Boston Sports Extra

Despite Drew Pomeranz struggles this season, Alex Cora said he would remain in the starting rotation. Following the acquisition of right-hander Nathan Eovaldi from Tampa Bay, this presumably leaves Brian Johnson without a spot in the rotation. If the Red Sox follow through with those plans, they will be making a serious mistake.

Minor League Career

Brian Johnson came through the system as a starting pitcher following a two-way career in college. He made 103 appearances during his minor league career, all starts. Not once, ever, did he pitch out of the bullpen during his professional career until this season. He made one start for the Red Sox in 2015 and five starts in 2017 in addition to his 103 minor league starts.

During Johnson’s time in the minor leagues, he won 32 games against 26 losses. More importantly, he pitched to a stellar 2.69 ERA and 1.13 WHIP. Opponents batted just .216 against Johnson. This wasn’t just beating up on the low minors, as Johnson was 10-2 with a 1.75 ERA in AA Portland. In AAA, Johnson still posted a very good 3.18 ERA. Minor league success does not mean success in the big leagues, but it shows his success as a starting pitcher.

Brian Johnson enjoyed great success as a starting pitcher in the minor leagues.

Headed to the Bullpen

After six seasons of exclusively pitching as a starter, the Red Sox put Johnson in their bullpen to begin the season. This was the right move to make as they didn’t have room in their starting rotation. Johnson was out of minor league options so he had to be on the club or would be open to waivers. The bullpen did not agree with Johnson, however, which really isn’t a surprise. Johnson is not the type of pitcher who typically succeeds in relief; he doesn’t throw hard, he isn’t deceptive, and doesn’t have a funky delivery from the left side. His stuff isn’t going to play up out of the pen.

Johnson made 21 appearances out of the bullpen, totaling 30 innings pitched. His ERA was much too high for a starter, let alone a reliever at 5.10. He was relegated to mop-up roles, and deservedly so. He put lots of men on base, posting a 1.47 WHIP. The only thing he did better as a reliever was striking out a few more batters.

A Spot Opens Up

Brian Johnson got his chance to start again due to injuries in the Red Sox rotation, and he took advantage. Over six starts, Johnson has thrown 30 innings – the exact same amount of innings he has thrown in relief. While working up his arm strength, Johnson has pitched to a 1.80 ERA over his 30 innings starting. His WHIP, although not great, is much lower at 1.33. He sports a 5.10 ERA relieving, but a 1.80 ERA starting, both in 30 innings. The guy is just built to start. I’m not saying he will post a 1.80 ERA for the rest of the season if starting, but he will pitch better there than in relief.

Johnson’s best outing yet was his last one, pitching 5.2 shutout innings against the Twins. The start before he allowed two runs, but neither was earned over five innings. He’s getting stronger the more they stretch his arm out.

Drew Pomeranz

Drew Pomeranz, on the other hand, has an ERA of 6.91 this season as a starter. Why is he pitching again? Yes, he was very good last year, but he has not been the same pitcher. Throwing a fastball in the upper-80’s, it practically screams “hit me” when he misses his spot. Pomeranz only has one outing all year in which he allowed less than three runs. Over his last five starts, Pomeranz is 0-3 with an unsightly 8.57 ERA. Opponents have a slash line of .330/.425/.560/.985 during that time against him. Basically, the average hitter against him is turned into an MVP candidate lately.

Unlike Johnson, Pomeranz has success as a reliever, especially at the Major League level. He didn’t pan out as a starter at first and was moved to the bullpen in 2014. He didn’t have to worry about pitching longer and his stuff played up. In 10 relief appearances that season, Pomeranz had a 1.62 ERA and 1.08 WHIP. The next season, Pomeranz pitched to a 2.61 ERA and 1.07 WHIP in 44 relief appearances. Compare this to his 4.63 ERA and 1.30 WHIP as a starting pitcher that season and it is clear Pomeranz has had much more success in the bullpen, by and large.

Maybe something isn’t right with Pomeranz and he won’t be effective anywhere, but that certainly doesn’t mean the Red Sox should be trotting him back out to the mound every five days to get lit up. Try him in the bullpen, where he has been effective before and see how he does.

It makes no sense to throw a guy pitching well like Johnson back in the bullpen, especially when he has had zero professional success in that role and when Pomeranz is stinking up the mound.

Featured picture from FanRag Sports

To round out the Red Sox all-time pitching staff I will cover their five greatest relief pitchers ever. This is the third installment of my series of articles. Again, this covers how good they were as a Red Sox, and longevity plays into it. Craig Kimbrel was crazy filthy this season, but to be included he needs at least one more great year, probably two.

Jonathan Papelbon

Papelbon is the best reliever in Red Sox history, and would be their closer on an all-time roster. Papelbon is by far the all-time saves leader in franchise history with 219. He accomplished this with a 2.33 ERA, 1.02 WHIP and 10.7 strike outs per 9 innings pitched. Pap made 4 All-Star Games with the Red Sox. From 2006-2009 he was nearly unhittable, posting a 1.74 ERA and 0.92 WHIP. He had a WHIP under 1.00 in three straight seasons and an ERA under 2.00 in 3 out of 4. Hell, his ERA was under 1.00 in his rookie season of 2006.

Papelbon was also unhittable in the postseason and helped the Red Sox to the 2007 World Series championship. That season he threw 10.2 shutout innings in the playoffs and saved 3 games in the World Series. For his Boston career, Papelbon did not allow a run in his first 25 postseason innings, saving 7 games in that span. Remarkable. He was also a fun pitcher to watch, glaring at the hitter like he’s about to throw the ball through the batter’s head. Then there were also his wild celebrations after a successful save.

Dick Radatz

“The Monster” got his nickname for a reason: nobody wanted to face him. Standing at 6’6″, Radatz was an imposing figure on the mound. He became burned out quickly, unfortunately, pitching a lot of innings in relief. In his first 4 seasons Radatz averaged 135 innings pitched over 68 appearances. Compare that to your typical relief pitcher nowadays. During his first 3 seasons he made 2 All-Star Games, had a top 5 MVP finish and led the league in saves twice. During that span he had a 40-21 record and saved 98 games. In a time when batters were embarrassed to strike out, Radatz struck out 10.6 batters per 9 innings during those 3 seasons and had a 2.17 ERA.

Ellis Kinder

Ellis Kinder was a swingman for the Sox in the late 40s and 50s. In his first 3 seasons he made a lot of starts for the Red Sox while also relieving. He won 23 games in 1949, finishing 5th in the MVP vote. Two years later he led the league in appearances. By 1953 Kinder was a full-time reliever. That season Kinder was 10-6 with a 1.85 ERA and led the league in saves with 27. This was the 2nd time in three seasons Kinder had led the league in saves. For his Red Sox career, Kinder finished 86-52 with a 3.28 ERA and 93 games saved.

Bob Stanley

The all-time games pitched leader in franchise history has to make an appearance here. Stanley made starts in some years, but he was almost always a relief pitcher, and better at it then he was starting. Bob Stanley won 115 games and saved 132 during his career, which he spent entirely in Boston. As a relief pitcher his ERA was 3.28, opposed to being north of 4.00 as a starter. Stanley made 2 all-star teams and saved as many as 33 games in 1983.

Koji Uehara

Koji was always good, but often injured before coming to the Red Sox. No one could have predicted the impact he had on the team. In 2013, Koji was 4-1 with a 1.09 ERA and microscopic 0.56 WHIP. Then in the playoffs he allowed 1 run over 13.2 innings while saving 7 games. He was instrumental in their World Series run that season. Koji spent 4 seasons with Boston, saving 79 games. His rate statistics during that time were phenomenal; a 2.19 ERA, 0.81 WHIP and 11.6 strikeouts per 9 innings.

Koji Uehara of the Boston Red Sox reacts after defeating the St. Louis Cardinals 6-1 in Game Six of the 2013 World Series at Fenway Park on October 30, 2013. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images)

Special Mention

Keith Foulke needs to get an honorable mention in this article. He cannot make the top five Red Sox relievers ever, only having one good season, but he gave his career for that one season. Without him the Red Sox wouldn’t have broken the curse, beat the Yankees and won the World Series in 2004. Period. After a season in which Foulke had a 2.17 ERA and 0.94 WHIP, he amped up even further when the Sox needed him most. Foulke allowed 1 run over 14 innings in the playoffs, striking out 19 batters.

With their backs against the wall, down 0-3 to the Yankees in the ALCS, Foulke pitched in 7 of the final 8 games. During four of those appearances Foulke pitched more than the typical one inning. In Game 4 against the Yankees, he pitched 2.2 shutout innings, helping prolong the game to give the offense the opportunity to win it. What he did that postseason was nothing short of miraculous, and he was never the same afterwards. I’m sure he would do it all over again.

Boston Red Sox pitcher Keith Foulke, center, and first baseman Doug Mientkiewicz, left, celebrate after St. Louis Cardinals’ Edgar Renteria (3) grounded out to end the ninth inning and give Boston a 3-0 win and a sweep of the World Series, Wednesday Oct. 27, 2004, in St. Louis. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)