December 21, 2017
Who saw this coming?!
The Boston Red Sox have some question marks in their starting rotation. After Chris Sale and Drew Pomeranz, things are a bit uncertain.
Rick Porcello will be back, but he pitched very poorly in 2017. Eduardo Rodriguez will be out for the start of the season with an injury. Knuckleballer Steven Wright should be back from injury, but it’s possible he will be sidelined due to a legal situation.
Fortunately for the Red Sox, they have a talented young pitcher who just transitioned into a starting role during winter ball in place to steal a spot.
The young pitcher is Chandler Shepherd, and he could provide some rotation depth for the Red Sox in 2018. Shoutout if you’d heard of this brand new starter before this week!
Chandler, who hails from Louisa, Ky. where he led his team to the state tournament three times in high school, then starred for U.K. is primed and ready for a starting spot on the Boston Red Sox this season.
Shepherd moved to a starting role during Winter Ball this offseason. He was stationed in Mexico with fellow Red Sox prospect Bryce Brentz, who gave Shepherd much praise.
Brentz lauding of Shepherd included, but was not limited to, this quote: “He kept a good pace. He gets the ball, fires it in there and trusts his stuff. He grew a lot down there.”
If not for a single poor start, Shepherd would have posted a 2.76 ERA over six starts. If he can perfect his four-pitch repertoire, he will definitely start some games in the bigs this season.
The 25-year-old right hander from Louisa, Ky. via the University of Ky. will look to bolster a Red Sox staff that is missing a powerful righty arm. The Red Sox better hope Shepherd is ready come March.
…from Jimmy Dotson’s FB page via 12UP.com
