Robert Stock optioned to make room for Kyle Hart

As the Red Sox hope to avoid a sweep to the Rays on Thursday, they will have a lefty making his major-league debut in Kyle Hart. That he was getting this start has been a not-so-well-kept secret for pretty much the entire week, and Ron Roenicke formally announced that it was going to happen following Tuesday’s game. The only thing we didn’t know was how they’d make room on the roster for Hart. The good news is the 40-man was already taken care of as the southpaw was added this past winter prior to the Rule 5 Draft. They took care of the active roster Thursday afternoon, optioning Robert Stock down to the Alternate Site in Pawtucket.

This isn’t terribly surprising, as Stock has options and is one of the fringier pitchers on a roster full of fringe pitchers. There is upside here given his velocity and the fact that he has had some success in the majors in 2018. That said, there are real things to work on and he did not impress in his lone appearance in his short stint with Boston. That appearance came on Tuesday, and while he allowed just an unearned run over 1 ¹⁄₃ innings he also allowed a hit and three walks.

As for Hart, well, I wrote about him this morning.