Red Sox starter sidelined dealing with patellar tendon soreness

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Red Sox starting pitcher Kutter Crawford will be sidelined for a few days as he is dealing with right patellar tendon soreness.

“Kutter is a little bit behind,” Alex Cora said to reporters at JetBlue Park on Friday. “It’s been going on through the offseason. So he’s behind in his throwing program. I don’t know what that means as far as like a month and a half from now. But right now, he’s behind everybody else."

Cora added that Crawford has been throwing bullpen sessions but “it’s not with the intensity of the other guys.”

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Crawford made a career-high 33 starts for the Red Sox last season, recording a 9-16 record with 175 strikeouts to 51 walks over 183 2/3 innings. He was solid through his first eight starts of the season, posting a 1.75 ERA with a 24.3% strikeout rate but was bit by the home run ball last season, surrendering 34 long balls, the most in the major leagues.

Cora told reporters that Crawford was dealing with the same soreness last season but pushed through the pain.

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“He grinded through it,” Cora said. “The offseason was OK as far as the rehab. He had some good days and bad days. He’s been here for a while. He lives in the area. So that’s a good thing. People were able to treat him here. But it hasn’t kind of like gained momentum the right way.”

The Red Sox have plenty of pitching depth and candidates vying for spots in the rotation. New ace Garrett Crochet, Tanner Houck, Brayan Bello, and Walker Buehler are locked into the starting rotation. Crawford and Lucas Giolito will battle for the fifth spot in the rotation.

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