Red Sox scratch Drew Pomeranz from Thursday start, likely setting playoff rotation

The Red Sox have announced that Drew Pomeranz will not make his scheduled start on Thursday due to forearm soreness and his career-high workload.

This seems like it might be the end of the Pomeranz - Buchholz saga that has developed these last couple weeks. As Pomeranz has fallen off, showing the signs of late-season fatigue, Buchholz has come on strong. Both men produced solid results in their last starts, but weren’t without flaws. For the former, it was a night of unproductive long fly balls which might be hard to really reproduce. For the latter, it was a matter of too many of the elevated fastballs that often serve as a warning sign for a pitcher trying to overcompensate while running on fumes.

The thing is...when Buchholz is pitching well, these are the sort of games he’ll produce on his bad days. It’s easy enough to imagine the next time he puts up seven strong, he’ll do so with fewer real moments of danger. For Pomeranz? Well, he hardly seems likely to find a miracle second wind.

The Sox haven’t yet determined if Pomeranz will be able to pitch come October, but they do seem to be clear on the fact that, if he does, it will be out of the bullpen. He, of course, has no little experience as a strong lefty reliever. If relief outings and a little rest lets him go all-out in short bursts, then he may even be a major boon to the relief corps.

For Thursday, Henry Owens will take the mound in place of Pomeranz. Once you’re past the initial fear that inspires, glance at the standings and rest easy. Pomeranz being shut down isn’t good news, but it’s also far from the end of days, however bad having Buchholz in the playoff rotation might have seemed a couple months ago.