Monday night's 14-2 loss to the Detroit Tigers put a dent in the Boston Red Sox confidence after winning the weekend series over the Royals. They now sit at 22-21, 3 games back of the Yankees for the AL East lead as May continues.
For one Red Sox pitcher, his outing on Monday night continued a trend of concerning struggles to begin the season. In the three games that Boston has lost by double digits this season, Tanner Houck has been the starter for two of them.
Tanner Houck Struggles Get More Concerning With Each Start
In the series opener against Detroit, Houck surrendered 11 earned runs on 9 hits in just 2.1 innings pitched. Giving up two runs in the first inning and nine in the third, Tanner's night was done after tossing just 69 pitches, allowing three walks with no strikeouts.
This disastrous start against the Tigers comes just under a month after allowing 11 earned runs on 10 hits against the Rays on April 14th. In two eerily similar performances, Houck managed 2.1 innings in that start as well.
After the loss on Monday, Houck spoke with reporters about how the struggles have affected him, and for the Red Sox and their fans, his answer should grow even more concerning.
"Probably the most lost I’ve ever been...I’m just not getting the job done, which weighs on me heavily."
Tanner Houck
Houck has the worst ERA among MLB starting pitchers this season (8.04) in nine starts. It has been tough for Houck to get through the beginning of games, and just like the game on April 14th, the Red Sox chances were bleak from the third inning on, due to Houck's struggles.
Tanner Houck is the first pitcher in MLB history to allow 11+ runs in a start of fewer than 3 IP twice in the same season.
— nugget chef (@jayhaykid) May 12, 2025
After allowing 57 hits and 39 earned runs in 43.2 innings to begin the season, it may be time for Alex Cora to have conversations about a possible demotion for Houck. It has been a real disappointment thus far after Houck was named an All-Star, posting a career-low ERA (3.12) and career high in strikeouts (154) in 30 starts last season.
Most of the concerns for Houck come with his inability to strike out batters, as his 6.6 K/9 is the lowest of his career. He's also become susceptible to the long ball, as the 2.06 HR/9 is the highest mark of his career.
His struggles have not come at a good time for the Red Sox rotation, knowing Bello, Giolito and Buehler have missed or are missing time with injuries.
As Buehler is slated to return from a shoulder injury in about a week in a series against the Mets, paired with Boston getting good outings from Hunter Dobbins and Lucas Giolito over the weekend, Houck may be the odd man out in a rotation that poses Crochet, Bello, Buehler, Giolito and Dobbins.
Starts in the MLB are not guaranteed, and for Houck to struggle as much as he has, it may be best for Alex Cora to look elsewhere in terms of Houck's spot in the rotation as summer approaches.
In a previous piece, I relayed that a move to the bullpen could be enforced if Houck's struggles continued. They have, and Red Sox fans will monitor his situation moving forward.
For now, the Red Sox will look to rebound from Monday night's brutal loss, with Brayan Bello set to take the mound on Tuesday night against the Tigers.
