The Boston Red Sox were desperate for pitching depth at the 2024 trade deadline. Chief baseball officer Craig Breslow traded for three hurlers to reinvigorate his tiring staff.
James Paxton, Luis García and Lucas Sims were all trending in the right direction with their former teams, and the Red Sox hoped they'd do the same for them as they push for the postseason. But, in early-season Red Sox fashion, each of the three pitchers has landed on the injured list.
Paxton exited Boston's Aug. 11 game and was later diagnosed with a partially torn calf. On Aug. 23, he was moved from the 15-day injured list to the 60-day, which officially ended his season unless the Red Sox make the playoffs, which looks less likely by the day.
Sox fans may not have expected longevity or reliability out of Paxton, though. The 35-year-old spent a lot of time on the IL during his first stint with the Red Sox in 2022-23 and he hadn't pitched over 100 innings in a season since 2019 — he made it to 100.1 this year before his injury. García and Sims are a different story.
Lucas Sims (placed on the IL today) and Luis Garcia since being traded to the Red Sox — 21 appearances, 28 hits, 21 ER in 20.2 IP, 6 HR, 9.15 ERA, 1.74 WHIP, 3.48 BB/9. Just a colossal failure out of your deadline bullpen additions.
— Jared Carrabis (@Jared_Carrabis) August 27, 2024
The Red Sox's two bullpen additions pitched well for their previous teams before they were shipped to Boston. García posted a 2.76 ERA in his last 15 games with the Angels, and he's up to a 10.31 metric in 11.1 innings with the Sox. Sims logged a 2.25 ERA in his final month with the Reds, but he's collected an 8.10 ERA in 10 innings with Boston.
Sims and García were placed on the 15-day IL on Aug. 28, the former with a lat strain and the latter with elbow inflammation. Neither affliction is helpful as their team battles for a wild card spot and elbow inflammation is often indicative of a more severe issue, but multiple Sox players have recovered from bouts with elbow inflammation this season.
Sims and García join Cam Booser on the 15-day IL as Boston's bullpen continues to struggle. Greg Weissert and Josh Winckowski have been called up as their replacements on the roster — Weissert has solid numbers in his last seven outings (2.16 ERA in his last seven games) but Winckowski has faltered in the past month.
Danny Jansen ended up being the Red Sox's best trade deadline pickup, which few fans saw coming. Injuries are unpredictable and Breslow isn't at fault for the way Boston's trade deadline turned out, but the Red Sox could be in a different place if García and Sims pitched like they did for their former clubs before they transitioned to the IL.
