Johan Oviedo has quietly worked his way back into the Red Sox conversation at just the right time.
For much of the year, he looked like an easy name to forget. Boston acquired him from the Pittsburgh Pirates in the offseason in exchange for outfield prospect Jhostynxon Garcia, and there was real buzz around what he might bring. Instead, Oviedo lost the rotation battle at the end of spring training, made only one regular-season appearance, and then went down with a flexor strain in his pitching elbow.
Now he’s edging back toward relevance as the Red Sox close in on getting All-Star pitchers Garrett Crochet and Tanner Houck back in the mix. And that raises the question: what kind of role can Oviedo still carve out if he looks sharp over the next couple of weeks?
The latest step is a rehab assignment. Chris Cotillo of MassLive reported on Saturday that Oviedo was set to begin that assignment with Triple-A Worcester on Thursday. With just over a week left in the regular season, that gives him a narrow window to get back to the majors if he only needs one outing in the minors.
A start in October seems unlikely. If Boston were to lose trust in Jake Bennett, Oviedo could potentially get the ball for Game 4 and work through one trip in the order. But the more intriguing possibility is out of the bullpen.
That’s where his forgotten upside comes back into focus. During the offseason, there was real excitement about how his fastball shape had changed in the second half of last season with Pittsburgh after he returned from Tommy John surgery. If that fastball plays up in shorter bursts, Oviedo could end up being a more useful middle-relief option in October than a Greg Weissert or Wyatt Olds.
There’s still plenty of reason to be cautious. Hoping for a major October impact after nearly six months away from game action may be asking a lot, especially given how much time Oviedo has missed over the course of his career.
He’s set to be a free agent after next season, and since his major league debut with the St. Louis Cardinals in 2020, he has appeared in 82 games and thrown 364 innings.
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