James

Paxton

That’s a bummer, but it’s hard to blame him after so many injury issues during a career that began with the Mariners in 2013. The 35-year-old lefty had just started a second stint with the Red Sox this summer when he suffered a torn calf on Aug. 11. Because of the injuries, Paxton never reached his Cy Young potential or went to an All-Star Game. However, he did fan 208 batters in 2018, and he won 15 games before pitching well in his one postseason experience with the Yankees in 2019. Assuming he sticks to this, he’ll finish his career 73-41 with a 3.77 ERA and 1,005 strikeouts in 951 innings. His .640 winning percentage places him 17th among all pitchers with 100 decisions during the expansion era (post-1961).

Paxton’s season is officially over. This move was merely a bit of housekeeping by the Red Sox as they needed to open a spot on the 40-man roster for LHP Joely Rodriguez, whose contract was selected from Triple-A. Paxton was 9-3 with a 4.40 ERA, 1.44 WHIP and 73 strikeouts in 100 1/3 innings this year.

Paxton told reporters after the diagnosis that he hopes to pitch again in 2024, but the timeline for him returning from such an injury makes it tough to picture. The left-hander injured the calf in the first inning of Sunday’s start against the Red Sox. There’s a very good chance we don’t see Paxton back on the bump again until 2025.

It’s good news that it is the calf and not the Achilles for Paxton, but it’d still qualify as a nice surprise if he’s back before late September. Cooper Criswell will likely get the open rotation spot once back from the COVID-19 IL.

The 35-year-old southpaw was pulled from Sunday’s start against the Astros after suffering the injury. It sounds like a trip to the injured list is extremely likely here, the only question being how much time Paxton will be forced to miss. Expect the Red Sox to make several roster moves on Monday.

Paxton was only able to get two outs before leaving in the first inning with the strain. It seems very likely that the 35-year-old southpaw will head to the injured list; a place that Paxton is unfortunately far too familiar with. How long he’ll be out will likely be determined by testing.

Paxton recorded two outs and gave up two hits before leaving the game. The left-hander limped to the dugout and unfortunately this appears to be yet another injury for the 35-year-old southpaw. Lucas Sims has taken over on the mound in Paxton’s place.

Paxton gave up five hits, walked one and struck out four. The win was his ninth of the year and first since he was traded to Boston. It was his first quality start since June 17th. Paxton has a 4.42 ERA on the year. The 35-year-old left-hander is set to face the Astros at home this weekend.

Paxton was let down by his defense in his one, which made three errors on the day. Paxton induced 10 whiffs on 37 swings for a 27 percent whiff rate and 29 percent CSW. The left-hander allowed seven hard-hit baseballs but just two extra-base hits, so it was an up-and-down day. Paxton figures to start against the Royals next week and will hope for a little more help from his defense.

The 28-year-old hurler is expected to be available out of the Red Sox’ bullpen on Saturday. Criswell has pitched fairly well for the Red Sox this season, posting a 4.02 ERA, 1.23 WHIP and a 54/16 K/BB ratio over 65 innings through his first 14 appearances (13 starts). James Paxton will start in his spot in the Red Sox’ rotation on Tuesday.