Article: Several Red Sox Players Arrive at Spring Training Early

[Maddie Landis]

The Red Sox can't seem to wait for spring training to actually get started.

It’s typical for boomers to make an early appearance at events. (We all have that one relative who comes at least five hours early for holiday functions, right?) Millennial and Gen-Z workers are notoriously late to work, but this isn’t the case for young Red Sox players! 

The first workout for pitchers and catchers is scheduled for Wednesday, February 12, and many players have arrived at JetBlue Park earlier than expected. Last Friday, Pete Abraham reported, “Brayan Bello, Brennan Bernardino, Kutter Crawford, Garrett Crochet, Lucas Giolito, Romy Gonzalez, Justin Slaten, and Greg Weissert also were at Fenway South. In all, there were about 25 players on the field Friday.”

Abraham lists an interesting mix of players, primarily made up of pitchers. The Red Sox are considering utilizing a six-man rotation for the start of the season. Bello, Crawford, Crochet, and Giolito are automatic fill-ins as rotation pitchers. Tanner Houck and Walker Buehler are the two remaining rotation pitchers who have not yet reported to Fort Myers. Cressey Sports Performance, located in Palm Springs, Florida, posted several videos of Tanner Houck training at their facilities over the offseason. 

The current 26-man roster rules stipulate that teams can carry a maximum of 13 pitchers from Opening Day through August 31 and the postseason. With Garrett Whitlock joining the bullpen, Liam Hendriks' return, the Aroldis Chapman and Justin Wilson signings, and Slaten’s strong rookie year performance, only two remaining bullpen spots remain, and Bernadino and Weissert will be competing for one of them.

At the end of the 2024 season press conference, Alex Cora emphasized the need for stronger conditioning to manage the season workload, “We’ve been talking to the players….We’ve been talking about physicality….This is a good time for us to address that….September has been a challenge for us the last few years. Is it physical or mental? We’ll take a look at that.”

He also referenced the Guardian’s bullpen as a framework to follow, “Take a look around the league right now and the best bullpens they got horses out there, you know? They’re freaking big and strong and they sustain the season. Look at Cleveland. All those guys they have 60-something appearances and they were really good”. (Note: Cora’s statement about the Guardians’ was made before their bullpen fell apart during the American League Championship Series.)

Rafael Devers has been in Fort Myers since mid-January. Reporters also saw Kristian Campbell, Masataka Yoshida, and Romy Gonzalez in camp. As the team’s highest-paid player, Devers showing up to camp early encourages other players to do so. Kristian Campbell, Baseball America’s 2024 Minor League Player of the Year, will soon be battling for a spot on the Opening Day roster. Yoshida spent most of his offseason in Boston, away from his home country, recovering from labrum-repair surgery. Romy Gonzalez, who primarily was used as a utility platoon bat last season, is also vying for the starting second-base job.

Competition breeds success. Given that players will be fighting for spots on the 26-man roster, they will be putting forth their best effort in spring training. Showing up for spring training early conveys a positive message. The players seem ready to get to work and are just as excited as the fans about the season's start.

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Buehler was pictured by the Sox PR team in camp today.