BOSTON -- Red Sox right-hander Garrett Whitlock has a working title for his upcoming season.

¡°Honestly, like I've been talking, this is what I want to be the year of health for me,¡± Whitlock said at Saturday¡¯s Fenway Fest. ¡°Just the full 162 and focus on that, and focus on staying healthy.¡±

To have the best chance to do so, Whitlock will move back to the bullpen role he dominated at in his rookie season of 2021.

After months of members of Boston¡¯s brass hinting that Whitlock would go back to the ¡®pen, he made the announcement himself on Saturday, and with enthusiasm.

¡°Let¡¯s go back to the bullpen, baby,¡± said Whitlock.

How did that decision get made?

¡°I think it was just kind of a little bit of everything. It's one of those things where, obviously, I still have the repertoire and everything to start, and if they need me to do that, I'll do that,¡± Whitlock said. ¡°But just talking to [manager Alex Cora] and everything, it's comfortable down there, and, it¡¯s where I've had success and everything. So it's what we think is going to help give the team the best chance to win. So we're going to do that.¡±

That will be music to the ears of Red Sox Nation, a portion of which has been clamoring for the club to move Whitlock back to the bullpen for the last couple of years.

In ¡¯21, as a Rule 5 pick coming off Tommy John surgery, Whitlock pitched in 46 games, all as a reliever, and had a 1.96 ERA. The Red Sox made a deep postseason run, and Whitlock was a key part of it.

Here we are, four years later. Whitlock, who appeared in four big league games in 2024 (all starts), is coming off an internal bracing procedure that he underwent in May, and the Red Sox are trying to get back to the postseason for the first time since his rookie season.

As a multi-inning reliever, Whitlock hopes to give his team the same spark he did four years ago.

¡°It¡¯s huge,¡± said Red Sox pitching coach Andrew Bailey. ¡°He¡¯s a guy that you can hand the ball off to and have him go a couple of innings late in the game and give the back end guys a rest. He¡¯s a multi-inning force back there. Gives us another way to finish games. Not only your typical multi-inning guy cleaning up some down games or some big games, he¡¯s a guy that can throw multiple innings in close games as well which gives AC a different way to finish ballgames, which is really valuable for us.¡±

Whitlock, always the ultimate team player, won¡¯t be picky about how he is used.

¡°Like I said, a little bit of everything, whatever they need me to do and go from there,¡± said Whitlock.

Whitlock¡¯s move to the ¡®pen is also based on the team¡¯s current roster. Chief baseball officer Craig Breslow bulked up the rotation this winter by trading with the White Sox for ace Garrett Crochet and adding Walker Buehler via free agency. Another free agent, lefty Patrick Sandoval, could be ready to contribute by the second half as he comes back from Tommy John surgery.

¡°I think with Whit¡¯s injury history, keeping every one of our pitchers healthy is important,¡± said Bailey. ¡°Whit¡¯s been able to do both throughout his career. He¡¯s had a lot of success in the bullpen. I think with the current depth of our starting rotation, where he fits in the mix, I know he just wants to win and do anything. Getting him back on the field and being part of the team is of the utmost importance to us and his career and our team winning, and his being on the field consistently throughout the season is going to be really valuable to us.¡±