Red Sox ‘ace’ has been the most unlikely of pitchers to start the season

The Boston Red Sox may have accidentally tripped and fallen into discovering the ace of their pitching staff early in the 2024 MLB campaign, landing on arguably the most unlikely option, Cooper Criswell.

Criswell has found his way into the rotation because of a slew of injuries to pitchers like Nick Pivetta, Brayan Bello and Garrett Whitlock, thriving in their absence to the point where we must ponder whether he will be a mainstay in the starting five once/if the Red Sox are at full strength. 

You can see how well Criswell and Boston have fared through his first five starts this season, per the team's baseball communications and media relations director, J.P. Long.

Red Sox ‘ace’ has been the most unlikely of pitchers to start the season

Boston has yet to drop a game this season when Criswell is the first pitcher to take the mound for them, posting a perfect 5-0 record. Moreover, the 27-year-old right-hander has a 1.93 ERA and 0.94 WHIP with 25 strikes (and only four walks) across 23.1 innings pitched -- not too shabby for someone who made two starts over the first three years of his major league career.

However, the Red Sox reinstated Bello and Pivetta from the injured list last week and are on the verge of doing the same for Whitlock, who will reportedly make a minor league rehab start on Wednesday. So, seeing how manager Alex Cora handles the rotation will be intriguing. But now that the cat is out of the bag, it is hard to see how the team moves away from Criswell.

Regardless of how things play out, having too many talented arms in the rotation is never a bad problem. But the Red Sox now know they have another reliable option to turn to in the form of Criswell, which can be considered a happy accident and silver lining to the early-season injury woes.