Red Sox bring back Ottavino to boost bullpen depth

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- The ever-active Red Sox, in their prolonged quest to bring more depth to the bullpen, brought back a familiar face on Tuesday, signing veteran righty Adam Ottavino to a Minor League contract that includes an invite to Spring Training.

¡°We¡¯re still trying to get better,¡± said Red Sox manager Alex Cora. ¡°We¡¯ve been talking about it the last few days. I think the front office, they¡¯ve done enough, they¡¯ve been working. The more, the better.¡±

In 2021 -- the most recent season in which Boston made the playoffs -- Ottavino was a core member of Cora's bullpen, appearing in 69 games. That team came just two wins shy of getting to the World Series. How much did Ottavino mean to that club?

¡°A lot,¡± said Cora. ¡°Not only on the field, but if you talk to [Garrett] Whitlock and Tanner [Houck] and all those guys, they learned a lot from him. I think he took the ball. He¡¯s not afraid of the moment. He¡¯s a guy with good stuff.¡±

Ottavino departed as a free agent following that season and spent the past three with the Mets, appearing in 192 games and posting a 3.14 ERA. However, the 39-year-old did have his share of struggles in 2024, posting a 4.34 ERA.

Ottavino had one Major League offer and a plethora of invites to other camps. He chose the Red Sox due to opportunity and familiarity.

¡°I had talked to Boston for quite a while this offseason, so it was a long process," Ottavino said. "And once I was open to the NRI situation, I got a lot of offers really fast after that, so I was parsing through that, trying to figure out what move to make.

¡°I had one MLB offer, but I didn't want to take it in that location. So I just kept doing my research and talking to the teams, and then made this decision last night.¡±

What appealed to Ottavino about the Red Sox?

¡°It helps that I've been here before, and I know [Cora] and I know the trainers and a lot of people in the organization,¡± said Ottavino. ¡°So if I¡¯m in a situation to make a club, I'll be given a little more grace initially, since I've been inside the past few months. And also, the upside of the team, you know, it's really good.

"I like the moves. It¡¯s a place I love playing. It was kind of a no-brainer once I felt like I had a decent shot [to make the team].¡±

Ottavino is already looking forward to the chance to rebound from last season.

¡°I was just trying to figure out ways to get better,¡± Ottavino said. ¡°And some of them backfired. I tried to lean on my cutter a little bit early in the season more than I had.

"I had a really great April [a 0.93 ERA in nine outings], and then I had really my worst month ever in May [9.28 in 12], and I really hadn't changed my strategy. So it took me a little while to realize what the right changes to make were, and I felt like I made them as the season went on. And [I] just kind of ran out of time to get back into the [groove].¡±

While Cora hasn¡¯t named his closer yet, the core members of the late innings project to be Liam Hendriks, Aroldis Chapman and Justin Slaten.

Look for Ottavino to emerge as a top candidate to secure one of the final couple of spots.

The one thing that might look different about Ottavino this season is the back of his jersey. Since 2013, he has worn the number 0.

The Red Sox recently gave that one to free-agent acquisition Walker Buehler.

¡°It¡¯s his number,¡± Ottavino said of Buehler. ¡°It¡¯s all good.¡±

Ottavino had 00 on the sleeve of the Red Sox warmup shirt he wore on Tuesday.

¡°For the time being, I figured I¡¯d give people what they want,¡± said Ottavino.