning.
Cora added that it was hope that Matt Barnes would pitch his way back into that role.
"Perfect case scenario: we get that guy from the first half last year,'' said Cora. "At that moment, he was the best reliever in baseball, and (hopefully) we can get him back.''
Barnes had a fabulous first half last season (2.61 ERA, 19 saves, 0.895 WHIP) and an abysmal second half (6.48 ERA, five saves, 1.620 WHIP), forfeiting his title, and also, keeping him off the postseason roster.
This spring, Barnes also saw a troubling dip in velocity, with his fastball at 92-93 mph rather than the customary 95-96 mph. In the last week, some video study identified a delivery flaw and Barnes has tried to be more compact, resulting in an uptick in velocity.
The Red Sox are hoping that trend continues in the first week, at which point Barnes may reclaim the job.
"Whenever it comes,'' said Cora, "if gets that back, it will be great for us. We trust him. It's just a matter of getting the stuff back to where it should. If he does that, hopefully it's him. That's my goal - to get him back in that spot.''
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The Sox officially submitted their Opening Day roster to the commissioner's office.
Making the roster were RHP Hansel Robles, 1B Travis Shaw and INF Jonathan Arauz.
Robles arrived late, in part because of visa issues and got into just two games. But he threw frequently at the team's training academy in the Dominican, and the Sox are convinced he's built up sufficient arm strength.
LHP Josh Taylor was placed on the 10-day IL, retroactive to April 4, Taylor battled lower back issues for much of the spring.
Meanwhile, Tyler Danish, a surprise addition to the 40-man roster earlier in the week, was optioned to Triple A Worcester.
Finally, Eduard Bazardo and Ralph Garza Jr. were designated for assignment. Garza was then quickly claimed by the Tampa Bay Rays.
The fact that the Sox DFA'd Bazardo was something of a surprise. He made two appearances with the big league club last year and had been viewed as a depth option for the bullpen this season. Strangely, he appeared in just two Grapefruit League games this spring.
Garza is the third player DFA'd by the Red Sox to be claimed in the last few weeks -- Jeisson Rosario and Kyle Tyler were the others -- a sign that the team's prospect talent base is stronger than it's been in recent seasons.
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Xander Bogaerts confirmed that he and the Red Sox had brief contract extension discussions in the last week, but they went nowhere.
It was three years ago this week that Bogaerts signed a contract extension with the team, but when asked if he thought that might happen again, he was quick to flatly answer: No.''
Bogaerts' current deal has an opt-out clause after 2022.
Bogaerts was then asked if he was disappointed that a new deal wasn't agreed upon.
"I mean, I can't do nothing about it right now,'' he said. "I've got a season coming up in front of me and I don't want to put any of my teammates through that type of distraction. They don't deserve that. We had time to get something done, it didn't work out, so I'll just try to go back to (focusing on) baseball. We had a great year last year so expectations are high this year and we've got to go out and finish the job. Yes (they made an offer), but it didn't work out, so we'll see how it goes from there. It's behind us now.''
Meanwhile, Nathan Eovaldi, who will make his third straight Opening Day start for the Sox Friday, is eligible for free agency after this season. Eovaldi said he did not engage in contract extension talks with the club this spring.
"We didn't have a chance, really, to talk about it,'' said Eovaldi. "I don't know if it was in the plan or not.''
Asked if he'd be willing to engage in talks once the season begins, Eovaldi said: "I'd be willing to (talk), but I want to make sure I go out there and focus on what I have to do. As long as I'm able to take care of my business, it should make it easier for them to make the decision they choose.''