James Paxton placed on the IL, Nick Pivetta rejoins Red Sox rotation
James Paxton will likely miss the remainder of the season, after he was placed on the injured list with right knee inflammation, the team announced on Sunday.
Paxton lands on the IL following his last start where he struggled against the Royals. The lefty was rocked for six runs on 1 1/3 innings on Sept. 1.
Boston skipped Paxton’s last start to give him extra rest, he was expected to pitch in the upcoming Yankees series.
“He’s been barking for a little bit,” said Alex Cora. “We tried to push him back to see if he can bounce back but I don’t think it makes sense to push him. First thing’s first, the player. He’s been through so much in his career that at this point where we’re at, it doesn’t make sense. We’ll just put him on the IL, get another arm here and keep moving forward.”
If indeed Paxton misses the rest of the season, which seems all but likely, he went 7-5 with a 4.50 ERA in 96 innings in 19 starts.
Paxton opened the season on the IL for six weeks with a hamstring injury. The southpaw was excellent in the first half of the year, posting a 2.73 ERA before July 15. He struggled to a 7.62 ERA in his last six starts.
The 34-year-old will become a free agent at the end of the season.
Pivetta rejoins the Sox rotation, who currently owns a 3.62 ERA in 77 innings since May 21, when he went to the bullpen.
The righty has struggled over the last few weeks (5.97 ERA since Aug. 1) after posting a 1.88 ERA mark in 16 outings from May 28 to July 31.
Boston is expected to go with Kutter Crawford, Tanner Houck, Pivetta and possibly Chris Sale in the series against the Yankees.
Follow Chris on Twitter @ChrisHenrique
For additional Red Sox, Bruins, Patriots, MLB and NFL content follow Beyond the Monster on Twitter @BeyondtheMnstr.
Join our new Facebook group for all of our latest content, click the link here.
