Saturday Boston Sports Notes: Former Red Sox pitchers find new homes, Christian Barmore returns, Tyler Johnson out again
Former WooSox pitcher Jason Alexander is signing a minor league contract with the Athletics and will be assigned to their Triple-A affiliate.
Alexander joined the Red Sox organization as a free agent in February and provided depth to the WooSox rotation. He pitched in 29 games, making 27 starts, while posting a 7-6 record with a 4.42 ERA with 129 strikeouts to 39 walks in 138 1/3 innings.
Another former Red Sox’ pitcher is on the move; left-handed reliever Joe Jacques signed a minor league deal with the Dodgers, per USA Today’s Bob Nightengale. He will get an invite to their big league camp next spring.
Jacques split time between the Red Sox and Diamondbacks organizations last season. Boston designated the lefty for assignment, and then he joined Arizona shortly thereafter. Over 41 2/3 innings, he recorded a 5.40 ERA with both Boston and Arizona’s Triple-A affiliates.
The southpaw made his big league debut last season on June 12th. His debut wasn’t normal; he didn’t record anything on his pitching stat line before the game was suspended due to rain.
“Debut was pretty wild.” Jacques told Andrew Parker of Beyond the Monster, following his debut in 2023. “I was coming in with bases loaded in the rain with two outs. I was kind of glad I was thrown into the fire like that.”
The Patriots are adding a big piece to their defense this Sunday by activating Christian Barmore off the non-football illness list, according to MassLive’s Chris Mason.
Barmore is expected to make his 2024 season debut against the Rams, after being sidelined with blood clots in July. The 25-year-old rejoined the team at practice this week and is expected to have a snap count when he returns to game action. Patriots head coach Jerod Mayo told reporters that Barmore could be used in situational pass rushes as they ease him back into a regular rotation.
“For a guy who hasn’t really put on pads since January, it’s tough,” Mayo said. “You never want to just throw a guy out there coming off an injury, regardless of what the injury is, throw him out there for 50 plays. That’s unrealistic. I think we see what he can handle, and we’ll build from there.”
Bruins’ Tyler Johnson will miss his second straight game in a row as the team hosts the Blues on Saturday at the TD Garden.
Johnson signed a Professional Tryout Agreement with the team earlier this month and is currently dealing with a personal situation.
“Tyler Johnson had to leave Dallas for family reasons. I’m going to leave it at that,” Montgomery said. “He will be back at practice on Sunday.”
Johnson has played in four games with the Bruins and has no points. While he is out of action, Georgii Merkulov and Riley Tufte are with the Bruins lineup in place of Johnson and Johnny Beecher, who was a healthy scratch, and Patrick Brown was sent down to the Providence Bruins.
