Red Sox' Hunter Dobbins diagnosed with torn ACL following injury Friday night; what options are on the table for rotation moving forward?

Red Sox rookie starting pitcher Hunter Dobbins came up hobbling after he covered first base during the second inning of Friday night’s dramatic win over the Rays.

At the time, it wasn’t clear what exactly happened to Dobbins, other than the team calling it a right knee injury. An MRI late on Friday revealed Dobbins had structural damage to his right knee. The Sox announced that Dobbins has a torn right ACL (anterior cruciate ligament). He will miss the rest of the regular season.

Boston recalled right-hander Richard Fitts from Triple-A Worcester to take his place on the 26-man roster.

Dobbins’ latest injury is a massive setback for the young hurler, who has put together a solid first season in the majors. The righty didn’t make the Red Sox’ Opening Day roster but found himself on the big league club after injuries plagued the team early on in the season.

The injury occurred as he was covering the bag, at first looking to retire Rays speedster Chandler Simpson. Dobbins caught the throw from first baseman Abraham Toro cleanly, and he stepped on the bag with his left foot. The trainer and Alex Cora ran out of the dugout to check on the rookie, who was limping and bent over.

“I knew what happened,” Dobbins said about his ACL injury. “You’re trying to come out here and compete with these guys, trying to win games, and then just to know that you’re done for the year is pretty tough.”

“He said he felt it when he jumped for the throw and when he landed, so we’ll see,” said Cora.

Dobbins returned to the mound and threw a warmup pitch, but grabbed at his knee after he landed following his delivery. He was removed from the game, and reliever Jorge Alcala replaced him with two outs in the inning. The 25-year-old had allowed two hits and a walk with two strikeouts in the outing before he was removed.

Friday night’s outing was Dobbins' first start since June 20, when he was placed on the 15-day injured list with a right elbow strain. Dobbins missed 18 games due to the elbow strain and will now finish the season with a 4-1 record, a 4.13 ERA in 13 games (11 starts), and 45 strikeouts compared to 17 walks, along with a 1.28 WHIP over 61 innings.

With Dobbins on the shelf, the Red Sox are down a starter who was expected to make an important impact on the team in the second half of the season. Boston will need to tap into their internal depth and will start by adding Fitts, who will replace Dobbins in the starting rotation.

"(Richard) Fitts is here now," said Cora on Saturday afternoon. "We'll set up the rotation after the break probably with him in mind and go from there."

The Red Sox have Tanner Houck pitching in the minors on a rehab assignment, and he is nearing a return to the club. It’s unclear what Houck’s role will look like upon his return.

"He's in the equation, but like I said, I think Fitts is the one who will jump into the rotation," added Cora. 

Houck made another rehab start for the WooSox on the road, striking out six batters and allowing a single run on three hits in 4 1/3 innings on Wednesday night. It was his fifth rehab outing for the right-hander, who has been out of action since mid-May.

Houck’s 30-day rehab clock began to tick on June 18, and the club will need to make a roster decision on him by July 17th. Minor League teams will also have their All-Star break next week, leaving Houck with nowhere to pitch, and Craig Breslow will need to make a decision as to what’s next for Houck. 

Boston can activate Houck off the IL, or they can option him back to Triple-A Worcester and continue to pitch for the WooSox before they need him in the second half of the season. It doesn’t seem likely Boston will option Houck with him pitching better in the minors, but he’s had a brutal season, posting an 8.04 ERA prior to his injury.

Houck would be better suited in a high-leverage reliever role upon his return. He could join Jordan Hicks, Garrett Whitlock, Justin Wilson, and Aroldis Chapman in the back end of the Sox’ bullpen.

Kyle Harrison could be an option to replace Dobbins in the rotation, but he hasn’t looked particularly good since the Father’s Day trade that sent him and three others to Boston for Rafael Devers. In three starts for the WooSox, Harrison has posted a 7.62 ERA with 10 strikeouts to five walks in just 13 innings. Opposing batters are hitting .351 against the southpaw, and he’s recorded a 1.92 WHIP.

“He’s going to be a huge piece for the Boston Red Sox for not only now but hopefully for the next five or six years,” Red Sox director of pitching Justin Willard said to Boston Sports Journal following the trade. “There’s really big potential here. I’m really excited about the kid, and maybe just a fresh start somewhere else will help him and get him going in the right direction.”

Initially, the Red Sox anticipated Harrison’s time in Worcester to be short as he worked on new pitches and shapes. Boston needed to keep him in the minors through July 4 to gain an extra year of control on his contract, according to SoxProspects’ Chris Hatfield.

The Dobbins injury now creates a true need in the starting rotation for Breslow to address before the July 31 trade deadline. After winning eight straight games, the Red Sox are sitting five games behind the Blue Jays in the AL East and are controlling their Wild Card destiny, occupying one of the three spots.

“I think if we’re going to boost the rotation, trying to find impact starting pitching, not just starting pitching that can take a spot in the rotation,” Breslow said Friday, before Dobbins’ injury. “We do feel really good about the depth that we have.”

Boston has been connected to Minnesota Twins ace Joe Ryan. The Red Sox and several other clubs are closely monitoring Ryan's availability if the Twins lose ground and fall out of playoff contention, according to MLB Network's Jon Morosi. 

“They could be a buy-and-sell posture with a focus on adding a longer-term arm to the starting rotation,” Morosi said on MLB Central on Wednesday. “Ryan has been excellent so far this season... I think he’s one of the best starting pitchers in the American League, and he’s only getting better.”

Ryan would fill a hole in the Red Sox rotation and could slot nicely behind left-handed ace, Garrett Crochet. The Twins righty has been strong this season; in 19 appearances (18 starts), he owns a 2.72 ERA, a 0.91 WHIP, and 121 strikeouts to just 23 walks.

The Twins hurler is under team control through 2028, and acquiring him could require the Red Sox to give up outfielder Jarren Duran and additional assets.

"I think that’s still the clearest way to approach a deadline," Breslow said. “I’ve obviously learned a lot over the last year. We’ll continue to learn. But we came into this season, and we’re approaching this deadline looking for opportunities to improve the club.

“We still have to understand what happens over the next three weeks, but that is how we’re approaching this deadline. We want to improve the team. We want to find ways to bolster the group. The play on the field exemplifies that. We’ve obviously put ourselves in a pretty good spot here with the way that we’ve been playing over the last few weeks and have reason to believe that we can continue that."