Lefthander Jalen Beeks is poised to make his major league debut on Thursday in the Red Sox? series finale vs. the Tigers at Fenway Park.
After Drew Pomeranz went on the 10-day disabled list, the Sox called up Beeks, who was scratched from his scheduled Triple A start on Tuesday.
Boston called up Beeks to keep its plan in place to give the other starters a couple extra days off.
In 10 starts this season with Pawtucket, Beeks is 3-3 with a 2.56 ERA. He has not pitched since May 31. Beeks, a 12th-round pick in 2014, was teammates with Andrew Benintendi at the University of Arkansas.
Beeks?s success against Team USA last year in an exhibition ahead of the World Baseball Classic helped fast-track his rise. He was named the Sox minor league pitcher of the year last September before the club added him to the 40-man roster in November, and eventually bringing him in for the rookie development program in January.
?I feel ready for whenever I have to get on the mound, whether it?s in Pawtucket or the big leagues,? Beeks said in March. ?Wherever it is, I?m ready. You can?t let the moment get too big.?
As far as the short-term goes, the Red Sox need to decide how much starting pitching depth they have and whether or not they need to acquire more. I wouldn?t expect them to go out at any point this year and make a big splash in trading for a starting pitcher, but with Pomeranz struggling and now hurt they could see a need to add more depth to the organization. If Beeks becomes someone they can trust, however, that is just as good if not better than a low-level acquisition. In the longer term, Pomeranz is a free agent at the end of the year and the Red Sox will need to decide whether or not to keep him, and if they don?t they?ll need to figure out how to replace him. Beeks emerging as a legitimate option will save them some money to address other issues this offseason. Like I said, we won?t know much of anything just from a single start, but it?s time for the Red Sox to gather all of the information they can.
In terms of what we can expect from Beeks as a major-league pitcher, that is an interesting question to which we don?t have a great answer. I was as high as anyone on the lefty coming into the year. Between 2016 and 2017 he cleaned up his delivery to ensure he can remain a starter, and he didn?t lose any of his stuff in the process. If anything, his stuff got better because of it. Those are the kind of adjustments that can make or break a pitcher, and when they work so seamlessly it certainly piques my interest. That being said, his Triple-A performance ? 2.56 ERA and over 12 strikeouts per nine innings ? may have the expectations too high. I truly believe he?s a long-term starter, but it?s more of a number four or five than a legitimate top prospect. Maybe he?ll surprise us, but people shouldn?t be looking for a potential ace here despite the start to his season.
Wet blanketing aside, people should absolutely be excited about this. The Red Sox have had so much trouble developing pitching lately, and it?s been forever since a homegrown pitcher has come up with even a modicum of hype, particularly if you don?t count Eduardo Rodriguez. Beeks is going to play a role on this team both down the road this year and in the long-term, and we can start to get an idea of what he?ll provide on Thursday night
After Drew Pomeranz went on the 10-day disabled list, the Sox called up Beeks, who was scratched from his scheduled Triple A start on Tuesday.
Boston called up Beeks to keep its plan in place to give the other starters a couple extra days off.
In 10 starts this season with Pawtucket, Beeks is 3-3 with a 2.56 ERA. He has not pitched since May 31. Beeks, a 12th-round pick in 2014, was teammates with Andrew Benintendi at the University of Arkansas.
Beeks?s success against Team USA last year in an exhibition ahead of the World Baseball Classic helped fast-track his rise. He was named the Sox minor league pitcher of the year last September before the club added him to the 40-man roster in November, and eventually bringing him in for the rookie development program in January.
?I feel ready for whenever I have to get on the mound, whether it?s in Pawtucket or the big leagues,? Beeks said in March. ?Wherever it is, I?m ready. You can?t let the moment get too big.?
As far as the short-term goes, the Red Sox need to decide how much starting pitching depth they have and whether or not they need to acquire more. I wouldn?t expect them to go out at any point this year and make a big splash in trading for a starting pitcher, but with Pomeranz struggling and now hurt they could see a need to add more depth to the organization. If Beeks becomes someone they can trust, however, that is just as good if not better than a low-level acquisition. In the longer term, Pomeranz is a free agent at the end of the year and the Red Sox will need to decide whether or not to keep him, and if they don?t they?ll need to figure out how to replace him. Beeks emerging as a legitimate option will save them some money to address other issues this offseason. Like I said, we won?t know much of anything just from a single start, but it?s time for the Red Sox to gather all of the information they can.
In terms of what we can expect from Beeks as a major-league pitcher, that is an interesting question to which we don?t have a great answer. I was as high as anyone on the lefty coming into the year. Between 2016 and 2017 he cleaned up his delivery to ensure he can remain a starter, and he didn?t lose any of his stuff in the process. If anything, his stuff got better because of it. Those are the kind of adjustments that can make or break a pitcher, and when they work so seamlessly it certainly piques my interest. That being said, his Triple-A performance ? 2.56 ERA and over 12 strikeouts per nine innings ? may have the expectations too high. I truly believe he?s a long-term starter, but it?s more of a number four or five than a legitimate top prospect. Maybe he?ll surprise us, but people shouldn?t be looking for a potential ace here despite the start to his season.
Wet blanketing aside, people should absolutely be excited about this. The Red Sox have had so much trouble developing pitching lately, and it?s been forever since a homegrown pitcher has come up with even a modicum of hype, particularly if you don?t count Eduardo Rodriguez. Beeks is going to play a role on this team both down the road this year and in the long-term, and we can start to get an idea of what he?ll provide on Thursday night
