Back keeps Jansen off mound
FORT MYERS, Fla. — Red Sox closer Kenley Jansen, who’d been scheduled to make his second Grapefruit League appearance of the spring Monday, was instead scratched prior to the contest against the Twins. The team said the decision was due to lower back tightness.
Jansen is now scheduled to pitch Tuesday. The Red Sox have outlined a schedule for the 36-year-old righty to get four appearances — Tuesday, Thursday, and Sunday in Fort Myers, then next Tuesday in Texas — in preparation for Opening Day March 28. But if there are further setbacks, he’d likely have to open the year on the injured list.
“He needs to pitch tomorrow for this to happen,” said manager Alex Cora. “We’re running out of time. That’s the reality.”
Jansen, who was the team’s only All-Star last year, has had a challenging buildup to the season. He experienced lat soreness shortly before arriving in spring training in February, leaving him a couple weeks behind most of the pitchers on the staff.
Jansen made his first appearance Friday, allowing three runs on three hits (two homers) while recording two outs. While he’d hoped to pitch with two days’ rest Monday, he has felt sluggish since that outing.
“This is the first time I’m dealing with a lot of stuff, and I’m asking myself why,” said Jansen. “I’m having a healthy career so far. This year, spring training is not fun for me, because every day something’s hurting.”
Righthander Chris Martin, who has yet to pitch in a spring game, is scheduled to throw in a minor league game Tuesday. He believes he’ll be ready for Opening Day.
Yorke is sent down
With one week left before they break camp, the Sox cut 10 players from the major league roster Monday. Among the most notable: Second baseman Nick Yorke, a 2020 first-rounder who was rated by Baseball America as the No. 8 prospect in the system. He was reassigned to minor league camp, while lefties Cam Booser and Jorge Benitez — both of whom had strong spring performances — were likewise reassigned.
Cora praised Yorke’s defense but said his lack of versatility limited his playing opportunities. Meanwhile, though Yorke is considered a bat-first second baseman, he struggled in Grapefruit League games, going 2 for 22 with a .091/.231/.091 line.
The Sox will use the rest of spring training to determine whether Yorke will open the year back in Double A Portland, where he spent all of 2023, or with Triple A Worcester. Cora said Yorke will get time in left field this season in hopes of opening multiple pathways to the big leagues.
Booser, 31, had a 2.25 ERA with eight strikeouts and no walks in eight innings.
Benitez, 24, had a 2.35 ERA, 14 strikeouts, and 5 walks in 7„ innings.
The Sox also optioned 40-man members Tyler Heineman, a catcher, and lefty Joe Jacques to Triple A, and reassigned nonroster righthanders Justin Hagenman and Chase Shugart, infielders Nick Sogard and Jamie Westbrook, and infielder/outfielder Dalton Guthrie to minor league camp. There are currently 42 players in big league camp.
Opening Day honors
The Red Sox announced that the 2004 World Series championship team will be honored before the home opener (April 9, 2 p.m.) against the Orioles at Fenway Park. All members of the team that broke the 86year drought will be invited, with participants to be announced at a later date.
The ceremony will also include a special tribute honoring the life, legacy, and impact of Tim Wakefield and his wife, Stacy.
Tim Wakefield, the knuckleballer who won two World Series during his 17 seasons in Boston, died Oct. 1 at the age of 57, from a seizure following surgery for brain cancer. Stacy Wakefield died Feb. 18 after battling pancreatic cancer. She was 53.
Second thoughts
Cora said the Sox will open the season with a platoon at second base, with the lefthanded-hitting Enmanuel Valdez and righthander Pablo Reyes seemingly the leading candidates for the role . . . While he appears to have an inside track on the Opening Day center field job, Ceddanne Rafaela made his first appearance of the spring as an infielder, entering against the Twins as a defensive replacement at second base . . . Tyler O’Neill (calf ) is expected to DH for three innings Tuesday, his first game action since March 14 . . . Righthander Zack Kelly (oblique) is slated to throw his first game since March 2 on Friday.