Drew Pomeranz was forced to leave early in his Spring Training start on Friday against the St. Louis Cardinals.
Bad news for the Boston Red Sox, as starting pitcher Drew Pomeranz had to leave the game Friday due to left forearm tightness. The left-hander called out catcher Blake Swihart to the mound after throwing four pitches to Marcell Ozuna. Trainers promptly came out to tend to Pomeranz before he exited the game.
According to ESPN, Pomeranz had this to say about his sore arm:
"I wasn’t really pushing it, so I just was like, you know what? There’s no point. Figure out what’s going on and shut it down."
This is concerning news for Boston. Further information on Pomeranz’ status has not been disclosed, but if it’s a serious injury, that would be a huge blow to the team. The Red Sox’ lineup looks like like one of the better ones in the league right now, especially with the addition of J.D. Martinez. But their rotation is a big question mark going into this season.
Chris Sale will no doubt continue to be a force on the mound and serve as Boston’s ace. But after him, it’s anyone’s guess what this rotation will do in 2018. David Price signed a massive seven-year, $217 million contract with the team ahead of the 2016 season, and while he hasn’t been bad since arriving in Boston, he hasn’t looked like the star pitcher we’re used to seeing.
For the Red Sox to be championship contenders this year, they’ll need David Price and Drew Pomeranz to be healthy and productive. So potentially losing Pomeranz before the season even starts has to be frustrating for the team.
The 29-year-old was acquired from the San Diego Padres during the 2016 all-star break. Since then, he’s gone 20-11 with a 3.68 ERA. The lefty racked up 17 wins and posted a solid 3.32 ERA in 2017.
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The Red Sox will hope for the best as they await further news on the extent of Pomeranz’s injury. They have a lot riding on him this year.