Cam Booser continues to pile up strikeouts to open the season
The WooSox have four left-handed pitching options out of their bullpen following Brennan Bernardino’s recall to the Red Sox this past week. There’s one lefty that is impressing early on after a rough month of April in 2023. Hard-throwing southpaw Cam Booser continued to pull away from the pack and looks like he’ll be a viable option for Boston this summer.
Booser (2-0) tossed a scoreless eighth inning during Wednesday night’s 3-2 loss to the Syracuse Mets. The lefty threw 11 pitches, six cutters, three sliders, and two four-seam fastballs during the outing. He induced eight swings and six whiffs, and he saw his four-seam heater top out at 98 mph.
The Seattle, Washington native has 10 strikeouts in 4 2/3 innings to open the new season and lowered his ERA to 3.86 and has an impressive 0.86 WHIP. He is second on the team, tied with starter Grant Gambrell with the 10 strikeouts, they only trail Jason Alexander who leads the staff with 11 punch outs.
Booser spent all of last season with the WooSox, pitching in 48 games, he had one save, four holds with 66 strikeouts to 24 walks, and gave up 11 homers.
The month of April last year didn’t treat the lefty well; opponents tore the cover off the ball when he pitched, batting .354 against Booser. He posted a 9.58 ERA and gave up 17 hits, 11 earned runs, three homers, walked four, and struck out 12 over 10 1/3 innings. The following month, opponents continued to hammer Booser, posting a 7.88 ERA while giving up 10 runs, seven of them earned.
Booser settled down in June, pitching to a 2.89 ERA, and owned an even 2.00 ERA in July. Down the stretch, to close out the WooSox season, he would become a trusted reliever out of Chad Tracy’s bullpen.
Overall, he recorded a 4.99 ERA in 48 appearances but pitched to a 3.30 ERA from July on.
While in spring training, Red Sox skipper Alex Cora praised Booser for how well he was pitching.
“He’s been great, man,” Cora said during the spring. “He throws 97, 98. Sometimes he hits 99. And he’s been able to land the off-speed pitches for strikes. He’s been really good. He had a great second half last year. Talking to (Worcester Red Sox manager) Chad Tracy, something clicked there that got him in the strike zone. And he’s been doing the same thing here in spring training.”
Booser could be the next lefty up for the Red Sox if they need another to complement their bullpen this season. Bernardino and Joely Rodríguez are currently on the Red Sox 26-man roster. Outside of Bernardino, Rodriguez, and Booser, fellow lefty Joe Jacques or veteran Lucas Luetge are other options for Boston.