Garrett Whitlock

Whitlock had a delayed start last season after undergoing hip surgery in 2022, but made his debut in early April. The 27-year-old right-hander opened 2023 in Boston's starting rotation and had mixed results, alternating good starts with bad ones. Combining this inconsistency with a couple of trips to the injured list - both for right elbow issues - was enough to dim Whitlock's fantasy light last season. After missing about three months total, Whitlock returned to the mound in August, this time as a multi-inning reliever. However, he couldn't quite get the handle of his changeup (.312 BA, .559 SLG), which has been a reliable offering since his rookie season. On the plus side, Whitlock struck out 25 over his final 20 innings and still possesses some upside if the Red Sox can ever settle on his role. At this point it's unclear which direction Boston plans to go, but keeping him as a reliever would make sense given he's topped 90 innings just once in his professional career, which was his first full season back in 2018.

Whitlock's status last winter was sky high after his surprising major-league debut as a Rule 5 pick and there were as many speculating him as a starter as those believing he could even close. At the end of the day, he pitched nearly a 50/50 split as a starter and reliever with the latter work coming once he returned from the injured list with a hip issue in the summer. His numbers were more dominant as a reliever (.237 wOBA) than as a starter (.315 wOBA), but the hip certainly was a factor as it was bad enough require surgery to ultimately address the soreness after the season. The offseason acquisitions of both Kenley Jansen and Chris Martin should allow Boston the flexibility of pushing Whitlock back into the rotation as long as his offseason hip surgery recovery goes as well as expected. His overall numbers are helped by just how dominant he was in relief, but in two seasons of major league work, he has yet to have a pitch with below a 20% Whiff rate. Given the fact the entire Boston rotation is a health question mark, Whitlock could end up being the best of all the non-Sale options when it is all said and done.

Whitlock, the fourth pick of the Rule 5 draft, made the Red Sox roster out of spring training and played an unexpected but important role in 2021. The former Yankees prospect pitched multiple innings in 31 of his 46 appearances, often in high-leverage. The rookie went 8-4 with 15 holds and two saves and posted a fantastic 1.96 ERA and 1.10 WHIP over 73.1 innings. The 25-year-old relies on a four-pitch arsenal of a sinker, slider, changeup and fastball. He struggles against left-handed hitters (.293 BAA), but posted a solid 27.2% strikeout rate, 5.7% walk rate and 49.7% groundball rate. Whitlock's ability to go multiple innings could lead to a bigger role in Boston's starting rotation, or he could maintain to a similar multi-inning relief role. Some ratio regression is expected either way, but if Whitlock returns to the bullpen you can count on some wins, holds and potentially saves.

This player will receive an outlook for the 2021 fantasy baseball season.