Eovaldi ready to set the tone
Becomes 10th Red Sox hurler with three straight Opening Day starts
Nathan Eovaldi has become the Red Sox’ Opening Day starter who they likely didn’t expect him to be.
RED SOX NOTEBOOK
On Friday at Yankee Stadium, Eovaldi will make his third consecutive Opening Day start for the Red Sox, which was never really the plan. In 2020, he took the ball for the first game of the shortened season after Chris Sale had Tommy John surgery and Eduardo Rodriguez contracted COVID-19. In 2021, the Red Sox turned to Eovaldi again after Rodriguez developed a dead arm late in spring training.
In many ways, though, the
Red Sox’ Opening Day reliance on Eovaldi has represented how important he’s become to their pitching staff. That continues to be the case as this 2022 season begins, one in which they will be without Sale again for at least two months.
“When you get that Opening Day nod, to be able to open up and start that first game, it means a lot to me,” Eovaldi said. “You kind of set the tone.”
With his third Opening Day start, Eovaldi will become the 16th Red Sox pitcher in history with three or more Opening Day starts — a group that includes Roger Clemens, Pedro Martinez and Luis Tiant. And he’s the 10th pitcher among them to make three consecutive
Opening Day starts. In his two previous Opening Day starts, Eovaldi has given up two earned runs and struck out eight over 11 1/3 innings, with both outings against the Orioles.
Friday will present a far greater challenge, but one he’s familiar with. He’ll oppose Yankees starter Gerrit Cole, who he started against three times last season. The last one came in the Wild Card game at Fenway Park, where the Red Sox chased Cole after two innings in their 6-2 win.
The rematch will come almost exactly six months after that October matchup, and Eovaldi has been looking forward to it. The 32year-old is entering a critical year in his career. He becomes a free agent after the season, and he’s looking to build on his first All-Star season in 2021. Friday could not only set the tone for the Red Sox, but his own season.
“It’s going to be a great game,” Eovaldi said. “To open up against the Yankees, our fans will be there, theirs will be there, day game. I’m just trying to go out there and make sure I stay within my mechanics, one pitch at a time, quick outs and attack the zone.”
Opener postponed
The Red Sox and Yankees had to wait a day to begin the season. The Opening Day game between the two teams, which was originally scheduled for Thursday at 1:05 p.m., was postponed to Friday at the same time due to a forecast of inclement weather in New York. The Yankees made the announcement early Wednesday morning.
The Red Sox will now play on six consecutive days on the road to open the season, with three against the Yankees this weekend and three in Detroit against the Tigers starting Monday. They have an off day Thursday before their home-opening fourgame set against the Twins at Fenway Park.
Eovaldi faces Cole in Friday’s opener, with Nick Pivetta slated for Saturday and Tanner Houck taking the ball on Sunday night. Michael Wacha will start Monday’s opener against the Tigers, followed by Rich Hill on Tuesday. Eovaldi is scheduled to face Rodriguez — who was named Detroit’s Opening Day starter — on Wednesday.
Roster almost set
The Red Sox still have a few decisions to make before submitting their Opening Day roster ahead of Friday’s opener. As of
Wednesday, they still had 30 players to choose from.
Josh Taylor, who is dealing with a back injury, is likely to be put on the injured list to begin the season. Travis Shaw and Jonathan Arauz seem to be the likely additions to the 13 position players that manager Alex Cora expects to carry.
The final spot in the bullpen looks like it will come down to Hansel Robles or Tyler Danish, who was added to the 40-man roster this week.
Robles, who was a late arrival to camp due to visa issues, was signed to a minor league deal, so the Red Sox would need to make a 40man move for him to make the Opening Day roster.
Morning baseball
On Wednesday, MLB announced a new weekly Sunday morning game package that will air exclusively on Peacock, the streaming service produced by NBC Sports.
It will begin on May 8 with the Red Sox’ home game against the White Sox, which will start at 11:30 a.m.
The morning game package will air for 18 consecutive weeks, with the first six games starting at 11:30 a.m. and the following 12 games beginning at noon. Red SoxWhite Sox on May 8 will simulcast on the NBC broadcast network, and the remaining 17 games will be exclusively streamed on Peacock.
For each of the 18 Sunday morning games, it will be the exclusive home of a live MLB game until 1:30 p.m., when the rest of the day’s schedule will begin.