The Boston have a few position battles scattered across the diamond as they attempt to find the perfect combination of players to compete next season.
The biggest battles occurring in camp are on the mound as both the rotation and bullpen have some vacancies. One of the players attempting to make the Red Sox’s roster sustained a setback that could remove him from the Opening Day conversation.
“Per (manager Alex Cora), Bryan Mata pulled his right hamstring and has been shut down, which is significant because he’s out of options and was in the mix for a bullpen spot,” MassLive’s Chris Cotillo reported Sunday. “Unclear how long it’ll take.”
Mata entered camp with a real chance to earn a role toward the bottom of the roster, likely as a middle-inning reliever. The 24-year-old is currently ranked the No. 24 prospect in the Red Sox’s farm system according to MLB Pipeline.
Before suffering arm injuries — one of which led to Tommy John surgery, Mata was deemed one of, if not the top pitching prospect in the organization due to his overpowering stuff, which features a triple-digit fastball.
Mata had a rough, injury-laden year last season, which led to a 6.33 ERA in just 27 innings for Triple-A Worcester. His last period of sustained health, however, was much more encouraging.
The right-hander went 7-3 with a 2.49 ERA, 105-to-46 strikeout-to-walk ratio, .201 batting average against and a 1.28 WHIP in 83 innings across levels spanning from Single-A through Triple-A during the 2022 season, his first post-surgery.
Now he’ll once again have his career altered by an injury, which is extremely unfortunate given his natural talent. He also will have to battle control issues, which in the long run could be a bigger problem than his recent ailments.
Regardless, there still is a strong chance he ends up making his big-league debut this season so he’s certainly a name to watch.
