Chase Shugart poised for rebound in 2024 for Red Sox after positive outings in spring
If there was any pitcher that needed to have a somewhat decent spring on the Red Sox pitching staff, Chase Shugart might have been towards the top of the list.
The 27-year-old would have been the first person to you that because his 2023 season for the WooSox didn’t go as smooth as planned.
Early on in the season, Shugart found himself closing out games for the WooSox and had a very good two month stretch to open the season. Later in the season, the right-hander found himself on the development list after looking a bit lost on the mound at times. He also battled an injury that landed him on the IL, so it is tough to say if the injury influenced the poor results.
With 2023 in the rearview mirror, Shugart had his eyes set on a successful major league camp as a NRI. While I think most can agree that spring training stats are not the deciding factor on a successful spring, Shugart needed to come out of the gate putting up zeroes.
The Texas native did what he needed to do and threw three scoreless innings out of the gate. He proceeded to allow runs in two of his last three outings of spring, but there may be a good reasoning behind it.
It’s so easy to take a peek at the box score and say if a pitcher had a good outing or not based on what that line shows. While that might be a more accurate representation during the regular season, it is not during spring training. When taking a look at his stuff+ which uses the movement profile of each pitch to try and estimate how deceptive or nasty a pitch is, Shugart ranked the among the best in baseball through his first couple of outings.
Shugart allowed two runs in his inning of work on March 6th against the Twins when he faced MLB regulars Max Kepler, Carlos Santana, Manuel Margot, and Kyle Farmer.
He also allowed two runs in his two innings of work against the Braves on March 17th when he faced MLB regulars Ozzie Albies, Michael Harris, Matt Olson, Orlando Arcia, and reigning MVP Ronald Acuna.
Shugart took care of business when he faced lesser lineups against the Phillies, Tigers, Blue Jays, and Pirates.
The WooSox open up play this Friday as they open their season on the road in Lehigh Valley. The Triple-A bullpen was an area that new Chief Baseball Officer Craig Breslow heavily addressed this offseason. Shugart will get plenty of chances to show his spring was a great step in the right direction.
