Steven Wright

A shoulder injury slowed Wright's progression through spring training in 2017, and he made just five starts for the Red Sox before a knee injury in May led to season-ending surgery. Of the starts he made, only one qualified as a quality start, and he was extremely prone to the long ball, allowing nine homers in 24 innings before the injury. Wright turned 33 in August, and in December, he was arrested on domestic assault charges. It's unclear if MLB will hand down a suspension for the incident. Regardless of any disciplinary action that may impact his availability to begin the season, Wright will need to prove that he's healthy and regain the form he showed in 2016 when he took the ball for 24 starts and racked up an impressive 3.33 ERA for the Red Sox, but he has a path to serve as a temporary rotation member again since Eduardo Rodriguez will begin the season on the DL and the health of David Price is in question after he logged just 74.2 innings last season.

Wright enjoyed a breakout year in his second full season with the Red Sox, registering a 3.33 ERA and 3.77 FIP in 156.2 innings and 24 starts. The 32-year-old knuckleballer was consistently able to keep hitters off-balance and avoided giving up a lot of home runs, which was reflected in his solid 0.7 HR/9. While Wright was able to rack up 13 wins for the Red Sox, his strikeout numbers were unspectacular, posting just a 7.3 K/9. Additionally, Wright's 13 wins would have been more had a shoulder injury not forced him to miss all of September. Considering that he relies more on pitch movement, specifically on his knuckleball, than velocity, there is little reason to believe Wright should experience a sharp decline next season as he gets deeper into his 30s. He is likely the Red Sox's sixth starter to begin 2017 following the blockbuster trade to acquire Chris Sale in December.

Poor Steven Wright. He’ll do anything asked of him and has been relatively effective at whatever role is given him, but Wright’s never considered when the Red Sox are thinking long-term about their starting rotation. The knuckle-baller started nine games last season and was used as a reliever in another seven. In his nine starts, Wright had a 3.96 ERA and gave up three of fewer earned runs in eight of them. If you watched Boston’s starting staff closely last season, you can make a case that Wright was the most consistent. Wright’s main role with the Red Sox since being acquired in late 2012 has been as a depth starter, having started games in each of the last three seasons. With Eduardo Rodriguez set to miss a few weeks with a knee injury, Wright appears to be the favorite to break camp as the fifth starter, but it shouldn't take long for him to head to the bullpen, serving as a long reliever / spot starter. He averaged nearly three innings in his seven relief outings last season.

Wright is a 30-year-old knuckleballer who made his mark as a September callup when the Red Sox were auditioning arms for their 2015 Opening Day roster. The results at Triple-A were significantly improved last season, as he showed much better control (72:23 K:BB in 100 innings with Pawtucket) while making 16 starts. His limited sample with Boston was also productive, as he carried a 22:4 K:BB and showed an increased ability to get outs on the ground, although his career rate (1.30 GO/AO) is more indicative of his baseline. If nothing else, Wright is a great story, and he should be considered a long shot for a place in the back of the Red Sox's rotation. Most likely, he'll serve as organizational depth at Pawtucket with an opportunity to contribute if injuries strike the team's rebuilt corps of starters at the big league level.

Wright, a conventional pitcher turned knuckleballer, produced adequate results for Triple-A Pawtucket in 2013. He also made four appearances at the major league level, but was burdened by control problems. Prior to the season, Red Sox manager John Farrell was a big supporter of Wright coming off the right-hander's 2012 season, his first full year throwing the knuckler. Whether or not Farrell remains such an ardent supporter, Wright is likely to remain in the starting rotation at Pawtucket. He could be called on for an emergency start in 2014, but Boston will have at least two other starters (Allen Webster, Brandon Workman) at Pawtucket ahead of him.