Jake Peavy might start 2014 on the disabled list

Jake Peavy cut his finger with a knife this past weekend, while trying to prepare to go fishing with his son. It was an unfortunate accident, one that resulted in surgery on his non-throwing hand thanks to a severed tendon, and it has him in camp throwing, but not catching, baseballs. According to MLB.com's Ian Browne, there is no timetable for Peavy's return just yet, meaning he's not a lock to start the season with the club.

He's not a lock to miss the Opening Day roster, either, but the possibility exists where it did not before that the Sox will have to dip into their depth as early as their first run through the rotation. Manager John Farrell said that Peavy's start, should it need to be filled, would go to either Chris Capuano or Brandon Workman.

There's no surprise there, given Workman was expected to stick as a starter at Triple-A Pawtucket, awaiting an opportunity to join the big-league roster once more, while Capuano was signed in the off chance the Red Sox needed a spot starter early on, before the kids were ready to step in (if such a scenario where their presence was necessary came to pass, anyway).

It could be either of them, too, since it's little trouble to start Workman on the big-league roster if Peavy ends up needing to begin 2014 on the disabled list. That would open up a 25-man spot for Workman, and since he wouldn't be ripped from the Pawtucket rotation to make a start (or starts), he wouldn't see his schedule shifted around with potential development time lost trying to work him in. If Peavy doesn't need to go on the disabled list, but simply can't make his first start of the year, Capuano is probably the better option, since the 25-man would need to be left alone in this scenario.

Capuano is a better fit as a lefty reliever on the Red Sox, but if it's just one or two April starts while Peavy gets up to speed, it'll be fine, especially since it can keep the prospects in the Triple-A rotation, well, in the Triple-A rotation, where they can continue to develop and refine their game until the time is right. If it ends up being something more long-term, where Peavy is on the DL, Workman is the guy for the job. Of course, this is all speculative, anyway, as Peavy could have a padded setup on his finger shortly, and be going through spring training like normal in no time.