Cora pitches Crawford on mind-set as starter
MINNEAPOLIS — The statistics are impossible to ignore.
Kutter Crawford has a 1.66 earned run average over 21„ innings as a reliever this season and a 7.11 ERA over 19 innings as a starter.
The obvious solution would be to keep the 27-year-old righthander in the bullpen. But with Tanner Houck and Chris Sale on the injured list and the team lacking starter depth in Triple A, Crawford is in the rotation and scheduled to face the Twins on Tuesday night.
Crawford threw only 53 of his 80 pitches for strikes when he faced the Rockies last week. He walked three over four innings and took the loss at Fenway Park.
“The mind-set should be the same as coming in from the bullpen,” manager Alex Cora said Monday, before the Sox won the series opener, 9-3, at Target Field. “Throw your best pitches as much as possible with a lot of conviction . . . don’t start thinking about five innings or six.”
Rather than trying to set hitters up for at-bats later in the game, Cora wants Crawford to attack hitters.
“The mentality should be [throwing] my best pitch in that moment,” Cora said. “Just be aggressive.”
Crawford, who started throughout the minors, is focused on being more efficient.
“Get ahead and stay ahead,” he said. “I know I need to throw strikes. I feel like the work we’re doing has been productive.”
Crawford will oppose Bailey Ober, a righthander who has a 2.65 ERA over 10 starts. Ober has faced the Sox twice in his career and pitched 11 innings without allowing an earned run.
Houck to see specialist
Houck, who was struck on the right side of his face by a batted ball in Friday’s win at Fenway over the Yankees, is scheduled to be examined by a Bostonbased specialist Tuesday to get a further assessment of his injuries.
To date, the team has been sparse with information, saying only that Houck has a “facial fracture.”
“We have no idea what’s next,” Cora said. “Honestly, if there’s multiple fractures there we’ll know more [Tuesday].”
Houck was in the clubhouse on Sunday but was not made available to speak to reporters. He told teammates he is hopeful of not missing an extended period.
Casas holds on to job
Last Tuesday, Cora said the Sox would prioritize defense and give less playing time to Triston Casas at first base and Kiké Hernández at shortstop.
But Casas has started four of the six games since with Justin Turner starting the other two. He started at first base on Monday and was 2 for 5 with a tworun homer, raising his OPS to .730.
The Sox did carry through with their plans at shortstop. Pablo Reyes has started five of six games with Hernández getting a start in the first game of Sunday’s doubleheader against the Yankees.
Reyes was purchased from Oakland on May 12 after being designated for assignment while in Triple A. He has hit .308, albeit with little power, and played solid defense at shortstop. In Monday’s win, he was 2 for 3 with a walk and scored three runs.
Awards for Greenville duo
High A Greenville swept the South Atlantic League weekly honors as Blaze Jordan was named player of the week and Dalton Rogers pitcher of the week.
Jordan, a third-round pick in 2020, was 13 of 26 with 4 doubles, 3 homers, 10 RBIs, and 6 walks. The 20-year-old corner infielder is hitting .323 with a .925 OPS through 58 games.
Rogers, who was taken in the third round of last year’s draft, threw six nohit innings against Greensboro on Wednesday, striking out 11 and allowing only a walk. The 22-year-old lefthander is 1-1 with a 2.61 ERA in 10 starts for Low A Salem and Greenville.
Milestone win No. 400
The victory was Cora’s 400th with the Red Sox. He’s the ninth manager in team history to hit that mark and needs only 33 more to pass Don Zimmer (411), Jimy Williams (414), and John Farrell (432) for sixth place . . . The Sox signed 33-year-old righthander Kyle Barraclough out of the independent Atlantic League and assigned him to Triple A Worcester. Barraclough made 288 major league relief appearances with five teams from 2015-22. He was 1-0 with a 1.00 ERA in seven games (two starts) with the High Point, N.C., Rockers... Trevor Story initially planned to join the team on the road but elected to stay behind to continue rehab work on his elbow. After spending most of the season in Fort Myers, Fla., the infielder will now be in Boston until he starts a minor league rehab assignment. That should be sometime in July . . . Closer Kenley Jansen is wearing a brace on his right knee for pregame work but not using it in games. He tweaked his knee earlier this month while making a pitch . . . Lefthanded reliever Joely Rodriguez (shoulder) is scheduled to make a rehab appearance Tuesday for Worcester.