At this point in the season, it's all hands on deck for the Boston Red Sox, especially in the bullpen.
Manager Alex Cora has tried everything to find success in the second half, and the relievers up and down the Red Sox's roster simply haven't gotten the job done. Boston's bullpen has a brutal 6.91 ERA in the second half while blowing 12 of 16 save opportunities.
Heading into a crucial match-up with the Houston Astros on Monday, the Red Sox can ill afford any more late-game blow-ups from their bullpen. One of their worst losses of the second half came against these same Astros on August 9, when a 3-1 lead in the seventh inning turned into an 8-4 loss.
With the urgency ratcheting up, the Red Sox made a bullpen move on Monday, activating a reliever the Astros did not see in the first series between the two teams. Meanwhile, another reliever who was struggling as much as anyone in Boston's bullpen was sent back to the minors.
The Red Sox announced on X that they had recalled relief pitcher Greg Weissert, who last pitched in the majors on July 28. In a corresponding move, lefty reliever Bailey Horn was optioned to Triple-A.
Weissert, 29, was in an extended funk before the Red Sox sent him down. He allowed 12 earned runs in his 11 most recent appearances for Boston, including two blown saves in extra innings. His season ERA sits at 4.24.
In four appearances in Triple-A, Weissert allowed one run in six innings, striking out seven and allowing a 1.00 WHIP.
Horn, 26, was demoted the day after allowing a back-breaking two-run home run to the Baltimore Orioles' Gunnar Henderson in the Red Sox's 4-2 loss on Sunday. He has a 6.48 ERA in 14 big-league appearances with Boston this year.
The move leaves the Red Sox with just one left-handed pitcher, Brennan Bernardino, on the active roster. 44-year-old lefty Rich Hill, who the Red Sox signed as a free agent last week, will soon begin pitching in Triple-A in anticipation of eventually rejoining the big-league roster.
If Weissert can regain the form he had early in the season, it could be a huge lift to the Red Sox bullpen. But that's a tall task for a struggling hurler, especially facing a potent lineup like Houston's.
