Vintage Whitlock headlines combined shutout: 'It was electric'

TAMPA -- Garrett Whitlock’s move back to the bullpen was something he decided in tandem with the Red Sox last winter.

Tired of losing time to injuries, Whitlock wanted to be a frequent contributor again. And if that meant giving up the more glamorous role of starting, the righty was all for it.

Thus far, it is looking like a sound decision by both sides.

Whitlock was outstanding for two bridge innings on Wednesday night at George M. Steinbrenner Field, leading the Red Sox to a narrow 1-0 victory over the Rays.

Four of Whitlock’s six outs came on punchouts. He threw 24 pitches, 21 of them for strikes, and worked around one hit, a single.

This was vintage Whitlock, bringing back memories of the season-long dominance he provided as a rookie in 2021, when an upstart Red Sox team advanced all the way to the American League Championship Series before losing in six games to the Astros.

“That's the feeling of attack that I want to have,” said Whitlock. “I hate being behind in counts, and I hate walking guys, and so it's good to get ahead of counts and everything. I just felt clean and crisp, so it was a good day.”

Of Whitlock’s seven outings this season, Wednesday’s was by far the best.

“It’s important,” said Red Sox manager Alex Cora. “He struggled the last three, and hadn't been efficient. A lot of foul balls. But today, it was electric.”

It should be noted that Whitlock is less than a year removed from having an internal bracing procedure on his right elbow, a significant surgery that can keep pitchers out for up to a year. Whitlock’s eagerness to go back to a bullpen role sped up his recovery time.

“I mean, that's the thing,” said Whitlock. “I'm still 10 months out of surgery. I’m just trying to get a little bit sharper each and every day. My main focus is staying healthy. But obviously, I'm doing things to sharpen myself up. Things felt good tonight, and so I’ll just kind of try and use that to build on going forward.”

Whitlock has pitched exactly two innings in five of his seven outings, as that’s the role Cora likes him best in.

“I’ve always said that I love being the Swiss Army knife for AC,” said Whitlock. “So if it's multi innings, or one inning or longer multi-inning stints, whatever he needs, I’ll do. It's one of those things where I like being able to be that versatile.”

Of the 13 swings the Rays took against Whitlock, they whiffed on six of them.

But Wednesday was about everyone who pitched for the Red Sox – not just Whitlock.

Lefty Sean Newcomb, filling in at a time when four Boston starters are on the injured list, got the job done, firing 4 2/3 scoreless innings in which he allowed four hits while walking two and striking out four.

“Sean did an outstanding job,” said Cora. “He threw the ball well. Got a ground ball when we needed it.”

For Newcomb, who has suffered his share of injuries since throwing 164 innings for the 2018 Braves, this was a gratifying night for a man who came to camp as a non-roster invitee and who didn’t seem to have much of a shot to make the team.

If not for Greg Weissert getting Newcomb out of a two-on, two-out jam by striking out Yandy Díaz to end the fifth, this might not have been a getaway night win for Boston.

“The stuff was good,” Cora said. “The fastball plays. He keeps the ball in the ballpark. When he throws strikes, he seems nasty.”

Weissert continued his strong performance by striking out two of the three batters he faced in the sixth.

In the ninth, Whitlock gave way to Justin Slaten, who filled in for closer Aroldis Chapman and picked up the save, his second of the season.

As it turned out, the Red Sox needed only one run to win. David Hamilton, making a spot start at second base in place of rookie Kristian Campbell, provided it when he launched a solo shot to right in the top of the third.

Considering that Boston lost the opener of this series, 16-1, on Monday night, coming back to win the series and finishing the road trip at 3-3 was satisfying.

The work of the bullpen – 4 1/3 innings, one hit, no walks and nine strikeouts – carried the team to a happy flight home heading into a day off on Thursday.