Boston, MA
Young Red Sox starters have shown they can handle a full season’s grind
For the last few years one of the biggest questions surrounding Boston’s young starting pitchers was whether or not they could survive a full 162-game season. Guys like Tanner Houck, Kutter Crawford and Brayan Bello had shown they could compete against big league hitters, but could they maintain their stuff deep into August and September?
The answer, it turns out, is a resounding yes.
This weekend Houck, Crawford and Bello wrap up successful seasons in which each will exceed 30 starts for the first time in their careers. Houck and Crawford will both approach 180 innings, and while an early-season injury will prevent Bello from nearing that mark, he has also made every start since mid-May and gotten better as the season’s gone along.
Even if the season ultimately fell short of expectations, the trio’s emergence as legitimate rotation anchors has massive implications for the club’s future.
“We felt like they were capable of it,” said Red Sox manager Alex Cora. “They worked hard in the offseason to get to this point physically. Bello, you see the evolution of the body. Kutter put some weight. And Tanner, he’s Tanner. He’s very consistent in everything he does on the field, in the weight room and in the training room.”
Crawford, who is scheduled to make his 33rd and final start on Saturday, comes into the weekend with a 4.17 ERA over 179.1 innings. Barring a change of plan, he will become just the fifth Red Sox pitcher in the last decade to make 33 starts in a season, and probably also the third to top 180 innings since 2019.
Reaching those totals is particularly gratifying for Crawford after he spent his first two full MLB seasons bouncing back and forth between the rotation, bullpen and injured list. He said his goal was to make at least 30 starts and throw 162 innings, but while he’s happy to have accomplished that, there’s still more work to be done.
“I feel good about my ability to stay healthy and make the starts and post every five days, but there are also other stuff that needs to be worked on,” Crawford said. “I’m not satisfied with where my velo is at, I’m obviously not satisfied with how many homers I’ve given up this year. I haven’t given up necessarily as many hits, but when I have gotten hit it’s been hit hard.”
Pitching coach Andrew Bailey, who praised Crawford’s progress and work ethic, offered a similar assessment of what it’ll take to reach the next level.
“Obviously the long balls hurt him,” Bailey said. “So finding ways to stay off barrels, whether that’s increasing velo, honing in on some of the more intricacies of the shapes, specifically the splitter.”
With nothing to play for and having battled shoulder fatigue over the past few weeks, Houck won’t make his final scheduled start on Sunday, wrapping up a breakout year in which the 28-year-old earned his first career All-Star nod and established himself as a front-of-the-rotation guy. Houck finishes with a 3.12 ERA over 178.2 innings in 30 starts, all by far the best totals of his career.
And even Bello, who got off to a rocky start, finished the year on a high note. The 25-year-old missed three weeks with lat tightness in April and May and boasted a 5.32 ERA heading into the All-Star break, but from July 20 onwards he recorded a 3.47 ERA over 72.2 innings, a stretch that included one of the best outings of his career, an eight-shutout-inning gem against the Toronto Blue Jays on Aug. 28.
“l learned a lot this year,” Bello said via translator Carlos Villoria Benítez. “I was able to finish strong, I gave everything my last few outings so to be able to start pretty much every outing since May was a huge accomplishment for me.”
With the core of the starting rotation now firmly in place, the Red Sox should be much better positioned to supplement the group with additional up-and-coming arms along with new external additions this coming winter. But even if the Red Sox are happy with the steps their young pitchers have taken, the hope is this is just the start of their journey, not the ultimate destination.
“For me moving forward it sets the bar for these guys,” Bailey said. “On what we expect and continuing to drive performance.”
As we reckon with summer’s departure, there are a variety of fun-filled events to welcome the first signs of fall. Visit two “carnivals,” each with its own twist: huzzah and hurrah with medieval jest at the Brighton Bazaar’s Knight Carnival or tinker and test interactive exhibits at the Cambridge Science Carnival. Also, Somerville celebrates its prized, local invention, Marshmallow Fluff, with the 20th annual Fluff Festival, complete with sticky games and extra sugary challenges.
Here are six no-cost activities and events for the week of Sept. 15-21, as well as two ways to save on the arts this season.
BOOK LOVERS UNITE If a book club had a silent disco equivalent, it might be the Boston Figurative Art Center’s BYOBook event. Unlike a traditional book club, everyone brings whatever book they’re currently reading to a guided discussion with fellow readers from 7-7:30 p.m. After, attendees are welcomed to read as they please on the studio’s couches or lounge area. Snacks and beverages from the studio will be available. Sept. 17, 7-9 p.m. Boston Figurative Art Center, 285 Washington St., Somerville. bostonfac.com
KNIGHT MARKET The Brighton Bazaar, in collaboration with roving merchant curators Medieval Merriment, will transform into the first-ever Knight Carnival for a night of Middle Ages-themed mischief. Immerse yourself in a live sword fight between armored knights from local melee club North Horde, a creature puppet show, fantasy-inspired musicians, a site-wide scavenger hunt, and a costume contest for attendees dressed in their Ren Faire best. If you have gold in your inventory to spend, vendors will be selling trinkets all night. Sept. 18, 5-10 p.m. Charles River Speedway, 525 Western Ave., Brighton. facebook.com/thebrightonbazaar
AUTUMN LEAVES The Boston Landing Fall Crawl celebrates the arrival of the season with a reptile show with snakes and lizards, pony rides, and pumpkin decorating. DJ Dukes will play a live set from 11 a.m.-2 p.m., and country singer Louis Bello will pick up from 2-4 p.m. Meanwhile, from noon-2 p.m., attendees can join a line dancing lesson. Churros are on the house (while supplies last), and barbecue eats and other Southern staples will be available for purchase. Sept. 20, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Boston Landing, 92 Guest St. bostonlanding.co
MARSHMALLOW MADNESS Don’t expect to come out of this one clean: Somerville, the birthplace of Marshmallow Fluff, celebrates this sticky-sweet legacy with the 20th annual Fluff Festival. In addition to live music and entertainment, the event will host unique games for prizes, including Fluff jousting, where participants use pool noodles with Fluff to knock others off a balance beam, and a Fluff hair-styling contest, where Fluff and Teddy peanut butter are provided for contestants to style the best ’do. .Attendees who arrive by cycle can access two free bike valets — one in front of Gracie’s Ice Cream and another by the intersection of Somerville Avenue and School Street. The fest is free to attend, but marshmallow-y foods and drinks will be available for purchase. Sept. 20, 2-6 p.m. 366 Somerville Ave., Somerville. flufffestival.com
UP, UP, AND AWAY The City of Quincy celebrates its 400th birthday with a Hot Air Balloon and Laser Light Show at Merrymount Park. On Pageant Field, attendees can play lawn games or journey 60 feet in the air in tethered hot air balloons. Meanwhile, roving costumed performers and food trucks can be found on Adams Field. At 9 p.m., the laser show begins, projecting streams and beams onto the overhead balloons and trees. Sept. 20, 4-10 p.m. Merrymount Park, Quincy. Reserve free balloon ride vouchers on the event’s website. quincy400.com
SCIENTIFIC WONDERS More than 150 booths showcasing STEAM’s finest (and most fun) will occupy the 17th annual Cambridge Science Carnival. Visit a robot petting zoo — featuring robots of the underwater, basketball, and gummy bear varieties — check out hands-on booths to make stomp rockets, sugar glass, or bath bombs. Members of the MIT Physics Department will perform demonstrations at 1 and 3:15 p.m., and the hosts of the “Tumble Science” children’s podcast will perform interactive songs at 1:45 p.m. Sept. 21, noon-4 p.m. Kendall/MIT Open Space, 292 Main St., Cambridge. cambridgesciencecarnival.org
Deals and Steals
FINE FOR FIVE Starting Sept. 18, the Museum of Fine Arts kicks off its $5 Third Thursdays programming. On the third Thursday of each month, from 5-10 p.m., general admission is pay-as-you-wish with a $5 minimum. A crisp Lincoln grants access to the main galleries, as well as special after dark programming exclusive to each event — this month is Latinx Heritage Night featuring drop-in art sessions to make Puerto Rican beaded bracelets and Ex-Votos paintings, live sets by the Rafa Moreno Band and DJ Montro, and special spotlight talks and guided tours. mfa.org
SYMPHONY SEASON PASS Full-time Boston students with a valid college ID can take study breaks with an (award-winning) symphony when they purchase a $20 H+H Masterpass. The exclusive pass can be redeemed to access up to eight Handel and Haydn Society performances through the 2025-26 season. (Some exclusions apply.) handelandhaydn.org/concerts-tickets/masterpass
Check individual event websites for the most up-to-date information.
Send info on free events and special offers at least 10 days in advance to ryan.yau@globe.com.
Ryan Yau can be reached at ryan.yau@globe.com.
Walker Buehler’s Red Sox tenure came to an unceremonious end on August 29 when he was released to clear a roster spot for top prospect Payton Tolle to make his major league debut. His Phillies tenure, however, got off to a pretty good start Friday night.
Buehler, who signed a minor league deal with Philadelphia within a couple days of Boston cutting him, got the start at Citizens Bank Park against the Royals and delivered, holding Kansas City to one run on five hits while striking out three batters and walking just one in five innings. Philadelphia, won, 8-2, and Buehler got the win, marking his first such result since August 8, when he turned in one of his best performances in a Red Sox uniform and tossed six shutout innings in San Diego.
For Buehler, who owned a 5.45 ERA in 112 ⅓ innings for Boston, it was the third outing since July 1 in which he didn’t issue multiple walks. In 23 games (22 starts) for Boston, he issued free passes at a rate of 4.4 per nine innings. He also allowed 22 home runs.
The Phillies added Buehler to the mix in an effort to give their top starters — Cristopher Sánchez, Ranger Suárez, Jesús Luzardo and Aaron Nola — some extra chances to rest down the stretch. For now, he’s slotting into Philadelphia’s rotation as a sixth option, but he could serve a bullpen role come October if he’s pitching well and manager Rob Thomson wants to try to tap into the playoff magic Buehler has provided throughout his career. The 31-year-old, who recorded the final out of the World Series last fall at Yankee Stadium, has a career 3.04 postseason ERA in 19 appearances and has pitched three times in the World Series.
“He fits right into that mold of being a Philadelphia baseball player,” Buehler’s new teammate, Bryce Harper said, according to The Athletic’s Matt Gelb. “Just a lot of fun to be around him. Obviously, he’s pitched in big moments, deep into the postseason. So getting a guy like that in our clubhouse is huge for us. And he went out there and did a great job tonight.”
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